Feb 23 - The Light of Christ

This morning's sermon I titled the Light of Christ, And it's really about humility and listening to who we call our Lord, Jesus. And its from Matthew 17:1-9 , we saw in the scripture this morning. The disciples went up on the hill (mountain) with Jesus. Jesus invited three particular disciples to go out with him. He did not invite all the disciples. He did not invite everyone who believes in him. He invited these three, who are known to be the closest of his disciples. The one who loved him the most; the one who Jesus seemed to connect with the most; and the one who is just constantly there. They were the ones who he invited to go up to the mountain with him, to be with him, not just here, but also when he goes to the garden when he gets a loan to pray before God, just to be with his Father. So, I wanted to pull out some particular images of the sun because we're talking about Jesus shining like the sun. We represent the sun in different ways in our culture, and in all of humanity. Sometimes, we use abstract images. Sometimes, we form them out of metal and put a face on it, as if the sun had a personality and a life of its own. And it kind of does, right? It's a living thing in breaths, eats, it has a life cycle, and it's going to die, eventually. It's kind of his own living thing. And, this is what we usually seen in scientific terms, when satellites are sent to take pictures of the Sun, and it's in this dark in this image, because, if we tried to take pictures of it directly, it'll just burn them out. I mean absolutely frying them the sensor. When you even point a telescope, on Earth here on the ground, toward the sun its going to fry your eyeballs. If you try to look at it directly, you have to put filters in place. You have to reflect it to take away some of the light to be able to see the details of it. And then, sometimes you have these sunburst The sun is just so bright, when you have a sunburst is still brighter than all the light that comes from the sun. How is that even possible? The Sun is so energetic and still lively, so full and so bright that it shines on all of our planet like this morning, when its finally warming up a little bit, as we get into the morning and keeping our planet warm, so that they can have life and have vitality. So, then we're talking about Jesus shining like the sun and so, three big aspects come out of this when we talked about the sun, and the sun is a constant thing for us. I mean, hopefully, it is. If the sun shut off for like one second our planet is done, or solar system is done. It has to be something that's constant for us; constantly warming this Earth, constantly warming our planet to radiate heat. That's where we get written the word radiation from. It's radiant heat this heat that's just constantly coming from the Sun. It provides us a light. It's powerful to see all the different colors. Every single color is refracted from the white light that we are given. It's powerful. Absolutely powerful. There's nothing on this planet that contains such the power of the sun. The most powerful things that we've made nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons don't contain anywhere near a fraction of the power of the Sun. So when we talked about Jesus shining like the sun, I see it in these three ways: that Jesus is always constant in my life Jesus is always right in my life, shining on the darkest places of mine. Like when you put it in those LED light bulbs, they kind of shown with a different color and a little brighter than the incandescent bulb and then all the sudden you see all the cracks in your walls. It's kind of the same way, when a light is shining so bright you will see all the cracks in it. You will see all my imperfections in it the Light of Christ, when it shines on me. It shows me some of those cracks and Imperfections that I still need to work on. Jesus is powerful!

He is powerful in a different way than we seem to think power should come. He's powerful in a different way. So we can see here in this passage. He goes up on the mountain with these three Disciples of these three particular intimate disciples with Jesus and they go up on the mountain. They must have been grateful that Jesus picked them just to be close to him to be intimate with them to share them, of what is going to happen. And you know, they get up there and Jesus just seems to change and glove and there's this brightness about him, something about his countenance must have changed drastically.

On top of that, Moses and Elijah appear. Moses the one who is The Giver of the law and Elijah is delos profit the one big profit, you know, these two representing the the parts of even Hebrew scripture is the one you brought the law the one who is the example of the prophet. these you are talking to Jesus. How can they be there? I mean these guys have been dead for so long, and they have been gone for so long how could they be here with Jesus?

It's like it's like a vision, on a mountain. I mean this must have been like an extraordinary overwhelming event that that that would have overwhelmed them with all in the presence of such greatness. Moses the one who led them out of Egypt the one who led them through the in the desert the one who brought them the law the one they set up their whole culture.

Elijah the one who pointed the priest back to God, the one who went out of his way in poverty. To show people that there was a different kind of life that God wanted them to live.

Instead of a life of just assuming that they would have all these good things and just taking the good things that God made good and they turned it around and perverted it.

Made it something it should not have been. These two guys we're up there with Jesus and it must have been overwhelming. You know.

