This Changes Everything
Exodus 34: 29-35
Luke 9: 28-36

           A few years ago, I was in my car in front of a shopping plaza. I was probably waiting for my wife Andrea to finish in some store. As I sat, my gaze fell upon a young man and young woman who were engaged in a rather intense display of affection. I confess that I had several sarcastic comments that were rolling around in my head. I managed to tear my gaze away from them for a few moments, but curiosity got the better of me, and I turned back toward them. After a few more moments, they broke their embrace. Then I saw the young man turn and disappear into the Armed Forces recruiting station. In that moment, my opinion of them and the situation changed! I understood their display of affection. It was an “ah-ha” moment. Things all of a sudden made sense.

           The Transfiguration of Jesus was an “ah-ha” moment for Peter, James, and John. I’m going to invite you to do something most pastors wouldn’t do, especially during the sermon: close your eyes for a moment. Imagine you are with Jesus and these three disciples. Jesus has invited the four of you (you + Peter, James, and John) to come with Jesus up to the mountain to pray. While you are there, Jesus begins to glow brighter than any light you’ve ever seen. It is so bright it almost hurts your eyes to look directly at Jesus, yet you can’t bear to look away. All of a sudden, Jesus is joined by two others, who are also glowing brightly. It’s…Moses, the Law-giver, and Elijah, the greatest prophet in the history of Israel. You can tell they are talking, but you can’t tell what they are saying. A cloud begins to envelop you…it is dark and a little misty, but you can still see Jesus, radiating as brightly as before. Then, a voice is heard, “This is my Son, my chosen One; listen to him.” As the voice fades away, the cloud lifts, and Jesus is standing there, by himself and looking as he usually does. It’s as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened, but you know that it has. (You may open your eyes.)

           Can you see how this was a dramatic moment for these disciples? Prior to this hike up the mountain, they thought they knew who Jesus was. People all throughout Judea were questioning Jesus’ identity. Some saw Jesus as merely the son of Joseph, the carpenter from Nazareth. Some saw Jesus as an incredibly insightful teacher, who happened to have the power to perform miracles. Still others, mainly the religious leaders, saw Jesus as a trouble-maker; doing and saying things that he shouldn’t. There were those who identified Jesus as the Messiah, the promised One from God. The disciples fell into this last category. But now, for Peter, James, and John, Jesus was more than just a teacher, he was more than a human Messiah; now, Jesus was, for the second time (the first being at his baptism), claimed as the Son of God. It was a moment when it was revealed to them that to know Jesus—to know what troubled Jesus, to know what concerned him, to know what Jesus loved—was to know the very heart of God; to know what troubled and concerned Jesus and to know what Jesus loved was to know what troubled and concerned God and what set God to dancing with joy. Their view and understanding of Jesus and his identity could not help but be changed and transformed!

           This, however, was not the only transformation that goes on here on the mountain. There are layers to the transformation story. If we go to a deeper level, we see a transformation in how God can be understood. There is a theology (an understanding of God) that likes to portray God as completely separated and uninvolved in God’s creation—almost like God spun creation like a top, then stepped back to see what would happen. This moment on the mountain smashes a hole in that theology! God shows, through Jesus, that God is not only involved in the life of Creation, but that God wants to be known by Creation. Did you hear that? God wants to be known by Creation; God wants to be known by you! God isn’t interested in playing a cosmic game of hide-and-seek or “find me if you can! God doesn’t want to be a secret! It was true in the time of Jesus and it is true today. God wants to be known by us; in grace and mercy, God has given us ways in which we can know God. We have touched on those ways at different times throughout my time here—we know God through the witness of Scripture, we know God when we feel the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, and we know God through our interactions with one another; anytime we see forgiveness shared between people, when we see love prevail over hate and violence. God wants each of us to know God and to know what God is doing in this world. The Transfiguration of Jesus demonstrates God’s interest in this world and God’s desire to be known by Creation.

           If we go still deeper, we uncover another transformation of viewpoint that can happen as a result of the Transfiguration. To do this, we need to use a bit of logic. Now, I’m not the most logical person in the world, so see if you can follow me here. My mind tells me that if God wants to be known by Creation, by us, then we as a creation of God must have some value to God. I know…it’s not exactly the most earth-shattering news we might have heard. Even though we haven’t yet reached the account of Jesus’ passion and death and Resurrection, we remember the story and recall how valuable we are to God. Not only are we valuable to God, but we are also useful to God. God has a use for us! This use God has for us is that God uses us to shine God’s glory in this world. It was the glory of God that was radiating from Jesus and Moses and Elijah on the mountain. Think about it…God’s glory was radiating from human beings. Moses and Elijah were ordinary people. They weren’t perfect people; they had their problems and their issues. Yet God’s glory radiated from them. Why is that? It is because they allowed themselves to be used as God’s representatives in and to their world! When this happened, they became extra-ordinary people! And the same is true for us. We are ordinary people. We have our struggles, we have our trials, and we have problems with things. But when we allow ourselves to be used as representatives of Jesus Christ in our world, we become extra-ordinary people! God can and will use us to shine the glory of God in our world. All we have to do is make ourselves available. The Transfiguration of Jesus demonstrates for us how God can use ordinary people and use them (US) for God’s glory in this world.

           The Transfiguration of Jesus was a one-time event, never to be repeated again. It was God’s demonstration of who Jesus is, a demonstration of God’s presence in the world, and a demonstration of the value we have to God….(lead into Communion)

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