Transfiguration of Christ
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 32:57
0 ratings
· 147 viewsFiles
Notes
Transcript
A Mountaintop Experience
Matthew 17:1-13
Online Sermon: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567
Introduction
Of all the experiences that a human being can have while on this earth is not a glimpse of
our Savior the most treasured event one could ever receive? Living in this world that is not our
home (Hebrews 13:14) we are constantly being bombarded by temptations to join the world on
the broad path of pleasure (Matthew 7:13) and bow to the god of self. Even though we have the
Spirit of truth living inside of us (John 16:13) there still wages a war between our old nature and
our born-again self that like Apostle Paul
we must admit we often lose by
conforming to the sinful patterns of this
world (Romans 7). If we as Christ’s
ambassadors and royal priests are to
offer our bodies as a living sacrifice that
is holy and pleasing unto God (Romans
12:1-2), i.e. living our lives following in
the footsteps of Jesus (1 Peter 2:21), then
we simply must have our minds renewed
by and in the presence of the Potter who
molds the clay (Isaiah 64:8)! Is it not
precisely in His presence that we
become aware of and get the divine
might to know and carry out His good,
pleasing, and perfect will? Yes, but despite being told that in Scripture that we can boldly come
before God’s throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) for centuries most believers struggle and yes many
fail to even get a glimpse of their Savior! The following sermon is going to review the glimpse
of Christ’s glory that Peter, James, and John received in Matthew 17:1-13 and suggest that
solitude, listening, reverence, acceptance, and desire to proclaim the truth concerning Christ is
the key to seeing Christ!
Being Alone with Jesus
Verse one begins by stating that Jesus took Peter, James, and John up into the mountain by
themselves. While tradition suggest it was Mount Taber,1 due to it not being a high mountain
1
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
320.
1|Page
(about 1900 feet), 2 not being located on the six-day journey Jesus and the apostles took from
Caesarea Philippi to Capernaum3 and being occupied by a Roman garrison which made it a poor
place to be alone;4 many scholars suggest that the mountain was either Mount Hermon or Mount
Miron.5 Many important encounters with God happened in the Bible both in solitude and upon a
mountain.
For instance, Moses
encountered God in the burning bush on
Mount Sinai (Exodus 3:1-4:17) and later
received the Law on this mountain
(Exodus 19-24), God answered Elijah’s
prayed on Mount Carmel by sending fire
to consume his sacrifice (1 Kings 18:1640) and would later be on a mountaintop
when God whispered to him (1 Kings
19:11-12),6 Jesus was taken to an
extremely high mountain and tempted by
Satan to bow to him (Matthew 4:1-11)
and in this passage was transfigured
before His inner three leaders.7 It is not
so much going to a mountain that ensures
an encounter with God but “clearing our calendars” and finding a place where one can seclude
from the world and all its distractions and temptations that is key to hearing from God. While we
can hear from God anywhere and at anytime, inviting God to make us “lie down in the green
pastures and by the still waters” (Psalms 23) increases our likelihood of drawing nearer to Him
through meditation, prayer, and total submission to hear and obey His will!
A Glimpse of His Glory
Ever wonder what the first few moments in heaven will be like?8 While Peter, James and
John were not transported up into heaven they did receive a glimpse of Christ’s glory when while
He was praying Jesus was “transfigured” before their very eyes. While we don’t fully know
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 384.
3
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 384.
4
Michael J. Wilkins, Matthew, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan Publishing House, 2004), 590.
5
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 384.
6
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
319–320.
7
Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI:
Baker Books, 2011), 167.
8
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 261.
