St. Luke 9:28-36
March 3, 2019
Transfiguration C
Dear Saints of Our Savior~
Timing, they say, is everything. If there’s an important discussion that needs to happen, don’t have it at bedtime. You’re too tired then. Likewise, important conversations are doomed from the start if you try to talk as everyone is preparing to rush out the door to work and school. You’re too distracted then. If you want your words to have the desired impact, timing is everything.
Eight days before His transfiguration on the mountain, Jesus had dropped the biggest bombshell of His ministry so far. The first words of today’s gospel reading point us back in time to those jaw-dropping revelations Jesus had uncorked eight days earlier: The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected . . . and be killed, and on the third day be raised. Jesus had also said: If anyone would come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
What do you suppose the disciples thought about all this? What do you think was bouncing around in their brains for the next week while Jesus’ words about rejection, death, self-denial, cross-bearing, and losing one’s life began to sink in? We don’t know for sure.
But, remember, our Lord knows a thing or two about timing. Timing is everything. And before a single disciple managed to head for the exit, Jesus took Peter, James and John up to a mountain to pray. And as Jesus was praying, something happened to Him. His face was changed in appearance. He was shining like the sun. His clothing became dazzling white, too bright to look at—like the bright afternoon sunshine on a white, snowy landscape—brighter and purer than all the angels in the sky.
And then something just as amazing—Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus in glory—Moses and Elijah who were long dead but now very much alive. Moses the Law-giver and Elijah the prophet par excellence. There they were, standing alongside the shining Jesus, speaking of Jesus’ departure in Jerusalem. Now, “departure” makes it sound like Jesus was hanging out at the airport. But the Greek word is actually one that you already know: Exodus. They spoke of His Exodus which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
Jesus’ “exodus” would be the very death and resurrection He had predicted one week earlier. Good Friday and Easter would be our Lord’s personal “Passover” from death to life. This Firstborn Son would not be spared. Through dying and rising Jesus would part the sea and bring all of us out of slavery to Sin and Death into freedom, forgiveness, and life eternal. This exodus is why Jesus came. All the Old Testament Law and all the Old Testament prophets pointed ahead to this—like billboards on the freeway.
Many of you have had the sometimes stressful experience of driving in an unfamiliar city. Traffic is buzzing around you as you make your way through multiple lanes in a maze of freeways. Suddenly you realize that the lane you’ve settled into is an “exit only” lane. Unless evasive action is taken quickly, you will be exiting whether you want to or not. You could say that our Lord’s entire earthly ministry was spent in the “exit only” lane—on a ramp that would lead Him without detour to the cruelty of the cross and the depth of the grave.
Moses and Elijah were what you might call “exit experts.” They each had their own spectacular exoduses. Moses had led the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt right through the Red Sea waters. Centuries later the prophet Elijah was given an equally impressive exit when chariots and horses of fire carried him up to heaven in a Kansas-quality tornado. Elijah quite literally exited this world in a blaze of glory.
Perhaps this Transfiguration Sunday also finds you eyeing the exits. Just like the Twelve in the week before the Transfiguration, perhaps you too are quietly considering an exit from the difficulties of discipleship. Continuous cross-bearing and self-denial have a way wearing down even the most faithful Christians. It’s tempting to look for an exit to an “easier” life of putting your needs and your happiness ahead of everything else—including Jesus. Now, no one would stand up and admit that here this morning. But look at your attendance over the past year. Examine your stewardship over the past year. Count up the minutes during the week you spend in prayer and in God’s Word. And then ask yourself, “What are the trends? Am I following Jesus more closely, or is there increasing distance between me and my Savior?”
On the mountain the Father’s voice declared, “This is my Son . . . listen to him!” Are you listening to Jesus? The truth is that what God says to “do” we rarely get done. And what our God says, “thou shalt not do,” that we have no trouble doing—in thought, in word, in deed. It’s so much easier to go along and get along with the ways of this dying world—so easy, in fact, that plenty of folks who once populated a pew every Sunday are now eyeing the exits, abandoning the faith once delivered to the saints. Will you—or won’t you—be among them?
Before you answer, take a moment to stand with Peter, James and John. Behold the glory of Jesus. See what they saw. Remember, timing is everything. Jesus knew the dark days that were coming; and so He revealed His glory—God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God . . . being of one substance with the Father. Every cell of His human body glowed brightly with the glory of God. This is God’s beloved Son! This is our Savior! And His transfiguration is the beautiful proof that there is none other like Him. He’s not simply a leader, a teacher, or a prophet. He is the Son of God, the Son of Man, God in human flesh come to save sinners. He’s got His own “exodus” to accomplish—and He’s taking you and me with Him! What more can we say besides “Alleluia!”
Look once more at the exodus of Jesus. See Him hanging dead on the cross, bearing your sin and the sin of the whole world. See Him broken, bleeding, dying, and buried. That’s how He saved you—in the hidden glory of His sacrificial death and His resurrection from the dead. We listen to Him because He alone has the words of eternal life. We listen to Him because He brought you into His church through the cleansing splash of Holy Baptism. This is a sermon about “exits,” but it’s also true that no one “enters” the church—no one comes to faith in Jesus—no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. This church is HIS church and He’s made you a part of it! See how much He loves you!
The Lord Jesus has a grand and glorious “exit” in store for you. Moses and Elijah provide a sneak peek. Don’t forget that these two holy men had been dead and gone for centuries before turning up with Jesus on the Mountain. Apparently the reports of their deaths had been greatly exaggerated. See them on the mountain, alive and well in the presence of Jesus. That’s where you’re headed too. No matter how ugly your exit from this world may be—whether you die quietly in your sleep or have your head severed as a martyr—yet you will live forever in and with Jesus. You will see His shining face and His nail-scarred hands with your own two eyes.
But not yet. His glory is hidden now—in the water of your baptism, in the bread that is His body and the wine that is His blood, in the pages of your Bible and in the words of this sermon. The glory of Jesus is shining here and now, bringing you forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. Jesus has a heavenly exit in store for you and all who believe. Don’t deviate from that “exit only” lane. You will be alive and well forever, in the presence of Jesus—just like Moses. Just like Elijah. That’s why on this Sunday—and every Sunday—we can say together with Peter, “It’s good—it is good, Lord, that we are here.”
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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