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Exodus 34:29-25 29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the LORD had given him on Mount Sinai. 33 When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. 34 But whenever he entered the LORD’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the LORD.
Luke 9:28-36 28 About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31 appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32 Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters–one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.) 34 While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” 36 When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen.
Listen to Him! Transfiguration of the Lord
Today we are celebrating Transfiguration Sunday. This is the last Sunday before we begin the season of Lent and follow Christ on his journey to the cross. This passage is one where the veil between heaven and earth is thrown aside and we are given a glimpse of a different reality. Yes, Jesus is fully human, as we will see most graphically in the crucifixion. Today, though, we are reminded that Jesus is divine, he is the Lord, the Son of God. We need this reminder as we prepare to enter Lent next week.
The Transfiguration occurs at a crucial turning point in the gospel story. Immediately before our lesson today, Peter declared Jesus was the Messiah. Jesus began to teach that he will suffer and die only to rise on the third day. The heavenly glory of our verses this morning stands in stark contrast with the coming humiliation of the cross. Peter, James and John are caught up in an incident that allows them to see God’s sovereignty affirmed and his purpose working out in the coming of the Messiah, his son, Jesus.
This story teaches us important lessons about God, change, and how we can grow in our faith. It’s a simple story actually. Jesus takes Peter, James and John up to the top of a mountain. They probably thought they were going to pray or perhaps Jesus wanted to teach them something apart from all the others. Instead of what they expected, all of reality was shattered before them. Before their very eyes Jesus is transformed. He becomes dazzling white, and is joined by Elijah and Moses, two of the most important figures in Jewish history. If that wasn’t amazing enough, they are suddenly enveloped by a cloud and from the cloud comes the voice of God saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen, listen to Him!”
Remember Peter, James and John were simple fisherman. Yes, they had seen Jesus perform many miracles but to see him transformed? This was totally outside their understanding.
This is an overwhelming experience and it is easy to skip over much of what happens but if we take it apart piece by piece we will gain a deeper understanding. The Transfiguration is recorded in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. We get the most detail from Luke’s gospel which we are using today.
First let’s look at Jesus’ actual transformation. His face changed, Matthew’s gospel tells us his face “shone like the sun”. His clothes became dazzling white. Mark’s gospel adds, “whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them”. His Transformation was a way for Jesus to help His disciples gain a greater understanding of who He was and, in fact, that He was God’s only Son. It gave them a glimpse of His Glory. This spectacular transformation of Jesus helped to bring reassurance to his disciples.
When they had heard of Jesus’ coming death the disciples were perplexed because they thought that if He was the Messiah, then how could He die. The sight of a glorified Jesus gave the three the reassurance they needed to know that Jesus was somehow going to be with them always. The sudden change in Jesus’ appearance before the eyes of the disciples demonstrateed to them that he is more than a merely human teacher Nothing like this had ever been seen and this event must truly have stuck with the three for the rest of their lives.
Two men out of Israel’s distant past appear with Jesus. The appearance of Moses and Elijah also in glorified form connects Jesus with two of Israel’s greatest men. We may ask “why these two men?” There is a reason Moses and Elijah both appear with Jesus. Moses represents the Law that was given by God to the Hebrew people in their gathering at Mount Sinai. Elijah is the chief of the prophets and represents their work in pointing the people of Israel toward God. God intervened at the end of both Moses and Elijah’s lives; He buried Moses himself and carried Elijah away in a chariot of fire while he was still alive. These figures, representing the Law and the Prophets, conversing with Jesus symbolizes the fulfillment of God’s promises and the continuity of His plan of salvation.
All three gospels tell us of the appearance of Moses and Elijah but only Luke tells us what they spoke about. The three of them talked about the fulfillment of Jesus’ mission on the earth which would soon happen in Jerusalem. Just prior to the transfiguration Jesus had told his disciples how he was going to suffer and die. This is my own thought but did Moses and Elijah come to remind Jesus of his mission and of his glory so he was strengthened before he had to undergo the passion?
