Sunday
02/07/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s
Sermon Title: “A mountain top experience!”
Old Testament
Lesson: Psalm 99
New Testament
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2
Gospel Lesson:
Luke 9:28-43a
Friends, brothers and sisters, welcome once again on this
Transfiguration Sunday. This Sunday in the church calendar, where we celebrate
the only miracle that happened to Jesus. You see every other miracle that Jesus
performed in the gospels, whether they were healings, exorcisms, raising the
dead, and or etc., were miracles that were performed by Jesus, not to Jesus.
Yet this morning, Jesus is physically transfigured, and thus the miracle that we
will discuss this morning happened to Jesus, not by Jesus. On this day in our
church calendar then, Jesus gives three of his disciples a glimpse of heaven, and
a fuller glimpse of who he is. On this day, and always, Christ calls us to be spiritually
transfigured, to be changed in a mighty way from the inside to the outside, by
the power of the living God.
Well in being kind of an academic I like to define some of
the terms that we discuss in church. I like to define some of these terms
because they are so big and so confusing. I mean how often do we use the word “transfigured”?
I know that I only tend to use this word on Transfiguration Sunday. Transfiguration
is a big word, but what does it mean?
In looking at the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, there
are two definitions given for the word Transfiguration. These definitions are:
1a.
A change in form or appearance: metamorphosis
1b. An exalting, glorifying, or spiritual change.
2
A Christian feast that commemorates the transfiguration of Christ on a
mountaintop in the presence of three disciples and that is observed on August 6
in the Roman Catholic and some Eastern churches and on the Sunday before Lent
in most Protestant churches.
So these are some definitions of the word transfiguration. Some
would argue the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ was the greatest of all of the
miracles that occurred up until his resurrection. So great was this miracle,
that after the miracle of the transfiguration, after Jesus had some healings,
and did some more teaching, Luke 9:51 says, “When
the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem”
(Lk. 9:51, NRSV). You see after this monumental miracle, Jesus then begins to
look towards “Good Friday”. “Good Friday” for us is a day of redemption, but for
Christ it will be a day of suffering and sorrow.
The many Christian churches that picked
the Transfiguration story gospel reading for this Sunday, the Sunday before the
first Sunday Season of Lent are doing this intentionally. The many Christian churches
that are preaching on the Transfiguration this morning, like this one, are declaring
who Jesus Christ is. So starting this this Wednesday on Ash Wednesday, which is
the first day of the Season of Lent, Jesus will “set his face to go to
Jerusalem” (Lk. 9:51b, NRSV).
So if this Transfiguration miracle
then was so grand, just what exactly happened on that mountain top, on that day
of the Transfiguration? Well for starters, the story of the Transfiguration is in
three of the four Gospels, being Matthew, Mark, and Luke. This morning, we are
given this transfiguration story, this miracle, from the gospel of Luke account.
The transfiguration story is also mentioned by the Apostle Peter in his second
epistle or letter. In Second Peter 1:16-18 it says,
“For
we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power
and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his
majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that
voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, my
Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this
voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain” (2 Pet.
1:16-18, NRSV).
Now it is interesting to know, that
when Jesus went up the mountain, where the transfiguration miracle happened,
Jesus only took Peter, John, and James with him (Lk. 9:28a, NRSV). In the Book
of James, nothing is directly mentioned about the transfiguration miracle. It
is eluded to in the gospel of John 1:14, that says:
“And the
Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as
of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth”
(Jn. 1:14, NRSV). Some bible scholars would argue that John was talking
about the transfiguration miracle in 1:14, and others would say that he is
talking about something else.
This we can know for certain though,
this miracle is very well established. So as I said then, what happened on the
day of transfiguration, according to our scriptural accounts?
Well in focusing on the gospel of Luke
narrative, it says speaking of Jesus, “he took Peter, John, and James, and went
up on a mountain to pray” (Lk. 9:28b, CEB). When I first read that, I wondered
if Jesus just led Peter, John, and James up this mountain with no instructions,
or did Jesus tell them ahead of time that they were going up the mountain to
pray?
There are various times that Jesus
went off into the wilderness or up a mountain by himself in the gospels, as
Moses received the 10-commandments of God on top of Mount Sinai. For if God is
in the heavens, then to go up a mountain is to draw closer to God. To try to
build the Tower of Babel, is to try to build a tower to God.
On this day, Jesus invites Peter,
John, and James to go up a mountain and pray with him. I would guess that
Peter, John, and James most likely didn’t think much of going up this mountain,
and perhaps the rest of the disciples were wondering why they weren’t chosen to
go up the mountain. Why did Jesus only chose 3 of the 12 disciples?
