This is a most extraordinary day.
This is the day of transfiguration from the carpenter’s son… you know, the
Jesus kid, who in our Gospel of Mark begins his ministry roughly at the age of
29 when he is baptized in the Jordan by his cousin, John. Jesus has been
tempted, he has called his disciples and they follow. He has gone to houses and
temples and healed…in the synagogue and in houses;
If those were not amazing things to
be done, now we have this! Jesus takes Peter, James, and John with him. He took
three, not twelve, to go up on this mountain. There is no explanation for these
three to accompany Jesus. Jesus says “let’s go” and up they all go. When they
get there something incredible happens. Appearing before them are the “rock
stars” of their faith; Moses and Elijah appear! That would be like your
favorite celebrity showing up at your house or in the grocery store and they (Moses and Elijah) begin to speak with Jesus.
Peter, James, and John are beside
themselves! They don’t know what to do. Our scripture says Peter…good ole
Peter…says, “Lord its good for us to be here. Let us make three dwellings,” I
can imagine him saying all this and then the cloud with God’s voice, “this is
my son, the beloved, listen to him.” I could not think of anyone being more
terrified then one who hears this voice of God telling Peter, James, and John
who Jesus is and what they need to do from here on out.
Never has this message before this
been so clear. At Jesus baptism, we heard God say “this is my son, the beloved,
with whom I am well pleased.” This time we get the same first part but then we
get God saying “listen to him.” Up until now we have the disciples and the
public being healed, listening to Jesus, following Jesus because of his
teachings and healing, and we have these twelve disciples on this journey with
Jesus but still trying to figure out who this Jesus is.
We often acknowledge Jesus baptism
as the “beginning of Jesus’ public ministry.” Today at this time of
transfiguration, there can be no doubt that Jesus is now more public than
before. At his baptism, the heavens were ripped open and God came into the
world. Did anyone see it? Is Jesus the only one who saw it? We don’t know. But
we do now know that Peter, James, and John are witnesses to this Holy and
Sacred moment when Jesus is no longer the carpenter’s kid, or some guy walking
around telling people that God loves them, some prophet who heals in the name
of God. Today we see that Jesus is transfigured from just being like you and me
to the Son of God, not just for the three of them to see, but for us all to see
and experience.
Because of this transfiguration, Jesus
is now seen in a very different way. It is plain to see that God sent his Son
into the world. The healings that were done and will be done were not part of
being a prophet but were done out by God’s Son and out of God’s love and
compassion.
From here on out, Jesus is
transfigured and so are we. Because we now recognize that Jesus is indeed God’s
Son… if the birth of Jesus wasn’t enough, the baptism, the healings…if they
weren’t enough to tell us who Jesus is, we surely know now! Jesus is the Son of
the living God who cares for God’s creation. Jesus is transfigured from what we
might say is the ordinary (which is doesn’t do him justice) to blessed, divine
(that doesn’t even do Jesus justice) Son of God. Jesus appears to Peter, James,
and John as a new person because his clothes have changed and their view of
Jesus is now changed.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we
are called to that same transfiguration. Because Jesus is now more visible to
us in the same dazzling clothing, blessed, and the divine Son of God we too
will never see Jesus the same. Jesus is now a new vision for us and because of
his transfiguration, Jesus is now a more public figure for us as well. He is
more public because we know who he is. We know that he is God’s Son who went to
the cross for our sake. He did all that God asked him to do out of God’s love
for creation; he showed God’s compassion by healing, teaching, inviting, and so
many other things. He went to the cross to show us the extent that God who
created all of this will go for you and me, who might think we are ordinary.
Jesus going to the cross for you and
me is not even close to being ordinary. He went to the cross because God wanted
to show us in an even more public way that being a child of God is not
ordinary. It doesn’t mean that we go around declaring ourselves better than
anyone ; it is transfiguring in knowing that God shows us our value as
extraordinary in that God’s Son went to the cross and died for you and me; AND
that he rose on the third day, Sunday, to show us that death does not have the
last word, but that God promises us the gift of eternal life in God’s glorious
kingdom.
This morning we are having a time
for healing and transfiguration. As we come forward to have absolution and we
are reminded that we have been sealed with the cross of Christ forever, let us
also remember through the body and blood of Christ we are given God’s promise
of protection and forgiveness so that we can go into the world knowing that we
are claimed by a loving God.
I want to be clear that you may
leave here and something or someone might test your patience or hurt your
feelings. It will not undo what happened here this evening/morning.
Transfiguration is not easy. It is difficult because the world doesn’t stop.
There are those in this world that may not have heard the word of God or don’t
want to; believe it or not. It doesn’t mean that we cannot share God’s
blessings in this world. It doesn’t mean that we can’t share our gifts with
others.
So
what does transfiguration look like? Hearing the Word of God and hearing that
you are blessed because you are claimed by God as God’s child. It looks like
coming in to this worship space after a tough week and knowing that you will
hear God’s Word of mercy, and love, and forgiveness. Transfiguration looks like
walking out these doors and knowing that you have been blessed with gifts of
learning, sharing, helping, and spreading God’s message through your actions
for the week to come. Transfiguration looks like showing up for school or work
on Monday morning knowing that you have skills that help you do what you are
doing and that those skills are a gift from God; transfiguration looks like
knowing that each day is a gift, whether employed or retired, young or old, and
soaking up all that God has created. Transfiguration looks like knowing and
sharing with one another that we all are valued by God and one another.
Transfiguration
means that today is the start (as is every time we gather to hear God’s word
and experience God’s love and forgiveness whether here or in the world) and
continuation of our transfiguration as a child of God: AMEN!
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