Linda Gowland, Lay Leader at St Aidan’s URC comments on Mark 8 v 27 - 38:

One of the first questions anyone asks when they meet someone new is ‘what do you do for a living?’ – a way of assessing who they are.

One day, Jesus and his disciples were walking along the road on their way to a new place to share God’s word when Jesus asked, “Who do men say that I am?”. One of the disciples said, “John the Baptist”.

Someone else in the group said Jesus was really “Elijah.” Someone else said, “One of the prophets.”

Elijah was a prophet who lived many years before Jesus was born.

The stories of Elijah and other prophets are told in the Old Testament.

Jesus wasn’t John the Baptist, Elijah or one of the prophets. His closest disciples knew that. He then asked another question of the disciples “Who do you say that I am?”.

Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples said, “You are the Christ”; this shows how Peter was coming to understand Jesus.

Peter understood that Elijah and other prophets talked about a Messiah who would come someday to set people free and show God’s love and share his message to love one another.

The Messiah would be called Christ. Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who came to earth to show people how to follow God and how to love and care for others.

No matter what career you have followed in your life, your most important job is to love God and do what you can to help others.