Transfigured Before Them
Sermon text for February 3, 2008:
Mark 9:2-9
My legs were a bit wobbly when I stepped out of the taxi on the top of Mount Tabor. We were there because tradition identifies Tabor as the probable site of the transfiguration. My legs were shaking because of the homicidal taxi driver who I am convinced was trying to kill us, and because the road to the top of the Mountain is treacherous when taken at one hundred miles an hour.
The mountain rises about two thousand feet from the valley floor in just a couple of miles. There are lots of twists and turns and hair pin curves. And I believe that the taxi drivers have a contest with one another to see who can come the closest to the edge of the road, at the highest velocity, without plunging over the side.
I remember sitting in the back seat of the Mercedes Benz cab thinking, “So this is how it’s all going to end.” You know how they say that when you are about to die your whole life passes before your eyes? The only thing that passed before my eyes was the image of a third class bus I had once ridden in Mexico. I found out later that the bus company’s motto was, “Better dead than late!”
It is easy to see why Mount Tabor is identified as the site of the transfiguration. The bible says that Jesus led the disciples up a high mountain, and Tabor is one of the few high mountains to choose from. In scripture God often chooses high mountains, shrouded in clouds, as the right moment to give place for significant revelations. And that is what happens in our gospel lesson.
Jesus took the leaders from among the disciples to the top of a high mountain where the crowds were unlikely to follow. And the Bible says that Jesus, “was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.”
While the disciples struggled to understand what was happening they realized that they were not alone. Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus and the three were talking together. The disciples were literally dumbstruck, and could not speak. Finally Peter found his voice. “Lord it is good for us to be here,” he said. “If you wish I will make three dwellings here; one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”. Peter wanted to live in this awesome, holy moment, for as long as possible. It must have seemed to the disciples as if they could reach out and touch the face of God. Peter wanted to control this experience. He offered to build three dwelling: one for each of the Holy Men. “Perhaps they will want to stay”, he reasoned, “if I can make them comfortable.” Peter had not yet learned that faithfulness is measured by what we do down the mountain, among the people.
But we can understand Peter, can’t we. Something amazing, holy, and glorious has happened and he did not want the experience to end. We have had moment like this also. Maybe it was a religious retreat, a special time with family, or even a vacation. These kinds of experiences are wonderful and painful all at the same time, because we know that we can’t stay there. The moment will end. Like Peter, James, John, and Jesus we have to go back down the mountain and face the realities of life.
The Bible says that while Peter was still speaking a “bright cloud overshadowed them” and they heard a voice speaking from the cloud. The voice said, “This is my Son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him.”
In that moment the disciples knew for certain that Jesus was the Messiah. Before they heard the voice of God, they might have speculated about who Jesus was, but now Jesus’ identity was confirmed by God. Jesus is the Messiah! Jesus is the Messiah! Imagine that, Jesus whose feet became dirty after a long day of walking on the dusty roads; Jesus who at times grew weary of the crowds; Jesus who suffered from hunger and thirst just like the disciples; Jesus stands transfigured before them. And now they know that he is uniquely God’s beloved Son, the long awaited Messiah.
Scholars debate the meaning of this story. But the simplest interpretation might be the best. Jesus who is so genuinely human is also genuinely divine. In the person of Jesus we catch a glimpse of God, and I believe that God understands us in a different way also. Because of Jesus God understands hunger, longing, loneliness, temptation, and discouragement. In the experience of the transfiguration Jesus brings humans close to God and God close to humanity. And that is enough reason to continue telling this story to new generations of Christians.
As we prepare to move into Lent, let us ponder the God who loves so much that staying in some far away heaven is not enough. Neither is staying in the worlds most beautiful cathedral good enough. God chose to become Emmanuel, which means, God with us. And if we ever ponder the nature of Jesus, the story of the transfiguration shows us that while Jesus is completely human, he is also uniquely the Son of God. He is the One of whom God spoke out of the cloud, “This is my son, the beloved, I am well pleased with him.”
Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock
Mark 9:2-9
My legs were a bit wobbly when I stepped out of the taxi on the top of Mount Tabor. We were there because tradition identifies Tabor as the probable site of the transfiguration. My legs were shaking because of the homicidal taxi driver who I am convinced was trying to kill us, and because the road to the top of the Mountain is treacherous when taken at one hundred miles an hour.
The mountain rises about two thousand feet from the valley floor in just a couple of miles. There are lots of twists and turns and hair pin curves. And I believe that the taxi drivers have a contest with one another to see who can come the closest to the edge of the road, at the highest velocity, without plunging over the side.
I remember sitting in the back seat of the Mercedes Benz cab thinking, “So this is how it’s all going to end.” You know how they say that when you are about to die your whole life passes before your eyes? The only thing that passed before my eyes was the image of a third class bus I had once ridden in Mexico. I found out later that the bus company’s motto was, “Better dead than late!”
It is easy to see why Mount Tabor is identified as the site of the transfiguration. The bible says that Jesus led the disciples up a high mountain, and Tabor is one of the few high mountains to choose from. In scripture God often chooses high mountains, shrouded in clouds, as the right moment to give place for significant revelations. And that is what happens in our gospel lesson.
Jesus took the leaders from among the disciples to the top of a high mountain where the crowds were unlikely to follow. And the Bible says that Jesus, “was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.”
While the disciples struggled to understand what was happening they realized that they were not alone. Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus and the three were talking together. The disciples were literally dumbstruck, and could not speak. Finally Peter found his voice. “Lord it is good for us to be here,” he said. “If you wish I will make three dwellings here; one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”. Peter wanted to live in this awesome, holy moment, for as long as possible. It must have seemed to the disciples as if they could reach out and touch the face of God. Peter wanted to control this experience. He offered to build three dwelling: one for each of the Holy Men. “Perhaps they will want to stay”, he reasoned, “if I can make them comfortable.” Peter had not yet learned that faithfulness is measured by what we do down the mountain, among the people.
But we can understand Peter, can’t we. Something amazing, holy, and glorious has happened and he did not want the experience to end. We have had moment like this also. Maybe it was a religious retreat, a special time with family, or even a vacation. These kinds of experiences are wonderful and painful all at the same time, because we know that we can’t stay there. The moment will end. Like Peter, James, John, and Jesus we have to go back down the mountain and face the realities of life.
The Bible says that while Peter was still speaking a “bright cloud overshadowed them” and they heard a voice speaking from the cloud. The voice said, “This is my Son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him.”
In that moment the disciples knew for certain that Jesus was the Messiah. Before they heard the voice of God, they might have speculated about who Jesus was, but now Jesus’ identity was confirmed by God. Jesus is the Messiah! Jesus is the Messiah! Imagine that, Jesus whose feet became dirty after a long day of walking on the dusty roads; Jesus who at times grew weary of the crowds; Jesus who suffered from hunger and thirst just like the disciples; Jesus stands transfigured before them. And now they know that he is uniquely God’s beloved Son, the long awaited Messiah.
Scholars debate the meaning of this story. But the simplest interpretation might be the best. Jesus who is so genuinely human is also genuinely divine. In the person of Jesus we catch a glimpse of God, and I believe that God understands us in a different way also. Because of Jesus God understands hunger, longing, loneliness, temptation, and discouragement. In the experience of the transfiguration Jesus brings humans close to God and God close to humanity. And that is enough reason to continue telling this story to new generations of Christians.
As we prepare to move into Lent, let us ponder the God who loves so much that staying in some far away heaven is not enough. Neither is staying in the worlds most beautiful cathedral good enough. God chose to become Emmanuel, which means, God with us. And if we ever ponder the nature of Jesus, the story of the transfiguration shows us that while Jesus is completely human, he is also uniquely the Son of God. He is the One of whom God spoke out of the cloud, “This is my son, the beloved, I am well pleased with him.”
Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock
posted by Dwight Blackstock | 7:01 AM
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