Sunday's Message - Change

Here's the message I offered during the celebration service in the Presbyterian Church of Hopedale on Sunday, February 23.

Matthew 17:1-9

And after six days, Jesus took along Peter and James and John, his brother, and led them up onto a high mountain by themselves. And he was changed before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, and they were talking with him. And Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you want, then I will make three booths: one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

And while he was speaking, behold a bright cloud enveloped them, and behold a voice from the cloud said, “He is my son, the beloved one, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.” And when the disciples heard they fell upon their faces, and they were very much afraid. And Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise and don’t be afraid.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus by himself.

And as they were going down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Don’t tell anyone the vision until the son of man from death might be raised.

Change

As some of y’all know, what I just read is called the transfiguration of Jesus, and it’s a story found in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. This a lot of y’all already know.What you may not know is that this name actually comes from a Latin translation of a Greek word that really explains what happen on that high mountain, and the word is “metamorphosis.” Of course, when we hear metamorphosis, it kind of pulls us back to elementary school, doesn’t it; because it describes what happens when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. A metamorphosis has taken place, right? And even though that’s accurate, in Greek, the word really isn’t limited to science. In fact, anything that’s transformed goes through a metamorphosis. In other words, in Greek, it simply means to change. And you know, that’s exactly what happened to Jesus when “...his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.” You see, he was metamorphosed. He was transfigured. Man, he was changed. And in my book, that’s really cool.

But I’ll tell you, as cool as that is, I don’t think the possibility of change was limited to Jesus. You see, I believe this story can also transform us. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. In fact we’re going to look at how the transfiguration can first, change our view of the past and second, change our lives in the present and third, change our approach to the future. Now that’s what we’ll be talking about for the next ten minutes or so.

But before we start, I feel I need to warn you about a couple of things that may throw you off a little bit. I mean, first, I think most of y’all know I didn’t grow up in this part of the country. I’m from the place “...where the cotton and corn and taters grow” and “...where the birds warble sweet in the spring-time,” and we’ll leave it at that. In fact, right up to the time she passed, my mom told her friends that I was on the mission field, because I was above the Mason-Dixon Line. And even though it’s almost completely gone, I still have a tiny accent. And so, if I should say “y’all,” I don’t want you to think I’m speaking in tongues. Just translate it “yuns,” ok? That’s one thing. And second, I’m an old teacher, and because of that, when I’m preaching, sometimes I ask questions. Now I know that Presbyterians aren’t used to talking during worship services unless what we’re saying or singing is written down. We’re good at reading, but not just speaking. And that’s fine, but this morning, when I ask a question, I want you to feel free to give an answer out loud. But since this may be a change, I think we need a little practice. And so I’m going to ask three questions, and I want you to give the answer. And remember, there are no stupid answers, only stupid people. Question number one, what is today’s date? (February 23) And where are we right now? (The Presbyterian Church of Hopedale) And who was the fourth Vice President of the United States? You see, I was a history teacher. By the way, it was George Clinton. And if you don’t recognize his name, you may have heard of his band, Funkadelic. Good, with that have been said, let’s talk about how the transfiguration can change us.

And like I said a minute ago, first, I think it can change our view of the past. And I’ll tell you, I think we can see some of that in the first part of the story. I mean, after Matthew wrote that Jesus experienced his metamorphosis right there in front of his disciples, do you remember the two guys who sort of showed up? They were Moses and Elijah, right? And even though that’s kind of amazing, especially since they’d been dead a long time, for a Jew, they were important for another reason. You see, the Jewish Bible, our Old Testament, is divided into three parts: the Law, the Prophets and what’s called the Writings. And who do you think was the giver of the Law: Moses, right? And take a guess at the guy they considered the greatest of all the prophets? Elijah. And so here we have Jesus chewing the fat with two of the biggest guns in Jewish history. In other words, he was now in the top three, sort of like being up there with Michael Jordan and Labron James. Now that’s what the disciples saw. But after the cloud had come and gone, how many were left? Remember that after Peter and James and John heard that voice from the cloud, and we’ll talk about why that’s important in a minute, Matthew wrote that “...they were very much afraid. And Jesus came and touched them and said, ‘Arise and don’t be afraid.’ And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus by himself.” Now I think this is really important, because I believe it shows that as it comes to the history of God’s people, we’re no longer talking about a “big three,” instead we’re now looking at a single superstar.

