Luke 9:30-31

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Let me encourage you to follow along in your Bibles...

And, We’re going to be back in Luke 9, this morning.

-Last week, we began our study of Jesus’ Transfiguration in Verse 28.

And, my premise to you then, was...

…that the Transfiguration was...

…an incipient unveiling, or revealing...

…of Jesus’ eternal, divine glory...

…which had (up until that point) been...

…concealed (at least visibly) by his real humanity.

-Now, we only made it through Verse 29 before...

And that’s because of the foundational nature of Verse 29...

…to the remainder of this event...

(So, If you weren’t here last week...

…you may want to listen to that on Sermon-Audio)

-Now, for this morning, we’re going to...

Read the entire narrative, again...

Review (briefly) verse 29

And then, jump back in, in Verse 30.

-Let’s read our text.

This is God’s Word.

It is His testimony… concerning His Son

Please follow along as I read:

Luke 9:28–36 (ESV)

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.

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

30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah,

31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

32 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.

33 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.

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

35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”

36 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.

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Pray

-Before we jump in to Verse 30...

…let’s take a moment to briefly review Verse 29.

Luke described the primary event of this narrative, like this:

Luke 9:29 (ESV)

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

If you’ll remember, Mark and Matthew...

…used a more particular word:

Matthew 17:2 (ESV)

2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.

Mark 9:2–3 (ESV)

2 . . . And he was transfigured before them,

3 and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them.

And remember, that we saw that word defined as:

. . . “A change in appearance that comes from within,” and it gives us the English word metamorphosis. — Bible Exposition Commentary

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The implication being, that...

...Jesus wan’t becoming glorious from without...

…But rather, his intrinsic glory...

…was being revealed from within!

-After that, we traced out that motif of...

…God’s invisible essence...

…being out-rayed through...

...these visible manifestations of “glory.”

And we saw how that was, so often...

…inseparably connected...

...to the giving of Revelation from God...

And how, the presence of this visible glory...

…was meant to show that...

...the messenger that it attended:

Had been dispatched from Heaven

Spoke on behalf of God!

(That will be important for later)

-And finally, we read this summary from Philip Ryken:

As the disciples gazed upon this glorious revelation, they were catching a glimpse of something from the past.

They were seeing the glory that the Son had with the Father before the world began (John 17:5)—the eternal splendor of his divine being.

John 17:5 (ESV)

5 And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

They were seeing a visible manifestation of God’s invisible glory.

Here, for the first time in the Gospels, they were witnessing the majesty of God the Son.

He went on to say (and this is where we finished):

Then too the apostles were seeing something from the future. They were catching a glimpse of the glory that God would reveal in Jesus Christ — Ryken

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-And we saw how, what was, then, future...

…is now a present reality for us...

…in light of, and because of...

…what Christ would go on to accomplish, through...

The Cross

The Resurrection

The Ascension!

-But, let’s digress on that, for now...

…and focus our attention back on Verse 30:

Let’s read it again...

…in conjunction with verse 29:

Luke 9:29–31 (ESV)

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

30 And behold, two men were talking with him . . .

And, Luke alone says:

31 who appeared in glory...

-Now, at the very outset...

What does this tell us about these men?

They’ve come from heaven...

To fulfill a commission given to them by God!

These men are being presented...

…as messengers (emissaries) of heaven!

-Now, notice also, the number:

Two men.

Why?

Multiple reasons, but at the very least...

…it is, as we saw last week, that:

Deuteronomy 19:15 (ESV)

15 . . . Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.

This intimates to us, that...

…these two men are, themselves...

…here to testify to something...

…on God’s behalf.

We see that quite frequently...

…at these major epochal shifts:

At the Resurrection:

Luke 24:4–6 (ESV)

4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel.

5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?

6 He is not here, but has risen. . .

At the Ascension:

Acts 1:9–11 (ESV)

9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes,

11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

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-Now, notice something important in Verse 30.

We read it already, but...

…notice what these two messengers were doing:

Luke 9:30 (ESV)

30 And behold, two men were talking with him...

And, notice the preposition:

It isn’t “to” him...

But:

Luke 9:30 (ESV)

30 And behold, two men were talking with him...

This indicates...

NOT instruction

(As though they were informing Christ)

But DISCOURSE!

Whatever the subject is...

…they’re in agreement about it.

(We’ll see the subject a little later)

-Now, the identity of these two men...

…may be more important than...

Their number

Even the fact that they were glowing!

Luke tells us precisely who they are.

And, they aren’t angels.

(That’s what would have been assumed...

…if they had not been named)

Luke says that the...

Luke 9:30–31 (ESV)

30 ...two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah...

Now, these aren’t just any two men, are they?

This is Moses:

The Deliverer

The Law-Giver

The Covenant Mediator

He was the man who led the OT people of God...

…out of bondage...

…and into covenant union with God.

He’s the one who:

Delivered to them God’s Moral Law

Gave them the terms of the Covenant...

…that bears his name

Led them in that Covenant Relationship...

And, adjudicated its terms.

Standing with him, is Elijah:

He’s the man who:

Was the picture of the OT prophetic office.

Went about performing (hitherto) unprecedented attesting signs and wonders.

