Matthew 17:1-9
Opening Our Eyes to God’s Glory
Do you ever get the sense that you take God for granted? Some of us grew up in homes where going to Sunday worship was expected of us. We grew up always knowing the love of God from an early age. And perhaps we’re spoiled a little. We don’t remember what it was like to not know God.
The story of the transfiguration reminds us of who God really is, of who Jesus really is. I’ve preached on this story before, but when I studied it this week, I tried to look at it with new eyes, asking God to give me a fresh approach. And God gave me four words that describe our Lord Jesus, and four corresponding implications for us.
1. First, our Lord Jesus is: Powerful – At the Transfiguration, God pulls back the veil and allows Peter, James, and John to see the full, pre-incarnational glory of Jesus, who is in very nature God himself (Philippians 2:6). The word “transfiguration” in the original Greek is “metamorphos” from which we get our word “metamorphosis.” Jesus radically changes from the inside out, back to his full godly form. As Paul would later write, “In Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body” (Colossians 2:9, NLT). Jesus shines brighter than an August South Texas sun. In the other gospel parallels, Mark describes Jesus as brighter than any clothes could be bleached (Mark 9:3). Luke compares him to a bolt of lightning (Luke 9:29). Max Lucado writes that this is “Christ as His truest self, wearing His pre-Bethlehem and post-Resurrection wardrobe” (Max Lucado, “Fearless”).
The implication for us is that Jesus is more than just a good teacher. He’s more than an influential leader. He’s more than a superb role model. He’s more than a profound ethicist. Sure, he’s a prophet, and yes, he’s a priest, and even a king. But he is first and foremost ... God! He is God in human form. A child once described him as “God with skin on.” Jesus told his disciples, “If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father” (John 14:9). Want to get to know God better? Want to know God’s will? Study Jesus in the scriptures. I listen to the Bible on tape during my daily commute. I like to listen to different books of the Bible, but I try to come back regularly to one of the four gospels. Why? Because I want to know Jesus better. If I know Jesus, I know God. Jesus reveals to us the heart of the Father, because he is God in human form. The transfiguration shows me that Jesus is powerful, and secondly, that he is ...
2. Primary. Jesus is #1. He’s at the very top of the power hierarchy. Another “P” word that describes this is “preeminence.” Jesus is preeminent in our life. Look at today’s story: At first, Peter, James, and John see him talking with Moses and Elijah. And Peter follows his pattern of, “When you don’t know what to say, just say something!” Do you know anybody like that? Well, Peter says something like, “This is nice, Jesus. How about if I build tents for the three of you?” Maybe he wants to stretch out this spiritual high as long as he can. But God interrupts him with a booming voice from a descending cloud, echoing what God said earlier at his son’s baptism: “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.” And then he adds an extra line: “Listen to him!” And suddenly, it’s just Jesus. No more Moses. No more Elijah.
The implication is simple: Jesus wants first place in your life. If you put something or someone on an equal footing with Jesus, well, it just might get taken away. Moses the lawgiver and Elijah the prophet illustrate how Jesus fulfills the law and all the prophecy of scripture. Peter gets distracted, so God takes them away. Be careful what you put on an equal par with Jesus. We serve a jealous God, because he knows that anything else is an idol that will disappoint and hurt us, so God must come first. It reminds me of God telling Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, his one and only son, the son of promise. It was a test, to see if Abraham would keep God first. And Abraham passed, and God provided a substitute sacrifice and rewarded Abraham’s faith. I also think of when Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters--yes, even their own life--such a person cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). Jesus exaggerates to make the point that...he...must...come...first in our lives! Jesus is primary! He is powerful and primary, and yet, he is also ...
3. Personable. When the cloud descends and the booming voice from heaven speaks, the three disciples hit the ground face down in fear. But look at the rest of verse 6: “Jesus came and touched them. ‘Get up,’ he said. ‘Don’t be afraid.’” Jesus doesn’t rebuke them or laugh at them or question their spiritual growth. He cares for them. He touches them. He reassures them.
