New Thoughts (10/24/08-11/02/08)
The Witnesses (10/25/08-10/27/08)
Not surprisingly, I find much to comment on after soaking in this passage for some days now. From the outset, though, I have had in mind some questions and thoughts as to the witnesses Jesus has chosen for this event. However, before I pursue those, there is a matter which has just leapt into mind as I am typing, and that is a passage from John’s letters. “There are three that bear witness in heaven: Father, Word and Spirit; and these three are one. There are three that bear witness on earth: Spirit, water and blood; and they agree as one” (1Jn 5:7-8). Now, I know the content of that passage is subject to which translation one follows and which sources they chose to translate. However, I do note that there is a marked similarity between John’s thinking in that letter and his experience in this passage. Here on that mountaintop, there are three who bear witness in heaven: God, Moses and Elijah; and we can reasonably suppose they are of one accord. There are three who bear witness on earth: Peter, James and John; and the record will show them to likewise be of one accord, if not immediately so.
What to make of that? I could view the record of the Transfiguration as lending support to the way the King James Version has taken the passage in his later letters, for clearly, this experience is as transforming an experience for these three men as it was for Jesus. How could they possibly view anything the same after this? It is an event such as must forever lodge itself in one’s thoughts and color every thought and opinion that comes after it. So, there may be certain textual arguments for having dropped the matter of Father, Word and Spirit testifying from John’s letters, but as a function of his thinking, it seems perfectly reasonable to suppose it could be legitimate. One also recalls to mind the sorts of false gospels that John was combating as he wrote these letters, and the assertions in regard to the Trinity are that much more supportable. But, these are thoughts that bear more on another topic I am more or less having to consider at present.
One thing that is beyond debate is that Jesus has chosen these three men, and made a greater investment in them than He has any others, even among the twelve. These three are privileged as no others in that day. They are given to see the most incredible of Jesus’ works, and to enter into His most private moments. When Jesus raises a child from her deathbed, who is there to see it? Peter, James and John. Here, in this beyond miraculous moment, who is there to see it? Peter, James and John. In Gethsemene, when Jesus is in extremis and needs some men to pray with Him, who does He call to be with Him? Peter, James and John.
Let’s understand that this is something far greater than Jesus expressing a personal preference. It’s not the Son of God forming a clique, showing favoritism. God (and Jesus is even in His earthly experience, fully God) is no respecter of persons, to show favoritism towards one over another. The three are selected and elevated not for anything in themselves, quite frankly. Certainly, Peter’s behavior through the course of his training give us no particular explanation for his selection. James and John? There’s hardly enough said in the record we have in the Gospels to even form an opinion on them. Yet, they are selected. They have not (at least not yet) tried to promote themselves. Jesus has promoted them. This we know about Jesus: He does only what He sees the Father doing, speaks only what the Father says, pursues only the Father’s will. The purposes of God, then, found cause to select these three from among all those who had become disciples of the Christ He had chosen.
The reason this weighs somewhat heavily on my mind is that in light of that, the early death of James seems so shocking. It makes the investment Jesus has made seem so extravagant. I grant that the worth of eternal salvation is far above any earthly cost, but that’s not the issue here, as I see it. His salvation was already assured without this particular attention. He seems to have such a supporting role in the course of events. As John’s brother, there’s bound to be some sort of bond there, and a relationship in which he could lend his wisdom and strength to his younger sibling. But, as the book of Acts unfolds the story, we can see Peter taking on some of that role even before James is gone, thanks be to God, no doubt.
Well, here’s a shocking thought: if his life seems to show little cause for the investment in him, consider what his death achieved! It was at least in part because of his death that the nascent community of believers scattered from Jerusalem. His death served as a warning to them, that Jerusalem was a dangerous place to hold such beliefs. So, they scattered. They went to Antioch and other such places, and Christianity really began to take hold, to become more than just a minor sect with some aberrant doctrinal stances. They began to have a reach that all the efforts of the authorities back at the temple could not snuff out, however hard they tried. And they tried quite hard. They were willing to chase these believers down all the way to the capitol in Rome, as much as they said they hated Roman authority.
I still don’t see, though, why his early martyrdom needed such heavy investment. But, then, maybe it was exactly because he would face the ultimate challenge to his faith, so far as earthly existence goes, that he needed to be particularly steeped in faith. Was it preparation for this one big deed? It’s not impossible, certainly. It may be hard for us to hold that this is the case and that God is yet good, yet God has done other things that challenge our conception of goodness. One need only consider the opening chapters of Job. How was it good that his children were killed, his crops destroyed and his health ruined? Such events in isolation do not seem like things a good God would allow to happen to His favorite, none like him, follower. Yet, the final state of Job is pleasing to our ears. Why, he had so many times the blessings he started out with. How nice for him. Somehow, I don’t think there’s a one of us who would willingly travel the road he took to receive those blessings, though.