And so I can't I can't blame. Peter from getting too overly excited. I mean he is excited about this thing in the end. The rest of the disciples must have been doing the same thing. They're just not the first ones to talk Peter is a talker. He is a talker the group he's always extroverted. He's he talks all the time and talk to him scripture about Peter talking and then there's paragraphs of him talking and he just has to get interrupted all the time, because of his talking. Peter comes out as anyone would have, he ask Jesus if he could make a new place of worship on this mountaintop He wants to set up these these Booths these tents, these Tabernacles on this mountain, and it is a great thing here to be with you. Jesus, it is a great thing for us to see this Jesus. Please isn't this if it is your well if it pleases you. I will make tents, Tabernacles, whatever he was going to make on this Mountaintop.

Let me ask you what is the point of putting these dwellings on the mountaintop?

What is the point of putting these monuments? On this mountaintop, Peter makes the mistake of equating Jesus as another another servant of God. He makes the mistake of equating Jesus with Moses and Elijah. Yes, great people of God that were part of their heritage established the law, the example of the prophets. Peter was just so excited just wanted to do something. He just had to do something. He's so excited, he just had to do something. What do you think? Did he think what it would mean about what he was doing?

You know, sometimes we just get so excited about things, we just want to do something, without asking whether we should do something. The guy didn't want pointless monuments. separate from the world, ala Mount Olympus. That's what I think when I think about setting a temple on a mountain, its a mountain Olympus. Put a temple on a mountain, is going to be huge its going to be great, is going to be built with all kinds of marble and covered or slathered in gold and silver and shining like the sun.

But here is Jesus, who is Shining like the sun?

There is no need for a another Monument another Temple another dwelling to be put on a hill, to shine like the sun when Jesus already fulfills that goal. It is a pointless monument made out of excitement, instead of having a purpose.

Sometimes we do the same as Peter. We make the mistake of either equating someone else as equal to Jesus or the sayings of a person as equal to the sayings of Jesus?

Politically, we like to equate some things that are said in public, from anyone else, as if they were equal to what Jesus said to us.

And it's a mistake.

When we like what a person says or does, we get overly excited and we mistake that for greatness.

When usually it's just some nice words that we like to hear, we may mistake and greatness for good words or good words for greatness. Even when we mean well, we have a tendency to waste our efforts on things like monuments on a mountain, instead of getting in the dirt,

with our hands and our feet as Jesus did to heal and to bring hope and to feed, where there is need.

When we mean well, we tend to honor others things as equal to Jesus.

Even with looking at scripture,

I have to ask myself this question. Who do I listen to when the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, the books of the Judges, the Prophets, the wisdom books, and the Gospels talking about Jesus and what he said, or the writings of Paul, and the Epistles that come afterwards. What do I do when there seems to contradict each other, and they do directly seem to contradict each other? Words and phrases are used the same in Jesus actually says the opposite of something that way said earlier in scripture. He says, but you have heard, but I say, this. So, what do you do when there seems to be a contradiction between Jesus in the word of God. So, it here is the scripture that says what we need to do when there seems to be a contradiction, God the father says to listen to Jesus.

You know, there are other points along the way, too. We hear prophecy. Prophecy is basically those good words and sayings from that are from God that inform our lives. They are encouragements and things that we need to hear from God. How do I know that they are true? How can I trust that they are true? Well, we use scripture, we go back to scripture and figure out whether it is true. Then, God interrupted Peter in the middle of it all his excitement and all of his plans of setting of these monuments on the mountain, he had to interrupt Peter because, Peter was going to go on.

What does God say "This is my Son in who am I am well please. Listen to him."

"Listen to him."

So, If we are confused by all the all the words that are coming at us, whether that be from the Bible, or from politics, are from our culture in different areas, whether it's coming from some guru across that planet, or some guy that everybody seems to gravitate to, if there is some contradiction in that speech, if it contradicts Jesus, it is not of God.

That's literally what this passage is for. Because, they they had to know it for certain. They had to know it was true. These are Jews.

So, all of their instruction and all of their learning was about learning the law of Moses, learning what the prophets had said, learning about the history of their culture, learning about the wisdom books and how it all can inform their lives. And so, they had to know, "God Who am I supposed to listen to?"

And this is God's definitive statement.

Listen to Jesus. He didn't say listening to these men. He didn't say listen to these two men, Moses Elijah. He didn't say people must listen to all of you including Moses, Elijah and the Disciples. God said, listen to Jesus. And so everything that was said before and after needs to be interpreted through the lens of what Jesus says to us Jesus never once asked for a monument or a dwelling never once did Jesus said build me and blah blah blah.

Never once, do you know that God did not ask for the temple in Jerusalem to be built? God did not ask for the temple to be built.

