Transfiguration Sunday
February 7, 2016
Luke 9:28-36
“About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 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.) While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.’ 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.” (NIV1984)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Today is a day that many people consider to be one of the most glorious days of the year— Super Bowl Sunday! For at least the past year San Francisco has had the glory of being the host city for Super Bowl 50. For the past week thousands upon thousands of people have been enjoying the glorious Super Bowl City and all the glorious Super Bowl activities taking place in the Bay area. Did you see the re-lighting of the Bay Lights and the fireworks? Wasn’t it glorious! And then there is the football game. Can Peyton Manning win his second Super Bowl ring or are his glory days pretty much over? Can Cam Newton win his first Super Bowl ring or will his glory days have to wait?
No matter how glorious the Super Bowl may be for the Bay area that glory will fade. No matter how glorious the game might be that glory will also fade. In fact, when you stop to think about it, my friends, is there any glory that you and I see any glory that you and I experience here on this earth that doesn’t fade? Think back to the days that you might consider to be your glory days. While you might like to relive them could you repeat them? Would other people remember them to be as glorious as you remember them?
While the glory of this world fades there is a glory that does not fade, a glory that cannot fade! It is the glory that Peter, James and John were given the privilege of seeing on the Mount of Transfiguration. Today then let’s rejoice at the opportunity we have been given to walk with Peter, James and John up that holy mountain and stand in awe as we: Behold the Glory of the Lord! There are two things we want to see this morning. First let’s see that the glory of the Lord is a glory that our Brother Jesus naturally possesses. Then let’s see that the glory of the Lord is a glory that Lord Jesus joyfully shares with us!
It is certainly not difficult to see that the glory of the Lord is indeed something that Jesus naturally possesses. In fact, Luke emphasizes this truth in three different ways here in our text. The first way is found in verse 29, “As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightening.” For thirty-three years Jesus looked just like everyone else. For thirty-three years there was nothing in His outward appearance that set Him apart from any other young Jewish man living in that day and age. At the very same time, for three years Peter, James and John sat in awe at Jesus’ feet and listened as Jesus taught the Truth of God with a power and an authority and an insight that was unmatched by anyone else. For three years Peter, James and John stood in awe of all the miracles that Jesus performed— from changing water into wine to raising the dead back to life. But nothing, my friends, nothing compared to what Peter, James and John saw with their own two eyes as the glory of Jesus’ divine nature literally radiated forth from His human body! Imagine what it was like to behold the glory of the Lord as Jesus’ face shone like the sun! (See Matthew 17:2) Imagine what it was like to behold the glory of the Lord as Jesus’ clothes became as “bright,” as “brilliant” as a “flash of lightning.” What an awe-inspiring sight that was! But there is more!
We are also able to behold the glory of the Lord, the glory that our Jesus possesses, when we look at what Luke writes in verses 30 & 31 of our text. Luke goes on, “Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” Moses and Elijah were two unique figures in the history of God’s Old Testament church. Moses, of course, represents the powerful holy Law which the Lord gave to His people on Mount Sinai. Elijah represents the powerful prophets which God sent to proclaim His Word to His people. Both of these men had experienced their own unique “departure” from this world. Moses died after viewing the Promised Land from the top of Mount Nebo. He was then buried by the Lord God Himself. (See Deuteronomy 34:1-8) Elijah was whisked into heaven in a whirlwind without ever experiencing physical death. (See II Kings 2:11-12) Now, these two great representatives of the “old covenant” were talking with Jesus “about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.”
These words remind us that Jesus, the Son of God, came into this world with a very specific mission to accomplish: to fulfill His Father’s Plan of Salvation for this world, to establish a “new covenant”— a covenant that guarantees our salvation! As we look at the Lord’s Plan of Salvation for you and for me we can not help but behold the glory of the Lord, my friends! Not only was God’s Plan of Salvation for this world meticulously planned out from all of eternity, not only was God’s Plan of Salvation for this world perfectly carried out to the very last detail, but, God’s Plan of Salvation for this world was based purely upon the amazing grace of our God! When you and I look at the love that motivated Jesus to willingly and resolutely bring that Plan of Salvation to “fulfillment” on the cross then, my friends, then we are indeed able to behold the glory of the Lord— the glory that our Jesus possesses! But there is more!
The third way in which Luke emphasizes that Jesus possesses the glory of the Lord is seen in verse 35. As Peter, James and John are enveloped by a “cloud”— a “cloud” that is reminiscent of the cloud that covered the Tent of Meeting as the “glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle” (Exodus 40:34-35) Peter, James and John heard God the Father say, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” To have God the Father openly testify that Jesus is His Son, the Son He loves, the Son He has chosen and sent into this world to be our Savior, the Son He commands us to listen to— this is indeed a powerful revelation of the fact that when you and I look at Jesus with the eyes of faith we can indeed behold the glory of the Lord God Himself!
