One time when Jesus was praying alone, his followers were with him, and he asked them, “Who do the people say I am?”
They answered, “Some say you are John the Baptist. Others say you are Elijah. And others say you are one of the prophets from long ago who has come back to life.”
Then Jesus asked, “But who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ from God.”
Jesus warned them not to tell anyone, saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things. He will be rejected by the Jewish elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law. He will be killed and after three days will be raised from the dead.”
Jesus said to all of them, “If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. They must be willing to give up their lives daily to follow me. Those who want to save their lives will give up true life. But those who give up their lives for me will have true life. It is worthless to have the whole world if they themselves are destroyed or lost. If people are ashamed of me and my teaching, then the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and with the glory of the Father and the holy angels. I tell you the truth, some people standing here will see the kingdom of God before they die.”
About eight days after Jesus said these things, he took Peter, John, and James and went up on a mountain to pray. While Jesus was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became shining white. Then two men, Moses and Elijah, were talking with Jesus. They appeared in heavenly glory, talking about his departure which he would soon bring about in Jerusalem. Peter and the others were very sleepy, but when they awoke fully, they saw the glory of Jesus and the two men standing with him. When Moses and Elijah were about to leave, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” (Peter did not know what he was talking about.)
While he was saying these things, a cloud came and covered them, and they became afraid as the cloud covered them. A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him!”
When the voice finished speaking, only Jesus was there. Peter, John, and James said nothing and told no one at that time what they had seen.
The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Jesus. A man in the crowd shouted to him, “Teacher, please come and look at my son, because he is my only child. An evil spirit seizes my son, and suddenly he screams. It causes him to lose control of himself and foam at the mouth. The evil spirit keeps on hurting him and almost never leaves him. I begged your followers to force the evil spirit out, but they could not do it.”
Jesus answered, “You people have no faith, and your lives are all wrong. How long must I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”
While the boy was coming, the demon threw him on the ground and made him lose control of himself. But Jesus gave a strong command to the evil spirit and healed the boy and gave him back to his father. All the people were amazed at the great power of God.
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