The temple was built because God capitulated to David who said, if I'm going to have a place to live in, and it's going to look beautiful, God, I want you to have a place that is at least equal to what I'm going to be living in. So God said, you know because you are and wanting to honor me. First, he told David, No. The second time, God said, okay, if you're doing it to honor me then fine build a temple. God did not ask for a temple to be built. Jesus did not asking for a monument or dwelling either, that would contradict who God is. And Jesus is a carpenter, so he knows the ins and outs of how to build a building. At that time, they had the Festival of the booths, which is was setting a tent or a temporary dwelling in which to share meals together, you would share prayers together, and you would like walk around the city in a procession. This would all be a reminder of what happened as they were led through the wilderness by Moses. They lived in tents and they walked around the desert, that's what all that was for. What really in what he's asking for here is something that would have made sense to him. But Jesus is like there's no point for you to do this. Jesus is a carpenter, and he does make dwellings. Jesus, he makes the only thing of God the difference is, the dwelling is you.

The monument the temple, the house, the dwelling is you.

God lives and resides in you as you receive him into your heart and into your life. So, to build this monument in this tent, this dwelling on the mountain is completely opposite of what Jesus was trying to teach them in ministry and going through Galilee. It was opposite of what he was trying to teach them, and so, no wonder they were humbled by the voice of God saying listen to him.

Because they didn't seem to not be listening.

The truth is humbling. truth is humbling, the truth provide strength,

and gives us boldness, and gives us wisdom.

If it true that does something opposite. Truth that's something opposite and giving you strength. Giving you a bonus and giving you wisdom and bringing you to him humility to get those things. My friends is not truth. It is not truth. It is not the truth of God. A true that Authority is found in Christ.

Unfortunately, we getting distracted by so many things so many different ways of interpreting the world so many different things coming at us through the media all the time through the news through or whatever through whatever stories that you read through. Whatever's informing our lives are televisions and the internet whatever whatever is informing our lives that we get lost from the truth. So here is as as Methodist. I believe that and finding in testing and the truth is found in scripture and defending it with reason and being enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Right? And I Remember by by Traditions. Like we have the Lord's supper. And so we come to the Lord's Supper. We take the bread of the body and the Jews and we remember the Christ sacrifice for us.

And through experience and having experience together in the body of Christ in our common experience together than guides us. Is it true that God does exist God is alive.

And truth comes through the words of Jesus Christ.

Like the sun's Jesus is constant. He is faithful. He is bright. He is pure. He is powerful.

Showing others the truth found in our life in Jesus Christ is what he calls us to do, not to set monuments up on mountains. Not to show the glory and greatness in something like static like a building but to live a life.

that shows the truth of God. God exists, that God loves, and God gives life.

All ways don't lead to God, but all truth comes from God.

Listen to me hear me. It's often said to me, when I go out into this neighborhood, when I go out and just be in public and have a meal with people,

there is in our culture an impression that all religious ways lead to the same God.

I hope you read the scripture this morning, and I hope you have heard what God has to say about it.

God says, listen to Jesus and when he says, I am the way I am the truth, I am the life. If we are to call ourselves followers of Christ, then we must say the same. Jesus is the way, Jesus is the truth, and Jesus is the life. And, he points us to loving God and loving others in everything that we do. We have ways of doing that, informing ourselves of of God's words that come after reading in teaching a scripture, attending to the traditions of the faith, using our rational thoughts and guidance to what we believe, understanding what is true in this world. Actually, this podium is a piece of wood. It is holding up my piece of paper. That means something. So, that truth about this existing must be a part of what I understand in the world through reason.

Experiencing God and life the other, because it's through that combined experience that we can see that God is a part of our lives, that God does bear witness to goodness in the world, that God does exist, and loves and change lives.

He is God. So, I'll leave you with these three questions. What monuments have you built that you need to pull down?

What monuments have you built, that need to be pulled down?

Do you honor someone as much as Jesus?

And, what are you doing to ensure that you are hearing from Jesus?

And we can't possibly listen to him, if we have an opener ears and made ourselves available to hear him.

And we might have mountaintop experiences. But, even Jesus said to the disciples, don't tell other people what happened here. There's a reason why he did that. They had direct evidence and they had that experience. But, guess what, other people had experiences too, they saw the healings that were happening. They were still seeing people delivered from the Demonic. They were seeing these happened right in front of them, and yet, they still did not believe

So, if they were going to rationalize that away they were going to rationalize possibly thing Moses and Elijah way as if it was just, you know, another another Vision, or maybe I was diluted or

Let me ask you with these three guys.

Have open their mouths as loud as they did under Roman oppression,

the possibility of torture and crucifixion, if they did not witness and believe, that Jesus Christ is Lord.