Transfiguration and the Kingdom of God

Heavenly Father, we gather once again on the first day of the week.

Because your son, Jesus Christ, died for our sins.

And he was raised on the first day of the week.

He's the one who makes all things new.

He's the one who makes us born again with new life.

And Lord, we want to once again this morning submit ourselves to you.

To his lordship.

We want to be once again amazed by what Jesus has done for us.

So we pray by your word, speak to us.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Luke 9, 18-36

Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him.

And he asked them, who do the crowd say that I am?

And they answered, John the Baptist.

But others say, Elijah.

And others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.

Then he said to them, but who do you say that I am?

And Peter answered, the Christ of God.

And he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying,

The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes,

and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

And he said to all,

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

For whoever would save his life will lose it.

But whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.

Now about eight days after these things, he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray.

And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.

And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,

which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep.

But when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him.

And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus,

Master, it is good that we are here.

Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah, not knowing what he said.

As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the crowd.

And a voice came out of the cloud saying,

This is my son, my chosen one.

Listen to him.

And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.

And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thank you.

You might be wondering why we're reading a passage about Jesus' transfiguration on Easter Sunday,

when we're supposed to be celebrating his resurrection in particular.

And I have some good reasons for that.

But one of the reasons is, one is, it does happen to be the passage that we're on,

going through the Gospel of Luke.

And it's actually very related to the resurrection account,

because this is really the first glimpse we see of the glory of the risen Lord,

which we'll see in fullness after the resurrection and his ascension.

And we do celebrate the resurrection of the Lord every Sunday,

as we gather to worship him on the first day of the week.

And the main point of this passage for us is that we should take up our cross daily

and follow Jesus, looking forward to the glorious kingdom of the Son of God.

As we do that, we're called to pray with Jesus, to see Jesus in his glory,

and to listen to Jesus, as this passage tells us.

So first, let's look at how we are to pray in anticipation of the fullness of Jesus' glorious kingdom.

In verse 22, Jesus predicted his resurrection by saying that he will suffer,

be rejected, and killed.

But then on the third day, be raised.

So here, this is the first anticipation of Jesus' coming resurrection.

And then after telling his disciples to follow his example of

carrying the cross of humble submission to God,

Jesus promised in verse 27,

But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death

until they see the kingdom of God.

So some among Jesus' 12 apostles will see the kingdom of God before they die.

And there are people who make careers, academic careers,

out of pointing out perceived errors and contradictions in the Bible.

And this verse is one of their favorite go-to examples.

You see, Jesus thought that the full consummated kingdom

will come during the lifetime of his followers, they say.

He thought that he would return to judge the world

before all of his apostles have died.

But that didn't happen, did it?

But such an argument betrays a shallow understanding

of the Gospel of Luke and the Gospels in general.

There's a reason why in all three of the Gospels

that include this account of Jesus' transfiguration.

The transfiguration is preceded by,

immediately by Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ of God.

And secondly, Jesus' prediction of his suffering, death, and resurrection.

And then third, the invitation to his disciples to carry the cross and follow him.

And finally, Jesus' promise that there are some

standing here with him who will not taste death

until they see the kingdom of God.

All of those events come together because they're interconnected.

And the transfiguration is actually a partial fulfillment

of Jesus' promise

that some of his disciples will see the kingdom of God before their death.

It's not the full fulfillment of his promise.

That happens at Jesus' death, resurrection, and his ascension to heaven,

which is connected to the coming down of the Holy Spirit.

And that's why at his trial before the Jewish council in Luke 22, 69,

Jesus says,

But from now on, the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.

That's the reference to Jesus' enthronement,

reigning with the authority of God.

And so it's after his death and resurrection ascension

that Jesus begins his reign over the kingdom of God.

And that's why in his sequel to the gospel of Luke, Acts,

the book of Acts that Luke also wrote,

he writes in chapter 2, 32, 33,

This Jesus God raised up,

and of that we are witnesses,

being therefore exalted at the right hand of God,

and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit,

he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.

And since his resurrection and ascension,

Jesus has been reigning over his kingdom

at the right hand of the Father.

And since all 12 of his apostles,

except for Judas the traitor,

witnessed Jesus' resurrection and ascension before their death.

Jesus is quite correct to say,

Some standing here will not taste death

until they see the kingdom of God.

So the transfiguration that takes place today in our passage

is a preview of that glorious kingdom of the Son of God.

Notice in verses 30 and 31,

Moses and Elijah are talking to Jesus about his departure,

reference to his resurrection and ascension.

