Today’s gospel reading while brief has a profound message for us.

The miracles of Jesus inspired and amazed the disciples. The life of Christ was a living testament to the glory and majesty of God especially to the least of us. With these miraculous deeds however came a sharp contrast in Jesus’s prophesy of his betrayal, suffering and death. The disciples were confused in part because of their notions about the Messiah. Their fear in not asking any questions is like a person not asking their dentist or doctor about a symptom they have because they may not want to know if the verdict is bad news.

When do we rationalize or even reject that which we do not wish to know or understand? When have we heard God’s word but not listened and responded? When have we felt the whisper of the Holy Spirit in our hearts but succumbed to the cacophony of noise in our daily lives and ignored the movement of the Spirit for our lives?

When we hear God’s word we know the consequences of accepting or rejecting it. Our challenge is giving ourselves to the fidelity of God’s message and to mold our lives according to it. But we must also accept that there can be no share in God’s majesty without the cross.

“Lord by your cross and resurrection you have saved the world.”