The Transfiguration of our Lord – February 9, 2025Psalm 84; Exodus 24:29-35; 2 Peter 1:16-21St. Matthew 17:1-9
In the Name of the Father, and of the +
Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ our Lord asked His disciples,
“Who do you say that I am?” Speaking on behalf of the group, St. Peter said,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Then, after giving the keys to
bind and loose the gates of heaven to the Church, Christ made His first
prediction of His death and resurrection. St. Peter rebuked the Lord, saying,
“Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” In turn, Christ
rebuked Peter with those terrible words, “Get behind Me, Satan!”[1]
Six days later, Christ took Peter,
James, and John up a high mountain and was transfigured before them. The
divinity of Christ shone through His humanity, giving Peter, James, and John a
glimpse of His glory. At that time, Moses and Elijah appeared with Him and
spoke to our Lord concerning His exodus from this world.[2]
The topic of conversation was Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. It
is called His “exodus” not just because it is His leaving the world (for a
time), but in reference to the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt. Through Moses,
the Hebrews were delivered from bondage under Pharaoh and led toward the land
of promise. Through Christ, His people are delivered from bondage under sin and
led toward the Promised Land of eternal life with Christ.
St. Peter, still trying to sort out the
events from six days prior, says, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You
wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one
for Elijah.”[3]
And while he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed everyone on the
mountain and the Father proclaimed from heaven, “This is My beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” Once again, St. Peter has received a rebuke.
The disciples were greatly afraid at this voice and fell on their faces in an
act of worship and repentance. Then Christ touched them and told them to rise,
forgiving their sin. Coming down from the mountain, Christ admonished the
disciples to tell no one what they had seen until after His resurrection.
Christ’s journey to the cross has now
begun in earnest. His miracles have not ended, but they have slowed
down. His focus is now on bearing the sins of the world to the cross. The
revelation of Christ’s transfiguration is the beginning of preparing His
disciples for His suffering and death.
Based on St. Peter’s great confession,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Christ did not need to reveal
His transfiguration to the disciples to prove His divinity. It is true that
this text is an excellent proof of the same. It shows His two natures in one
person. The human nature stands before the disciples and the divine nature
shines through with the glory of the true, living God. However, that does not seem
to be Christ’s primary purpose for revealing Himself in this way.
Rather, He is strengthening the
disciples’ hearts and minds for what is to come. “Strike the Shepherd and the
sheep will scatter.”[4]
The frailty of the human soul cannot bear the death of God, let alone the
frailty of the disciples to lose their beloved Teacher. This will also be
followed by their own persecutions and deaths. Christ reveals His divinity to
bolster their faith in Him and to reveal what awaits them in glory. As St. John
says, “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been
revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall
be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this
hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”[5]
So too, if anyone desires to follow
Christ, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Christ.[6]
Bad things will happen to you in this life. People will be cruel. Your loved
ones will get sick or hurt. You will struggle with finances. And unless Christ
returns beforehand, you will die. This is the result of sin. And you, beloved
of the Lord, will face this suffering in the knowledge that it isn’t according
to God’s blessed creation of the world. In fact, you will face this suffering
in the knowledge that it is your fault and the fault of your fellow man. You
know that all suffering is the result of sin and sometimes, that knowledge
makes the suffering worse.
St. Peter, though sometimes impulsive,
was a good student of our Lord’s teachings. He understood the implications of
what our Lord had told him regarding His suffering and death. Peter couldn’t
bear the thought of his beloved Lord and Master suffering such an unjust death.
He couldn’t bear the thought that the Man without sin would suffer the death of
a disgusting criminal. He was dreadfully rebuked by Christ for rejecting the
crucifixion. So then, on the Mount of Transfiguration, St. Peter tried a
different tactic. “Why don’t we just stay here? Lord, I’ll build tents for You,
Moses, and Elijah. James, John, and I can sleep on the ground. We can stay here
on the mountain and enjoy your glory for all time. It is good for us all to be
here, in Your presence, for all time.”