Called the people to...

Repent from their idolatry

Return to Covenant fidelity

Went to battle with the prophets of Baal...

…in order to provide a spiritual deliverance for the people.

-Now, what do these men have in common? . . .

-And, why do they appear, here, together?

Well, for starters...

…the death (or “departure”) of both men from the earth...

…was surrounded in mystery.

Remember, that Moses was taken up...

…to the top of Pisgah, opposite Jericho...

..and shown the promised land from a distance...

…but, was told that, because of his sin, he...

…would not be able to enter it.

(Turns out, he wasn’t righteous enough...

…to give the people of God rest!)

Deuteronomy 34:5–7 (ESV)

5 So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord,

6 and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.

7 Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated.

Didn’t die of natural causes

The Lord just “took him”

And, remember what Jude told us...

…about the death of Moses:

Jude 9 (ESV)

9 ...the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses...

And, commentators tell me, that...

...there was something of an...

...eschatological expectation for Moses...

…because of the Deuteronomy 18 prediction:

Deuteronomy 18:18 (ESV)

18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.

-Elijah, had an even more mysterious death than Moses:

2 Kings 2:11–12 (ESV)

11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

-And, of course, Elijah, had...

…an even greater eschatological expectation...

…attached to him:

Malachi 4:5 (ESV)

5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

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Now, before we look at further similarities...

Consider, what this indicates to us...

…about, what is called, “the intermediate state.”

(define)

There is an afterlife (including in the OT era)

Refutes the notion of Soul-sleep

Consciousness is perpetual

OT believers were permitted to enjoy (at least some) benefits of the Cross...

…prior to its accomplishment.

In other words...

…The faithful elect of the OT era...

…didn’t have to suffer in hell...

…waiting on Jesus to pay for their sins.

This was a great mystery...

...prior to the realization of the Cross...

Now, we know.

-Now, in addition to...

...the enigmatic nature of their deaths...

…both men, had had...

…mountain-top experiences with God...

…wherein he had revealed himself to them.

Moses, had asked the LORD:

Exodus 33:18 (ESV)

18 Moses said, “Please show me your glory.”

To which, the Lord replied:

Exodus 33:19–20 (ESV)

19 . . . “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ . . .

20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”

Then Moses goes up with the two blank tablets...

Exodus 34:5–8 (ESV)

5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord.

6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

8 And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped.

And the divine self-revelation...

…creates within us, a tension...

…about the nature of God.

A similar thing happened to Elijah:

1 Kings 19:7–18 (ESV)

7 And the angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.”

8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.

9 There he came to a cave and lodged in it...

. . . Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.

12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.

13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

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And again, we’re left with a sense of...

Mystery

Wonder...

…by the Revelation of the Divine Nature!

-And, here, is where these two men...

…are the most interconnected.

Here, is why they showed up together.

-These two men...

…represent the totality of previous divine revelation.

Philip Ryken again explains:

In those days people referred to the Old Testament as “the Law and the Prophets,” and together Moses and Elijah stood for the whole thing.

Therefore, their presence testified that Jesus had come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (see Matt. 5:17), that he was the culmination of everything promised in the ancient Scriptures — Ryken

We’ve seen this coupling together...

...many times before:

Matthew 7:12 ESV

12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

Matthew 22:40 ESV

40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

John 1:45 ESV

45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

Luke 24:27 (ESV)

27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

-Now, do you remember the context of this one?

It brings us to Verse 31.

Luke 24:25–26 (ESV)

25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!

26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?”

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This, was what...

…Moses and Elijah were discussing with Jesus.

This, is what the Law (Moses)...

…and the Prophets (Elijah)...

...i.e., the whole Old Testament...

…was pointing to.

This, was its purpose!

(If your view of the OT isn’t Christocentric...

…you have the wrong view!)

This, is where the mystery...

…of God’s nature, as revealed on Sinai...

…finally finds its resolution.

Luke refers to it like this:

He says, they...

Luke 9:31 (ESV)

31 ...spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

“Departure” = Exodus

“Accomplish” = Fulfill (Play-rah-oh).

What Exodus is he referring to?

His death on the Cross!

What would it “accomplish?”

What would it “fulfill?”

To what, are Moses and Elijah...

…testifying on God’s behalf?

The Bible Exposition Commentary explains:

Moses had led Israel out of bondage to Egypt, and Elijah had delivered them from bondage to false gods;

But Jesus would die to set a sinful world free from bondage to sin and death (Gal. 1:4; Col. 1:13; Heb. 2:14–15). — BEC

This is what these men...

…had been dispatched from heaven...

…to testify to.

...That the fulfillment of all of God’s promises had come...

…in the person of Jesus Christ.

…That...

Romans 3:21–22 (ESV)

21 ...now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—

22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe....

This is what they were testifying to!

-Now, notice Jesus’ final words to his disciples...

…as recorded in Luke’s Gospel:

Luke 24:44–49 (ESV)

44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”

45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,

46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead,

47 and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

48 You are witnesses of these things...

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So, again...

…what do we see as the criteria...

…for participation in this new Exodus?

Repentance

Faith

Can we do that without his grace?

Let’s ask him to bestow it upon us, this morning:

Pray