Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is from the Epistle Lesson just read, 2 Cor. 4:1-6. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- We sometimes revel in the accounts in Holy Scripture of God revealing His glory in remarkable and miraculous ways to human beings. This is Transfiguration Sunday, when we contemplate the amazing experience Jesus’ disciples had on the mountain. But we also consider what Elijah and Elisha were privileged to experience, and also Moses – whose face glowed for a time after his conversations with God.
- We perhaps think that we would like some of this for ourselves – that it would help to strengthen and solidify our faith in God. We envision having a singular “mountaintop” experience, something we could always remember. Unfortunately, the memory would grow dim over time, and we would probably yearn for other similar experiences.
- Likewise, we likely would have the same kind of reactions as Elisha and the disciples – such experiences are mind-boggling and intimidating. Elisha cried out in grief, and saw Elijah no more. The disciples were terrified, and didn’t know what to say or think. And their “vision” also ended. What ended up being even more poignant in their memories was the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.
- In reality, if we are willing to hear God’s Word, our text for this morning, we will come to understand that God has provided us with the same kind of vision of “THE GLORY OF JESUS,” but one that we are blessed to experience over and over again, and one that does not produce fear and confusion, but rather great peace, comfort, joy, and the sanctifying inner radiance of Christ within us.
- It is true that we look at what God offers in our text as being mundane, plain, ordinary, and unremarkable. But if we understand it for what it really is we will begin to think differently about the life of the church and about what is offered to us in our worship! For:
I. The Glory Of Jesus Is Seen In The Gospel Of God’s Gracious Mercy And Salvation In Christ Jesus
Text: “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God.”
A. Christ’s Glory Is Seen Only By The Repentant, And Not By Those Blinded In Impenitence
1 Jn. 1:8,9 “If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us, but if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
B. Christ’s Glory Is Seen Only By Faith, And Cannot Be Seen By Unbelievers
Text: “Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God.”
C. Christ’s Glory Is Seen By The Preaching Of The Word Of God – The Proclaimed Gospel
Text: “We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s Word, but by the open statement of the truth we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. . . . [we proclaim] the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God.”
Statement: This, obviously, is the very life of the church, the precise nature of our worship services – meditating upon God’s gracious and glorious good news in liturgical pieces, in the Scripture readings, in the hymns, in the proclamation of the absolution commanded by Jesus, in the sermons, and in the “visible gospel” of the gift of Christ’s true body and blood “given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.”
But we have been hearing and observing these things for many years, and it all seems very mundane and unspectacular, little different than interactions in say a college classroom or a corporate boardroom. In fact, it may seem even more boring to us, especially the sermons. And the absolution seems somewhat pompous and unreal. And the Sacrament seems little more than bread and wine. And the hymns and liturgy are not always done well. And we may not be eager to confess our sins in genuine repentance, or to accept that we must receive God’s gracious mercy and forgiveness or perish eternally in hell.
Application: Our blindness, however, does not change the reality of what is being “shined” by God, what He seeks to reveal of His glory to us in Christ Jesus, and what He seeks to effect in our hearts and minds by His glorious gospel. It is given to the repentant and to those who will believe the gospel of His love and salvation – let us pray God to grant repentance and faith to each of us! And it is given to us – “shined and revealed” – by means of His Word, the gospel of the glory of Christ; let us pray God that our hearts and minds not be “veiled” to His glory!
Transition: It is God Himself who “shines” the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in our hearts – and obviously He wills that we “see” and receive it! And:
II. To See Christ By Faith Is To See The Very Image Of God
Text: “Christ . . . is the image of God.”
A. Again, He Shines This Light Into Our Hearts By His Word – The Gospel
Text: “What we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord.”
B. This Light That Is Shined In Us Is The Knowledge Of The Glory Of God In The Face Of Jesus Christ
Text: “God has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
C. And This Shining Of God’s Glory In Christ Jesus Is Both Enlightening And Transformative – So That We Too Come To Bear The Image Of God
2 Cor. 3:18 “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord Who is the Spirit.”
Statement: Where the veil remains in place God’s glory is not seen. Where God’s glory is not seen there is no inner enlightenment, only blindness. Where there is no inner enlightenment there is no transformation into God’s image – only the degradation of our fallen sinful nature remains. Pray God the Holy Spirit to grant us this “unveiling,” for “this comes from the Lord Who is the Spirit.”
Note that this occurs “from one degree of glory to another.” It is not complete in one instance, or instantaneous. It is gradual and enduring. It occurs through a lifetime of exposure to the Word of God, the Gospel, and the radiance of God’s glorious love “in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Application: But it is certainly real – and God’s good and gracious will for each and every one of us. It is just as real as what Elisha experienced, or what Moses experienced, or what the disciples saw on the Mount of Transfiguration. But it is more glorious – for we have a fuller revelation of God’s love in Christ Jesus following His suffering and death on the cross and His glorious resurrection and ascension, and His gift of the Holy Spirit, the Counselor. And all of this occurs within the life of the church – in our worship together, as God “shines the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” into our hearts and minds – as we repent and rejoice in His gracious mercy and forgiveness, by means of His Word and Sacrament.
Conclusion: The disciples didn’t rely upon lingering memories of a “mountaintop” experience of the glory of Jesus – they heard and preached the glorious gospel of God’s love in Christ Jesus, and they administered His grace to others in His baptism, in His absolution, and in the precious Sacrament of His body and blood. The church received this blessedness from them, and through their written Word of Holy Scripture, and those from whom God removed the veil were enlightened with the glory of Christ and transformed into His image “from one degree of glory to another” by the Spirit of the Lord.
We are invited into the same blessedness and glory – and it is available to us each Sunday to this very day! May God grant it to each of us in richest measure! Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.