27th February 2022 (Transfiguration of Jesus)
Title: Listen to Him
(Scripture Readings: Exodus 34:29–35 & Luke 9:28–36)
By Heeyoung Lim
Moses obeyed God’s command to climb the mountain, where he would receive further directions from God. Once there, the Lord came down in the cloud, passed by Moses, and proclaimed His name, the LORD. God is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. While God wrote the Ten Commandments on the tablets, Moses kept his place. Moses did not eat bread or drink water for a long time to receive God’s word, but God filled his body and mind with His word. As he descended from the mountain, his face glowed.
No doubt Moses gained encouragement just speaking with God face-to-face. But Moses was much more encouraged when he confirmed that God is personal rather than impersonal like false deities of surrounding nations. Moses’ new discovery about God he served has been updated through God’s words and encounter with Him. Equipped with this new discovery of the knowledge of God, Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. Moses wanted to go forth with the presence of the covenant God, who demonstrated His love by forgiving their sins and chose them as his inheritance. Moses felt God’s presence.
Moses’ face shines with the reflected glory of God after receiving the Ten Commandments. He wears a veil when he delivers the commandments to the people of Israel because this radiance frightens them. Moses’ direct encounter with Yahweh caused his face to become radiant, and the people withdrew from him in fear. But Moses calmed them and did put on a veil when he spoke with them after being in God’s presence.
But when he entered God’s presence, he did not have a veil. He experienced God’s glory without a veil, and the beholding of God’s glory became a glorious privilege that new believers would enjoy. May we be blessed people who spend time with God, seek God’s presence, and see and enjoy God’s glory.
As a theologian Karl Barth reminds us, “the one who makes us radiant. We ourselves cannot put on bright faces. But neither can we prevent them from shining. Looking up to him, our faces shine.” The glow comes from time alone with God. Moses and the people were able to change from fear and misunderstanding to acceptance and cooperation through God’s word.
In Christ, may we reform our spiritual life through communication and willingness to change. I believe that it will encourage trust and enable ways of being accountable to the Holy One and to one another. Just as God was at work in leading Israel through the wilderness after the exodus, God is present in and working through Jesus.
Jesus took his three closest followers with him up a mountain. Peter, John, and James witness Jesus’ transfiguration on a mountaintop. Jesus turned aside to pray and taught prayer by example. As Jesus is praying, Moses and the prophet Elijah appear with him. While he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. (29) As Jesus was transformed, he was joined by Moses and Elijah, also in great splendour. This is a vibrant revelation of God’s power in Christ. God’s glory and light shine in Jesus’ transfiguration.
The disciples almost missed the greatest moment of revelation in Jesus’ earthly ministry prior to the cross. While Moses and Elijah appear at the mountaintop, Peter, John, and James find themselves overwhelmed with sleep. Eventually, they awoke and saw clearly that Jesus belonged in the company of the two. Peter suggests that they build three booths, one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Luke notes that Peter suggested but really did not understand its full point. Commitment to Jesus is not to build a sacred place. It is related to a mission that never lets a follower remain in one place. It is not about building tabernacles; it is about following Jesus to the cross.
As Peter is speaking, a fog covers them. The transfiguration ends as the disciples hear the divine voice from the cloud. A cloud led the disciples away from the Mount of Transfiguration and to Mount Calvary. The cloud enclosed the disciples so they could no longer see the glory but could be assured that God was present among them. They are terrified when a voice from the cloud announces that Jesus is the chosen one and commands the disciples to listen to Him. (35) When the fog lifts, Jesus is alone again with the disciples.
How are we hearing God’s powerful and comforting message into foggy and confusing times? How can we “listen to Him” and invite others to do the same? What do we hear in these foggy times? They saw His glory, and Jesus had said he would return in glory. Later he would enter his glory after his suffering on the cross. This is glory that belongs to the heavenly realm.
Thus, the three disciples got a preview of the reigning King before He fully entered his glory. Jesus completes God’s plan of redemption and salvation by being the suffering servant. To do this, Jesus had to face the cross rather than seek the throne his followers expected. God’s presence offers us a glimpse of the resurrection promise.
What was spoken to Jesus at the river of baptism is now proclaimed on the mountaintop of transfiguration, “This is my Son, the Chosen; listen to Him. What voices do we need to block out if we are to listen to the Son? To what voices should we listen instead? What about the voices of those in trouble or distress, voices that transform us from the status of complacence? If we listen to Jesus, what grace might we encounter that we cannot now imagine? Commitment to God means listening to His Son.
In verse 36, when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. Jesus’ followers do not automatically have God’s power to do His work without prayer and commitment. We can be encouraged by the disciples’ faithful-ness to be present with Jesus. While being formed in the presence of Christ at the glorious transfiguration event, and they became one with Him and His mission in the world. May we go and do likewise.
Transfiguration Sunday provides an opportunity to recall those times when we encounter Holy Mystery. Do we have mountaintop experiences that transformed our lives? Where is our mountaintop? It can be all different to everyone. God’s presence is subtle and comes to us in different ways even on a daily basis. How can we help others recognize the presence of God and His glory in their lives? God’s grace shines into our lives.
It is time to remember Jesus’ transfiguration and our calling to be followers of Christ. We pause on this day to celebrate and hold within us the presence of Holy Mystery that will empower us for the journey into Lent. May we look for God to do His work in his cross-carrying ways rather than in the world’s fame and power-producing ways. May we live by walking with God in the love and grace of Christ and face the glory of the Lord with joy.
PRAYER FOR TRANSFIGURATION
Oh Lord,
You call us to go to the mountain top with you
And we follow, not quite sure of what is to happen,
but we like mountain tops,
we like the view from up here,
we like mountain top experiences.
Lord, sometimes we need mountain top experiences with you
when our days are dark and dreary,
when our heart, are heavy,
when the valleys seem more depressing than ever.
Lord, may this mountain top experience
fill our hearts with your light,
may we be filled with your love,
may we be filled with hope.
Lord, just as Moses and your disciples
were changed by their experiences
we too are changed and transformed
into the image of Christ by your mercy.
Lord, may we have unveiled faces
that reflect your love, your hope, and your light.
Written by Rev Abi and posted on Rev Gal Blog Pals.
Thanks be to God! Amen.
(Ref. Bible, commentaries, theological books, UCA materials)