And the way this works,

it's kind of similar to the way we have movie trailers.

This is a preview in a similar way,

because about a half a year, right,

half a year to a year before the official premiere of a movie,

studios usually drop the trailer.

And the trailer is about a few minutes long,

and the details are a little sketchy,

but it gives you just a glimpse of the real thing

to tell you, hey, it's here.

And the transfiguration is like the trailer

of the coming death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus,

which is the movie.

And then when you see the movie,

it turns out, lo and behold,

you discover that it's actually a two-part movie.

Sounds familiar to some of you.

And the sequel will be released at a later point,

and that sequel is Jesus' second coming.

So these are all interconnected.

Luke sees stages in the unfolding of the kingdom of God,

and we're seeing that first, very initial glimpse,

the trailer, to what's going to all transpire.

And since the transfiguration is a sneak preview

of the resurrection and ascension,

it makes sense that there are many literary parallels

between the two accounts.

For example, in verses 29 and verse 30,

it tells us that Jesus' clothing became dazzling white.

And behold, two men were walking talking with him.

And then later after his resurrection,

it says in Luke 24, verse 4,

Luke 24:4

that as his disciples stood by the empty tomb,

behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel.

And even later, at Jesus' ascension in Acts 1.10,

it says that while they were gazing into heaven as he went,

behold, two men stood by them in white robes.

Similarly, in verse 32 and 34 of our passage,

they mentioned the glory of Jesus and a cloud enveloping them.

And at his ascension, it says in Acts 1.9,

as the apostles were looking on,

Jesus was lifted up,

and a cloud took him out of their sight.

And at his ascension, right?

This cloud takes him out of sight.

And later in Luke 21, 27,

when Jesus speaks of his second coming,

again, similar themes emerge.

And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud

with power and great glory.

So Luke masterfully weaves these parallels

between the transfiguration to the resurrection

and to the ascension and even his second coming

to show us, to give us a foretaste

of the glorious kingdom of the Son of God.

And with that context in mind,

Luke teaches us a lesson about how we have to wait for that,

how we have to watch and pray.

Notice in verse 28,

it says that Jesus took with him Peter and John and James

and went up on the mountain to pray.

And as he was praying,

the appearance of his face was altered

and his clothing became dazzling.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all include

the story of the transfiguration in their Gospels,

but only Luke mentions that this happened

while Jesus was praying.

This is intentional, of course,

because in the Gospel of Luke,

all the pivotal moments of Jesus' life and ministry

are preceded by prayer.

Just before the Holy Spirit descends on him

and God the Father says,

makes an announcement confirming his identity

as his beloved son.

In Luke 3, 21-22,

it says that Jesus was praying.

Before choosing his 12 apostles,

it says that Jesus prayed

and continued all night,

continued in prayer to God.

Luke 6, 12.

Immediately before Peter's breakthrough confession

of Jesus' identity that we saw in Luke 9, 18,

it says that Jesus was praying alone.

And here, before he transfigured to his glorious true identity,

before his apostles, he was praying.

Sometimes people say that there's no need to pray

since God has already ordained the outcome.

But that's not the biblical way to think about prayer.

In fact, God has ordained that some things

will only happen by means of prayer.

Jesus taught us,

and I tell you,

ask and it will be given to you.

Seek and you will find.

Knock and it will be opened to you.

And just as it was the case in Jesus' life,

God has ordained that we be directed

and be made fruitful through prayer.

That's why the Bible teaches us

to pray for the forgiveness of sins.

Pray that people might be saved.

Pray for open doors of ministry.

Pray for healing.

Pray that we might grow in spiritual maturity.

Pray that we might be strengthened with power

by the Holy Spirit and know the love of Christ.

These are all things that the Bible explicitly teaches us

to pray for.

God has ordained that these things will happen

by means of prayer.

That means they will not happen unless we pray.

Ephesians 6, 18 teaches us

that we have to put on our spiritual armor

as we live

and wait for the consummation of the kingdom of God

because we're still engaged in that spiritual warfare.

And in that passage,

it teaches us that the way we put on

the full armor of God

is by praying at all times

in the Spirit

with all prayer and supplication.

That's why Christian author John Piper

describes prayer as a wartime walkie-talkie.

It's how we stand ready

and maintain communication

with our commander-in-chief.

That's why we so frequently find Jesus

praying throughout the Gospel of Luke.

And Jesus' praying is contrasted

with the apostles sleeping in this passage.

It says in verse 32, look with me,

Now Peter and those who were with him

were heavy with sleep.

