Matthew 17:1-9 [NLTse]
Six days later Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. 2 As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light. 3 Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus. 4 Peter exclaimed, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials[a]—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 But even as he spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.” 6 The disciples were terrified and fell face down on the ground. 7 Then Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8 And when they looked up, Moses and Elijah were gone, and they saw only Jesus. 9 As they went back down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen until the Son of Man[b] has been raised from the dead.”
Sermon
We’ve just heard Rich read to us Matthew’s account of Jesus’ “transfiguration”. Let me set the stage for this glimpse we’ve just been given into eternity.
Jesus and his followers have been traveling around Caesarea-Philippi, a Roman city and district at the foot of Mt. Hermon and where the Jordan River begins. The Romans are harsh rulers, and human life is considered cheap in their eyes, unless you are Roman, of course. And the Jews, even the elite, are treated with contempt and as little better than slaves by those they consider to be nothing more than arrogant pagans. They are waiting for the prophet Moses said would come, and for the Messiah – the Christ – that the prophets promised God would send to deliver them.
Jesus has been asking His closest followers what the crowds are saying about Him. They tell Him that some think He’s John the Baptist come back from the dead, or the prophet Elijah come down from Heaven, or Jeremiah, or one of the other great prophets. And then Jesus asks them what they think about Him. Simon Peter then makes his famous confession that they believe Jesus is God’s Christ, the long-promised Messiah, “the Son of the living God”, come to free Israel from Roman oppression and establish God’s Kingdom on the Earth.
And Jesus responds telling them that, yes, He is God’s Messiah – God’s Son – but that His destiny is not to gather an army and overthrow the Romans. God the Father has sent Him to go to Jerusalem, be mocked and tortured and go through horrific things at the hands of the religious leaders, and to then be killed. But after that, He tells them, He will be raised back to life again! And He goes on to tell Peter and them all that those who follow Him will be treated the same way: Mocked and, perhaps, tortured and, perhaps even go through horrific things, and maybe even themselves be killed in order to – along with Him – bring God’s Kingdom to the entire Earth.
I’m thinking that Jesus needs to try a better sales approach: “Come one! Come all! Be mocked and whipped and cut in two with Me! Yes, you can have a life of ridicule and strange conflict with those around you all because of Me and being a part of My Father’s work here in the world. Yes, you’ll get to be a part of healing people and bringing the dead back to life and spreading joy and peace across the face of the Earth. And you will know joy and peace yourselves beyond your wildest imaginings, along with the torture and perhaps even more horrific things that unbelievers and the enemies of My Father may want to do to you. But in the end you’ll have eternal life! Come! Follow Me!”
And I hear all the good and the wonders and even the glory in that, but the drawbacks are pretty huge, too! Where do you think you’d stand if you’d been there that day? John’s gospel tells us that many of the things Jesus said, instead of drawing people to Him, caused people to stop following Him. The miracles and healings and the ways He always beat the religious leaders in their battles of words and just the sheer life and excitement of being with Him were awesome! But ‘eating His body and drinking His blood’? Being beaten and perhaps killed? ‘Taking up a cross and following Him’? Jesus, that’s how the Romans torture rebels to death! What do you mean by calling us to that?
Of course, that’s the life Jesus is still calling us to today. So, what do you think? And what do you think was going through those first followers’ minds that day? If their minds were anything like my mind, sometimes, then I’m thinking they were likely pretty confused and, perhaps, conflicted: Wanting all the great things and wonders, and so badly wanting to be with Jesus and continue enjoying just being with Him. But the costs…
Of course, Jesus is so good, and He knows just what we need when we truly need it, doesn’t He? And so the next thing we read, Jesus has taken Peter, James, and John with Him up a high mountain, perhaps Mt. Hermon itself. (Now Peter, James, and John were the same three who accompanied Jesus when He raised Jairus, the synagogue leader’s, daughter from the dead, and who Jesus would later ask to accompany Him when He went away to pray alone in the Garden of Gethsemane after that Last Supper [the night before He was crucified]). And we read, “As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as light. [And that] Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus.” (vv. 2-3)
(Now, it hits me that God the Son’s Transfiguration on the mountain should not really amaze us. What should amaze us was God the Son’s Transfiguration in the manger: When the ever-glorious God the Son became not glorious; when the ever-blazing God the Son became not blazing; when the ever-brilliant God the Son became not brilliant. all that Peter, James, and John were really witnessing on the mountain that day was simply Jesus’ true Self! God the Son in His glory!)
Isn’t it just like Jesus to reveal His majesty to these leaders? James would go on to be the first Christian martyr. Simon Peter would become the acknowledged leader of the church and eventually be crucified upside down on account of his faith and life in Christ. John would spend much of his life imprisoned for his beliefs on the Roman prison-island of Patmos. And here as Jesus’ has just finished revealing to them His Own identity and destiny – God’s Messiah, the Christ, come to overcome – not just the Romans but – sin and death! And revealing to them their true identities and destinies, as well: As a part of joining Him in His work, to suffer and, perhaps, die with Him in order to help overcome evil with good… In the face of these hard things, isn’t it just like Jesus to encourage them and help them to truly, fully see all the wonders and life and glory and eternity He says is their destiny, as well. And so He shows them His true Self, and in doing so, shows them, if they continue following Him, what they will one day be like, as well!
Yes, we will share Jesus’ glory.
John wrote later to the churches, “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but He has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He really is.” (1 John 3:2)
And Paul records that it is such a spectacular glory that no matter our present sufferings, they can not compare to it! Romans 8:18, “Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later;” 2 Corinthians 4:17, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!” Philipppians 3:20-21, “But we are citizens of Heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for Him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like His Own, using the same power with which He will bring everything under His control.”
And 1 Corinthians 6:3 says that we will judge the world and even angels in our glory. “When one of you has a dispute with another believer, how dare you file a lawsuit and ask a secular court to decide the matter instead of taking it to other believers! Don’t you realize that someday we believers will judge the world? And since you are going to judge the world, can’t you decide even these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we will judge angels? So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disputes in this life.”
The Revelation pictures that we will share Jesus’ throne when we are glorified: “Those who are victorious will sit with Me on My throne, just as I was victorious and sat with My Father on His throne” (3:21) David Mathis – preacher, author, editor, and church elder – wrote, “We will not be God, but we will be stupendously one with Him. We will not become the Groom, but we will be married to Him.”
Jesus is saying to Peter, James, and John, “Don’t be afraid! What you’ve just seen, This is the real Me, and this will be the real you. This is your future as you remain a part of Me! This is our life. What you saw in Me being glorified, that’s how I really am! And you’re going to be like Me! This is what faith and trust in Me leads to. This is part of the reward! As you persevere in following Me and living your lives for Me you are going to be like this. So, don’t be afraid. As a matter of fact, never be afraid again! The God almighty Who freaks everybody else out? He’s your Dad! My God and your God. My Dad and your Dad. This isn’t true for everybody, only for those who overcome and follow Me. So overcome! Live! Listen to Me! Build your life on Me! Obey Me! Trust Me! This is what you have to look forward to when you do. You don’t have to be afraid. Not ever again.”
In the meantime Jesus calls us to be content with a different kind of transfiguration. The kind that Paul writes about to the Romans, saying, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you – [literally, “let God transfigure you”] into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (12:2). It’s the same kind of transfiguration Paul writes about to the Corinthians, saying, “So all of us who have had that veil [of unbelief] removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—Who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like Him as we are changed [literally, transfigured] into His glorious image” (3:18). And the Lord—Who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like Him Who was transfigured as we are transfigured into His glorious image.”