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.
And the Holy Spirit shines through you so much you want to shout, like Jackie Gleason, “How Sweet it is!”
But like all good things and great feelings, they don’t last forever. 8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
So how do we hold onto the sweetness of our faith? The same way we keep it in our everyday relationships, through time, devotion and accountability. We keep reading the Bible. We know it is God speaking to us personally. So we read it with new eyes and understanding. We attend worship because now we realize that we are truly sitting in the presence of God. Jesus wasn’t kidding when he promised to show up. And now we know He is here. And we hold each other accountable. We do our best not top let anyone fall through the cracks. We know now that once we accept Jesus Christ in our hearts the Holy Spirit Changes from the inside out. And now we know that the Spirit uses our voice, It uses our hands, It uses all of us to show God’s love in the world. We are the bringers of the Kingdom. It is our job and our responsibility. It becomes a part of us. (Wesley called this sanctification) The stronger our faith the Greater the fruit of our labor, the stronger the relationship the more we become like Christ. And the more we become the Christ the greater compassion we have for everyone. We find that it is no longer about me, but how Christ can use me. And we look to each other to hold us accountable and keep us on the right track. There is no greater threat to the powers of darkness than a person who has tapped the power of the Holy Spirit. And we find that Satan will do His very best to stop you. And we will need the help of our friends and a strong faith to keep our resolve strong.
I know of a man who single handedly quadrupled the number of kids in Sunday School. The Kids liked Him, the teacher he worked with liked him. He was funny and made the class fun. And every week a couple of more kid would come. Yet his spirit was crushed at a board meeting by an old woman who said, “Can Just anyone come and teach in our Church?” The knife of her words cut deep. And nothing I said or do would keep him coming to church and teaching the class. When he left I had truly wished 3 things could have happened. 1) I wish the woman would have kept her mouth shut. 2) I wish His faith was strong enough to not be crushed by those stupid words. 3) I wish I had a better relationship with him so that I could have encouraged him enough so that he could stand up under such an attack. Satan even uses weak church people to attack fruitful workers. We need to shield one another, pray for one another and support one another so that we stand strong together. Because when we don’t Satan uses us to tear down. When we do miracles happen!
We know we live better lives because of our faith. And through serving others and sharing our faith we find power and wisdom and direction we never thought possible. The more we become a blessing to others the more we find ourselves blessed. How great is that? Well, better than great! HOW SWEET IT IS!
