He Lived A Perfect Life

I don’t know about you, but I love mountains. When my wife and I think about vacations, she always wants to go to the beach. I want to go to the mountains. I’m not talking about camping. Nothing about camping really appeals to me, sorry to say. Sleeping outside on the ground under a makeshift tent for an extended period of time, while attempting to make food over a fire doesn’t sound appealing. That sounds like glorified homelessness. No, I like to hike through the mountains, reach the peaks and summits which terrify me at their height contrasted with my smallness. There is grandeur in the mountains. There is beauty all around.

Jenny Kelley’s poem “All the Senses Respond” describe the scene: 

“Misty smoke floats over and covers mountains and valleys spreading out for miles in front of and around me.

The most talented artists could never capture their beauty and glory with mere paint.

Shades of green turn to yellow, turn to gold, turn to orange, turn to red, scarlet and purple.

Sounds of water splashing against rocks as it rages down streams traveling I know not where.

I hear the sound of wind blowing colored leaves through trees. That soothing sound puts my troubled mind at ease.

The air is clear, crisp, fresh and easy to breathe. Here, in this place, I feel I have all that I need.

There is a feeling of tranquility around me and inside of me. The presence of God seems to surround me.”

There is something in the soul that is deeply stirred in the mountains. Here the love of beauty and the pursuit of spirituality are combined. There’s no wonder the poet mentioned glory and God in her work. You get up there and your mind and heart are turned upward.

Beauty draws us and the longing for God compels us. Everyone of us. There is a reason people say that the forest is their church. Romans 1:20 says “God’s invisible attributes, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived in the things that have been made.” We really do get a glimpse of God in His creation. But it also goes on to say that we all “suppress the truth”. For although we knew God, we did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but …. exchange the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.” 

We turn our longings for God outward and inward and lust after the created things, not the Creator! We worship the reflection of God’s glory, not God Himself!

And that’s probably why all throughout the Bible God kept coming down to meet with us on mountain tops.  All throughout the Bible the themes of glory and God and mountains keep showing up.

The glory of God is the all-consuming splendor, beauty, magnificence, radiance, heaviness, weightiness, prominence, preeminence, worthiness, and superiority of the God of the Bible. And God always shows up in glory with fire and clouds, on the top of mountains.

BOOK/ EXPOUND -

This is seen most vividly in Exodus after the Israelite people were delivered from Egypt. Moses led them into the Wilderness to Mount Sinai where the Lord God was set to meet them.

Exodus 24:15-18 shares what occurred, “ Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai… He called Moses out of the midst of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain.”

And Moses was right up in it! Moses was able to enjoy the presence of the glory of God for 40 days! He saw God and he saw glory! 

Exodus 34 continues, that Moses, came down from the mountain and “did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.”

In a small way this is like what happens when you set near a campfire. The burning fire and the heat emanating from it warms everyone’s face and brightens it up red. All during Quarantine, I would make a little fire with my sons to end the evening. They loved it because they got to burn sticks. Micaiah loves to find little twisty branches and watch it catch fire then burn bright red. That’s a small illustration of what’s happening here. After spending time in the fiery presence of the glory of God, Moses is red, emanating and radiating the glory of God! Just as that stick shines red from the fire it was just immersed in, man will burn red in the presence of a holy God!

But this wasn’t the only time this occurred.  It happened many years later when Israel had turned from the Lord God, who then sent Elijah as a prophet to call them back to Himself. In 1 Kings 19:11, God directs Elijah, “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.” 

It was the voice of the Lord God he had heard! It was on the mountain God has visited Him. So it’s no wonder that Jesus, in today’s passage, would go up onto a mountain.

The past few months we have been going through the Apostles Creed as a church during this soft-launch preview phase. We have been following the great beliefs of Christianity. Well this month, before going to the next line, I want to pause and add a new line to the Creed: “He lived a perfect Life”. I want to focus on Jesus’ ministry. Jesus did not just do good things, He did miraculous works. He did not just say kind words, He made bold claims. He raised a little girl from the dead. He confronted people with the heavy call of discipleship: pick up your cross and follow Me! And the people’s response was in shock: who is He?

In fact, in Luke 9:20 Jesus turned to his disciples and asked bluntly, “Who do you say I am?” And today God is going to answer that question!

In our passage today, it has been 8 days since Jesus asked His disciples that question. 8 days since He cautioned them with the demand of discipleship. 8 days since Jesus first predicted His suffering. And now He takes 3 of His disciples; Peter, James, and John up on the mountainside to pray.

