Six days later, three of them did see it. Jesus took
Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain. His appearance changed
from the inside out, right before their eyes. His clothes shimmered, glistening
white, whiter than any bleach could make them. Elijah, along with Moses, came
into view, in deep conversation with Jesus.
Peter interrupted, “Rabbi, this is a great moment! Let’s
build three memorials—one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah.” He blurted
this out without thinking, stunned as they all were by what they were seeing.
Just then a light-radiant cloud enveloped them, and from
deep in the clElijah, Mosesoud, a voice: “This is my Son, marked by my love. Listen to him.”
The next minute the disciples were looking around,
rubbing their eyes, seeing nothing but Jesus, only Jesus.
Coming down the mountain, Jesus swore them to secrecy.
“Don’t tell a soul what you saw. After the Son of Man rises from the dead,
you’re free to talk.” They puzzled over that, wondering what on earth “rising
from the dead” meant.
Today’s text, recounting what has
been called the Transfiguration, is both incredibly important and inescapably mysterious.
What are we to make of this supernatural revelation of glory and visitors from
the Hebraic Hall of Fame? I’ll start by
saying, like so many before me, offer no definitive answers. I’m not even sure such definitive answers are
possible. And maybe that’s part of the
message.
First,
Jesus only allows three disciples to go with Him – Peter, James, and John. The number three is important, because in
Jewish tradition, three witnesses are needed to confirm the veracity of an
event. Jesus obviously wants this
revelation to be part of the gospel that is proclaimed about Himself, even
though He tells the three of His inner circle to not proclaim anything about
this event until after the Resurrection.
More on that later.
Another
important detail is that this event takes place on a mountaintop. The two visitors from the past, Moses and
Elijah, are familiar with mountaintop revelations. Moses receives the Ten Commandments upon the
peak of Mount Sinai. Elijah confronted
the prophets of Baal with a dazzling display of God’s power on Mount Carmel and
a few days later, has God whisper a revelatory encouragement to him in a cave
up on Mount Horeb (also called Sinai). Moses represents the Law, Elijah the
prophets, and Jesus, the fulfillment of both. Mark doesn’t specify which mountain
this cosmic huddle takes place on, but to report that it occurred atop a mountain
is enough. The mountain signifies the importance
of the revelation.
As we
have said in earlier reflections, Mark’s overarching purpose in writing the
gospel is to proclaim and expound upon the conviction the Jesus is the
long-awaited Messiah. This event, right
in the center of the gospel, has several confirmations. The presence of Moses confirms several Old Testament
allusions to a “prophet like Moses” will come.
The presence of Elijah confirms traditions that Elijah would reappear before
the rise of the Messiah. The audible voice
of God is heard from the cloud, confirming Jesus as the Son of God. Jesus is physically highlighted by the glory/presence
of God (Hebrew “shekinah”) All of it takes place atop a mountain, recalling
multiple mountaintop revelations from Jewish history. And it will be confirmed, after Jesus’s
resurrection, by Jesus’s three most trusted inner circle leaders.
While
all of those details seem clear enough, it still doesn’t boil the experience of
the Transfiguration down to an answer to the question, “what is the meaning of
this mysterious event?” That’s the thing
about mysterious otherworldly experiences;
trying to reduce them to a expedient takeaway misses the point. Sometimes, all you can do is acknowledge that
you have experienced something powerful and holy. If there is a takeaway, it’s gratitude that
you got to be there. Perhaps Peter
should have stopped with after he utters, “Rabbi, this a great moment.” Sometimes the great moment is the gift. I’m praying that each of you who reads this
has a moment this season that just leaves you grateful you were there.
Question: Have you
ever had a moment that was impossible to explain, but you knew it was a gift?
Prayer: God, deliver
us from the notion that we need to be able to explain something in order to be thankful. Help us embrace Your mystery. Amen.
Prayer Focus: List
and thank God for 10 people you are glad that you know.
Song: Quick note: the
church pictured in this video is the “The Church of the Transfiguration,” a
church built on the traditional site celebrated as where the Transfiguration
took place. It is so high, that clouds
often form inside the church.
Transfiguration – Brian Wren
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