Text: Exodus 24:12-18; Matthew 17:1-9
It
was Sunday December 5, 1999. I had received a phone call from my
brother at about 4:30 that morning to tell me that my father died.
The 5th
was a Sunday morning and I had minister responsibilities in my church
down in West Virginia. I could have made a few calls and excused
myself, but I couldn’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be than
in church with my church family. The service went well. Yet, I had
to leave immediately afterwards to conduct another worship service at
a mountain chapel where I also had responsibilities. To get there, I
had to make the drive up Elk Mountain, twenty-five minutes of
mountain road to get there on time. It was a warmish December
morning and that made it foggy down in Marlinton which was way down
in a river valley. Going up Elk about two-thirds of the way up, I
found myself suddenly just above the clouds. So, I pulled over at an
almost providentially well placed wayside just to take a minute and
look around. The leafless trees were wet and glimmering in the
sunshine. The clouds were aglow with a glory all their own. I stood
about ten feet above them and it was if I was looking down on a sea
of clouds that I could step out and walk on. It was beautiful, just
absolutely beautiful. It was quiet. It was peaceful. It was good. I
got the sensation that God had created this moment just for me on
that morning. Dad was finally free of his suffering and at rest and
my heavenly Father just loved me enough to let me know that. Not
that I didn’t know that already. I sat there a moment and thanked
God but I had to go, a mountain top experience.
I
think of that experience whenever I come across the gospels accounts
of Jesus Transfiguration though it pales in comparison to the
mountaintop experience that Peter, James, and John had with Jesus.
Jesus took them high up the mountain and there they see King Jesus in
his glory joined by Moses, the bringer of the Law, and Elijah the
Prophet who themselves had had very powerful mountain top
experiences. Moses received the Law up on Mt. Sinai which described
the way of live that would distinguish the people of God. Elijah
also had found himself up on Mt. Sinai in a cave running while for
his life and there he heard the still, small voice of the Lord
telling him he wasn't alone in his faithfulness.
Struck
with awe Peter blurts out how good it is to be there standing in the
light of the glory of God and suddenly (there's always a suddenly) a
bright cloud overshadowed them; the same cloud that consumed Mt.
Sinai like a consuming fire, the cloud of the glory of the LORD;
i.e., the Holy Spirit. Then God the Father spoke, “This is my Son,
whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Realizing that they were in the presence of God and that Jesus, their
friend and teacher, is God’s Son, Peter, James, and John went face
down on the ground, absolutely scared to death. They knew that they
had no right to be there. They were not worthy to be in the presence
of God. A common superstitious kind of belief back then was that
they should have died on the spot for having come into contact with
God.
But, Jesus then said to them not, “Get
up and don’t be afraid,” but rather, “Be raised and don’t be
afraid!” The Greek word there for the act of rising is in the
passive voice. It was done to them. They were made to get up and
why every translator misses this, I have now idea. The commentators
don’t, but the translators do. It is Jesus who is raising his
disciples not the disciples themselves simply rising up on their own
efforts. The Transfiguration of Jesus speaks also of our
resurrection from the dead. By Jesus’ command and in the same
power of person-establishing, creation renewing love by which God
raised him from the dead, i.e., the Holy Spirit, God the Father
because of Jesus the Son’s sacrifice and intercession and our union
with him in through the Holy Spirit will likewise raise us from the
dead by the same power of person-establishing, creation renewing love
of the Holy Spirit. By Jesus own command and because of his death
and resurrection for us, we who are in him have nothing to fear in
the presence of God the Father ever if anybody does. We have nothing
to fear. We’ve only to bask in the goodness of the glory of the
Holy Trinity – the love of the Father and the Son and the Holy
Spirit. We have nothing to
fear in the presence of God.
So, back to our own mountaintop
experiences, reflecting back on the experience that I shared with
you. That was a moment when, I believe, God spoke to me. He
comforted me, his beloved child. As Christians, we will have moments
like that and they are good. Yet, let’s not major on the minors.
There is something greater here that we must take in: we as Jesus'
disciples in union with him, the Risen and Ascended One; we, by the
free gift of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; we, are living in the
Transfiguration at this very moment and always. What Jesus is now –
resurrected and glorified – he is now also making us to share in
because our life is in him. He is making us to rise up and be like
him. He has poured his Spirit upon us, into us, and it is good. The
Father has spoken the Word of life into us and by the powerful
working of the Holy Spirit we are being transfigured to reflect Jesus
Christ more and more through our own lives and our life together as a
church in his name. Yet, let us not hang it all on God’s
shoulders. He has also called us to obedience. The Father has
commanded us to listen to his Son, to Jesus, and therefore to live
according to what Jesus has said. The Christian life is more than
just occasional moments of love and assurance from the Trinity and
certainly more than just being good and doing our part out of a
well-formed sense of duty. The Christian life is found in following;
following Jesus, abiding by his teachings, immersing ourselves in
prayer, studying and embodying the Scriptures, and laying down
ourselves for those around us in unselfish love that they may see the
love of God. Having been to the mountain and seeing who Jesus is in his glory and hearing the voice of God, Christian life is found coming down the mountain with him and following in suffering and joy bearing our cross, dying to ourselves, and being raised in him. Amen.
