Who Is Jesus to You?

Reflection Date: September 25, 2026 | Friday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Daily Readings: Ecclesiastes 3:1-11; Luke 9:18-22

Children of God:
One of the most important differences between Iglesia Ni Cristo and Catholic Christianity concerns the identity of Jesus Christ.

The Iglesia Ni Cristo officially teaches that Jesus is the Son of God, Savior, and mediator between God and humanity, but it does not believe that Jesus is God or that He is both God and man.

The Iglesia Ni Cristo explains this belief by emphasizing passages in which Jesus experienced human realities such as hunger, thirst, tiredness, sleep, and death, and it understands these as evidence that Jesus is human rather than divine.

The Iglesia ni Cristo also rejects the doctrine of the Trinity and teaches that the Father alone is the one true God.

Catholic Christianity, on the other hand, professes one God in three divine Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God who became truly human without ceasing to be truly divine.

The Nicene Creed therefore describes Jesus as “true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father.”

Catholic teaching also holds that Jesus possesses both a divine nature and a human nature in the one divine Person of the Son.

These are not simply differences in terminology because they lead to different understandings of who Jesus is and what His saving mission means.

The important thing for us is not merely to know that Christians disagree about Jesus but to return again to the question Jesus Himself placed before His disciples: who do we say He is?

In the gospel story of Jesus, He withdrew to a quiet place and prayed while His disciples were with Him.

He asked them who the crowds identified Him to be, and they answered that some thought He was John the Baptist, Elijah, or one of the ancient prophets.

Jesus then asked them directly, “But who do you say that I am?” (Luke 9:20).

Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God” (Luke 9:20).

This moment was important because Jesus did not allow His identity to remain merely a matter of public opinion.

He asked His disciples for their own response.

So, what are our inspirations for today?

First, we must make the question “who is Jesus?” personal.

The question of Jesus remains alive today.

We can inherit our faith from our parents, learn it from our teachers, hear it from priests, encounter it through social media, or discuss it with friends.

All of these can help us, but eventually we have to make the question personal.

Who is Jesus for me?

This is particularly important when we encounter people who understand Jesus differently.

Knowing that another Christian community holds a different belief should encourage us to understand our own faith more deeply rather than simply repeating labels.

Catholic faith asks us to know why we believe that Jesus is truly God and truly man and why that truth matters for our salvation.

The Catechism identifies this confession of Christ as true God and true man as central to Christian faith.

We must make the question “who is Jesus?” personal

Second, knowing who Jesus is also means accepting the kind of life He asks us to live.

Peter identified Jesus as the Christ, but Jesus immediately spoke about suffering,rejection, death, and resurrection. The disciples might have expected a Messiah associated with power and triumph, but Jesus presented a mission that passed through sacrifice.

His identity could not be separated from His cross.

This gives us an important lesson about faith.

It is possible to say the right words about Jesus while avoiding the difficult consequences of following Him.

We can call Him Lord while refusing to forgive, call Him Savior while refusing to serve, or speak about the cross while avoiding every form of sacrifice.

Catholic faith does not simply proclaim that Jesus is divine; it also proclaims that the eternal Son truly became human, suffered, died, and rose for our salvation.

The Church teaches that the one Christ is truly God and truly man, with His divine and human natures united in one Person.

Therefore, our confession of who Jesus is becomes meaningful when it shapes the way we live, love, forgive, sacrifice, and serve.

Knowing who Jesus is also means accepting the kind of life He asks us to live.

As we reflect, we ask ourselves: Who is Jesus for me when I am facing difficult choices or suffering?

Do I understand why the Catholic Church professes Jesus as both truly God and truly man, and does that belief make a difference in my life? If I truly recognize Jesus as the Christ, what is He asking me to change, sacrifice, or do for others today?

Children of God:
The question of Jesus' identity is not a small theological argument because it reaches the very heart of Christian faith.

The Iglesia Ni Cristo and the Catholic Church both speak of Jesus as the Son of God, Savior, and mediator, but they understand His nature differently: the Iglesia Ni Cristo teaches that Jesus is human and not God, while Catholic Christianity professes Jesus as truly God and truly man.

Peter recognized Jesus as the Christ, and Jesus immediately showed that His mission included suffering, sacrifice, death, and resurrection.

To recognize Jesus, therefore, is also to accept the path He places before us.