TRANSFIGURATION
February
14-16, 2015
Pastor
Timothy J Spaude
Text:
Mark 9:2-9
“A LITTLE TASTE OF HEAVEN!”
1.
To
keep the mission in perspective.
2.
To
soften the sting of suffering.
3.
To
keep eyes on the prize.
Mark 9:2-9 (NIV
1984) “After six days Jesus took Peter,
James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all
alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became
dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And
there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.5
Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up
three shelters--one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." 6 (He
did not know what to say, they were so frightened.) 7 Then a cloud
appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my
Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" 8 Suddenly, when they looked
around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus. 9 As they were
coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they
had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.”
“Just a spoonful of sugar helps the
medicine go down in a most delightful way,” at least that’s what Julie Andrews
as Mary Poppins told us. There’s truth to that isn’t there? Something sweet to
make something difficult but good for you easier. Medicine people do know that.
I can remember getting some antibiotics for my girls one time and they had all
of these flavors that could be added. How about Pepto Bismol? My dad always had
these round pink candies in his desk. We called them Pepto Bismol drops because
there was a similar taste. I remember my brothers pretending to have stomach
aches to get some Pepto Bismol. God did a similar thing with the
Transfiguration of Jesus. He used a little taste of heaven as a blessing for Jesus, Peter, James
and John and you and me too. Let’s find out why.
As regular Bible readers and listeners
there was something niggling in the back of your mind as you heard the reading
from Mark. It began “After six days…” and that niggle you felt was telling you
that you wanted to know what had happened six days before the Transfiguration.
Six days before Peter had rightly confessed as spokesman for the disciples that
Jesus is the Christ, the God appointed Messiah that they had been waiting for.
After which Jesus for the first time told them that as Messiah He would suffer
many things, be rejected by the religious leaders of the Jews, put to death and
rise again in three days. That didn’t sound very Messiah like. So go to guy
Peter responded. Never Jesus! This message was hard to swallow. A spoonful of
sugar perhaps?
“After
six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high
mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3
His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach
them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were
talking with Jesus.” This describes a taste of heaven. Jesus in glory.
Believers dead and gone from this earth right before your very eyes. This
helped keep Jesus’ mission in perspective. I don’t know if Jesus needed the
encouragement or not but how neat to have good friends, other servants of God
who went through tough times there to talk with. Peter, James and John sure
needed it. Because the religious leaders of the Jews didn’t think their sin
stinked they didn’t want a Messiah from sin but the rule of God here on earth.
That’s why Peter reacted so badly to Jesus’ prediction. This little taste of
heaven authenticated what Jesus had said. The Law (Moses) and the Prophets
(Elijah) the entire Old Testament testified that the mission of Messiah was to
save from sin by being the Lamb led to slaughter. What Peter and the rest
simply needed was to keep that mission in perspective. And listen to the voice
of God from the cloud which said, "This
is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!"
We need to listen to Him too. Jesus
didn’t come to set up an earthly kingdom. It’s not supposed to be all peaches
and cream for those who follow Christ. Are we going to chafe when Christian
influence in our country wanes? Yes. We don’t like that. Is it going to rub us
raw when those who follow Christ seem to languish while those who don’t seem to
prosper? Of course. The cheater gets the good grade, better than the one who
did it right. The sleazy lying candidate wins the election. Someone who throws
a football around makes more playing 16 games than a Gospel proclaimer makes
his whole life. That’s not fair! So many more. Just a little taste of heaven to
keep the mission in perspective. Jesus is not about making this world fair. He
came to open the doors to heaven. Following Christ isn’t about getting what you
deserve here on earth. It’s about getting what you don’t deserve—forever!
Heaven. Transfiguration was just a little taste.
Who wants just a little taste though?
We can understand what Peter said next. “Peter
said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three
shelters--one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." Like my
naughty brothers pretending they had a tummy ache to get more Pepto Peter
wanted to stay and get more heaven. It was that awesome. Frightened as he was
in the presence of glory he wanted to stay. But he couldn’t. Heaven would come
for Peter James and John. This little taste of heaven would help them later
when they had to watch Jesus suffer and then when they would suffer for Him.
Remember in Acts when the religious leaders ordered the Apostles to stop
talking about Jesus and had them whipped to reinforce that order. This is what
we are told in Acts 5:41. “The apostles
left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering
disgrace for the Name.” That little taste of heaven softened the sting of
their suffering.
It will do it for you too. Do I really
want to envy those who reject Jesus whose eternity is Hell? Would I trade a
better grade for Christ’s approval? Will Jesus be handing out awards to those
who score the most points or to those who in His name give the Gospel to the
little ones who believe in Him, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, help the
sick. Those are the ones who will hear, “Well done good and faithful servant!”
The people brought to faith through the Gospel our offerings proclaim here in
the Milwaukee area and afar in the Malawi area. These are our treasures and
trophies in heaven that will last when everything else is destroyed. Do we live
a little with things unfair? Sure. So Christ isn’t valued now like He should
be. So maybe it gets worse and harder for us Christians living in America. But
we know Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people mock you, persecute you and
insult you because of me. Great is your reward in heaven.” And the Jacobians
left their church rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering
disgrace for His name. We know what’s coming folks. So have a little taste of
heaven to soften the sting of Christian suffering.
And to keep our eyes on the prize.
Life coaches sometime suggest putting a picture on your bathroom mirror or
refrigerator door or any other place you see regularly of some important goal
you have in mind. A slimmer you. A vacation. A pink Cadillac. The last mortgage
payment. It seems that when we see or visualize something it helps keep the
focus. What do you suppose the Olympic athlete would put up? What about a
Christian? Well heaven is the goal of course. How many times have you thought
about, asked about or been asked about what heaven will be like? We don’t know
a whole lot but we get a little taste here. Believers are there. They are their
own personal selves and you know them. It’s filled with dazzling glory and it’s
good to be there so good you can’t imagine being anywhere else. Jesus is there.
Here’s your picture. Here’s the prize. Hold any other honor, award trophy next
to the glory of Jesus and watch it fade out of sight next to the glory of what’s
in store. A little taste of heaven to keep our eyes on the prize.
When Jesus’ transfiguration was over, “Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone
what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” This appears
to be a timing thing. But now it is after Jesus has risen from the dead so
guess what? This little taste of heaven is something to talk about. May Jesus
bless all the ways you do that yourself and through the work of your church.
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment