September 1 Daily Devotional

Matthew 16–17; Mark 8 and 9; Luke 9

“When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Who do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou are John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But who say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

“From that time forth Jesus began to show unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things … and be killed, and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan; thou art an offense unto me: for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but the things of men. Then said Jesus to his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me … For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.”

“And after six days Jesus took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up into a high mountain apart, and was, transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment became white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem. Then answered Peter unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it they fell on their face and were frightened. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.”