TRANSFIGURATION – February 23, 2020 – Matt 17:1-9
Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Gospel Lesson just read, from Matthew 17. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- Many people have far too small an idea of Who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for us. They have no idea of how big He is, and how much love He has for us.
- It is natural, part of our perverted sinful nature, that we have an ingrained cynicism in our hearts and minds. Hence, we don’t even realize that we have a grossly diminished understanding of Jesus. We think our appraisal of Him is right on!
- We look at His human nature, His vulnerability, His apparent weakness in suffering brutality and death on the cross. And we then conclude, and assume, that this is all that He is, that no one who could avoid such treatment and outcome would endure it. We are ignorant of Who He is, and of the magnitude of His love for us.
- This is in part why the transfiguration of Jesus occurred, and the very reason that we celebrate it each year. And throughout, the Holy Scripture teaches us about “THE GLORY OF JESUS,” if only we are willing to hear, take seriously, contemplate, and internalize it.
- So we have opportunity, once again this morning to consider “THE GLORY OF JESUS.” And this is important, for the Transfiguration occurred shortly before the crucifixion of Jesus, His apparent moment of weakness. But if you read the description of Jesus in our text, your minimizing of Jesus will begin to dissipate! For:
I. It Is Clear From Our Text And From Many Passages In Holy Scripture That Jesus’ Glory Is Eternal, From The Beginning
Old Testament Lesson: “Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel.”
Compare this to the description in our text:
Text: “He was transfigured before them, and His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light. . . . behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them.”
Statement: “THE GLORY OF JESUS” is identical to the glory of God of Israel, the God of Creation. In these minimal displays of His glory – which are astronomical to us – He clearly demonstrates His power and majesty. How can a human face “shine like the sun”? How can clothes, by virtue of contact with the human flesh of Jesus “become white as light”?
Application: So we are provided with something to understand and contemplate! The very glory of God is “enfleshed” in the human nature of Jesus! So as Paul wrote: “There is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” [1 Tim. 2:5] Likewise he wrote: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything He might be preeminent. For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.” [Col. 1:15-19]
Transition: All of this must be kept in mind, for:
II. The Glory Of Jesus Centers In His Love For Us, As Seen In His Great Work Of Redemption And Salvation
Text: “There appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with Him.”
Luke 9:30,31 “And behold, two men were talking with Him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His departure, which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.”
1 John 4:9,10 “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the blood atonement for our sins.”
John 12:23,24 “And Jesus answered them, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”
Statement: What sinful and fallen human reason cannot understand is the glory of love. Therefore it cannot understand and grasp the very glory of God. And for those who are ignorant of the glory of God, it is impossible to fathom the glory of His wondrous nature, and “THE GLORY OF JESUS.”
Application: So we must hold together these two very disparate thoughts and realities: the awesome power and glory of God Almighty, and His humble suffering and death on the cross. And we must ever hold fast the reason and purpose for this revelation of His love – our atonement, our forgiveness, our redemption, and our salvation!
Transition: And none of this is invented by theologians or any human being. Rather:
III. This Glory Of Jesus Is Recorded With Certainty In The Holy Scripture
A. By Prophets And Apostles [who were eyewitnesses]
Text: “Jesus commanded them, ‘Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.’”
Epistle Lesson: “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to Him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain.”
B. The Glory Of Jesus Was Written About By Means Of The Holy Spirit Of God
Epistle Lesson: “No prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
Statement: Now remember that we must ever hold together these two very disparate thoughts and realities: the awesome power and glory of God Almighty, and His humble suffering and death on the cross. And we must ever hold fast the reason and purpose for this revelation of His love – our atonement, our forgiveness, our redemption, our salvation!
Application: We must do so because all of this is sure and certain – inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, and eye-witnessed by our fellow human beings, the prophets and apostles.
Conclusion: Sadly, the unbelieving are entrapped in the cynicism and myopia of our fallen sinful nature, and cannot see what is given to us by the Spirit of God. It is as the apostle wrote: “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. [1 Cor. 2:12-14]
Now if we understand these things taught by the Spirit of God – the things freely give us by God – then we will bring along “THE GLORY OF JESUS” as we contemplate His suffering, death, and resurrection during the upcoming weeks of Lent.
Likewise, if we keep these disparate things close together and firmly in mind, then our understanding of God’s love will continue to grow, and our peace, joy, and confidence will be constantly expanding! May God grant this blessedness, which He wills, to each of us. Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.