How Sweet It Is!

The Transfiguration

2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

How Sweet it is!

This morning, we will be talking about the Benefits of a Christian Lifestyle. How living a life of faith is better than living without faith.

The first major benefit is simply salvation. Jesus paid the cost for our sins on the cross. And because of His Sacrifice, we can enter in to heaven despite our sinful nature. God loves us so much that He took the punishment upon Himself so that we might live forever in His kingdom. But in order to realize this benefit first you need physically die. Yes, this is a wonderful benefit but not realized in our earthly lifetime.

So what else, what are the benefits of knowing Jesus Christ in your heart today? How does that play out in real life? For Peter, James and John their experience was Amazing! 2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

Each of us experiences Christ in a real way. And while each experience is unique, the result is the same. God reveals part of Himself to us. And we benefit from that.

The next benefit is that the Holy Spirit helps us to deal with the hard times that come up in life. Everyone has heard the poem, footprints in the sand. Yes, a strong faith can sustain us through many a tragedy and hard time. Prayer comforts the hearts and opens them to new possibilities as sent by the still small voice of God in our souls. We know that real help comes from the Lord if we are patient enough to wait and listen. And we trust that even though God may not Grant us what we want. He will always provide what is best. As the song says “I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden. Along with the sunshine there has to be a little rain sometimes.”

Another benefit comes through God’s Holy Word and the 10 commandments. Through the law and the examples found in God’s word, we can learn how to live life abundantly. Not easily, sin is always the easy solution. Trying to live an abundant life through sin always leads to disaster. No only for ourselves but for those around us as well. God’s laws are there to protect us from sin. Protect us from disaster. And the stories in the Bible are examples of how God protects those who love Him and punishes those who don’t.

Part of living Life abundantly is the fact that when we accept Jesus into our hearts, we have a real relationship with Him. We know this and feel it in our hearts. We recognize His handiwork in our lives and we know that He is taking care of us. And those experiences bring real joy into our lives. Pete felt this Joy in this morning’s scripture lesson. 5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

When we listen to Christ in our hearts, when we listen when he talks to us through the scriptures we find divine guidance and wisdom.

Do you remember the time when you first truly met Jesus? That day when everything finally clicked. Suddenly the Bible wasn’t just a book full of hard to understand stories and riddles and you realize, that this book was written for you. That Christ Died for you. That God considered you His Child. In side, there was no denying it. Jesus is real and you know it. Then something strange happens. That void inside of you that you couldn’t fill is healed. Because you know that you were created for a reason. You were cherished you were important. Because God thinks you are important, important enough to save.