Year C
Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)
The Very Rev. Denise Vaughn
Listen! And be Changed!
Today is the last Sunday in the season of Epiphany which began back on January 6, and the last Sunday before Lent begins this Wednesday on Ash Wednesday. What better way to transition from the end of Epiphany to the beginning of Lent than to experience the most profound aha, eye opening, epiphany moment yet. Today, Jesus takes Peter, James and John to the top of a mountain, the Mount of Transfiguration, to experience the glory and the greatness of God. Each year, on this Sunday, depending on whether we’re in Liturgical year A, B, or C, we get Matthew, Mark, or Luke’s version of this mountain top experience where Jesus reveals the glory of who he is; God’s Son, and his mission. Bleak reality will soon follow this Transfiguration event. We will descend into the depths of Lent just after we get this amazing story of Jesus on the mountaintop, shinning with glory.
Mountains, in the Jewish tradition, were the scene of divine revelation and encounter. Moses and Elijah who appear in our story today, each encountered God on a mountaintop: Moses in a cloud on Mount Sinai and Elijah in the sheer silence of a cave on Mount Horeb. It seems fitting then, that Jesus has both the people and the settings for which divine revelation has occurred in Jewish history; Moses and Elijah, the silence of personal prayer and the cloud from which God’s voice comes forth. The transfiguration happens at a pivotal moment in Jesus’ mission and Luke points out that it happened about eight days after Jesus had charged his disciples to remain true to him even in the face of persecution, promising that some of them would not taste death before they had seen the kingdom of God. Apparently, Luke looked upon this event as a sampling of the kingdom of God because it was a unique moment when Jesus’ glory was revealed.
Yet, the clouds are already beginning to gather, and the cold wind is already blowing: wind which would soon take Jesus to Jerusalem and a cross. As is true with all of us, when we come to those decisive moments in life, we go to those we trust so Jesus takes with him his three most trusted friends, Peter, James and John, to the mountain to pray and possibly to plan. Suddenly Jesus is transfigured—the appearance of his face changes and his clothes became a brilliant white. Frederick Buechner, theologian and author who has written several excellent books, says: “It is as strange a scene as there is in the gospels. Even without the voice from the cloud to explain it, the disciples had no doubt what they were witnessing. It was Jesus of Nazareth all right, the man they’d tramped many a dusty mile with, whose mother and brothers they knew, the one they’d seen as hungry, tired, footsore as the rest of them. But it was also, the Messiah, the Christ, in his glory. Buechner says, it was the holiness of the man shining through his humanness, his face so afire with it they were almost blinded.”
To top it all off, they are met there by Moses and Elijah, who sum up the law and the prophets, and who had apparently come to discuss the forthcoming events with Jesus. Interestingly, when Moses and Elijah appear and are speaking with him of his departure in Jerusalem, the word used in Greek for departure is exodos, or exodus. There can be no mistaking the word choice. The great exodus of the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, led by Moses, brought a new age and a renewed commitment to God. Now, Jesus had come to bring God’s kingdom more fully into being on earth and his death will bring salvation and a new covenant between God and God’s people. And the voice from the cloud affirms Jesus as God’s beloved Son, the Chosen One. The one they are listen to and follow.
And immediately they go back down the mountain, the voice of God still echoing in their ears, “Listen to him…listen to Jesus.” The mountain was but a moment away from the press of the crowds, but it was a moment that would linger in the minds and hearts of the disciples; an intense and vivid encounter with the holiness and radiance of an epiphany event. The voice of God saying, “This is my Son, listen to him! Jesus had traveled through cities and towns “proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.” Saying, “The time has been fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near: repent, and believe in the good news.” “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” “Your sins are forgiven…your faith has saved you; go in peace.” If you want to become my followers, deny yourself and take up your cross daily and follow me.”
Listen and follow me is the message given to all who now descend with Jesus down the mountain into the depths of Lent. It’s hard to go back down from the mountain, whatever that peak experience might be. There’s always the valley, before and after. Lent is a time to take a good look at ourselves because we all fail in our walk with Christ and each other. The day after the disciples go down from that golden moment on the mountain they face failure. They had tried to carry on while Jesus was away but have failed to heal a boy who needs it, and are embarrassed and disappointed. The father of the boy is upset and wonders what went wrong. But Jesus rebukes the unclean spirit, heals the boy and gives him back to his father. And they all found transfiguration. The disciple’s failure is transformed. “And all were astounded at the greatness of God.” Just as God was at work in leading Israel through the wilderness after the exodos, God is present and working through Jesus to whom we must listen.
The Transfiguration story is the story of faith—and life. The top of the mountain doesn’t save us from the struggles below. The glimpse of God gives us strength and the skills needed to face our failures and disappointments. Today, on this Transfiguration Sunday we have an opportunity to draw closer to God. It is an opportunity to let our lives be transfigured, by the radical proposition that Jesus is Lord. “And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.” In Christ, the veil is being lifted so that we might live in the truth of God’s redeeming love and in the work of God’s transforming Spirit. “Listen to him”! The voice proclaims. He is the one with the power that brings life. If we listen and follow, our lives will be changed.