But when they became fully awake,

they saw his glory in the two men

who stood with him.

Jesus had taken Peter, John, and James

with him to the mountain

so that they could pray with him.

But they were soundly asleep

when Jesus was transfigured

and they were going to miss the whole thing

until they became fully awake.

Then they were able to witness

the glory of Christ.

And interestingly enough,

later in Luke 22,

on another mountain,

just before Jesus is arrested and killed,

Jesus is once again praying

and his apostles are once again sleeping.

And Jesus tells them,

Why are you sleeping?

Rise and pray

that you may not enter into temptation.

Luke 22.

Of course, Scripture is not teaching us here

that sleep is bad.

We all need sleep.

In fact, most of you need a little more sleep.

But this recurring picture

of the apostles sleeping

is a figure

of spiritual unreadiness,

unpreparedness

for spiritual warfare.

And it serves as a warning to us

to be spiritually alert

as we look forward

to the glorious kingdom

of the Son of God.

That's why later in Luke 21,

when Jesus talks about

his second coming,

he uses these figures.

He says,

But watch yourselves,

lest your hearts be weighed down.

Weighed down is the exact same word

that's used in our passage

to say heavy with sleep.

Watch yourselves,

lest your hearts be weighed down

with dissipation and drunkenness

and cares of this life.

And that day come upon you

suddenly like a trap.

But stay awake at all times,

praying that you may have strength

to escape all these things

that are going to take place

and to stand before

the Son of Man.

Instead of being heavy with sleep,

with the vanities,

the drunkenness,

and the cares of this life,

we have to be watchful

and prayerful,

standing at attention,

prepared for the battle,

ready to execute the orders

of our Commander-in-Chief.

It's binary.

It's either or.

If you're not praying,

then you're sleeping.

Have you been sleeping?

Hebrews 7.25 teaches us

that Jesus always lives

to make intercession for us

at the right hand of God the Father.

He is at this very moment

praying for us,

interceding for us

at the right hand of the Father,

and He invites us to join Him

as we await His return.

We are to pray with Jesus.

And we're also to see Jesus

in all His glory.

That's the second point.

And that's why Luke includes

this passage in his Gospel.

Through the privileged eyes

of Peter, John, and James,

we are to see Jesus

for who He really is.

Remember what the prophet said

about Jesus.

In Isaiah 53,

He had no form or majesty

that we should look at Him,

and no beauty

that we should desire Him.

He was despised

and rejected by men,

a man of sorrows

and acquainted with grief.

And as one from whom

men hide their faces,

He was despised,

and we esteemed Him not.

This prophecy came true.

There was nothing about

Jesus' external appearance

that was noteworthy

or attractive.

And we see throughout the Gospels

that He was indeed despised

and looked down upon

as a carpenter's son

by some people.

Philippians 2, 6-7

also teaches us

that Jesus,

though He was in the form of God,

did not count equality with God

a thing to be grasped,

but emptied Himself

by taking the form

of a servant,

being born in the likeness of men.

That's what the apostles

were used to seeing.

Jesus in the form of a servant.

Jesus having no form

or beauty about Him.

This Jesus who is despised

by common men.

And this brief moment,

Jesus sheds that form of a servant

and reveals His divine,

royal glory.

And that's the preview

of the risen and ascended Lord.

And the visit by Moses and Elijah

also reveal who Jesus truly is.

Some people say

that these two figures appear

because Moses represents the law

and Elijah represents the prophets.

And together,

the law and the prophets,

all of Scripture,

Old Testament Scripture,

are fulfilled in Jesus.

It's possible that's the case.

This is an appealing hypothesis.

But I think even more immediately

and more likely,

Moses and Elijah are mentioned here

because of the crowd's speculation

that we see over and over again

throughout the Gospels,

that Jesus is either the Elijah returned

or a prophet,

an old prophet of old,

like Moses, for example.

And that identity of Jesus

has been recurring

throughout the Gospel.

Five times already,

people have asked,

different people have asked

the question in this Gospel,

who is Jesus?

And we have learned

through Herod's musings

and also through the Apostle's response

earlier that we read

that the three main options

were John the Baptist,

Elijah,

and one of the prophets of old.

And Herod openly wondered,

well, I beheaded John the Baptist

so it can't be him.

So could he be the Elijah

or could he be

one of the prophets of old?

And because there were

Old Testament prophecies,

for example,

Malachi 4 or 5

prophesied that God would send

an Elijah before his coming.