2
2|Page
what happened from this obscure word “metamorphoō” that is used in this passage,9 it seems
that Christ was not “transformed” into another image10 but lifted the corner of His veil11 and
gave the inner three disciples a glimpse of His “preincarnate glory (John 1:14, 17:5; Philippians
2:6-7) and His coming exaltation (2 Peter 1:16-18;
Revelation 1:16).12 By showing them His face shining
like the sun and His clothes becoming white as the light
(verse 2) one day the apostles would look back at this
glorious event and marvel at Christ’s “self-humiliation
that brought Him to the cross and the height to which
He had been raised by His vindicating resurrection and
ascension.”13 While the heights, depths, lengths,
breath of Christ of His fullness is beyond our human
capacity to comprehend,14 in faith15 the glimpse we can
see of Christ is breathtaking, thought provoking and life
changing! How sad it is that even though God’s very
own Spirit seals every spiritual blessing imaginable in
His own, very few saints16 can genuinely say they have
even seen a glimpse of He who bought them this
privilege17 with the cost of His very life! Even if one had
to be persecuted for righteousness’ sake and walkthrough great fires of tribulations (only a willingness to
do so is often required to see the Lord) would not one
gladly do so to please one’s Creator? So, to get on the mountaintop and see our Lord all we
need is faith and a desire to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus and the patience
to wait upon the Lord to reveal us a mere glimpse!
9
Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, The Pillar New Testament Commentary
(Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992), 438.
10
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 257.
11
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 253–254.
12
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 385.
13
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 385.
14
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 259.
15
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 261–262.
16
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 255.
17
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 255.
3|Page
Listening to Jesus
Upon Jesus’ transfiguration we are told that both Moses and Elijah appeared and began
talking to Him (verse 3). While we are not told how the apostles recognized these great men of
the Bible,18 their presence was significant for “Moses the eschatological prophet (Deuteronomy
18:18) and Elijah the forerunner (Mal 4:5–6; Matt 3:1–3; 11:7–10; 17:9–13)”19 signified that
Christ was the culmination and the
fulfillment of the entire Old Testament
teachings!20 Possibly due to a desire
to not be exposed to the consuming
glory of the Son21 but more likely out
of fear22 or impetuous speech,23 Peter
suggests three shelters should be built
for Jesus, Moses and Elijah (verse 4).
While Peter is still talking the “cloud
of the Shekinah of the visible glory of
God”24 appears and the voice of the
Father is heard saying that the apostles
should listen to His Son in whom He is
greatly pleased for He was willing to
25
go down the mountain and fulfill the prophecy that He indeed was the Suffering Servant
(Psalms 2:7; Isaiah 42:1)26 who would atone for the sins of all! If we want to have this kind of
mountaintop experience in which we learn more about Jesus, then we must be willing to listen
and obey our Master. I do not think drawing nearer to God can happen without first wanting to
trade the burdens of our hopes, dreams, and self-preoccupation for His yoke that while easy and
light (Matthew 11:29) still requires us to listen and obey the Shepherd’s voice when He calls
upon our name. After all, why would the Son of God give a glimpse of His glory to those who
18
Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, The Pillar New Testament Commentary
(Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992), 439.
19
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 385.
20
Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids,
MI: Baker Books, 2011), 168.
21
Iain D. Campbell, Opening up Matthew, Opening Up Commentary (Leominster: Day One
Publications, 2008), 107–108.
22
Iain D. Campbell, Opening up Matthew, Opening Up Commentary (Leominster: Day One
Publications, 2008), 107.
23
R. T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 267.
24
R. T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 267.
25
R. T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 267.
26
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 386.
4|Page
think they have already found holy living and righteousness in the reflection of their own
mirrors?
