Transfiguration sermon 06 aug

            This morning we celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration! This is one of those days when Christ-followers in every place and every age sit back, reflect, and are amazed at what transpires. Because there is a LOT that is happening here, and I'm going to pose some questions I've been reflecting on this week as we journey through it.

            Right off the hop, this passage starts with a chance to question. If we were listening to a story being told, and it started like this, we'd probably interrupt for some clarification. "Now about 8 days after these sayings..." 

            WAIT. STOP. What sayings? What sayings are so important that they get mentioned immediately after they are shared? Obviously, the author wants us to pay attention, because it matters to this story.

            So we go back in Luke - and Jesus has just commissioned the 12, confused Herod, fed the 5000, received Peter's declaration that Jesus is the Messiah of God, and told them that he will die and be resurrected. Heavy stuff.

            And about 8 days later, Jesus takes 3 of his friends up a mountain to pray.

Peter, James, and John. The first three men that he called to be his disciples. The three men who were partners together as fishermen at Genesserat. The first three to cast aside all the trappings of this earthly life and commit their life to this man Jesus and his teachings.

            So these 4 friends head up a mountain, to pray. How wonderful, to get away from it all for a little bit. Take a break. A retreat of sorts. To pull away from the busyness of the marketplace, the political arena, the watchful eye of everyone else. Because Jesus had, at this point, drawn some attention to himself. He's a minor celebrity, stirring things up and challenging the status quo, so he's got people keeping an eye on him.  And really, who wouldn't like to just get away from it all for a bit, to connect with God?

            So up the mountain they go. (For anyone keeping track, we're now one sentence into the Gospel reading. Get comfy.)

            There they are, and Jesus is praying, and somewhere in this time, his closest friends see something ... different ... about him.

            His face looks different. How - we don't know. We just know it looks different.

            His clothes become dazzling white - quite a feat for folks who are walking through a dusty environment and have just climbed a mountain.

            I bet they were starting to wonder at this point if there was a change, or if it had been this way all along, and they had just been too close to Jesus to notice. Hmm. After all, we've all had those AH-HA! moments that shock us, right? The "How did I *miss* that before!" times - a plot twist in a movie reveals a previously hidden truth, a friend divulges a secret that makes us consider some of their actions in a new way - you get the idea.

            Then, suddenly, we've got some extra folks popping in. And these are people from the past. Not just some guys they grew up with and haven't seen in a while - but a LONG past. Moses - well he's been dead some 1500 years at this point. Elijah - he was swept up to heaven in his chariot some 800 years previous. Yet there they are.

            Obviously the biblical equivalent of superheroes or celebrities, because even though Peter and James and John have never before seen these two people, they know who they are. They are the stuff of teaching, of history, of the faith. They are the heroes of Israel, easily identified just by their appearance.

            Can you imagine how amazed the disciples are at this point, when they realise what is happening? They're exhausted as they wait on the mountaintop, yet they stay awake. And they are then rewarded by the gift of witnessing this cataclysmic event of divine reality. This is one of those moments that is literally life-changing for them. And, as we know from the rest of the scriptures, there are other times when they will NOT be able to stay awake while Jesus is praying. And we know that those times have less-excellent outcomes. Staying awake for Jesus is important.

            So a challenge for ourselves is to think to the last time you had a moment where you thought "My life will never be the same because of this one.special.sacred.second"? Hmm. Did you recognise God being with you at that moment? Because I think that's what happens with Peter - he's said his belief, his early creed with his mouth - you are the chosen one of God - and now he is seeing with his eyes the irrefutable proof of that.

            So of course he's excited, and wants this moment to last forever. Who wouldn't? And in his very humanness, his very earthlyness, he blurts out a very selfish and unrealistic request, without even knowing what he's saying. "It's good for us to be here! Let's build three dwellings - let's keep holding on to the very best of what has come before us, and keep it here forever!"

            Well. Who hasn't felt like that?

            And the divine response comes quickly. Poor Peter's still bubbling with this energy when a cloud comes, and BOOM. A voice from a cloud - a divine proclamation 0 is this the Metatron, the scribe and voice of God? The voice declares a truth and directive - it's almost an invictive - "this is my son, my chosen, listen to him!"

            Again, wow. Peter is being told, by a heavenly voice, to be silent and listen. He is reminded that he can't benefit from the teachings of Jesus if he's always talking, if he's always stuck on trying to preserve the past.

            Again, we have the same opportunity to reflect on how this passage speaks to us. When and how does God speak to us? What are we doing while God is speaking? Are we taking the time away from the constant noise of the world to retreat to a place where God can speak? Are we willing to be still enough, even in prayer, to let God proclaim truth to us? Are we able to be dazzled by the presence of Jesus right in front of us, even if we've never seen His presence in that way before?

            Even the last little snippet of detail is important. After the voice speaks, Jesus is standing there alone. Peter and James and John see their friend, but they also see so much more. They see the future. They see the new Israel. They see the fulfillment of the law. They see that Jesus' words to them are so much more than words, but the promise of the life to come. They see, too, that what they will do from that point on will have a profound impact on the world.

            So my last reflection invitation is how we put ourselves in this place. How do we see Jesus as the centre of it all; the divine presence here on earth, the one to help bring about new opportunity and new ministry? How do we listen to that presence of Jesus in such a way that the world will hear His message through us? How do we keep silent until the right time, eagerly listening to receive God's message, rather than trying to provide the answers we think we know?

            It's a powerful lesson. It's a powerful passage. And once again, it's a wonderful opportunity for us to see the power of God in our lives.

            So I pray: I pray that we will all see the face of Jesus showing through the faces of everyone we encounter: that they may be transfigured before us into a likeness of God's image.

            I pray that we will have the ability to be still and silent when God is speaking to us, so that we will hear and understand the truth of the Holy Message that is being revealed to the world.

            I pray that we will remember to be dazzled by the power of God: in the moments that catch us unawares, and in moments of ordinariness.

            May we celebrate the transfiguration of our Lord, and delight in having our eyes open to seeing God's love and mercy in new ways in our lives.