The Transfiguration of Our
Lord
January 20, 2013
There were only three of them. He might have taken all twelve of His
disciples. But He chose only three. He might have invited the crowds who had
heard Him on the Sermon on the Mount up this other mount so that they, too,
could witness the glory of the Transfiguration. But He picked just three from
that crowd. After feeding the thousands of the Feeding of the Five Thousand He
could have really shown them some glory and brought them along to the Mount of
Transfiguration. But He showed this glory to only three of those thousands.
Of those three we have a recollection of it from one of them. In the Epistle
today Peter tells us what it was like. It was glorious, of course. It was
spectacular, of course. It was something that many, if not all, of us would
ourselves like to witness. But the Holy Spirit in inspiring the apostles in
writing the New Testament gives to us the perfect perspective on things like
this. Peter’s words maintain the glory of the Transfiguration even as they show
that it’s not what we ought to hang our hat on. It’s great, but there’s
something better, he says. It’s spectacular, and how great would it have been
to witness it as he had, but there’s something better that we have.
Consider this, the closing words to today’s Gospel reading: “And as
they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, ‘Tell no one the
vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.’” The first detail almost
goes past our observance. They came down the mountain. This is a very important
fact. They didn’t stay on the mountain. It was great! It was spectacular! They
wanted to stay on the mountain! But they didn’t. They came down.
And as they did, we see the second detail, Jesus telling them to keep
quiet about it. It’s spectacular. It’s amazing. It’s a sight to behold. But
don’t tell anyone. Well, it’s not so much not telling anyone as it is not saying
anything until another event of spectacle has occurred. “If you think you saw
something today, wait till you see Me rise from My grave. That’s when you can
tell people.” And so Peter did. We have it in the Epistle reading. We were on
that mountain. We saw the glory. We heard the voice of the Father. We witnessed
this glorious event.
But then we came down the mountain. Then we kept quiet about it. Then
we reflected upon what we had seen and witnessed. Then we pondered something
amazing. The words of the Father. We saw Jesus transfigured before us. We saw
glory as we had never known. But as we came down the mountain, He said
something to us. No longer radiant, He said, Don’t say anything. Don’t tell
people what you have witnessed. It means nothing apart from what I am about to
do. The glory you will behold will not make sense at first. I will look the opposite
of what you saw on this mountain. I will be beaten, and bruised, and bloodied,
and stricken. I will draw My last breath. I will not hear the words of My dear
Father, “This is My beloved Son,” but will cry out to Him, “My God, My God, why
have You forsaken Me?”
And after that, I will rise from the grave. There will be glory in
these events that will pale My transfiguration before you on this mountain. That
is why you must wait to tell others. That, and going back to what you heard My
Father on the Mount of Transfiguration say of Me: “Listen to Him.”
And so we did. We listened to Him. We heard the words of the Father and
heard the words of the Son. And what we have realized is that, when we wanted
to hang out on that mountain, holding on to that glory we were experiencing, we
were holding on to something fleeting. The glory we wanted paled in comparison
with the glory of the cross and the empty tomb. The glory we attempted to hold
on to was truly a vision, a glimpse if you will.
The glory of the cross, though, that is certain. The glory of the empty
tomb, that is enduring. The word we have now is something that we have now. On
the mountain Jesus’ face was radiant. His clothes were bright and marvelous.
But what good does that really do? It does no good apart from the glory and beauty
of the cross and the empty tomb. It does no good if you tell people, “Hey, we
saw this spectacular display of glory from Jesus! Wish you could have too!”
No, that doesn’t do anybody any good. What does is going down the
mountain. What does is the prophetic word. How does Peter say it? “We have
something more sure, the prophetic word.” Now, you may be like me and the Word
of God does not strike you as spectacular in comparison with the glory of the
Transfiguration. But Peter sees things clearly, very unlike the way he saw them
when he witnessed the glory of the Transfiguration up on the mountain. “Lord,
it’s good we’re here! Let’s stay! We can enjoy this glory forever!” No, it
wasn’t until he came down the mountain. Until the Lord suffered on the cross;
rose from the grave; until Peter did what the Father had said, and listened to
his Lord, that Peter realized that he didn’t need glory, he needed certainty.
He didn’t say, “You know that glory we saw on the mountain? We have
something more glorious—the Bible.” No, he said, “We saw the glory, and
granted, you didn’t, but we have something more sure.” More certain. More
lasting. More what we need. And then he says, “So pay attention to it. It’s
like a lamp shining in a dark place.”
Well, with radiance beaming from Jesus’ face and clothes, I’m sure it
lit the place up. But it’s like a flicker from a candle compared to the Word of
God. The Transfiguration was a vision, a momentary display of glory. The Word
of God is a prophetic word of God; an enduring entity that shines brightly and
dispels darkness. Don’t stay on the mountain. Don’t seek glory when you have
something more certain. Don’t look for the glory you think God should show you
when you have something more certain, the prophetic word which is written and
proclaimed and applied in Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
Mountain top experiences are experiences we want to hold on to. But
they inevitably contain the action of coming down from the mountain. After
summer kids can experience a letdown, now having to go back to school. After a
fantastic vacation, instead of feeling great having had wonderful experiences,
you can feel down in the dumps now that you’re back to the ordinariness of your
life. Any spectacular experience in this life is just that, it’s an experience.
It doesn’t last. Some of the effects of it may. But the thing you want to hold
on to, what you want to continue, doesn’t last. The experience itself comes to
an end. You have to go back down the mountain.
What we learn today is that this is good. Don’t stay on the mountain.
You need to go down to the plain. That’s where you live. That’s where God calls
you to live your life and carry out your vocation He has given you. That’s
where you do what our Heavenly Father has instructed you to do, you listen to
your Lord. You hear the prophetic word and receive the salvific means of grace.
If you stay on the mountain you are removed from the place where your Lord
comes to you and gives you His true glory. It’s known chiefly in His giving His
mercy and grace to you.
It’s here in this house where we hear the Word of God and receive the
Holy Supper of our Lord. It’s in our homes where we hear the Word of God in
family devotions and where we pray together. It’s in our daily lives where we
serve others and bring them hope to their lives that comes only from coming
down from the mountain and taking them to the Mount of Calvary where Christ
paid for all of their sins. Showing them the empty tomb where He guaranteed
eternal life in conquering the grave. Pointing them to the waters of Baptism
which are connected with the word of God and in which they are transformed into
a new creation.
At the very least we ought to see that Jesus, who was transfigured in
glorious display, came down the mountain. He did so in order to ascend a humble
mountain, Calvary. Even that mountain, though, He came down from, having
accomplished salvation and displayed His true glory, that of suffering and
dying for us. His rest in the tomb even was momentary, He left that dark place
after three days. He reigns on the mountain now, so to speak, having ascended
to heaven. But even here, Jesus doesn’t stay on that mountain, but rather
descends to us; coming to us in the Gospel and the Sacraments.
After the glory and after the voice of the Father, the disciples saw on
that mountain Jesus only. When we hear the Gospel, when we remember our
Baptism, when we receive the Lord’s Supper, we ought to see Jesus only. It was
Jesus only on the cross. Don’t stay on the mountain seeking glory from Him.
Hang out where He has promised to come to you. It is indeed good to be here
where He displays His glory by giving you grace and forgiving you. And in this
way you may descend the mountain and go in peace and serve the Lord. Amen.
SDG
1 comment:
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