Luke tells us the disciples were sleepy. How could you fall asleep in the midst of the transfiguration? I wonder if they were sleepy or overcome by their experience. When they became aware again Peter wanted to build three shelters; Luke says Peter didn’t know what he was saying. So, why shelters, doesn’t it sound strange? The word shelters make us think of tents and then we wonder why Peter thought they needed tents. The word translated here as shelter can also be translated tabernacle. Setting up tabernacles for Jesus, Moses and Elijah makes total sense when we consider the significance of tabernacle. While the Israelites wandered in the wilderness Moses was given very detailed instructions about how to build the Tabernacle, a tent in which the worship of God took place. Perhaps Peter was just trying to respond in a way that he thought was appropriate for the moment, and his only frame of reference for someone emanating holy light would have been the story of Moses coming down the mountain that we heard in our first scripture reading from Exodus. After Moses spoke with God Moses’ face was so radiant that he had to veil it from the people.
The gospels tell of the cloud that enveloped them but only Luke tells us the disciples were afraid. I think any of us would be afraid if a cloud enveloped us. Next comes the most amazing experience they could possibly have.
In the Transfiguration we are given a moment of glory in which to hear again the divine voice from Jesus’ baptism and to anticipate the final triumph of God’s Son.
The disciples hear God’s voice came from the cloud around them saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”
What does one do with a direct voice from heaven? As William Barclay puts it, “We can only bow in reverence as we try to understand.” This is outside the bounds of normal human experience. No wonder Peter bumbled around talking of building tabernacles.
How would we react in the same situation? Personally, I would expect to find myself speechless and on my knees with my head bowed to the ground in awe. That’s what the presence of God does, it drives us to our knees in awe at such majesty, at a beauty beyond our conception, at a brightness beyond our world.
In the Transfiguration, God himself speaks from the cloud. At Jesus’ baptism God had said, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with You I am well pleased.” Now God says, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” At Jesus’ baptism God affirmed his identity as God’s own son. Here Jesus’ identity is not only affirmed but the witnesses, Peter, John and James and through them, ourselves are commanded to listen to him.
A direct verbal order from God. That doesn’t happen very often in scripture. God speaks through Moses, through the prophets, we have the law given to us but to actually verbally hear an audible order; that doesn’t happen. Until Jesus came there had been five hundred years of silence. There were no prophets, the last prophet who is at the very end of our Old Testament was Malachi. He prophesized around 450 B.C. Until John the Baptist came there had been five hundred years of silence.
The Transformation is a unique experience. And let’s face it, when God says to listen, it’s generally a very good idea to listen. Listen to Jesus, learn from him, obey him. This is what God commands us to do.
Through the Transfiguration, Jesus showed his disciples a part of the world that had been there all along, but it had not really been a part of their world. They were bewildered, astonished and trembling with fear when they saw and understood that heaven was already here in their world and that Jesus was the King of heaven. The Transfiguration tears aside the veil of this world and shows us the true reality of God’s salvation plan for us. God is real. Heaven and hell are real. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Salvation comes through Christ alone.
Listen to him! How do we listen to Jesus in our church and in our daily lives? This is a good question to ask ourselves as we head into the season of Lent. At this point in the church year we turn with Jesus and set our faces for Jerusalem, we begin the journey toward the cross. How better to start that journey than with a view of the glory of Jesus and with a recommitment to listen to Jesus, to follow him more closely in our daily lives, to pray more and to dedicate ourselves again to our Savior, the one who came to save us.
Through the Transfiguration, Jesus showed his disciples a part of the world that had been there all along, but it had not really been a part of their world. They were bewildered, astonished and trembling with fear when they saw and understood that heaven was already here in their world and that Jesus was the King of heaven. The Transfiguration tears aside the veil of this world and shows us the true reality of God’s salvation plan for us. God is real. Heaven and hell are real. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Salvation comes through Christ alone.
Let me make a suggestion for all of us. Don’t give up something for Lent. Instead, let us add something spiritual to our lives. Make a plan to read through one of the gospels. Set aside a time of prayer each day. Get a Lenten devotional and go through it every day. I’m not saying do all three, I’m just giving suggestions here. Listen to Jesus! This coming Lenten season let us devote ourselves to our Savior who suffered and died for us. And let us never forget that he rose again on the third day and to grant us eternal life.
Please pray with me. Holy God, you revealed to the disciples the everlasting glory of Jesus Christ. Grant us, who have not seen and yet believe, the gift of your Holy Spirit, that we may boldly live the gospel and shine with your transforming glory as people changed and changing through the redeeming presence of our Savior. Amen.