While we do not know where the location of this glorious event took place, we can guess it was near Caesarea Philippi; near the slopes of Mount Hermon.

Here Jesus climbed up the mountain with these 3 men, to pray. If there was ever a man who didn’t need to pray, it was Jesus. But we see Him praying all the time. He lived a rhythm of ministry work, then secluded prayer. He wanted to spend time with His Father after the recent complex season.

Perhaps He was praying that His disciples would see His glory. He was praying, probably standing with hands open like a good Jewish man. While He was praying, the 3 disciples looked up at Him and something happened! This is truly glorious.  The appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening!

You have to understand what is happening here. The same shining face that Moses experienced is now on Jesus, but nothing from the outside is causing it. While Jesus was praying, the garb of His humble lowliness was being drawn back and His true grandeur was seen for only a few fleeting moments on that blessed mountain!

This isn’t an illumination of Jesus from the outside of Him. This isn’t His skin reflecting outward fire like Moses’ did. This is the manifestation of Jesus from inside of Him! Jesus sayid in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world.” And here the light of the glory of God is revealed through this God-man. 2 Corinthians 4:6 says that the “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ!”

This is beauty! This is radiant! This is luminescent! This is glory! And it’s in Jesus Christ!

You see this point backwards because this is how Jesus existed in eternity past. When you think of Jesus, be careful not to think of Him just during the 30 year humble incarnation 2021 years ago! Before Jesus of Nazareth was born, He was God the Son who has existed eternally with the Father and the Spirit. And in this moment, the glory of Jesus Christ, our eternal God is made visible. This is what He looked like before He became a man! The glory of God that is present in Jesus Christ, the God-man is seen. It breaks forth. 

But this also points forward, giving a foretaste of Jesus’ ultimate return. After his crucifixion in our place, for our sins, as our Savior, after his burial, there was a glorious resurrection, and then Jesus ascended. Where? Back into glory.

And even more, in the present, Jesus is glorious. Revelation 1 described what John saw with very eyes, “The hair of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters...and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.” 

That’s Jesus! The same yesterday, today and forever. In fact, Revelation 21 describes the future after Jesus’ return: “And the city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.”

Do you see what this is saying? Jesus is glorious! Jesus is beautiful! The Son of God’s unfiltered face is bright enough to singularly brighten up the entire New Creation! He is God & everything about Him screams to us His excellent beauty!

And that could be enough for us to stop and fall on our faces right now. But right in the midst of Jesus showing forth his glory, Moses and Elijah show up standing beside Him to talk to Him! If you remember some people said Jesus must be Elijah, but here Elijah shows up to confirm He isn’t! This is amazing!

Of all the Old Testament people who could show up, it’s these 2, who had glorious experiences with God on mountains. Moses is the author of the First Five Books of the Bible, the great Leader of the Israelites, the Giver of the Law. At the end of his life, the Bible says God buried Him on the mountain. Elijah is the great Prophet who confronted Israel’s wicked kings, calling fire down from Heaven. At the end of his life, He was directly taken by God up to Heaven without dying! And here they are, the representatives of the Jewish Law and Prophets, the entire Old Testament standing on Jesus’ sides looking at the One who would fulfill them both! This is mind-blowing! Jesus is far more than we could ever hope or dream of. He is the true & better Moses! Jesus is the true & better Elijah! And He is glorious!

LOOK/ILLUSTRATE - 

No wonder Peter wanted to build a tent. This was a miraculous thing he is observing. He may have been thinking of the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, where tents were set up to commemorate God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt and the future deliverance. He was wanting to set up a memorial…… 

In fact, his response is our own… We chase after spiritual experiences like Peter instead of coming to the words of Jesus. Peter doesn’t want to leave. Sometimes we experience such inspiring moments that we want to stay where we are - away from the reality and problems of daily life.  But Jesus doesn’t want us to just build memorials to Him. Jesus doesn’t want us to just live basking in the Sun. Jesus doesn’t want us to keep Him settled and tame, and used for our own benefit.  He wants us to come to terms with Who He is, everyday in every situation!

This is something I’ve experienced when I first started following Jesus. I was drawn to Him and message. He was unlike anything I had ever heard or seen before. But the more I started learning about Jesus, the more I was like these first disciples; I didn’t understand Him. I kept asking myself, who is He? I was confused by Him, even while I was drawn to Him.

The most offensive thing I wrestled with was the notion that Jesus claimed to be God. I was comfortable with Jesus being a Savior.  I was moved by His salvation. But I was frightened, offended, sobered and cautious about affirming that He is divine in and of Himself.

