February 27, 2022 – Transfiguration Sunday (Luke 9:28-36, 37-43)

“Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.” Luke 9:28-36

This is quite the scene to try to picture in our heads. And that presents a question for us to ponder, for I have pondered this text for many, many years—what does this all mean?

Just a note to begin with—there are scholars who believe that the Transfiguration text is really a resurrection appearance that Luke moved to the middle of his Gospel so he could make a point. And that point? Well, as you might guess, perhaps he is trying to give us all a precursor of an important event to come in Jesus’ life. And it all begins on the 8^th day. Again, what is the 8^th day? Well, in the early church, the 8^th day was a way for early Christians to recognize the Lord’s Day—the first day of creation—the first day of the new week. And on the first day of the week, Jesus was raised from the dead. So, it was on the 8^th day that Jesus took three of his disciples up the mountain, into the realm of G-d, and something spectacular happened.

The Transfiguration experience is something referred to as a Theophany—a visible manifestation of G-d to humanity. The text says that on the 8^th day, after Jesus had given his disciples some profound teaching, he took them up the mountain. When a Gospel text suggests that something important came before the current text, then you need to go back and see what was said, or what someone did. Included in Jesus’ sayings and teachings was Peter’s Confession, Jesus’ teaching about his upcoming suffering and death, his teaching about how disciples must pick up their crosses and follow, and that those who are ashamed of the Son of Man, he will be ashamed of when the Son of Man comes into his glory.

My friends, if we are serious about living the Christ-like life, then our lives need to be shaped by the cross. Our lives need to be Cruciform. And that, my friends, is a terrifying thought. The disciples were often terrified—after this experience—when they saw Jesus walking on the water—and casting out demons. And yet they stayed with Jesus all the way through his journey to Jerusalem—until they fled from the foot of the cross. But while they were terrified standing there on the mountain, a voice from heaven spoke to them saying: “This is my son, the beloved; listen to him”. And what do the disciples do? They kept silent, the text tells us. Oh, they didn’t keep silent forever—but perhaps they spent much of the rest of their time with Jesus listening more intently to him. In other words, they did more listening, and less talking. And there is some wisdom in what the voice says. As such, perhaps we are supposed to do more listening and less talking when it comes to living the cruciform life. I imagine all of us could agree that we could do:

More praying and less texting

More reflecting the love of Jesus and less scrolling on our devices

We could be giving more Grace, understanding and love.

Truth be told, we tend to live our Christian lives under some veils–like Moses used a veil when he came down the mountain after receiving the written law. Instead of really letting the light of Christ shine in our lives, we tend to hide behind veils:

Veils of fear and doubt — Veils of hate and hurt

Veils of judgment and Veils of uncertainty

And Veils of sorrow.

Instead of veils of fear and doubt, we need to live our lives in trust—trusting that G-d has a wider view, a deeper understanding, and a greater level of Grace for all people in this world. And this is a G-d, our G-d, who often operates on levels we just do not understand. As such, we can feel ok that this text, this Transfiguration that goes beyond our understanding—but perhaps that is the deeper point we can take some solace in—that our G-d is a G-d who ultimately is beyond our grasp—because G-d’s thoughts, G-d’s ways, and G-d’s love are not our thoughts, ways and love.

Pastor Dave