Exodus 24:12-18; Psalm 2; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Matthew 17:1-9
I want to include a prelude of sorts to the sermon.
Transfiguration Sunday is the last Sunday of the season of
Epiphany. It is a Sunday when we can focus on the light that shines on Jesus,
and on others through us. The transfiguration of Jesus can linger and remind us
of who Jesus truly is, even as we wander faithfully through the shadows and
sadness of Lent.
Our Sending hymn today is Alleluia, Song of Gladness.
We sing Alleluia for the last time today until we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection
on Easter Sunday. As you sing this song today, remember how joyful the word
alleluia feels in your heart.
… By now in Matthew’s story of Jesus, chapter 17, the end is
near. In just a couple chapters, Jesus enters Jerusalem for the last time. They
have been together for about 3 years, so they know each other well. Jesus has
taught the disciples as much as he can. Now it’s time to prepare them for what
happens next – the crucifixion and resurrection, and the growth of the realm of
God. Six days before our story, Jesus spoke of this impending future. He told
them that in Jerusalem, he would suffer at the hands of the leaders, be killed,
and be raised on the third day.
It’s possible Jesus took the disciples to Mount Tabor, a 2,000-foot-high
mountain east of Nazareth, in southern Galilee. Up on the mountain, with the
three disciples Peter, James, and John, Jesus shines with what can only be
divine light. With Jesus appear Moses – who represents the Torah and the
history of God’s on-going relationship with the Jews – and Elijah – the first
prophet sent by God to help the people remain faithful.
Can you imagine what Peter is thinking and feeling in this
moment? He is so excited, he must be bouncing off the trail, jumping for joy. “Let’s
make booths for the three of you and figure out what to do next. How can I
help?” But the vision of Jesus with Moses and Elijah quickly fades, and it’s just
“regular Jesus” with them again. They can’t stay on the mountain very long.
There is work to do on the plain!
… Humans speaking with God on a mountain is an obvious parallel
with Moses going up Mount Sinai to be with God. While we Christians may not immediately
make the connection, the disciples definitely would have. Peter also makes a
connection with one of the major festivals of Judaism called the Feast of
Booths.
This festival is also called the Feast of Tabernacles, and
Sukkot. The Feast is a week-long celebration observed by building and living in
temporary shelters that remind Jews of the 40-year journey through the
wilderness. It is expected that the Day of the Lord will occur during the Feast
of Booths, with God coming to make everything right in the world once more.
It is this that Peter is recalling when he offers to make
three shelters for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. He believes the Day of the Lord is
imminent, when Jesus will assume his role as the new King of Israel and gather
an army and get rid of the Romans once and for all.
… We know, of course, that what really happened was much
different. What really happened is what Jesus spoke about six days before. He
was arrested, suffered, was killed, and then raised on the third day. Before
that happens, Jesus needs to walk with the disciples to get them ready for the
future without him.
For now, Jesus says to keep this moment on the mountain a
secret, to tell no one about it until after the resurrection. Many pastors joke
that we are still keeping it a secret, 2,000 years later!
We don’t know for sure if the three disciples with Jesus
that day talked about this moment before the resurrection happens, but I
suspect they did, at least with the Twelve and maybe a few of the women. I
think they had to, in order to make sense of it.
… It has been my experience that people think about the triune
God with a focus on one persona more than the others. Some people pray to and
talk about God the Father, the Creator, the powerful aspect of the Divine. Some
people pray to and talk about Spirit, who speaks for God into our hearts and minds.
Some people pray to and talk about Jesus, the Human One, God-with-Skin-on. Here,
Jesus can be the rabbi in scruffy clothes and sandals, the suffering man on the
cross, or the powerful and glorious Christ.
I always praise God for the beauty of nature, the blessing
of rain (when it is not too much at once), and the glory of sunsets. And I have
known moments when I knew that Spirit was a very real presence, like the still
small voice Elisha heard in the cave.
But, I confess that for me, the scruffy Jesus is the most
real presence of God. He wears blue jeans and t-shirts, walks with me on my
daily adventures, laughs at my puns, sits with me as I pray, and holds my hand
when I am hurting. I wish I had been one of the disciples, walking with Jesus
then. I need readings like this Gospel text today to remind me that Jesus is
also the glorious risen Christ.
I invite you this week to ponder the ways in which you think
about the Divine One. Which persona of God is most real for you? When have you been
on the mountaintop with the disciples, amazed at God’s glory and love? When has
Spirit whispered messages to you?
How real is Jesus for you? When and where do you see him? Maybe
you see Jesus when you look at the cross, or when you take the bread and wine
of communion, or when you hear a child laugh. Maybe you see Jesus in the faces
of those who suffer: immigrants and refugees, or the weeping people in Turkey and
Syria, or the Black people mourning yet another child killed by law
enforcement. Or is Jesus the risen Christ, shining with divine glory?
How do you see and experience God today? Amen
