Saturday, the Third Week of Easter
Daily Readings: Acts 9:31-42; Gospel John 6:60-69
The difficulties we encounter in life can occasionally cause us to lose our faith. May Peter's confession rekindle our confidence in Jesus and lead us to proclaim, "You have the words of eternal life."
The discourse of Jesus on the bread of life creates scandal for his believers. Jesus identifies himself as the bread of life, and whoever eats that bread will have eternal life. This teaching is quite tricky to comprehend by his listeners. "This saying is hard. Who can accept it?" Many of them, then, decides to leave him.
Jesus, then, challenges the twelve if they want to leave too. He gives them the freedom to choose whether to leave him or remain with him. Peter’s confession reveals the true identity of Jesus. In his confession, on behalf of his companions, Peter expresses their faith in Jesus. You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God. "
Peter’s confession finds its affirmation in his own factual experience in his ministry upon the departure of Jesus to heaven, as we read in today's first reading. Peter heals Aeneas, who has been paralyzed for eight years. He also raises Tabitha. He performs these miracles, not in his name but in the name of Jesus.
Therefore, it is not Peter who heals and gives life, but the Lord Jesus. At the end of the reading, the writer confirms:"... many came to believe in the Lord." Peter believes that Jesus not only gives us life for our existence in this world but also assures us of eternal life. For this reason, he offers himself totally to Christ to the point of his martyrdom.
The problems we face in our lives sometimes lead us away from our faith. We are busy finding concrete solutions to our problems to guarantee the stability of our lives on earth.
We see our faith in Jesus as a stumbling block that hinders us from obtaining what we want in other situations. For this reason, we put our faith aside. May the confession of Peter open our hearts to renew our faith in Jesus and say, "You have the words of eternal life."
As expressed in the readings of today, Peter's faith challenges us. Do we find faith in Jesus relevant to our lives and situations today?
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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