When I consider James, and I consider the amount of time modern day preachers spend telling me how God wants us healthy, wealthy and practically ecstatic with all He will shower down upon us, I worry. I look back at the staff Moses raised up in the wilderness, and what became of it. It became an idol that had to be destroyed, because it caused God’s people to wander off from true faith. I look at Shechem, where God first made camp in Israel, and what became of it. It was destroyed because the people began putting faith in Shechem instead of the God who resided there. I look at the first Temple, and what became of it. It was utterly destroyed, and the nation taken away in chains, because people had put their faith in the Temple rather than the God of the temple. Likewise, once again in Jesus’ day and those that followed.
Go read the history of the Jewish wars. Give some heed to what Josephus tells us was happening in Jerusalem as the long siege continued and food ran low. Give heed to the infighting that gripped the various factions trapped in that city. Note, particularly, how these same ones who thought God would never abandon His chosen city were perfectly willing to utterly defile His temple with their bloodshed even before Rome got there.
This whole bless me, God mentality that has gripped the church at large, at least here in the west, strikes me as the same mistake all over again. We have been distracted by the material things of God to the degree that we are missing the purposes of God. We want the health. We see no purpose in suffering. We want the riches. We see no purpose in poverty. God! Who will honor You for failing to clothe Your children in the finest fashions? Who will serve You if You don’t provide the best in transportation? Well, let me answer that one for you! Peter, James, John. They’ll do for starters. Countless missionaries who have not just gone out with nothing, but have even given whatever they used to have to gain the opportunity of serving the kingdom of God more fully.
We have made idols of health, idols of success, idols of just about every shape and style, anything to keep us from really zeroing in on the truth of the Gospel. Yes, I mean we. I am no better. I may avoid this mistake and that, but I can count my idols all the same. Maybe I don’t drive a fancy care, but the urge is there. Nor could I imagine doing with just one. Wealth! There are plenty of folks who make do without any. I have grown particularly attached to this house we live in, and just gone through a fairly large expenditure to service the house. Wealth! We’ve got people in our own church who have to beg for a room, and winter’s coming. Computers? Oh, yeah! Chased off the evil television, but now I’ve got this other temptation with its cheap entertainment and constant diversions. Oh, and don’t even think of telling me I’m wrong about things! You’ll discover what wrath is really all about.
But, the fact that I have my share of idols to deal with does not make idolatry any less evil in God’s sight. The fact that it’s an all but universal condition even in His church does not make it any less evil in His sight. If anything, it makes the situation worse. Last time it got that bad, Noah built an ark. I’d just as soon not be around to see what happens next time.
Let me return to my point, though. The investment God made in James was not made so as to prolong his life. Neither was it made so that James could live in style and comfort. It was made so that James would be strong in the face of challenges to his faith. It was made so that James would stand and stand some more, would reach the goal, would finish the race. It was made so that James, dying with his faith fully intact, would be a testimony both to his fellow believers and to those who put him to death. So it has been with the martyrs of the church down through the ages. It is not a fate to be sought, but where it has been the fate of a brother or sister, that brother or sister ought to be rejoiced in for standing firm in the faith of Christ Jesus.
On the other side of this coin, let us make no mistake. However much we may be materially blessed in this moment, it is no guarantee that we shall continue in that state. No matter how great our faith in Christ, it is no guarantee that we shall continue to enjoy a lifetime of such material blessedness. Yes, I know. There are those promises about receiving back n times as much in this life. I know that. But, I think we read too much into it. We’re looking for the material outpouring and all the while, Jesus is pointing around the whole body of believers and saying, “These are My brothers and sisters! I have received so many back for those I lost!” In just about any city or town in most any nation, at least in the west, when we come to visit, we have a house. It’s called the house of God, and we, as children of the King are right at home in His house! Why would we think it’s about some sort of get rich quick scheme? Why would we think faith is like winning the lottery? Why would we expect that the same God who has warned us that this old earth is going up in smoke eventually would then do everything in His power to make us want to stay? It makes no sense! This world is not our home! It is not where we are called to invest ourselves. We abide in it but for a season, and are called to live in it as a wanderer longing for home, and longing that these others we see around us might come home, too.
Where, in the life of James, is the proof of this idea that God preserves His workers until their work is complete? Alternatively, what meaning, if any, does such a statement have? Yes, I could tell you that James’ ministry was complete as he died there in Jerusalem. Did that make his days any longer? I don’t think so! It sounds so nice, so comforting! Oh, you’re safe. God’s not done with you, yet. You still have a mission. Do you think James didn’t? Do you think that, had he lived, he would have found nothing else he might do for the kingdom? That’s nonsense! He had no more idea that his mission was complete than anybody else did. God alone knew. God alone knows why James was of more use to Him dead than alive at that point. God alone knows what James was better off personally being dead than alive at that point.