And I’ll tell you, that can absolutely change our view of the past, because in my opinion, it shows two things about Jesus. One, I believe it shows that Jesus has authority over the past, you know, history.  In other words, he can redefine what it means to be a child of God. And isn’t that exactly what he did when he said this, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. This is the first and most important commandment. The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, ‘Love others as much as you love yourself.’ All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.”? [Matthew 22:37-40, CEV] You see, Jesus redefines and reshape the past. But I don’t think is stops there, because I believe Jesus also has authority over our past, and let me show you why that’s important. Have any of y’all done or said things that you regret doing or saying? And have y’all ever felt bad because you were still and silent when you might have made a difference by acting or speaking? I know I have. In fact, I think we all have. And I’ll tell, because of that, if we’re not careful, these regrets, which we can’t change, man, they can be an anchor holding us back and a distraction preventing us from growing into the people we were created to be. And that ain’t good. But believe the Good News. Because Jesus has authority over our past, we’ve been set free, and I’m talking about free from all those things that hold us back and free to become everything God has called and equipped us to be. Man, we’re free, just like Paul said, “Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new.” [2 Corinthians 5:17, CEV] You see, our view of the past is transformed, and that’s the first way the Transfiguration can change us.

And second, I think this story can also change our lives in the present. Now remember what happened in the story. Jesus is talking with Moses and Elijah, when all of a sudden, this bright cloud covers them all. And even though that sounds like something from a horror movie, the fact that Matthew used the word “cloud” is important, because in Hebrew, the same word refers to the presence and the glory of God. I mean, just listen to what it says in the Book of Exodus: “During the day the Lord went ahead of his people in a thick cloud, and during the night he went ahead of them in a flaming fire. That way the Lord could lead them at all times, whether day or night.” [Exodus 13:21-22, CEV] And so they were all surrounded by the presence of God. “And behold a voice from the cloud said, ‘He is my son, the beloved one, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.’” Now that’s what God said, and even though it starts with the exact same words that came from heaven when Jesus was baptized, a command was added to the end: Listen to him.

And I’ll tell you, if we do that, man, it’s going to change how we live right now, isn’t it? For example, not only are we going to love God and neighbor, I think we’re going to put into action what Jesus told his disciples after the resurrection. Matthew wrote, “Jesus came to them and said: ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth! Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of the world.’” [Matthew 28:18-20, CEV] Now if we take that voice from the cloud seriously, this is what we’re going to do, right?  But these are just a few verses. How can we know what Jesus told us to do so we can teach others to say nothing of doing them ourselves? How can we know what to say? We’ve got to learn it, right? And how can we do that? Well, it may start by picking up a Bible and reading it, starting with the Gospels. You see, as soon as we decide to listen and to respond, our lives right now will never be the same. And that’s the second way the Transfiguration can change us.

And third, I believe it’ll also radically change our whole approach to the future. And again, I think we can see that right here in the story. I mean, after Jesus was metamorphosed and after he was talking with Moses and Elijah and after the voice told the disciples to listen to him, do you remember what happened? They came down the mountain, didn’t they? And then Jesus gave them a command that, a first glance, seems kind of strange, at least it does to me. “Jesus commanded them, saying, ‘Don’t tell anyone the vision until the son of man from death might be raised.’” Now you tell me, why would he do that? Why would he give this command? My gosh, if he’d hired a good PR firm or at the very least let his disciple post this on Facebook, just imagine the numbers of likes he’d have gotten, right along with a few hearts and “wows.” Good night nurse, can you imagine any American politician telling his own people to keep something spectacularly good quiet until he or she is dead. I mean, dah. But that’s exactly what Jesus did. You see, for him, the cross and not the transfiguration defined who he was and what he came to do, because his most important mission wasn’t to be transformed into some kind of demigod but rather to die like any son of man. And that cross, along with the betrayal and the denial, the suffering and the pain, man, all that was still in the future.

And you know, I think that really should shape how we view our future as well. Now without denying the freedom from our past and the guidance we have as we live in the present, I think it’s important for us to accept the fact that our immediate future, well, it’s sort of mystery. Of course, we can be sure that we’re going to be spending all our time on a mountain top, instead, it’ll probably be lived in the valley below, where life is sometimes really smoking but other times, well, not so hot. And Jesus told us to expect that very thing. I mean, he said, “But I tell you to love your enemies and pray for anyone who mistreats you. Then you will be acting like your Father in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both good and bad people. And he sends rain for the ones who do right and for the ones who do wrong.” [Matthew 7:44-45, CEV] I’ll tell you, that’s just the way it is, at least for the time being. But here’s the good news, because of the cross and the resurrection that followed, we can trust that our ultimate future is going to be glorious. It’s like Jesus taught his disciples right before his arrest, “Then a sign will appear in the sky. And there will be the Son of Man. All nations on earth will weep when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. At the sound of a loud trumpet, he will send his angels to bring his chosen ones together from all over the earth.” [Matthew 24:30-31, CEV] I’m telling you, we can approach the future realistically but also with a lot of hope. And that's the third way the Transfiguration can change us.

You see, on that high mountain, Jesus experienced a metamorphosis, a transfiguration. In other words, he was changed. But I’ll tell you, he wasn’t the only one. You see, as people who’ve heard the story, man, we can be changed too. For example, his transfiguration can change our view of the past. And it can change our lives in the present. And it can sure change our approach to the future. Now that can happen. And I’ll tell you, when it does, we really will be like a butterfly, leaving it’s cocoon, ready to fly.