And I’m sure some of you are like that as well. This was the struggle the early Jewish community had to wrestle through. I have respect for that. The struggle is real! For someone to truly, intellectually and emotionally, come to terms with Jesus, it’s a war in the mind and heart.

I remember coming home from school one day, drained because of the battle. I turned on the television and it just so happened to be the video portrayal of the Gospel of John, at the moment in John 6 where Jesus claimed to be the Bread of Heaven come down to earth. And at that moment, when I turned on the television, I heard “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.”

Well you can imagine, I was shocked and confused, and deeply offended. But at the same time, and it’s hard to explain, at the same time… I believed! I believed Jesus was God. I believed He was who He said He was.

And my friends, I have gone through that same process again and again since becoming a follower of Jesus. Not just in coming to terms with His divinity, but coming to terms with what He teaches on everything. I’ve wrestled through His claims on my identity, my thought life, my parenting, my money, my sexuality, my speech, my interaction with others, with one thing after another. I mean if He really is God, if He is the glorious One who shone the glory of God on the mountain, then He really does have a demand on every single person, and every area of every person’s life. 

This is not tame Jesus. This is not gentle Jesus, meek and mild, who ruffles no feathers, makes no demands, disturbs no peace, and just teaches us to be nice. The Jesus I once thought of, a good religious teacher who taught basically the same things as every other religious leader, is standing here glowing! You and I have to come to terms with Him!

TOOK/APPLY - 

And that’s exactly what God the Father wants us to do… Verse 34, “While Peter was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them.” There it is, there is the cloud again, the same cloud that covered the mountain and Moses. “A cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud.” The glory of God was surrounding them. “Then from the cloud came a voice” There it is again, the same voice that spoke to Elijah, and now it said—“This is my Son.” This is the Father speaking, saying. “He’s the same as me. We are equal.” This is a declaration of divinity. This is God the Father saying, “That man is the God-man.” “My Chosen”!

Now stop everything if that isn’t enough for you. Let your entire world pause for this moment, one of the most important three words in the entire Bible: LISTEN TO HIM!

Listen to him!  Listen to him. Listen to Him! Don’t listen to Satan. Don’t listen to false teachers. Don’t listen to those who would confuse you with false religions and half-truths, and don’t listen to all your critics, and don’t listen to the world. Don’t listen to Twitter quotes or Facebook memes. Don’t pay attention to an anonymous websites or deconstructing activists. Listen to him. Listen to him, Listen to the Lord Jesus. Take everything you think or hear and weigh it next to the Scriptures and to His own words!

“When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.” Moses & Elijah are gone. This is a beautiful moment after the Father speaks. Instantly the cloud is gone, the Men representing the Law & the Prophets are gone. Peter’s grand ideas are gone. Jesus is left standing. Jesus remains.  “And they kept silent in those days, and they told no one anything what they had seen.”

Friends, Jesus is not just another good man. Jesus is not even another prophet. Jesus is in a completely different category. He’s not just a mere teacher. He is the glory of God. And we must listen to Him!

Now I believe when it comes to Listening to Jesus, that means three things. First we must See Him. Second we must Savor Him. Third we must Obey Him.

When I speak of seeing, I think of what John Piper has said, “I don’t mean seeing with the eyes of your head, but the eyes of your heart. The Bible says, we walk by faith and not by sight. He is not here to see physically. He is in heaven until he comes again to be seen by everyone. The Bible does say that we may see Jesus in another sense. It speaks of “the eyes of your hearts”. It speaks of “seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God”. When we see with our spiritual eyes, we see the truth and beauty and value of Jesus Christ for what they really are. Everyone can read the stories of Jesus and “see” the portraits painted by the words of those who knew him. But not everyone sees truth and beauty and infinite value. Some see only myth. Some see foolishness. Some see offense. “Seeing they do not see.” It is as though a child should look at a Michelangelo and prefer a comic strip.” 

We see Jesus by gazing upon Him in the Scriptures. This is why it is so essential to not only read, but to diligently search and desperately seek after Christ in our Bibles. This is where learning to pray what the Bible says comes in. We don’t just read it, we engage all of our senses with the Bible in order to meet God in it. This is why in our discipleship groups we ask the 4 questions every time we read the Bible: Who is God in this verse we’ve read, What has God done in it, Who are we in it, and How are we to live. To engage the Bible like that is to aim our spiritual senses at seeing Jesus.