This reminds me that the God who is loud and scary is also caring and compassionate. God is way up there—what theologians call transcendent—but he’s also right here with me—he is immanent. He is both my Judge and my Savior; he is my boss as well as my friend.
This reminds me of how Becky describes her father growing up. She says he had this look that would say more than words, that could immediately let you know you messed up. That was his sternness. But he also had a tender heart for his girls. That was his loving care.
So it is with God. God is large and in charge. And yet Jesus reminds us that God also has a gentle, reassuring touch. Some Christians tip one way or the other to the extreme. Some only see God as judging and punishing and they never sense his love, only his condemnation. One of my Veterans grew up in a home where the father abused the children physically and emotionally, and used religious language to justify it. Very sad. That father will be held accountable.
On the other hand, some Christians see God as a pushover, an old grandfather type who will let you get away with anything, a Santa Claus in the sky, a heavenly slot machine. That is another flawed image of God. The Bible says God disciplines those he loves.
The biblical God is both judging and forgiving. Someone once said the love of God and the wrath of God are the flip sides of the same coin. God disciplines me when I need it, but he also comforts and reassures me when I need that. Jesus reminds us we have a very personable God. Jesus is powerful, primary, and personable, and he is last but not least ...
4. Passionate. Jesus is passionate about his mission. What is his mission? The context of our passage today gives it away. Both in chapter 16 and in the rest of chapter 17, you see Jesus teaching his disciples about why he must die on a cross. That is his mission. In fact, Luke tells us, in his parallel account of the Transfiguration (Luke 9:31), what Jesus and Moses and Elijah are discussing: they’re talking about Jesus’ imminent death! Jesus is passionate about this because it is the very reason he has come to earth as a man. To borrow a Star Wars theme, “It is his destiny.”
Why is Jesus passionate about dying? Not because it’s fun, that’s for sure. In fact, later he will ask his Heavenly Father if there is any other way the mission can be accomplished. No, he doesn’t particularly want to die a tortuous Roman death. But Jesus knows we have a sin problem. He knows we cannot solve it on our own. He knows that everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, everyone but him, that is. So, the only perfect human to ever live—the Bible calls him the “second Adam”—will die a sacrificial death to account for all the sin of humanity, for all who will place their faith in him. Jesus will atone for our sins. That word “atone” can also be broken up into two words to read “at one.” And that is appropriate, because Jesus’ death will conquer sin and death once and for all so that we can be at one with God again.
Maybe that’s why God allowed Peter, James, and John to be present at the Transfiguration. Maybe they needed to catch Jesus’ passion. Remember, it wasn’t much earlier that Peter had correctly identified Jesus as the Christ (way to go, Peter!), but then shortly after, tried to talk Jesus out of going to his death on a cross (not so good, Peter!), prompting Jesus to rebuke him with, “Satan, get behind me!” Peter, along with James and John, needed a heavenly reminder of, “Listen to him!”
And perhaps we do as well. Sometimes we get distracted by this life and all of its good times and not so good times. But we forget what Jesus was most passionate about: saving people. It’s in his name. The name Jesus means, “God saves.” Maybe we need to be more grateful for our own salvation and more concerned about the salvation of those around us. David Platt, the President of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board, said, “Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every lost person this side of hell.” We owe it to those not yet saved to hear the good news that Jesus loves them, that God forgives their sin the moment they confess it to him, that they may have abundant life here and in the life to come. That is good news! And we should be passionate about it as Jesus is passionate about it.
Jesus is powerful, primary, personable, and passionate about us. We have an awesome God!
Let us pray: Father, thank you for this moment when you pulled back the curtain to reveal the majesty of your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh. Thank you that Jesus points us to your power, your pre-eminence in our lives, your personable relationship with us, and your passion for saving us from our sins. Help us to love you more, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. For someone here today, not yet your forgiven child, please help them to call out to you right now, to say, “God, please forgive me of my sins and make me your child.” In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