Reverence for Christ
When the disciples heard and felt the presence of God they fell facedown unto the ground
and were apparently so terrified that they remained prostate until Christ invited them to get back
up (verse 6)! For He “who commanded the light to shine out in the darkness”27 to shine even a
glimpse of His glory upon our hearts we must first allow the Spirit to cultivate furrows of
righteousness into hearts so that our
self glorification might be replaced
with deep, humble, bow of reverence
and awe before our Rock, fortress,
Saviour and King! Think about it:
we are not taking time to prepare to
meet an important person but in
solitude, meditation, and prayer to
meet the Son of God who knit us in
our mother’s womb, atoned for our
sin, and gave us the Spirit of Truth to
lead unto righteousness for His
name’s sake! Merely finding the time
and place to be alone with Jesus does
not ensure even a momentary glimpse
of Him for until the heart cries out “Abba Father help me with my unbelief for I truly am a
person of unclean lips,” the pride of self attained worldly knowledge, which is foolishness in His
sight, will continue to blind our sight and deafen our spiritual ears! We can only boldly enter the
presence of God when the lens of our spiritual hearts is focused on confession and complete
submission to whatever He asks while we are in His presence, after all are we not to be both
hearers and doers of His word? And even the cost of receiving a mere glimpse of God was to
physically die, thank goodness it is not, who, if possible, would not gladly die a thousand deaths
but to see more of their Lord?
Accepting the Truth and Living the Word
It is at this point that the disciples reveled their confusion by asking Jesus, how could
Elijah’s appearance during the Transfiguration be the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecy of
Malachi 4:5-6 when 1) Christ appeared before and not after him and 2) the predicted
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 260.
27
5|Page
restoration28 of all things had not yet occurred?29 Jesus stated the scribes were wrong, the
predicted forerunner John the Baptist30 had already come in the Spirit and power of Elijah (Luke
1:17)31 and as to the restoration of all
things they should have read the end of
the prophecy that said if the people did
not repent after hearing the
forerunner’s message then “God would
return and strike their lands.”32 The
way that we listen to Jesus today is
through meditating upon His holy word
and through prayer.33 Since we have a
sinful nature and live in a fallen world
that values experience above divine
truth, if we want to see a glimpse of
Christ then like the disciples we must
also be willing to be corrected on what
we think we know about God and His
kingdom!34 We must be willing to
“evaluate our experiences by the Bible’s teaching, rather than the other way around”35 and we
must be humble enough to admit that without the Spirit’s aid our interpretation of His word is
seriously flawed because it is merely based on human wisdom and therefore foolishness in God’s
sight (1 Corinthians 3:19)! We must also be ready to change for if we are granted even a glimpse
of the divine results of His searching of our hearts much will be revealed that through the power
of the Holy Spirit must be confessed and much more revealed that we are expected to embrace!
28
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
323.
29
D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 388.
30
R. T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 268.
31
Michael J. Wilkins, Matthew, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan Publishing House, 2004), 594.
32
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
324.
33
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
324.
34
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
325.
35
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
325.
6|Page
Proclaiming the Word to Others
To avoid the “possibility of an uninformed Messianic upraising,”36 on the way down the
mountain Jesus told the disciples to remain silent about what they saw until after He was
crucified and raised from the dead. Since the vindication and exultation of Christ has already
occurred, we are now expected to always be ready (1 Peter 3:15) to let our light shine to the
world (Matthew 5:14-16). Going up the
mountain to get of glimpse of Christ is
not just for the benefit for us but also
that of the world. In ancient times they
used mirrors to reflect the sunlight in
mine shafts so that they could see
natural light underground.37 We often
struggle to let God’s light within us
shine to the people of this world on the
dark path of destruction because our
souls are so dirty.38 We simply have not
allowed His light to rightly influenced
our words, thoughts, and deeds!
Effective evangelism begins with
getting glimpses of Christ so that our
minds might be renewed daily (Romans 12:1-2) to learn and submit to His holy and pleasing will!
Like the apostles, to receive a glimpse we too in solitude must listen, revere, and accept whatever
the great Potter says needs to be changed in our lives. While we are unlikely to go upon a
mountain and literally see Christ in His glory, through meditation, prayer, and an unwavering
desire to serve and draw nearer to Him, we are often granted a gentle whisper of divine truth
that will forever change our lives and those whom the light we have received falls upon!
36
Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids,
MI: Baker Books, 2011), 169.
37
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 260.
38
C. H. Spurgeon, “Christ’s Transfigured Face,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
Sermons, vol. 47 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1901), 260.
7|Page