St. Peter is still trying to avoid the
suffering of the cross. He is looking for an exit from the world like the one
Elijah enjoyed. Elijah did not taste death. He was carried to heaven in his
body on a flaming chariot.[7]
He is still trying to spare Christ the shameful death of the cross while avoiding
his own life of suffering and persecution in the world.
At the same time, don’t be too hard on St. Peter. The first words out of his mouth on the mountain are, “It is good Lord, for us to be here.” He is right. It is good to be in the presence of the glory of the Lord. It is good to be gathered with the saints, worshiping the Triune God. The Mount of Transfiguration is a foretaste of the eternal life that all Christians can expect at the completion of our journey on this side of glory. But before we can enjoy that reward, we have a journey to endure here. We have a life to live in this world, even if we are not of this world.[8]
Christ recognizes St. Peter’s struggle
and it is precisely for this reason that He reveals His glory on the mountain. It
is in recognition of your struggle against sin, your endurance of suffering in
this world, that Christ caused His transfiguration to be written in the words
of Holy Scripture. Bad things will happen to you in this life and some of it
will be your fault. Some of it won’t. Some of it will be punishment for sin.
Some of it will be by the hand of God, to prevent you from becoming too reliant
on yourself.
The thundering voice of the Father causes
the disciples to fall on their faces in repentance and reverence. They are
humbled by the power and glory of the Almighty and reminded of their proper
place. They are sinners who do not deserve the mercy of the Father nor the
sacrifice that Christ will soon make. When the Father speaks, they do not
presume to build tents but submit to whatever judgment His is about to
pronounce. But what does the Father say? “This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased. Listen to Him.” He tells the disciples to listen to the words of
Christ, to obey the Son of God.
What does Christ say to them? He
forgives their sins by telling them to arise and then leads them back down the
mountain. He leads them back from the mountain of God’s glory and into the
world. Having been strengthened with the vision of Christ’s glory, the
disciples are to return down the mountain to endure Christ’s death and
resurrection. They are also called to do more. They are called to live in this
world. They are called to be husbands, fathers, brothers, Christians, pastors,
and especially evangelists, that is, those who proclaim the death and
resurrection of Christ to the world.
In many ways, the Mount of
Transfiguration is the pattern of the weekly life of the Christian. The height
of the mountain, seeing the glory of Christ, is the Holy Communion. While
Peter, James, and John only saw the glory of Christ shine through His human nature,
you behold Christ’s humanity and divinity in the host and chalice. You receive
the whole Christ by eating and drinking, being united to Him in the most
intimate of ways.
And then, your sins being forgiven, you
must descend the mountain. You must return to the world, not bound by a word of
silence but a word of proclamation. You are to depart the Holy Communion having
been strengthened in body and soul unto life everlasting. You have seen and
received the glory of Christ. You know how your story ends.[9]
It ends on the eternal Mount Zion, with Christ and all the saints of heaven.[10]
This frees you to be the husband,
father, brother, and Christian that God has called you to be. It frees you to
endure the cruelty, decay, and sin of this world. It frees you because nothing
can take you from the hand of the Father.[11]
Christ is before you, behind you, beside you, and in you. Do not become so
heavenly minded that you are of no earthly good, as St. Peter thought he might
be. Rather, carry the light of the Transfigured Christ throughout all your
days.[12]
In + Jesus’
name. Amen.
[1]
St. Matthew 16:13-23.
[2]
St. Luke 9:31.
[3]
St. Matthew 17:4.
[4]
Zechariah 13:7.
[5]
1 John 3:2-3.
[6]
St. Matthew 16:24.
[7]
2 Kings 2:11.
[8]
St. John 8:23; cf. St. John 18:36.
[9]
Psalm 25.
[10]
Psalm 74:2; Psalm 48:11; Hebrews 12:22.
[11]
St. John 10:29.
[12]
St. John 8:12; St. Matthew 5:14.
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