So then Jesus begins to pray on the
top of this mountain. The gospel of Luke then says, “As he was praying, the
appearance of his face changed and his clothes flashed white like lightening”
(Lk. 9:29, CEB). This means that Jesus’s physical appearance, his clothes, and
etc. changed in front of Peter, John, and James. Jesus was completely different
looking and glorious, or as the big churchy word says, Jesus was transfigured.
Now I am guessing that if Peter, John,
and James had diaries that they wrote in every day, that this would miracle likely
make today’s journal entry!
So not only is Jesus Christ completely
changed and magnified, two other figures appeared with Christ. The gospel of
Luke says, “Two men, Moses and Elijah, were talking with him. They were clothed
with heavenly splendor and spoke about Jesus’ departure, which he would achieve
in Jerusalem” (Lk. 9:30-31, CEB).
It is as if Peter, John, and James are
being shown a glimpse of heaven, of glory. That the great prophets Moses and
Elijah, while they were called by God, they are lifting up Jesus in this scene
as the Messiah. Jesus is in the center, as he is being being lifted up by Moses
and Elijah.
The gospel of Luke then says, “Peter
and those with him were almost overcome by sleep, but they managed to stay
awake and saw his glory as well as the two men with him” (Lk. 9:32, CEB). How could
someone almost fall asleep through this? I mean this an incredible heavenly
sight, not the 2:00 am infomercial for Oxy Clean! It is interesting to know also
that Peter fell asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane while Jesus was praying.
So how does the Apostle Peter respond
to this miracle? Well, Peter says, “Master, it’s good that we’re here. We
should construct three shrines: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”
–but he didn’t know what he was saying” (Lk. 9:33b, CEB). The gospel then says,
“Peter was still speaking when a cloud overshadowed them. As they entered the cloud,
they were overcome with awe. Then a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son,
my chosen one. Listen to him” (Lk. 9:34-35, CEB).
Then suddenly the gospel says next,
Moses and Elijah disappeared, and Jesus looked like his normal self again (Lk.
9:36, CEB). The gospel then says, “They were speechless and at the time told no
one what they had seen” (Lk. 9:36b, CEB).
The gospels continues on to say that
the three disciples and Jesus came down from the mountain the next day (Lk.
9:37, CEB). I wonder what the fireside conversation on that mountain was that
night!
When Jesus, and Peter, John, and James
came down the mountain a crowd was awaiting Jesus, and man in the crowd begged
Jesus to heal his son (Lk. 9:37-38, CEB). Now this man who was shouting said
that his only child, his son, was possessed (Lk. 9:38b-39, CEB). The man then tells
Jesus that his son shakes or has convulsions, he foams at the mouth, and is
greatly disturbed. This man then says to Jesus, “I begged your disciples to
throw it out, but they couldn’t” (Lk. 9:40, CEB).
Jesus then says, “You faithless and
crooked generation, how long will I be with you and put with you” (Lk. 9:41,
CEB). Jesus the asked for the man’s son to be brought to him, and Jesus healed
the boy, and the unclean spirit was removed (Lk. 9:41b-43a, CEB).
Why would the church include a story
of Jesus performing a healing/exorcism along with this transfiguration Sunday
story? The reason is, is on that mountain, Jesus was transfigured so that he
might show Peter, John, James, and us, that he is the key to God. That through
him we can see glory. That he will be glorified in heaven by the great prophets
such as Elijah and Moses. Further that by ourselves we cannot heal or cast out
demons, and that only the living God can we do that. When the disciples couldn’t
heal the demon possessed boy in the scripture, Jesus could, as he was God in
the flesh. If you wanted the healing of God that happened in this story, you
needed to go through his son. Likewise, on the mountain if you wanted to see
heaven, you needed to go through the son, through Jesus Christ.
The transfiguration story shows us the
power of the Messiah. That even the great prophets Elijah and Moses are under
him. That with the fullness of God in him, he is able to change his appearance,
and show his disciples what heavenly glory will look like. That he is able to
cast out demons and heal, because he is the fullness of God in the flesh.
Author Dorothy Lee says of the
Transfiguration miracle that the transfiguration miracle was the: “the point
where human nature meets God: the meeting place for the temporal and the
eternal, with Jesus himself as the connecting point, acting as the bridge
between heaven and earth.”
As we continue to grow as individuals,
and as a church, as we continue to live our mission of “making disciples of
Jesus Christ, for the transformation of the world,” we must be spiritual transfigured.
When I say that we must be spiritual transfigured, I don’t mean physically the way
Jesus was transfigured on this day, but spiritually. We need to allow God to
work in us and through us. We should strive to allow God to be God, and for us
to follow him.
So today my brothers and sisters,
Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, reveals to us a glimpse of his heavenly glory,
and he calls to us be changed from the inside to the outside, through his power
and his grace. When we allow God to work in us and through us, not only will we
be spiritually transfigured, but we will see a spiritual transfigured church
and community, as well. Praise be to Jesus Christ. Amen.
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