In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 16, Jesus asked his disciples who they say that he is. Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus said to him, "Blesses are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father."
Later, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed... Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him, "God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you." He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."
Later, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed... Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him, "God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you." He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."
This shows very clearly that when God speaks to us, he places what he wishes to convey directly in our heart, as Peter in the first instance showed. In the second instance, Peter just conveyed his own feelings, not what God thinks. We must be connected with God most intimately so as to speak his thoughts always with us out of the way.
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