The Message of the Transfiguration of Jesus — Sermon by the Very Rev. Dr. Craig Stephans

Let's pray.

Father, we pray that you answer the

prayer of the hymn that we just sang.

Lord God, take our lives, consecrate

them to you, and answer all the details

of that hymn in the preaching, hearing,

and application of your gospel of grace

this morning. It's through Jesus and by

the Holy Spirit that we pray. Amen.

>> Please be seated.

Earlier in my career when I was in sales

and this is like a couple decades ago.

Um, one of the the persons I looked up

to and read his books, listened to his

motivational speeches was Zigg Ziggler.

Some of you may remember that name. He

since passed away. Who's a Christian,

very strong Christian, very genuine and

sincere in his faith, but also a

wonderful motivational speaker and

storyteller. wrote really good books and

so I looked to him as a model and mentor

and I was living in Charleston. Another

thing that I really looked toward in

Charleston but had never visited was the

ocean course, the golf course at Kioa

where they've had I think it was the PGA

open. They've had the RDER Cup golf

tournaments. Beautiful, wonderful course

behind like five gates along the ocean.

And when I was in a sales job working

full-time, I got a call from my stepdad

who happened to be really good friends

with Zig Ziggler and said, "Hey, Zig

Ziggler and I are going to play the

ocean course today. Do you want to go?"

And I thought, "I'm going.

How do I do I tell my boss and ask

permission or do I just go?" Because I

had made up my mind that I was going. I

wasn't going to miss that golf with this

wonderful man and mentor golf at the

ocean course. So there was no way I was

going to miss that. And thankfully my

boss shared my the same enthusiasm for

both Zigg and the golf course. So I was

able to go. But it was one of those

things that I was willing to give up a

lot to go and do this thing with this

person. And that is what the

transfiguration story is inviting us

into. It is presenting us with the

thing, the event, the person that is

worth letting go of everything else to

go and do this, to go and be a part of

this story. Paul writes about this in

his letter to the Philippians that was

read. He writes in chapter 3 beginning

in verse 7, "Whatever gain I had, I

counted as a loss for the sake of

Christ." He's like, "Whatever I gained

over here, I'm going to let go of it

because this is what I want." And he

says, "Indeed, I count everything a loss

because of the surpassing worth of

knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his

sake, I have suffered the loss of all

things and count them as rubbish in

order that I may gain Christ." And you

may have those things, the dreams that

you want to do or places you want to

see, events on your bucket list that you

would be willing to give up a lot to go

and do this thing.

That's what Paul is presenting Christ

as. He is the utmost highest of what we

could pursue and should pursue. And

that's what the transfiguration

demonstrates that Christ is God. That he

is full of glory. That he is the one who

gives all life and the one whom we

should seek.

The contrast of that is rubbish. All the

things in the world that Paul wants to

give up. We live in Wilmington Park out

on Wilmington Island and there's a HOA.

Uh Susan Chichchester knows a lot about

that. She was on the board. But you

know, they provide the landscaping and

so there's a crew that comes out there

regularly mowing everything, landscaping

everything, removing all the debris,

picking up the trash. They do a really

good job. But as we walk the dogs each

day, I've noticed for the last months,

there's been a used dog poop bag that

has been in the median among the bushes

for like months. Nobody wants to touch

it.

It is rubbish beyond rubbish.

That's what Paul is comparing everything

to compared to Christ. It It's not just

trash. It's not just debris. We can deal

with that. It's rubbish. Nobody wants to

touch it. I'm not going near it. I got

enough trouble dealing with my own dog

stuff. I know

that's rubbish. Paul is saying, "I

consider all things rubbish that I may

gain Christ." The transfiguration shows

us why that is true. It shows us why

that that is the call of God. That is

the life that we are called to pursue.

To consider all things rubbish. to

consider Christ as the utmost person

being with him, the utmost event

wherever he is, the utmost place that we

can pursue that we would be willing to

let anything go to sacrifice it to

pursue and have that

the transfiguration is such an event

that when we read it and it's in all

three gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke,

this event it is demonstrating ating the

glory of God. It is demonstrating who

Christ is and the call and the command

of God.

And our gospel text today is from

Matthew

Matthew 7:1

7:1. It's in Luke chapter 9 and Mark

Luke 9 · chapter mention Mark 9 · chapter mention

chapter 9 as well. And it is this event

that both all three gospel writers tell

us that Jesus took with him Peter,

James, and John and led them up a

mountain by themselves. Luke alone tells

us that he took them up a mountain to

pray.

