Whiteboard: View From The Top

This Sunday is the Transfiguration -- one of those mysterious, amazing, misunderstood passages from scripture.

After Jesus has been preaching and teaching, healing and performing miracles he takes three of his Disciples -- Peter, James, and John -- up to a high mountain to pray. And there, he is transformed right in front of them. His clothes become as bright as a flash of lightning, his faces changes, and suddenly the Disciples realize they are not there alone with Jesus but that they are joined by Moses and Elijah!

It is an amazing scene. Arguably, a scene that is too amazing for Peter. He desperately wants to stay there. He wants to stay there on top of the mountain, with his head in the clouds. He wants to stay there...forever. He asks Jesus if they can build three houses there, saying that he wants to build one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah, but we can't help but notice that those houses would also correspond to Peter, James, and John.

But Jesus won't let them. This isn't the point of faith -- to be secluded forever, to hide away from the rest of the world, holding on to our mountaintop experience, keeping it to ourselves. As they are walking down the mountain they are greeted with the most amazing part of the entire story. A cloud envelops them and then, well, then they hear the very voice of God proclaiming "This is my Son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him."

This Sunday in worship we'll retell the Transfiguration story. We'll sing, we'll pray, we'll be in community with each other -- not so that we can have our own mountaintop moment that we keep hidden away from the world, but that we might hear once more the testimony of faith (God's command "This is my Son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him") and bring it with us out to the waiting world.

I'll see you this Sunday!

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Luke 9:28-36 The Transfiguration

Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.

Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 

Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah’—not knowing what he said. 

While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud.Then from the cloud came a voice that said, ‘This is my Son, my Chosen;listen to him!’ 

When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.