And Deuteronomy 18, 15

prophesied that God would

raise up for his people

a prophet like Moses,

who is one of the greatest

prophets of old.

So there was this buildup

and expectation

precisely concerning

whether or not Jesus

was an Elijah or a Moses.

And so, behold,

of course,

Elijah and Moses appear

to bear witness themselves

that Jesus, yes,

he is a prophet like Elijah.

Yes, he is a prophet

like Moses,

but he is not Elijah

and he is not Moses.

He is greater even than they

because he is

the Son of God,

the Christ.

Even the subject

of their conversation

reveals the greatness

of Jesus.

It says in verse 31

that they were speaking

of Jesus' departure,

which he was about

to accomplish

at Jerusalem.

His death,

resurrection,

ascension,

that's what he's referring to.

And some of your Bibles

probably have a footnote

after the word departure.

And if you follow that footnote

down to the bottom,

it will tell you

that in the Greek

it actually says Exodus.

Moses led God's people

out in their first Exodus,

out of their slavery in Egypt

to the promised land.

But Jesus here is pictured

as the greater Moses

who brings them out

not only from their physical bondage,

but he brings them out

ultimately from their spiritual bondage

to sin and Satan and death.

And he brings them

not only to a perishing,

temporary, physical land

that has been promised,

but to the eternal kingdom of God.

He will accomplish this,

fulfill this.

After seeing Jesus' glory

and the two heavenly visitors,

it says in verse 33

that as the men

were parting from him,

Peter said to Jesus,

Master, it is good

that we are here.

Let us make three tents,

one for you,

one for Moses,

and one for Elijah,

not knowing what he said.

Peter, for obvious reasons,

doesn't want this heavenly visit to end.

And so he offers personally

to make three tents

for these guests.

It's simple,

it's a very simple

but hospitable gesture

to extend the stay of the guests.

But as he's saying this,

Luke tells us that

Peter did not get the full import

of what he was actually saying.

The implications of what he's saying

escapes him

because the word tent

that he uses

is the word that is translated

tabernacle

in the Greek translation

of the Old Testament.

So Peter's offer

recalls the great feast

of the tabernacles.

When God's people

pitch tents

for a week

in order to dwell in it

as a way of remembering

and celebrating

how God provided for them

after the Exodus

by providing for them

in the wilderness

between their Exodus

from Egypt

and the conquest

of the Canaan land.

And during that period

in the wilderness,

not only did God

people dwell in tents,

they also built

a tent for God

called the tabernacle.

They called it

the tent of meeting

because it was where

God had promised

to meet with his people.

Let's be missed

the significance of this.

Luke gives us

other allusions

to it as well.

Look again at verse 28.

Now about eight days

after these sayings,

he took with him

Peter and John

and James

and went up

on the mountain

to pray.

Does some of that

sound a little odd

to you?

Does this strike you

as a little odd

that Luke says

about eight days?

Eight is such

a specific number.

It's not,

you don't usually

round up to eight,

right?

There's a reason

for that.

If you compare it,

this becomes

all the more striking

when you compare

to the parallel accounts

in Matthew and Mark.

Matthew 17,

one says,

after six days,

Jesus took with him

Peter and James

and John,

his brother,

and led them up

a high mountain

by themselves.

Mark 9,

two,

after six days,

Jesus took with him

Peter and James

and John

and led them up

a high mountain

by themselves

and he was transfigured

before them.

Luke alone says,

he rounds up,

he gives an approximate figure

even though he knows

about eight days.

Why?

Because according

to Leviticus 23,

36,

the Feast of Tabernacle

is supposed to be celebrated

for eight days.

On the eighth day,

you shall hold

a holy convocation

and present the food offering

to the Lord.

It is a solemn assembly.

You shall not do

any ordinary work.

And when it says

in verse 29

that Jesus' appearance

was altered

or transfigured,

that word appearance

is the same word

that God used

when he was giving

instructions to Moses

for the building

of the temple.

He told him,

then you shall erect

the tabernacle

according to the plan,

the same word,

the appearance,

for it that you were shown

on the mountain.

And given all these

tabernacle connections,

it's not surprising

then what happens

after this in verse 34.

As he was saying

these things,

a cloud came

and overshadowed them

and they were afraid

as they entered the cloud.

In much the same way

in Exodus chapter 40

Exodus 40:34–35

verses 34 to 35,

after the completion

of the tabernacle,

the cloud covered

the tent of meeting

and the glory of the Lord

filled the tabernacle

and Moses was not able

to enter the tent of meeting

because the cloud settled,

same word,

or overshadowed it.