This was a prayer event for Jesus and

the three.

When we think of

what we could pursue that would be best

of all, the number one thing in our

bucket list, our dream, what we would

do anything to participate in prayer

with Jesus may not be at the top. The

gospels are showing us that this is the

utmost of our life experience is being

in the presence of Jesus. Being in the

presence of the one who created us, who

sustains us, the one who holds our

eternity in his hands.

This is what compared to to this

everything else is rubbish. That Paul

says, I count all of that a loss that I

may gain this. I leave it all behind

that I might pursue this. Everything

that has passed I let go of. This is my

goal to attain the resurrection from the

dead to be with Jesus forever.

And the transfiguration shows us that we

can participate with him. Now so he

takes them up on a mountain to pray.

I believe that this figuratively

is perhaps the most important

initiatives that we can take in our

lives at this time is to go up that

figurative mountain to pray with Jesus.

To leave the valley and the darkness

behind,

to leave everything that is overwhelming

us in this world behind, the anxieties

of life. to go up the mountain to go

into that secret place with Jesus to

pray. Think about, if you're like me at

all, you can understand what I mean by

saying, "Are you overwhelmed with the

news of the day? Are you weighed down

with the burdens of the world right now

and your life and the life of your

family in this world?"

Jesus is demonstrating that we need to

leave that behind and to go into that

place with God and pray. That's what he

does. That's what he demonstrates.

And he was transfigured before them and

his face shone like the sun and his

clothes became white as light. The glory

that was with Moses on the mountain for

those days in Exodus that were read.

That glory is not only with Jesus. It is

emanating from Jesus. His face is

shining like the sun. He's becoming

dazzling white. It It's the image that

John sees in Revelation chapter 1 when

Revelation 1 · chapter mention

he hears Jesus's voice and turns and

sees him and describes his face being

like the sun. And this is John who was

on the mountain with Jesus.

Jesus's glory overwhelms those who see

it.

And behold, there appeared to him Moses

and Elijah talking with him. There's a

lot of mystery there.

What are Moses and Elijah doing speaking

with him? Luke in his gospel tells us

they're speaking to him about his exodus

or about his departure that he's about

to accomplish in Jerusalem. Not that

it's going to happen to him, but that he

is going to accomplish in Jerusalem.

They're talking about him going to the

cross and dying for the sins of the

world and being raised to life.

They're talking about the will of God,

the fulfillment of the scriptures.

And then Peter says, "Lord, it's good

that we're here. If you wish, I will

make three tents here. One for you and

one for Moses and one for Elijah."

And it's both Mark and Luke that

describe Peter in parentheses in your

Bibles. and it says Peter didn't know

what he was talking about.

It's a humbling statement and I'm sure

Peter was comfortable with them saying

that. But it's also important to

recognize that when it comes to the

mysteries of the glory of God and

eternal life and the kingdom of heaven,

no matter how advanced and mature we

become, there comes a place where we, if

we talk about anything, we don't know

what we're talking about.

And our annual meeting is later and we

talk about all the things of the church.

But there's a reality when it comes to

being in the body of Christ where Christ

is the head, the good shepherd over us,

the sustainer, the living word, the

presence of God among us. Where we have

to admit beyond what we're saying here,

I don't know what I'm talking about. And

that's where Peter, James, and John

were. They were seeing the glory of God

in Christ. And then it's all around them

as there's a bright cloud that

overshadows them. They're entering into

the glory of the kingdom of heaven that

was in Christ and with Christ always but

not always apparent and visible.

And then they hear a voice from the

cloud

say, "This is my beloved son with whom I

am well pleased. Listen to him." They

hear the voice of God audibly. And I

don't know this is a mystery where again

I don't know why this is or when we talk

about the voice of God what we're

talking about. Why does he limit his

audible voice to so few times that we

know of in history maybe some of you h

have heard the audible voice of God once

or twice in your life. He speaks but not

often audibly. But here he does like he

does at the baptism of Jesus. This is my

beloved son with whom I'm well pleased.

Listen to him.

And then the disciples hear that. They

see that glory and they fall on their

faces and are terrified just like John

does later when he's on the island of

Patmos and sees Jesus. He falls down as

though he were dead. Same here.

