Two Views Mark 9:2-9
I remember when I was a child my parents took the family on a vacation to Gettysburg. We were there two maybe three days and I loved it. I loved the museums, the history, and the battlefield tour. My sister remembers things a little differently. She says all we did was look at grass and fields. She says it was the longest month of her life. Same trip, same people, two different viewpoints. Today’s reading can be looked at from two different viewpoints, that of Jesus, and that of his disciples.
Let’s look at Jesus first. Jesus, living his humanity, living in all his humility, doesn’t always use the full extent of his power. In fact, most of the time Jesus did things like any other man. Jesus didn’t transport from place to place, didn’t just materialize in a town; Jesus walked everywhere he went. As the man he was Jesus ate, drank, and slept; he worried about his disciples, mourned the loss of his friend, and was anxious and unsure about what was going to happen at Golgotha. Jesus knew it would not be easy, that he would have the sins of the world infused in him; 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made him who had no sin to be sin…”
Jesus was about to complete his mission on earth and if we look at the beginning of his ministry; Matthew 3:17, “And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love…” As a man this filled Jesus with confidence, and it sustained him by the knowledge God in heaven was with him and was pleased by him.
Now as he was about to face the most difficult part of his mission, Jesus the man shows us that it can be hard to do what God says, and Jesus the man shows us what to do in these difficult times; Luke 9:28 says, “…he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto the mountain to pray.”
Pray, and God answered his prayers, verses 2-3, “There he was transfigured…his cloths became dazzling white…” For the first time in over thirty years, Jesus was one with the Father, in all the glory and majesty of heaven.
Verse 4, “And there appeared before them, Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.” In Luke 9:31 it says, “They spoke about his departure which he was about to bring fulfillment at Jerusalem.” Here are two men who have faith on the level of Jesus. They fully understood what was going to happen. In Matthew 16, when Jesus explains what he must do, Peter responds in Matthew 16:32, “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.” Today when Jesus the man needs encouragement he turns to Moses and Elijah, two who knew he had to do what he had to do. Jesus turned to two people who would not try to talk him out of it like Peter had. He turned to two people who encouraged him to do exactly what needed to be done, to go to Jerusalem and die.
Verse 7, “Ten a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: ‘This is my Son whom I love.’” God gave the man Jesus what he needed to succeed; people to encourage him and his unwavering love. When you turn to God in your trouble you will receive nothing less.
I know people who don’t like this Jesus, the Jesus who needs encouragement. Jesus should be like the “Rock” running headfirst into the wrestling ring, or like the soldier who jumps on a grenade without hesitation to save his comrades. God knows most of us aren’t like that, we hesitate, we think of the possible consequences, we let fear and uncertainty influence our actions. This is why this event happens. God shows us ourselves through Jesus. And God shows us by what happens on that mountain, how he is there to help, and that he is pleased by us.
Now let’s look at this from the viewpoint of the disciples. Imagine being in this scene. What an encouraging and glorious moment this is. Jesus literally transfigures right in front of them. These disciples saw Jesus perform miracles. These disciples heard Jesus speak. These disciples were told Jesus is the Messiah. Here on that mountain, God sent a clear message to the disciples and to the world; Jesus is not a phony, Jesus is God.
Verse 4, “And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses…” God was telling the disciples about the resurrection. If Elijah and Moses were alive then they could have confidence that even though Jesus would suffer and die, he would also live again. It also shows the world that even if we die, if we are among God’s chosen, we will live again.
Verse 7, “Then a cloud appeared…and a voice came from the cloud: ‘This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him.’” God is telling all of Jesus followers, “I am with Jesus, I love Jesus, I am well pleased with Jesus.” This means that Jesus’ ministry, his job so to speak, of living a perfect life in our place, was acceptable to God. God speaking on that mountain tells all mankind that Jesus wasn’t going to die on that cross because he failed, he was going to the cross perfect for the world’s sins.
In Luke’s account Peter addressed Jesus while Moses and Elijah were present, but it says in Luke 9:33, “He did not know what he was saying.” God exposed the disciples to the glory of Jesus and of heaven, showed them the truth of those who are chosen by God, and they didn’t know what to do. This can be seen as a sad commentary on many in the world. The Holy Spirit leads men to God, he demonstrates Jesus’ love to them, he exposes them to the glory of salvation, and they are too immobilized by their sinful nature, too afraid to take that step of faith.
Today we see in his gospel, Mark writing about Jesus’ transfiguration. But according to the first line in his account, “…Jesus took Peter, James and John with him…” Mark wasn’t there. Now I’m sure the three most certainly have talked with Mark about this event so he knew of it. But it’s also interesting that this scene is not in John’s gospel, it’s only in Mark’s and Luke’s. I believe the Spirit did this so this event is not seen as simply John’s description of a physical happening, By doing it this way the Spirit leads us to investigate the messages layered in the physical event; and these messages come from examining this scene from two different viewpoints.
When we look at this from the vantage of Jesus, we see several things. We see Jesus did things as a man so humanity couldn’t say, “Oh look, we can’t do that, why bother?” Jesus did things as a man so humanity could say, “Jesus did these things with and for others, so can I.”
Jesus shows us that whether what we’re going through is good or bad, we can know God loves us and God is pleased with us. Our confidence and security come from this knowledge.
We’re shown that prayer will get us through the hardest times in life. We can be assured that God will give us the confidence and security to accomplish what he wants us to do.
And we can see that when facing a hard time, get yourself with people who will build you up, not with those who will try to dissuade you.
As we look at this scene through the disciple’s eyes, we see that Jesus is God, there is no doubt.
It is explained to us that even though he died on the cross, Jesus lives. And because he lives, those who are among God’s chosen also will live.
And the disciples tell us not to let fear come between us and God.
You are loved by God. You are saved by your faith in Jesus. You will be taught by the Holy Spirit. Let me end with this, Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Amen.