The Transfiguration (21 January, 2018)

Glory, glory, hallelujah!

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.  Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.  But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them.  Afterward all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken with him in Mount Sinai.  And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.  Whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him.  Exodus 34:29-35

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.  And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.  And Moses said, "I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned."  When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."  Then He said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."  And He said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.  Then the LORD said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.  And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.  Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt."  But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?"  He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain."  Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"  God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"  Exodus 3:1-14

Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?  The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us."  He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.  Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying,  "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill."  I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, "You are my Son; today I have begotten you.  Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.  You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."  Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.  Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.  Psalm 2

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.  For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain.  And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts,  knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation.  For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.  2 Peter 1:16-21

And after six days Jesus took with Him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.  And He was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.  And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with Him.  And Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah."  He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him."  When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified.  But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Rise, and have no fear."  And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.  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."  Matthew 17:1-9

How do you unpack this one?

Jesus, standing on top of a mountain, and out of nowhere - POW!  Moses and Elijah are standing there.  Clouds surround the whole thing.  And then God switches on the "big voice" to shut Peter up.

Maybe Jesus should have warned Peter, James, and John to wear their brown tunics that day.

We don't believe in fanciful stories.  Spectacular, sure.  Miraculous, oh yeah.  Unexplainable, uh yep.  Mythical, nope.

These accounts, Moses talking with God and the Transfiguration, are some of the few times when God pulls back the curtain.

Remember the Wizard of Oz?  Dorthy and company are in the Wizard's throne room, cowering before a terrifying visage surrounded by fire and smoke.  Then that little dog pulls back the curtain just enough that they see... a regular man.  Don't look behind the curtain.

God has many times placed a curtain between us and Himself, both literally and metaphorically.  The curtain in the temple between the priest and the Ark of the Covenant is a great example.  It was there for the safety of the people.

Moses requested to see God, a thing which he was told would kill him.  A person in their sin cannot view God in all His Glory.  However, God, being gracious and loving, showed Himself to Moses in a way that would not kill the man.  Even with that veiled form, the Glory of God was so powerful, so intense, that Moses's very body was showing the effects of His presence.  The people understood that there was some unearthly power at play when the saw Moses's face.  So, to protect their consciouses, Moses wore a veil.

At Jesus's birth, God took on the ultimate veil: a human body.  So here He was, living in complete humility, keeping His Glory under covers until the time was right.

That trip up that mountain was but a peek behind the curtain.

Peter's babbling was understandable.  What do you say when your teacher and friend has a conversation with two of the greatest leaders in your people's history.  And not only that, but your teacher starts projecting light with such intensity that He outshone the sun.

Clearly this is a holy spot.  Can we stay here?

No.  We can't.  Christ's duty was not on the mountain top; at least not yet.  Until it was time to fully tear down that veil and reveal the Glory of God, Jesus kept His divine nature concealed.  Why?  Because it distracts us.  We look for the glory, the glamor, the glitter.  We want the revolution, the marching armies, the conquest.  But that is not the Glory of God.

We know where God appears in His full Glory when there are clouds.  That is God's veil.

Clouds show up on Sinai, and the mountain where the transfiguration happened, and most importantly this happened at the Crucifixion.  Great darkness and clouds.  Christ's death is where God's Glory is fully revealed.  That's why the veil in the temple is torn.  There is no need for the veil anymore.

We who are grafted into Christ can see the Father without fear of being destroyed.