Transfiguration: Something had to prepare the disciples for what was about to happen
Sermon at Coventry, Ocala, Feb. 15, 2015
The Transfiguration: Something had to prepare the disciples — and us — for what was about to happen.
2 Corinthians 4:3-6
Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
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The Holy Gospel
Mark 9:2-9
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.
As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
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Someone approacheth. Someone who is kind, giving us the very essence of the nature of God. That is why Paul can say in 1 Colossians, that Jesus is the exact likeness of the invisible God. I don’t know what you think about who God is or who God isn’t and what God’s characteristics are, you can find somebody who will agree with you. But a part of what is being revealed in Scripture is, if you really want to know who God is, look at the face of Jesus. “This is my Son, the Beloved, listen to Him.” Jesus becomes for us literally the standard by which we determine what is of God and what is not of God. What describes God accurately and what does not describe God accurately.
If it doesn’t look like Jesus, it’s not God. No matter how lofty the claim, no matter how religious it might sound, no matter how convincing it might be, no matter what miraculous the things might happen around it (the devil knows how to make a miracle).
No. What we see is that all truth is in Jesus. “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” The exact likeness of the invisible God. He becomes the one who shows us who God is and who He is like, and what that means is that He’s approachable: I can come to him. And unlike Peter, I don’t have to be afraid. Just the opposite. I can go to him knowing that even as He dealt with all of the people in the Scripture, including the woman caught in adultery, or the man born blind, it doesn’t matter; how He responded to them is precisely how He’s going to respond. Because He loves, He is the beloved. He loves me no less. He loves you no less.
Do you believe that about Jesus? Can you trust Him to follow Him with your life? Do you understand that no matter how you come to Him, whether it is in repentance, whether it is in joy, whether it is your sharing something wonderful that’s happened, whether you want to ask God to help you because you need it.
Just as Jesus responded to everyone, He responds that way to you. He’s the same Jesus in whom we have seen the glory of God. God manifest in the very human face of Jesus. And that gives us the beginning of strength. No matter what I have to go through, I know I can go through it in the companionship of Jesus. He’ll never leave me or forsake me.
So, even if I pay a price for being a Christian, I would rather pay a price for being a Christian and walk in the companionship of God than choose to live like a pagan and feel like I am alone. Because, you see, that’s the choice.
There is no room in your Christian walk to say, “I love Jesus,” and then do whatever the heck you want. That’s not walking in the companionship of Christ. Walking in the companionship of Christ is an invitation to walk with Him, not going your way. Sure, we stray, but that’s because we’re humans and we can go to Him and ask for His forgiveness and He’ll bring us right back.
So the invitation in this story is to know that, number one, what we see in Jesus is God in the flesh. We can trust Him no matter what’s going on, knowing that we belong to Him and that He will never leave us.
But to walk with Him asks of us a price. The price is: You and I are not quite calling the shots any more. I don’t get to do whatever the heck I want. I’m invited to come and walk in companionship with Him, knowing that it will be possible, but it is not always easy.
When the disciples have gone down the mountain and they’re heading towards Crucifixion and Resurrection, he gives them the word of assurance that they needed, so that when all of the awful things happen, they will remember who He was. So it is with us. We are also are being invited, even in this upcoming Lent, to face the fact that we’re paying a price for being a Christian and that it is not always easy. But we make the commitment to do so, because we know to make that journey is worth it, and even though the cost is high, I would rather go no other way.