Good morning Logos Dei Church!
As we get into our passage today, I want to give you just a little historical background to help us understand what’s going on here in this story.
Ancient Rabbis used to use language to explain the glory of God when it was made known to the people of God and they would use the word “Shekinah Glory” (Sh'kheenah) . . . it’s a word that can’t be found in scripture but it was their way of articulating and explaining the revelation of God’s glory.
And in those moments that God revealed himself,
- it is a cloud enveloping God’s people,
- or a fire leading God’s people, and illuminating that which is darkness around them.
You can find examples of this throughout the OT :most notably in the exodus story when there is a cloud that leads them by day and a pillar of fire that leads them by night; these are the glory of God - The Shekinah Glory.
And people who come into the presence of the glory of God would radiate the glory of God. We see this again in the story of Exodus when Moses received the 10 commandments for the second time (because out of anger he broke the first one) and he came down from the mountain after meeting with God and his face radiated with the Glory of God.
Not that people become glory but rather they radiate God’s glory. Similar to the way the moon doesn’t actually glow but rather it radiates the glow of the sun. You can’t look directly at the sun but you can see the radiance of the sun by looking at the moon. In this same way, you can’t look at God but rather you can see God’s glory in and through people.
And in that radiation – that light, we can see our brokenness but we can also see God’s comfort
And as we trace this theme of glory throughout the story of the Hebrew people, we find that when they finally enter into the promised land of Israel, God gave them instructions to build a temple, which was to be the house for God on earth.
That sacred meeting place where God would come to be with his people and his people would come to meet with their God, and so it became the connecting point between heaven and earth. And here’s what happened in that place.
“When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “He is good; his love endures forever.” 2 Chronicles 7:1-3
Well there is a series of tragic events in the history of Israel where God’s people decided not to worship God alone. Now people would have said that they believed in God, but they incorporated other religious practices into their spiritual lives . . . sort of like a buffet of religion where you pick and choose what feels right for you. Not that much different than Modern western spirituality.
And as a result, the glory of God departed from the temple and the people of God. God left. His presence was removed and his glory withdrawn.
And a name was given, Ichabod, which means the glory of God has departed. Ichabod was that season of the history of Israel where for six hundred years the glory of God was absent. God did not reveal himself. There was no cloud, no fire, no tabernacle or temple that housed his glory. God removed himself from his people. And for six hundred years it is a season of Ichabod; a season of the absence of God.
And then after six hundred years there were these blue collar peasant workers in the field who were keeping flock at night and an angel showed up . . . . and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
The glory of God is returning to the people of God in the person of Jesus!
Scripture: Luke 9:28-36
As we enter this story, Jesus is now in his early thirties and he’s been really busy teaching, and healing, and raising the dead, and casting out demons, and caring for the multitudes.
This has been a busy season.
In the midst of this busy season of ministry . . . Jesus decides to share a little secret with three of his apostles – Peter, James and John – not by telling them, but by showing them.
He takes them up on a high mountain where they can see over all the land and there on top of this mountain Jesus is transfigured. This word transfigured, literally means, “Metamorphosis” - a change in form. The same word used in the English when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly.
Right there on the top of this mountain - the glory of God explodes . . . revealed in the person of Jesus Christ and Jesus is transformed and his face and clothes are shining like the sun.
And if this weren’t enough of a surprise . . . there standing with Jesus were Moses and Elijah. I don’t know how they knew it was Moses and Elijah because these guys have been dead for thousands of years
Maybe they had nametags or Jersey’s with their names on the back . . . I don’t know, they just show up.
- Moses – the representative of the law
- Elijah – the representative of the prophets
- And Jesus – the representative of the new kingdom.
- And they are all radiating the glory of God – this is an awesome sight
Now I love Peter because he has great intentions but he always gets it wrong. If there’s a time to be quiet, he talks. If there’s a puddle you really should walk around, he jumps right in it.
So here they are on top of this mountain with the biggest names in history and he’s thinking to himself:
This would be a really cool community group. I really like James and John and we’re already hanging out with Jesus. We’ve been talking about starting a community group and been praying about who could be a part of our group. And now, here are Moses and Elijah, this seems like a great group.
So let’s just order some tents, have them shipped to us up here on the mountain, and our community group can just hang out on the mountain, and we don’t need flashlights or fire because you guys can just do your glory thing and answer some theological questions that we have for you. That was Peters plan.
But the problem is that he’s trying to sustain a mountain top experience.
People tend to do this don’t they? You have an amazing experience with God, and rather than enjoying it, and moving on to what God would have for you next, you keep trying to go back and relive it.
But the truth is, it’s wrong to continually try to relive mountain top experiences. We are to enjoy those sacred moments when God shows up in glory in our life, and then proceed forward trusting that, if and when it’s time, he will meet us at a different time, perhaps to reveal himself in a different way.
If you keep trying to relive the mountain top or stay on the mountain . . . you’re gonna miss what God’s gonna do next in your life and I promise you . . . he’s got some big things in store for you and for us!
Well, the surprises don’t end there. For the final scene of this remarkable day, the thing that floored Peter, James, and John, knocking them to their faces in terror, wasn’t something they saw, but something they heard:
A cloud overshadowed them – the “Shekeenah Glory” And from this cloud, God spoke . . .