And Jesus came and touched them and

said, "Rise and have no fear." Such an

encouraging scripture about Jesus. those

who are fearful at the presence of God

and his glory and his holiness and the

thunder of his words and they fall down

dead. Jesus comes and touches them and

raises them up and says, "Do not fear."

When they open their eyes and look up,

they see no one but Jesus only. It's a

glorious historical event that

demonstrates in many different ways,

visibly, audibly, who Jesus is, the son

of God. God himself who shares the glory

of God the Father in heaven

and he's here on the earth.

How does this speak to us today if we

were to ask what is the Holy Spirit

sharing with us today? Well, one is this

is always an invitation to worship Jesus

as the son of God as God himself.

It is an invitation to enter into his

presence through prayer, through

worship, to recognize that though we

don't see the glory of his kingdom

visibly displayed like it is on this

mountain, the glory of God is present.

When I read in scriptures the few times

where it is prophesied and promised that

the glory of God will fill the earth as

the waters cover the sea. I w I I wonder

if I pray thank you God that your glory

is filling the earth that it has filled

the earth or do I pray God make your

glory fill the earth because while we

don't see it is it here is his glory all

around us as his kingdom is present as

his spirit is present even living in us

that's what we see this is an invitation

to say come up this mountain to pray

join me keep watch

and Having known the the rest of the

story, we know that this God, this

father of Jesus is our God and father

too.

And as Jesus prays in John 17 that the

love that the father has for the son

would also be in us, that we are his

sons, we are his daughters, invited into

that holy presence to speak to him and

to hear him.

The call to pray

is we treat it almost like a secret tool

like it's a

special alarm that when we can't do

anything else to find help. We pull this

alarm and we say our prayers quickly and

specifically.

But prayer is much more than that.

Prayer is an invitation to come into the

presence of God Almighty, who reigns and

is supreme over all things.

The one who created the earth and all

that is in it and gives it to anyone he

pleases. Who can intervene anywhere in

the earth with anyone at any time. We

have access to him. And Jesus promises

that what we ask of him in his name, he

will give to us.

This is the way to deal with the

overwhelming anxieties

and distress of the world or the deep

desires that you have.

The approach to dealing with those is to

go to the secret place and pray to God

on behalf of yourself or on behalf of

those who are in need. When you read the

news and you see a victim or you see

someone who is threatened,

we can argue. We can get distressed and

frustrated. We can develop a lot of

angst.

But we can also take that distress and

go to the father and pray for the sake

of the world, for the sake of God's

purposes, for the sake of those in need.

That's what this shows us is that God is

hearing. He's right there to hear and to

speak.

In all three gospel passages after the

transfiguration the next day it shows

Jesus, James, Peter, and John going down

into the valley. And the synthesis of

all three of those gospel passages shows

that they go down into the valley. And

there's a huge argument. There's a lot

of conflict. There's a manifestation of

the horrible work of the devil in a

child's life whom the devil is

possessed. who's try the devil has tried

to kill since this young boy was born.

Throwing him into the fire, into the

water, making him convulse. The fathers

brought him to the disciples. The

disciples couldn't do anything about it.

So, they just ended up all arguing while

the devil is throwing it in their face.

Not like unlike the world that we live

in today, be it online or in person.

Everyone arguing, the devil throwing his

work in the church's face, saying,

"You're impotent to deal with what I'm

doing."

That's why Jesus has gone up the

mountain to pray so that he can walk

into that midst and bring peace and

order, bring deliverance and healing,

>> and cast out and destroy the work of the

devil.

That's why the transfiguration isn't

just a event and a display. It's an

invitation to be a part of this life of

the kingdom of heaven and the light of

God that overcomes the darkness.

The other religious people of the day

were spending the time in the valley

arguing with each other.

But those who are following the spirit

of God, and it was by invitation only at

this time, so you know, we can't blame

the other disciples. But those who are

with Jesus are leaving that behind and

going to the father. The one who can

make a difference. The one from whom

power comes to trample on snakes and

scorpions. So question is where are we

going to be? Are we going to be a church

that goes to the mountain or that stays

in the valley?

Powerful through the Holy Spirit are

impotent in ourselves.

There's the message that the father

gives. This is my beloved son with whom

I'm well pleased. Listen to him.