And the glory of the Lord

filled the tabernacle.

The cloud that overshadowed

the tabernacle

overshadowed Mary

in Luke 135

so that she conceived Jesus

by the Holy Spirit

and now that same cloud

overshadows Jesus

and his apostles.

And why is Luke

so concerned about getting

this tabernacle reference across?

Because the cloud of God's presence

surrounds them here

without the tabernacle,

without the tent

that Peter offered to build.

Because the tabernacle

is unnecessary.

Because the temple

is unnecessary.

Because Jesus is

the new tabernacle.

For in him

the whole fullness

of deity dwells bodily.

And that's why it says

of Jesus' incarnation

in John 1.14,

And the Word became flesh

and dwelt among us.

Literally,

he tabernacled among us.

And we have seen his glory.

Glory as of the only Son

from the Father,

full of grace

and truth.

Jesus has come.

He is God in the flesh.

That's why he has this glory.

He's transfigured before them

revealing his true identity.

And all those

who are in Jesus

through faith

are now

also dwelling places

of the Spirit of God.

And that's the privilege

that Jesus makes available to us

through his death

on the cross for our sins.

And by being raised

victoriously from the dead.

In the Old Testament,

only Moses,

the priests,

and the Levites

were allowed to enter

the tenth of meeting,

the tabernacle.

God gave strict instructions

lest they die.

For example,

in Numbers 18,

21-22.

Even Aaron,

the high priest,

had to go through

ritual cleansing

before he could enter

the tabernacle

to make offering

for people.

And all those provisions

were given in the Old Testament

to preserve

and convey

the holiness of God

as someone who

is separate from us.

Because God has no part

in sin whatsoever.

Because God is of

purer eyes

than to see evil.

Even to see evil.

So it's right that

Peter and John

and James

are here afraid

as they enter

the cloud.

They deserve to be

struck dead

right there

and then.

in the presence

of the Holy God.

That's what we

deserve.

We have no business

trying to enter

into God's presence

for as Romans 3-23

says,

all have sinned

and fall short

of the glory of God.

We are not worthy

of the glory of God.

We have fallen

short of it.

But nonetheless,

God tabernacled

among us.

And Jesus

paid the death penalty

that was necessary

by dying on the cross

for our sins

so that we might

not perish

but instead

live forever

in that resurrection

life.

Forever with God.

And it's this

resurrection of Jesus

that serves as proof

that Jesus' sacrifice

on the cross

was accepted

by His Father.

But Jesus doesn't

work this wonderful

salvation for everyone.

only for those

who repent

of their sins

and entrust

their entire lives

to Him.

That brings me

to my third point.

Listen to Jesus.

It says in verses

35-36,

And a voice came

out of the clouds

saying,

This is my Son,

my chosen one.

Listen to Him.

And when the voice

had spoken,

Jesus was found

alone.

And they kept silent

and told no one

in those days

anything of what

they had seen.

Just as He did

at the baptism

of Jesus,

God the Father

announces His

endorsement of Jesus

and declares

His identity.

That Jesus is not

merely another

Elijah.

He's not merely

another Moses

but He's the Christ

of God,

the Messianic King,

the Divine Son

of God

and that we ought

to listen to Him.

And listen

conveys both

in the same

as in the English,

both the sense

of hearing

and the sense

of obedience.

Listen to Him.

We don't want

anyone,

any one of you

to come ever

to this worship service

wanting to hear

Sean or Matt

or what Ray

has to say.

You need not

pay any heed

to my personal

opinions.

but you should

pay every heed

to what God

has to say

from His Word.

That's why

I deliberately

point you to

the text

over and over again

because I want

to show you

that what I am

saying is

there in the book

and not here

in my own head.

in the context

of our passage

especially

listening to Jesus

means listening

to what Jesus

said earlier

in verses

23 to 26.

Follow up there

with me.

Verses 23 to 26.

If anyone

would come

after me

let him deny

himself

and take up

his cross

daily and follow

me.

For whoever

would save

his life

will lose it

but whoever

loses his life

for my sake

will save it.

For what

does it profit

a man

if he gains

the whole world

and loses

or forfeits

himself?

For whoever

is ashamed

of me

and of my

words

of him

will the

Son of Man

be ashamed

when he comes

in his glory

and the glory

of the Father

and of the

holy angels.

Following

Jesus

listening to

him

requires

total

submission.

It requires

absolute

surrender

because you

can only

serve one

master.