“This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him.”
They actually heard the voice of the Father . . . the Word of God. And what they heard was a reminder of Jesus’ baptism, in which the Father made the same pronouncement about the Son. But this time, the Father had something else to say, some advice.
He told them to . . . “listen to” Jesus.
This is a declaration of divinity. This is God the father saying, this is my chosen. This is the one whom I have chosen to reveal my glory to and through. He is the one who I have chosen to save sinners . . . listen to him. Don’t listen to false teachers. Don’t listen to those who would confuse you with false religions and ideologies, and half truths. Listen to Him for this is my son and all authority is given to him!
And as quickly as this horrific scene came upon them, it was over. And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no-one but Jesus.
- No more were they distracted by the law and the prophets, represented by Moses and Elijah - for now they see “Jesus only” – the one who fulfills the Law and the prophets.
- No more would they hear the booming voice from heaven – but rather the Word himself, the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ - the Son of God . . . And the Father says, “listen to Him”.
This story has clear links to the past – but more importantly this story points us forward – to the story of Jesus’ death on a cross at a place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull.
Only when we compare the two stories we are struck more by the contrasts than the similarities.
- Here in this story – Jesus’ clothes shine with the glory of God
- There at the crucifixion - the soldiers gamble for Jesus’ bloody clothes.
- Here in this story – Jesus is surrounded by two great heroes from ancient history
- There at the crucifixion – Jesus is surrounded by two common criminals
- Here in this story– Jesus is witnessed by three disciples
- There at the crucifixion – three woman followers are named as witnesses
- Here in this story– it is a scene of dazzling light
- There at the crucifixion – the darkness came over the whole land
- Here in this story– Jesus basks in the presence of the Father
- There at the crucifixion – Jesus suffers the hell of the Father’s absence and cries out “My God, My God why have you forsaken me?”
- Here on this mountain – The father confesses Jesus as His son as a voice sounds forth, “This is my beloved son.”
- There on that mountain – in utter abandonment, it is left to a Roman centurion to blurt out, “Truly this man was God’s son.”
And we could continue – so many contrasts. It seems almost as if the hellish scene on Golgotha is a parody of this moment of glory on the mountain. It’s as if the horror of that account is a deliberate inversion of the splendor of what happened here.
And if so, what is it trying to tell us?
At this point of the gospel Jesus is on a journey – a journey that will take him to Jerusalem and to death and beyond and this scene is showing us the end of the journey.
A week before this scene, Jesus has spoken candidly about the death that awaits him, and Peter took Him aside and rebuked Him. He wasn’t looking for a suffering Messiah, he was looking for a conquering Messiah.
But here atop of this mountain, Jesus is giving them preview of something that is yet to come, and only when they witness the gruesome scene on Golgotha will they be able to make sense of what they have experienced here on the mountain top.
The cross, the crucifixion . . . is a critical stop on the way . . . but it’s not the end of the journey. We are not left, with Christ disfigured, abandoned and bloody, pinned and hung like a scarecrow. Beyond that is the risen Christ who can be glimpsed here at the transfiguration.
But what we see revealed here is not just the goal of Christ’s journey, but the goal of our journey too. You see, Christ came to transform us. He came to transfigure us with the radiant glory of God’s grace. And the cross is a critical part of our journey but it is not the end of our journey.
Here on top of this mountain, we glimpse our destination when we too will bask in the glory of God and when all of creation is at peace with one another and with God.
No wonder Peter wants to make three shelters there. No wonder he wants to stay there. No wonder he wants to freeze frame the moment. He doesn’t want to let it go. Here for a few moments he glimpses where he will one day be. Who would want to go down the mountain?
But down the mountain they must go . . .
And if we were to continue this story, which Greg will do next week, we would have discovered what Jesus and Peter, James and John found down the mountain – a man whose son is possessed by a demon which flings him to the ground and has him foaming at the mouth and grinding his teeth.
And here we see a different image of our humanity – not the transfigured humanity that is our destination, but our disfigured humanity.
And of course this world at the foot of the mountain is the one we are all too familiar with. It’s a world where lives are preyed on by evil forces. Where nations are battling nations, people are begging on the streets for their next meal, and children are dying of preventable diseases.
Who would want to go back down the mountain?
But down the mountain we must go.
But we go with the advice of God who says . . .
“This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him.”
And when we do, these are the words we hear . . . Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going."
When we hear the Scriptures, we hear the Son – just as the Father commands. And though we are unable to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, and though because of our sins we have every reason to fear and fall on our faces before God, Jesus fulfills the Law and the Prophets on our behalf, touches us, absolves us of our sins, offers us Himself and bids us to “rise and have no fear”
And when we accept God’s grace through his son Jesus, the Holy Spirit enters into our lives and we begin to radiate with God’s grace. It just envelops us and becomes who we are and it just flows out of our pours.
And just as the moon radiates the glow of the sun . . . through us people should see the love of God, and they should see the holiness and goodness of God as we are radiating forth the glory of God.
I can’t pretend it is easy. Like Peter, I sometimes miss the point by trying to capture it instead of paying attention to what God is doing but let us follow the example of Peter, James and John; when it comes to our salvation, when it comes to hearing the Word of God, when it comes to the revelation of God Himself, let us look to no-one but “Jesus Only”. AMEN