Sermon Tone Analysis

Mark 9:2–9 (NIV)

2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone.

There he was transfigured before them.

3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them.

4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here.

Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love.

Listen to him!” 8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

This morning after church we will have an Altar Guild meeting.

The Altar Guild is a group of ladies (although there is no rule that men could not serve on it) who among other things change the paraments on the altar, lectern, and pulpit.

Why do they change them?

Is it because they are dirty or out of style?

Is it just for the sack of variety?

No, it is because someone decided many years ago that even colors seen in the worship service have meaning for those who come to God in worship.

However, it seems that many people aren’t even aware that we change colors or what their significance is.

But that should not keep us from doing these customary things.

Color can have significance.

Biblical history has some indication of this especially in the more symbolic sections of Scripture such as Daniel and Revelation.

We certainly see its significance in the account of the Transfiguration of Jesus.

White symbolizes his deity.

Since he is God, our response is to be that we listen to him.

Specific sin: We don’t always listen to Jesus.

(Why not?) Encouragement to listen to him by acting on his commands and trusting in his promises.

Traditionally, the Sunday immediately before Lent focuses on the Transfiguration of Jesus.

Since we are traditionalists, that is our focus today.

Six days after Jesus had gone to Caesarea Philippi and Peter had confessed that Jesus was the Christ.

Jesus then predicted that he must go to Jerusalem and that there he would suffer and die on the cross and on the third day be raised to life.

a high mountain Their proximity to Caesarea Philippi (Mark 8:27) suggests that Mark refers to Mount Hermon, which dwarfs all other mountains in the vicinity.

See note on Matt 17:1.

Jesus takes the “inner circle of his disciples”.

Mark tells us that Jesus was “transfigured”.

According to the Gospel accounts, three things took place at the transfiguration.

“He was transfigured.”

The various accounts all witness to an unusual transformation of Jesus which took place.

Jesus is transfigured; “his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light” (Mt 17:2); This transformation is described in Matthew and Mark by the verb metamorpheō, the root for the word “metamorphosis.”

This transformation furthermore involved not only the garments of Jesus but his very person.

Moses and Elijah appear and speak to Jesus.

These men, who undoubtedly represent the Law and the Prophets, are said in Luke 9:31 to have spoken to Jesus of his “exodus” or departure.

The term used in Luke 9:31 to describe Jesus’ “exodus” or death is rather unusual and clearly sees the death of Jesus not as a tragedy or defeat but as a victorious event.

Here is the significance of color.

We have other references to the color white in the Bible as well.

What does white mean to us today?

What does white mean to us today?

There is a reason white is chosen as the color of a bride’s wedding dress.

If you've ever flicked through a bridal magazine, you'll notice that wedding dresses come in a range of styles.

But almost all of them — especially in western countries— are white.

However, wearing a white wedding dress hasn't always been popular.

The trend can be traced back to Queen Victoria, who wore a white gown when she married Prince Albert on February 10, 1840.

On her wedding day, the royal bride opted for a white lace and silk-satin gownthat she designed herself, according to the Washington Post.

It was a crucial moment for fashion in the history of royal weddings, though Victoria's choice of a white dress was frowned upon by English aristocrats because white traditionally symbolized mourning, according to Rebecca Rissman's 2016 book "Women in Fashion."

As Rissman writes, royal wedding gowns were typically red at the time.

The queen also thwarted tradition by wearing a wreath instead of a crown in her hair, and ditching the fur-trimmed velvet robes that were usually worn by royal brides.

Even Victoria's 12 bridesmaids wore white.

As the Washington Post noted, this color scheme appeared at Kate Middleton and Prince William's wedding in 2011, when Pippa Middleton wore a cream-colored gown.

Here's a portrait of Victoria on her wedding day.

📷Maybe Queen Victoria even started the flower crown trend.Franz Xaver Winterhalter/Wikimedia Commons

In the years after the royal wedding, the shock of Victoria's ivory gown wore off — and white wedding dresses slowly became fashionable.

An 1849 issue of Godey's Lady's Book— essentially, the 19th Century's answer to Cosmopolitan — celebrated the white wedding dress, and even suggested that brides should have been wearing white all along.

"Custom has decided, from the earliest ages, that white is the most fitting hue, whatever may be the material," the women's journal reads.

"It is an emblem of the purity and innocence of girlhood and the unsullied heart she now yields to the chosen one."

This description of the white wedding dress as a symbol of virginity certainly sounds more familiar.

White, an inherently positive color, is associated with purity, virginity, innocence, light, goodness, heaven, safety, brilliance, illumination, understanding, cleanliness, faith, beginnings, sterility, spirituality, possibility, humility, sincerity, protection, softness, and perfection.

The color white can represent a successful beginning.

In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity.

As the opposite of black, movies, books, print media, and television typically depict the good guy in white and the bad guy in black.

The color of snow, white is often used to represent coolness and simplicity.

White’s association with cleanliness and sterility is often seen in hospitals, medical centers, and laboratories to communicate safety.

The color white is also associated with low-fat foods and dairy products.

To the human eye, white is a bright and brilliant color that can cause headaches.

In cases of extremely bright light, the color white can even be blinding.

Throughout the western countries white is the traditional color worn by brides, to signify purity, innocence, and virginity.

In eastern countries, the color white is the color of mourning and funerals.

In certain cultures, white is the color of royalty or of religious figures, as angels are typically depicted as wearing white or having a white glow.

A white picket fence surrounds a safe and happy home.

The color white affects the mind and body by aiding in mental clarity, promoting feelings of fresh beginnings and renewal, assisting in cleansing, clearing obstacles and clutter, and encouraging the purification of thoughts and actions.

White gemstones are believed to help create new beginnings, remove prejudice and pre-conceived notions, to see the innocence in others, and to clear emotional clutter and silence the inner critic.

Since this is a miracle, Jesus could have appeared in any color.

There is a reason he appears in the brightest white possible.

It demonstrates that he is holy and that his is the Son of God.

This would bring encouragement to his disciples in the days to come when he would be subjected his suffering and death.

But this is not the only miracle that happened on that sacred mountain.

Two men from the Old Testament appeared with him symbolizing the Law and the Prophets and that Jesus was fulfilling the Messianic prophecies.

They talked about his upcoming departure.

Here we would like a transcript of exactly what was said.

We do have a quick summary.

Pete just had to say something.

The first part is spot on.

It was good for them to be there.

The next part is enigmatic.

Why build three shelters?

Possible explanations.

It seems that he wanted the experience to last so they should build some housing so that Elijah and Moses could remain.

One of my favorite Transfiguration hymns is based on this passage.

We do well to take it to heart.

It is good to be united with Jesus in worship.

But we also have work to do when we leave our church services as we serve the Lord.

The next miracle is an event that does not happen very often in the New Testament.