Sermon for Transfiguration 3 March 2019 Exodus 34: 29-35; Luke 9: 28-36
“Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to a new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same.”― Flavia Weedn
Traditionally the Sunday before Lent
begins is Transfiguration Sunday. Now, you may know exactly what this means;
you may have an image in your head right now of a person transfigured…
But, before I ask you to picture
that, let’s explore a little.
When I spoke earlier – we looked at
light and brightness; we looked at shiny happy people
And I am sure when you heard the
story of Moses coming down the mountain, his face shining brighter than the people could bear, that some of you like
me, thought of Charlton Heston, coming down the mountain in the classic film
The Ten Commandments
I watched a clip of it during the
week, and I was also able to imagine just how different that would be if they
made the film again now – the special effects would be far greater I am sure!
Here we have two mountaintop
experiences; encounters with the Divine. Life changing moments, snatched,
glimpsed, stored away to be revisited time and again.
For Moses the change was permanent,
the Exodus reading tells us that he had to speak to the people with a veil
covering his face, and he only uncovered it went he went in to the tent to
speak with God. Moses came down from the mountaintop, but even in the valley
below, God’s presence stayed with him.
Some of us will have had the
experience of being in the company of someone in whom we get a sense of the
heavenly, the otherworldly, come to earth.
It may be difficult to pin down
exactly what this person exudes that gives us this impression. But nonetheless
we sense the presence of a certain holiness, a certain lightness of being that
affects those with whom that person has contact.
There can be little doubt that Jesus
had this affect on those who knew and followed him, but in this moment there is
no doubting, no uncertainty for Peter, James and John.
They are assuredly in the company of
the saints and life suddenly takes on a whole new dimension.
Empowered by this experience, not
afraid any more the disciples must have felt they could do anything with Jesus.
But then they come back down to
earth. They cannot stay on the mountaintop forever; they cannot freeze the
moment in time. Life goes on, and they must descend.
Back down in the valley the disciples
are confronted by their inadequacy in being unable to heal a young lad of the
convulsions that were attributed to an evil spirit. They still have so much to
learn…
Back down in the valley the
Israelites cannot stay on track either – even with God’s commandments to guide;
every time Moses went from them they lost faith, began to stray. The very
reason they spent forty years wandering in the desert is because of their
reluctance to follow and trust God, and God’s servant Moses.
And then, in full circle, as Jesus, on
the mountaintop is revealed in all his glory, he is joined by Moses and Elijah.
Moses, back on the mountaintop, encouraging and strengthening Jesus for the
task ahead.
Earlier this week, as I was doing
some preparatory reading. There was a suggestion made, that when Jesus went off
to pray alone, maybe he met Moses and Elijah every time – it was just that this
time he brought witnesses along.
It is an interesting thought. Jesus,
joining the prophets of old, for encouragement; for support; to be fortified for
the task at hand. For we cannot stay on the mountaintop – there is work to be
done in the valleys below.
This has been a long season of
Epiphany; the season of revelation, a time to reveal who Jesus is.
Week by week we have witnessed little
by little, the signs of Jesus divinity; the wonder of his power, the revelation
of his task.
Each of those moments were moments of
transfiguration along the way.
This contemporary reading takes us
back over the season and reminds us of those places where we have met and
learned something, and been signposted to who Jesus is. When we realise what
has been happening perhaps we see it not as a revelation, but more a revolution
in the way God reveals the love offered for us all.
Not on a mountain-top but by the Jordan we saw the glory of God.It was a revelation as the Messiah showed himself not as being set apart from all of us but being baptised as one of us.God beside us, God one of us; this everyday epiphany is revolution.Not on a mountain-top but in the synagogue we saw the greatness of God.It was a revelation as his words filled us and called us into a new hearing; a word moved from promise to fulfilment; this everyday epiphany is revolution.Not on a mountain-top but in the celebrations of life the truth of God is revealed.This is a revelation where the best wine is kept till the very end, the fullness of flavour, the generosity of God, the final revelation becomes a revolution.Not on a mountain-top but on the roadways of the world glory is found.This is a revelation that Jesus has been revealed not in mighty cathedrals but on the roadways of life amid all who leave footprints in the dust and stoor of everyday epiphanies.This common revelation is heaven’s revolution. (Spill the Beans Issue 6: 2013)
This week Lent begins, the season of
preparation in the run up to Easter; we will once again climb to the
mountaintop: the hill of Calvary; the tomb of death and the mountaintop of
resurrection.
For now, we must stay in the Valley:
there is work to be done; but we know, the journey to the cross will take us to
new heights, we can trust that God will walk with us, every step of the way –
we are not alone.
As we go into our time of prayer,
read now, those words I read right at the beginning:
“Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to a new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same.” ― Flavia Weedn
– from the mountaintop of love, God leaves footprints of Godly love in
our hearts and we are never the same again.
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