But we must also Savor Jesus. John Piper continues “Savoring Jesus Christ is the response to this kind of seeing. When you see something as true and beautiful and valuable, you savor it. That is, you treasure it. You cherish and admire and prize it. Spiritual seeing and spiritual savoring are so closely connected that it would be fair to say: If you don’t savor Christ, you haven’t seen Christ for who he is. If you don’t prize him above all things, you haven’t apprehended his true worth.”

We savor Jesus by the worship that we give to Him, in our lives and in this gathering. Worship is always a response to seeing God. To truly savor and treasure something is to feel rightly about it. If we have seen Jesus and His glory, we will cry, we will bow down before Him, we will raise your hands in surrender, we will sing as loud as we can, we will give away all of our money, we will sit quietly and meditate on Him. We will treasure Him deeply. That’s the vision of my life: I want to be an old man that weeps when I read scripture, because of who Jesus is and what He means to me!

And my friends, that will lead to obeying Him! To obey Jesus is to actually read and listen to what He’s saying. Think with me through all of His statements in the Gospels. These are the things He’s telling us to do: “Be born again, Repent, Come to Me, Believe in Me, Love Me, Listen to Me, Abide in Me, Take up your cross and deny yourself, Love God, Rejoice and leap for joy, Fear Him, Worship God in Spirit and Truth, Always pray and don’t lose heart, Do not be anxious about your life, Humble yourself, Do not be angry, Do the Will of my Father, Strive to enter through the narrow door, your righteousness must exceed the Pharisees, Love your enemies, Love Your Neighbor, Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, Do not take an oath, Do not separate what God has joined together, Render to Caesar the things that are his, Do this in remembrance of me, Let your light shine, Make Disciples of all nations…”

Listen to that! Do that! Obey! Are we living that way? Just do it Nike says! Submit! Act!

But what if I told you that obedience isn’t the goal! What if I told you to obey Jesus is just the means to an end? What if I told you that obedience is simply an outgrowth of seeing and savoring Jesus? What if I told you the goal of the Christian life is actually communion and relationship with God?

We obey Jesus out of a love for Him. Jesus even said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” in John 14:15. So try this, instead of thinking of your life as progressively becoming more like Jesus, think of it as coming progressively nearer to Jesus. 

God’s laws and Jesus’ commandments are indeed instructions on how to live in relationship with Him, but as my counseling professor Ed Welch says, “What they don’t do is give us good reasons to want to be in relationship with him. That comes through the Spirit’s opening our eyes to see Jesus, showing us, in Jesus, the depths of humility and the pinnacle of love, opening our ears to the Father’s invitation, and establishing an unshakable bond that links us to the risen Jesus right now.” 

In other words, when we truly see Jesus, we will rightly savor Jesus, which will lead us to obey Jesus. And that will be how we Listen to Him as the Father said!

Don’t you want to live like that? I mean honestly. And even if you don’t believe any of this, don’t you wish it were true?

CHRIST- 

But that’s the bad news. We don’t live that way. We don’t even want to live that way. Some of us would rather be on the top of a mountain right now than worshipping Jesus here. Something’s wrong. Is there anything that can change?

Well, right now we all need to lean into and imagine the conversation Moses and Elijah was having with Jesus on that mountain, when they “spoke of His departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.”

We must listen closely to Jesus describing to His disciples in Luke 9:22 how “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”

You see: On another mountain not long after the transfiguration, Jesus would climb up more steep cliffs, carrying wood on His back. He would trust His Father and do what His Father asked. He wouldn’t struggle or run away. The soldiers beat him and pretended to bow down to Him. “Your majesty” they would say as they spat into the glorious face of God.  His face wasn’t shining that day. He was stripped naked for all the world to see. Not covered in light, but blood. A terrible darkness covered the face of the world. The sun could not shine. The great mountains shook. And the awful anger of God was coming down on this lonely figure on a cross. It was the only way to forgive the people who would rather worship created things, than the Creator.

At this moment, you might be tempted to think this isn’t a beautiful scene. This is something to turn your face from in disgust. This is not the trek through the mountain splendor you were looking for. But no, this may be the most glorious and beautiful thing that has ever happened. The glory of God, not in light, but in the face of the anguished Son of God, dying on behalf of His chosen people. Can you see Him there? Can you Savor Him there? Don’t you want to bow down before Him? Don’t you want to obey Him with everything inside of You?

Then Jesus shouted out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit My Spirit”! And He did. He died, His face lost its splendor. But in that death, He provided a way for the Children of God to be forgiven and shine for all eternity. After 3 days, He defeated death and His face lit up again, brighter than the Sun. This is who Jesus is. He lived a Perfect Life. That’s the good news. Let us listen to and believe fully what He said: It is finished, amen!