I I love how the congruence of scripture

appears in surprising ways. John doesn't

share the story of the transfiguration

in his gospel. But he gives a similar

message not from the father but from

Jesus's mom at the wedding in Kaa. They

didn't know what to do. They're running

out of wine. Major crisis. Someone pull

the alarm bell. We're out of wine.

Mary says, "Listen to him. Do what he

tells you." There's a message there.

Jesus's mom and his heavenly father.

Listen to him.

His words are life and power.

Are we people who are listening to Jesus

in the midst of the conflicts? In the

midst of the crisis, in the midst of us

trying to figure out these things that

we don't know what to do in the midst

of, are we listening to Jesus?

Are we going to his word and saying,

"Jesus, speak to me. Holy Spirit, what

are you saying to me?"

And are we surrendering and submitting

to his word above all? Even our own

expert opinion and preferences

and assurance of the way that it should

be. Are we listening to God and

subordinating subordinating all of that

to him to the one who knows all things?

He knows what's happening tomorrow, 10

years from now. He knows what we need.

Are we going to him and listening to

him?

He desires our good. He desires our life

and the fullness of life. We can trust

him.

There's also, I think, another

instructive element and and that is

perhaps the most mysterious. What are

Elijah and Moses doing there?

Does anyone know?

All right, we'll move on.

But I do take something away from this.

Jesus, the son of God, whom the father

is saying, "Listen to him," is

listening, it seems like, to Moses and

Elijah. And they're talking to him about

his upcoming suffering and death.

We need to listen to those

who are rooted in the kingdom of heaven.

We need to listen to the other saints of

God whom he has brought around us. And

I'm not just talking about the experts

who have the favorite podcast or who we

can watch on YouTube and and get their

expert opinion. I'm talking about the

people who like Moses and Elijah are

with us like they're with Jesus. They're

rubbing shoulders with him. They're

having a conversation. They're hearing

from Jesus and responding with with

whatever counsel they have.

We need to gain the counsel of those who

are walking with us in the presence of

God. Those who know us, those who know

our hearts, who hear our desires, who

hear our distress. We need to hear what

they are saying from their relationship

with God and with scripture.

We have to put ourselves sometimes

sub rendered, humble and vulnerable and

transparent with other Christians. Jesus

is talking to them about what is the

height of suffering for a human. the

physical pain of the cross, the

spiritual and emotional toll of the son

of God giving himself into the hands of

wickedness and evil

and being

sin before a holy God. That's what

they're talking to Jesus about. And

sometimes we hesitate to share our

foibless, our fears, our anxieties with

other Christians that they might counsel

us, encourage us, and pray for us. I

think the transfiguration shows us that

we need to align ourselves and make

ourselves vulnerable to other believers.

Even those who are very mature and in

the kingdom of God need each other. We

need to be the kind of person who's been

on the mountain, who's been in prayer,

who's been in the presence of the Lord,

who's been in the word so that we can

share the counsel of God with others.

Listen, I know this world is

overwhelming. I know that your situation

seems impossible, but go Jesus is going

to go down in this valley and when he's

confronted by the man and his

demonpossessed boy, he is going to say

all things are possible for him who

believes.

We need to be people who believe

sometimes for those who are in the

impossible situations. And that takes

considering a lot of other things in

this world rubbish and considering the

reward and the prize of gaining Christ

and an intimate relationship with him

above all things.

And this is spoken not just to us as

individuals, not just to me as a priest

because it's my job, but to us as the

church

because

we're not just here for each other,

we're here for the world. We can't

expect those who don't even believe to

go up this mountain for us.

We have to go up this mountain for them.

And when we're on that mountain, when

we're in the presence of the Lord, there

is nothing that God cannot do in

response to our prayers. When you think

about a person suffering pain, when you

think about the children being abused

somewhere in the world are trafficked,

when you think about the pregnant mother

in distress cuz she the baby's father is

nowhere and she's considering abortion,

God knows them. When you go to God and

you pray, Lord, save children from

abuse. save mothers from aborting their

babies. Those who are suffering loss

because they did such things or those

who have lost a loved one. God comfort

them. God intervene in these areas of

violence.

You know of many places. When you go to

prayer and you ask God intervene and

bring peace to these places, God is able

to do it.

There's nothing impossible for the one

who believes and that's what he calls us

to.

So I want to close with the closing from

second Corinthians by the Apostle Paul.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and

the love of God and the fellowship of

the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.