Once we are able to see that Jesus does indeed possess the glory of the Lord, then, my friends, we are also able to rejoice in knowing that Jesus joyfully shares the glory of the Lord with us and with everyone who believes and trusts in Him. Go back to verses 30 & 31 of our text. Luke says, “Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus.” Moses died about 1,400 years before the Transfiguration of our Lord. Elijah left this world in that whirlwind about 850 years before the Transfiguration of our Lord. That’s a long time, my friends! That’s a lot of years! But— was Moses really dead? Did Elijah ever cease to exist? No! Then what happened to them? What happened, my friends, is that when Moses’ physical body died and when Elijah’s physical body was taken up to heaven the Lord shared with them His glory in a way that goes far beyond our comprehension!
It is absolutely beautiful to see how God the Holy Spirit inspired the evangelist Luke to reveal to us that Moses and Elijah appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration “in glorious splendor.” I checked and double-checked the Greek for this portion of our text. It is fascinating! The Greek word which is translated here as “glorious splendor” has a beautifully rich depth to it. Very literally this word means: “glory, splendor, grandeur; power, honor, pride; brightness, brilliance.”
Let’s think this through, shall we? While we are here on this earth we experience pain and suffering, heartaches and headaches, sadness and setbacks beyond number. But when we die— or to be more specific I should say that when our physical body dies— we leave all of that behind and the good Lord shares His glory with us! This very literally means that when a child of God dies in the arms of Jesus they leave behind the gloom, stain and degradation of this life as the good Lord shares with them glory, splendor and grandeur of the life that is to come. This very literally means that when a child of God dies in the arms of Jesus they leave behind the weakness, shame and dishonor of this life as the good Lord shares with them the power, honor and pride that will last for all of eternity. This very literally means that when a child of God dies in the arms of Jesus they leave behind the darkness and dullness of this world as the good Lord shares with them the brightness and brilliance of His heavenly Kingdom!
Yes, my friends, the simple fact that Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration “in glorious splendor” not only brings us the comfort of knowing what the good Lord has already shared with our loved ones who have died in His arms, but it also brings us the confidence of knowing what the good Lord has waiting for us!
I would like to close this morning by directing your attention back to verse 35 of our text. When God the Father spoke to Peter, James and John as they were enveloped in that cloud, He said to them, “This is my Son…listen to him.” As you and I prepare to enter into the solemn season of Lent we need to consciously make sure that we do indeed “listen” to Jesus. What will we hear as we “listen” to Jesus? When we listen to Jesus we are going to hear our Savior emphasize two glorious little words. They are the words: For you….
For you I willingly left My heavenly home and was born into this world as your true flesh and blood Brother under the most humble of circumstances. For you I placed Myself under the rules and regulations of the Law so that I could live a perfect life in your place. For you I not only faced every temptation that you could ever possibly face, but I also conquered each and every one of those temptations. For you I endured loneliness and sadness, hunger and fatigue. For you I allowed mortal sinful human beings to slap and to spit on the very same face that shone like the sun on the Mount of Transfiguration. For you I allowed my enemies to beat Me, ridicule Me, whip Me and then publicly humiliate Me by stripping off the clothes that once were as “bright as a flash of lightning” and divide them up as plunder for themselves. For you I cried out in pain as they pounded nails through My hands and feet. For you I endured the unspeakable horrors of hell itself so that I could pay the debt of your sins— the debt that you owed to Me. For you I willingly shed My holy precious blood and laid down My perfect innocent life as the ransom price to buy you back from sin, death and the devil. For you My lifeless body was lovingly placed into a grave so that you would not have to fear the day when your lifeless body will lovingly be placed into a grave. For you I physically rose from the dead— not only to guarantee that you too shall one day rise, but also so that you would know that through Me all mankind has been declared: “Not Guilty!” by the Living God Himself. For you I victoriously returned Home to the resounding praise of all the saints and all the angels in heaven. For you I took My rightful place at My Father’s side so that I can defend you against all the accusations that Satan is constantly bringing against you. For you I have recorded My Word right here in this Book so that anytime you want you can pick it up, read it, study it and hear My voice speaking directly to you. For you I give My true body and My true blood in My holy Supper so that no matter what you have done and no matter how heavy your burden of guilt might possibly be, here at My table you have My visible tangible guarantee that all of your sins are completely forgiven. For you I am preparing a room in My heavenly Father’s mansion— a room that already has your name engraved on the door. For you I will come back and take you Home so that I can share My glory with you in ways that you can’t even begin to imagine and so that you can join your loved ones in the “glorious splendor” of My heaven. For you I have done all of this— and more! Yes, my friends, as you and I consciously strive to listen to Jesus we will always hear Him emphasize what He has done for us!
Today is indeed a day that many people consider to be one of the most glorious days of the entire year. Today is Super Bowl Sunday! But by this time tomorrow, by later on tonight, that glory will already be fading into the history books, won’t it. Praise God, my friends, that there is one glory that does not fade, one glory that cannot fade. It is the glory that you and I witness as we stand alongside of Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. But today we will also need to follow Peter, James and John as they make their way down that holy mountain. As we prepare ourselves to once again follow our Savior as He willingly walks the path that leads Him directly to the cross I pray that we will indeed take the time to behold the glory of our Lord! Behold the glory that our Brother Jesus naturally possesses. Behold the glory that our Lord Jesus joyfully shares with us!
To God be the glory!
Amen