You cannot

say yes

to your

selfish

sinful

desires

and say

yes

to Jesus

at the

same

time.

You cannot

say yes

to the

sinful world

and say

yes to

Jesus

at the

same

time.

Saying

yes

to Jesus

means

saying

yes

to him

alone

in

every

aspect

of your

life

so that

it's no

longer

you

who

live

but

it is

Christ

who

lives

in

you

Jesus

only.

Verse

36

says that

when the

voice

had spoken

Jesus

was found

alone.

In the

Greek

the sentence

structure

is much

more

emphatic.

It says

when the

voice

had spoken

was found

Jesus

only.

This is

profound.

Peter

wanted

this

transcendent

experience

on the

mountain

to last

a while.

He

wanted

to pitch

three

tents

so that

Elijah

and

Moses

can

remain

with

them

and

Jesus

but

they

depart

and

the

apostles

find

Jesus

only

because

Jesus

only

is

necessary

for

your

salvation.

because

Jesus

only

is

our

Savior

and

Lord.

Some

people

in the

world

are

spiritual

junkies.

They

seek out

one

transcendent

experience

after

another,

one

conference

after

another,

one

retreat

after

another,

one

prophecy

after

another,

one

sermon

after

another.

They

just

want

their

spiritual

high

to

linger

a little

longer.

But

your

faith

and

your

confidence

should

not

be

in

your

subjective

experience

but

in

the

objective

reality

of

Jesus

only.

Some

people

in the

world

are

legalistic.

They

believe

that

their

salvation

will

be

based

on

how

moral

they

are,

how

much

good

works

that

they

do.

But

your

faith

and

confidence

should

not

be

in

your

own

righteousness

but

in

Jesus

only.

He's

the

one

who

imputes

his

perfect

righteousness

to us

when we

believe

in

him.

The

world

will

tell

you

that

it's

embarrassing

to

believe

in

Jesus

and

all

of

his

teachings.

That

it's

fantastical,

that

it's

regressive.

But

don't

listen

to

the

world

but

listen

to

Jesus

only.

for

whoever

is

ashamed

of

me

and

of

my

words

Jesus

said

of

him

the

son

of

man

will

be

ashamed

when

he

comes

in

his

glory.

Your

sinful

flesh

will

tell

you

that

it's

futile

to

resist

sin.

It

will

tell

you

that

Christ

is

a

kill

joy.

That

carrying

your

cross

daily

in

submission

to

Christ

is

not

worth

it.

But

don't

listen

to

your

flesh.

Listen

to

Jesus

only

for

whoever

would

save

his

life

will

lose

it

but

whoever

loses

his

life

for

my

sake

will

save

it.

The

devil

will

tell

you

he'll

speak

to

you

that

the

Christian

life

is

too

costly

that

you're

a

fool

to

give

up

your

life.

What

about

all

those

relationships?

What

about

all

those

pleasures?

What

about

all

those

dreams?

But

don't

listen

to

the

devil.

Listen

to

Jesus

only.

For

what

does

it

profit

a

man

if

he

gains

the

whole

world

and

loses

or

forfeits

himself?

This

glimpse

of

Christ's

divine

glory

was

revealed

to

his

apostles

to

assure

them

that

following

him

is

not

in

vain.

The

resurrection

of

our

Lord

Jesus

which

we

celebrate

today

teaches

us

that

this

life

is

not

all

there

is.

There

is

life

to

come.

His

resurrection

is the

guarantee

the

deposit

that

we

too

will

be

raised

to

new

life

and

we

will

live

forever

with

him

in

his

glory.

And

it's

that

promise

that

assurance

that

makes

it

worthwhile

for

us

to

take

up

our

cross

daily

and

follow

Jesus

as

we

look

forward

to

the

glorious

kingdom

of

the

Son

of

God.

At

the

end

of

verse

36

it

says

that

they

kept

silent

and

told

no

one

in

those

days

anything

of

what

they

had

seen.

There

was

silence

and

awe

because

the

apostles

didn't

quite

grasp

the

significance

of

this

revelation

until

the

death

resurrection

and

ascension

of

Jesus.

It's

after

they

begin

to

speak

boldly

about

Jesus

Christ.

And

likewise

we

who

live

after

Jesus

resurrection

are

not

to

keep

silent.

We

are

to

go

through

our

neighborhoods

our

cities

even

to

the

ends

of

the

earth

to

tell

people

about

Jesus

because

we

are

to

take

up

the

cross

daily

and

follow

Jesus

looking

forward

to

the

glorious

kingdom

of

the

Son

of

God.