“Who do you say that I am?” It’s the question Jesus posed to the men closest to him, the one Peter answered with an unequivocal confession of faith in him as the Messiah and Son of God. The entirety of our Catholic faith rests on Peter’s response and, for 2,000 years, the church has proclaimed the divinity of Jesus Christ and his eternal kingdom.
But it is not enough for the church to answer this question as a whole. “Who do you say that I am?” is directed to every Christian soul. It is the one question on life’s final exam each one of us will be required to answer.
The quality of our discipleship is largely a consequence of the response we give — not only in our words, but by how we live. That’s because Jesus is every Catholic’s most significant other. Our relationship to him is the single most important relationship we have because it defines and shapes all the rest of our relationships.
Life is a pilgrimage toward holiness, and saints are made, not born. As we grow in our faith, who Jesus is becomes increasingly central to who we are. That transformation is invariably reflected in how we live. And as our answer to Christ’s question develops and deepens, a pattern of growth in the Christian spiritual life emerges and the path from muse and motivator to mentor and master becomes clear.
For nearly all of us, Jesus begins as a sort of “muse,” a source of inspiration for our creativity and our choices. We find power for our life’s work in the Gospel accounts of his life, death and resurrection. We are drawn by Christ’s goodness, intrigued by his truth, and elevated by the beauty of his grace. But we remain committed to our own self-will.
Those who move forward in faith adopt Jesus as a source of motivation. As a motivator, Christ brings out the best in us. He affirms all that is godly and good in us. He becomes a driving force behind our deeds and provides initiative, guidance and direction to our lives. He gives us the motivation we need to embrace change and growth. But we maintain authority over our lives according to our own priorities and preferences.
Serious disciples make Jesus their mentor. The decision to place ourselves under Christ’s direction, to learn from him, to exchange our own work and agendas for his mission and his will is the secret to growth in the spiritual life. This is what has the power to move us from consumer Catholicism to intentional missionary discipleship. But it does not put an end to self-will.
Our evangelization efforts are focused on making more of these kinds of disciples. And there is little doubt that increasing the very small percentage of Catholics actively engaged in a mentoring relationship with Jesus Christ would transform both the church and the world. But while that may be enough for us, it is not enough for God. God’s plan for us is nothing short of sanctity. He wants to make every one of us — without exception — a saint.
So, what’s the difference between a serious disciple and a saint? The grand canyon between seeing Jesus as a mentor and serving him as a master. Saints surrender everything to Jesus. They let go of all other attachments because they know they cannot serve both God and something else. They do not seek to serve God in the way they desire to serve him, but in the way he wants to be served. They accept everything from his hand as gift and commit to making a total and sincere gift of themselves to him and to all they encounter.
Saints are satisfied only by God himself; nothing less than God or other than him will do. And for those who are holy, God alone is enough. Nothing else is wanted, needed, or required.
Regardless of where we are in the pilgrimage of faith, we can make progress simply by taking the next step in front of us. The heart that is inspired can become obedient. The soul that is trained by Christ can surrender itself entirely into God’s hands. Jesus Christ calls everyone to holiness, and he opens up the pathway to sanctity when he asks us, “Who do you say that I am?”
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