Transfiguration of Our Lord
Sunday, February 19th, 2012click here for past entriesLoving God, even though Jesus is your own dear Son, there were times when it seemed as if all was lost. Teach us not to give in to fear and despair, but instead to show forth the light of Christ in all that we do; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The story that we heard today from the gospel of Mark has a lot to tell us about who Jesus really is. He shines with heavenly light that comes from within, revealing the glory of God. He has a conversation with Moses and Elijah, two of the greatest figures from Israel’s history. And, the voice from the cloud - presumably the voice of God - identifies Jesus as his own beloved Son. On any other day, Jesus looks like any other man. However, today, his divine nature is revealed.
I have to wonder what it would look like for any of us if our true nature were to be revealed. If something were to be projected on that screen that would show the true nature of our inner being, what would be up there? What would it show for you? I have a suspicion that most of us would not want our true nature revealed for all the world to see. Keep this in mind as we think about today’s gospel a little bit more.
In the gospel, two figures show up who are talking to Jesus, and it helps to know who these people are. First of all, Elijah. What can you tell me about Elijah? (Great prophet; taken to heaven in a whirlwind; performed miracles; won a big contest with the prophets of Baal; met God on Mount Horeb) Elijah is considered to be one of the greatest prophets in Israel’s history, and was supposed to come again to herald the coming of the Messiah.
However, there are a few other things about Elijah that you might not know. Did you know that he was pursued by Queen Jezebel, who wanted to kill him (1 Ki. 19:1-2)? Did you know that he was also hunted by King Ahab for several years, who also wanted to kill him (1 Ki. 18)? Did you know that he was suicidal at one point? He laid down under a broom tree in the wilderness and asked God to take away his life (1 Ki. 19:4). And so, even though Elijah was one of the greatest prophets in the history of Israel, there were times when it did not seem like it -- when his fear and his despair took over.
As for Moses, what can you tell me about him? What do you know about Moses? (Rescued as a baby; grew up in Pharaoh’s house; led Israel out of Egypt; received the Law & the 10 Commandments; was rumoured not to have died; parting of the Red Sea; saw the burning bush; performed miracles) Moses, too, is referred to as a great prophet and also as the one who gave the people God’s Law. At the time of Jesus, many of the religious leaders identify themselves as followers of Moses (Jn. 9:28).
However, did you also know that Moses was a murderer (Ex. 2:12)? Did you know that he couldn’t speak very well and insisted that he could not be God’s spokesperson unless his brother Aaron did all the talking (Ex. 4)? Did you know that he ran away from Egypt for a while and went to live in Midian (Ex. 2)? Did you know that he was not allowed to enter the promised land because of his disobedience to God? Once again, even though Moses was one of the greatest figures in Israel’s history, there were times when it did not seem like it – when his fear and despair took over.
As for Jesus, his identity as Son of God and Messiah and Saviour is revealed to his disciples on the mountain top. However, there are going to be times when it’s not going to seem like it, and his disciples will sink into fear and despair. They will see Jesus arrested, and falsely accused, and beaten, and tortured, and crucified. They will see Jesus himself crying out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mk. 15:34). It will seem as if all is lost, as Jesus breathes his last breath on the cross. Even though Jesus is God’s beloved Son, he will experience the absolute worst that this world has to offer. And this whole experience on the mountain top will not even seem real until after Jesus has risen from the dead.
I asked you earlier to think about what would be projected on the screen if your true nature were to be displayed there. If we are to believe the Scriptures, it would actually be somewhat the same for all of us. For, according to the Scriptures, we are created in the image of God, and when God was finished, God saw that it was “very good” (Gen. 1:31). However, we are also all infected with sin. We are turned in on ourselves and separated from God and mindful only of ourselves and of our own needs. And so, for most of us, our true nature (or what Luther would call the “old Adam”) would not be very pleasant to behold.
However, as followers of Jesus Christ and children of God, we are also given a new nature – made into a new creation in Christ. As this new nature starts to take hold in us by the power of the Holy Spirit, a much different picture begins to appear for each one of us. In fact much of our attitude and actions start to look a lot like Jesus.
And so, we start to see loving service rendered to God and to other people. We see people working for justice and speaking up for those who cannot speak for themselves. We see people visiting the sick and the prisoners and giving food and drink and clothing to those who do not have enough. We see people confronting evil and treating the weak and the poor with compassion. We see people giving generously in the faith and the knowledge that God will continue to provide. We see people treating even their enemies with love and forgiving those who do not know what they are doing.
This may sound almost impossible to some of us, but nothing is impossible with God! I keep thinking of Stephen, who was one of Jesus’ followers and also one of the first people put to death for his faith in Jesus. As the people looked at Stephen, they saw that his face was like the face of an angel (Acts 6:15). This sounds an awful lot like the way in which Jesus’ face was transfigured in today’s gospel. Stephen also prays for those who are stoning him to death, saying, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). It is almost the same prayer as the one Jesus prayed for those who were crucifying him (Lk. 23:34). The Spirit of Jesus was most certainly within Stephen, and his behaviour came to look more and more like Jesus.
From this example and others, we know that it is, indeed, possible to grow up into Christ, for that is why God gives us the Holy Spirit. The only question for us is which spirit we are going to allow to have free reign in our lives. Will our old nature be what people see, or our new nature that is created in us through Christ?
As we can see from Moses and Elijah and so many others in the Scriptures, God uses all kinds of people in order to accomplish God’s purposes. May it be the light of Christ that is visible through us, as we continue to make our way through the darkness of this world. Amen.
Transfiguration of our Lord (B) Mark 9:2-9
February 19, 2012
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison
© 2012 Lynne Hutchison All Rights Reserved
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