How can I not go back to the story of Hezekiah on that note? The whole bless me crowd loves to point to him and give a shout out to the way he prayed and God gave him so many more years to live. But look at those years! They were no great favor to Hezekiah and they were no great favor to the nation he ruled. In fifteen short years, Hezekiah managed to reverse just about all the good he had done, and set the stage for Israel’s ruin. So, just how much of a blessing were those extra fifteen years of earthly life? Really, folks! If we’re sojourners on this planet, waiting for a ride home, why are we so caught up with missing that ride just as long as we can? Honestly, when we see an aged brother or sister, firm in their faith but long in years, why are all our prayers focused on making them deal with the failing body longer still? Why do we try to hold them here? I ask this particularly of those who maintain that we can fall from faith! Why, then, do you pray that your elders be given a greater chance to fail when they have opportunity to finish strong now? If God is calling them home, why are we trying to convince them to stay on vacation?
If all my days are in God’s hand, and He has numbered them to absolute perfection, what can I gain by asking Him to change that plan? My greatest fear ought to be that He would listen to such a foolish request! My greatest fear would be that I, too, might make such a mess of things as Hezekiah did. You see, the distractions of this life that we measure as blessings well, yes they are truly blessings, but they are also a trap. God warned Israel as they prepared for Canaan. He told them that they were in danger of forgetting Him as they entered into a period of great prosperity. My, my! Houses, gardens, such an overflowing abundance of every good thing! What was the outcome? Did their thankfulness to the God who provides increase? No! Even as He had said, they forgot all about Him.
We are not any different. When things are going well with us, the house is big, the car is great, everything’s paid for and we don’t have to sweat it; when it’s like that with us, it becomes almost impossible for us not to pat ourselves on the back. Just look how I have provided for myself, for my family! I must be doing something right. And, God is lost in the mix. We don’t even give Him a thought anymore. Oh, but when that house of cards comes crashing down, and things start looking a little more challenging! What then? Oh, God! Pour it out! Don’t let Your children be found begging! Who’s begging? Truth is, we’re just being asked to recall good stewardship, but our taste for hardship has been so attenuated that we think this is more than any man should be asked to bear.
Look. What we call poor in this nation is unimaginable wealth to great swaths of the world. Oh! Hear the cries around you! It’s the worst thing since the Great Depression! We’re all doomed. We’ll never survive it. So, giving’s off. I mean, when we have to tighten our belts, God’s gonna be the first thing to go, right? Why? Because we’ve forgotten. We’ve made ourselves the center of our universe. We provide. We decide. God is perfectly reasonable in sending us this little reminder. No, child, you do not. He remains the Provider. He remains the One in Whom we live and move and breathe. He remains the One who, should He decide to neglect us for but a moment, we would cease to be. He is yet King of kings and Lord of lords. This does not require that we are all kings and lords ourselves. It simply states a clear and fundamental Truth: God is in charge. Whatever it may look like to our feeble senses, whatever our misguided conceptions of justice may make of matters, He is in charge. Not us, Him.
Another question which comes to mind regarding this passage is how Matthew and Luke learned of these events. We could include Mark, I suppose, but he is generally understood to have heard it from Peter. Matthew could easily have heard it from the same source, or even from all three men. Jesus, after all, only commands them to silence on the matter until He is risen from death, and the eleven who remained at that point stayed together for a good while after that event.
Luke, however, is another case altogether. He was not there. He was one whom Paul had brought to faith at a later date, and Paul hadn’t been there, either. Nor was Paul likely to have been privy to the discussions between the eleven on many occasions. It is possible that Paul had heard of these events from Peter; possible, but hardly necessary. It seems less likely that he had heard about it during the few visits he made to Jerusalem post-conversion. I would suppose that if Paul had heard at all, it was most likely heard from people who knew people who… In other words, it would have born little more weight than rumor. Luke, though, has set himself the task of assembling a careful and accurate history of events. Rumor would not satisfy the task. He would want to interview those who were there. In the end, that leaves him with three candidates, and at least one of them dead.
Could it have been Peter? Perhaps. It’s entirely possible that their paths had crossed at some point while Paul was in Rome. Apart from that, though, Paul’s tendency was to work his own territory, as it were. He was not looking to convert the converted, but to plant new churches, reach the unreached. This would limit the opportunities for such crossing of paths. But, John. John, we learn, was the last of the apostles to remain alive. Further, John’s later years are often spoken of as having been spent in Ephesus, one of the places where Paul had ministered for many years and so, a place where Luke would be familiar. Would it not make sense that the careful historian, having heard rumors of such an event, would seek out the one remaining witness of that event still extent?
As something of a support for this idea, consider the material Luke covers with regard to Mary, mother of Jesus. There is much in his gospel that none of the others wrote about. For the record, it is generally accepted that John was given charge over the care of Mary by Jesus Himself. So, if John was in Ephesus, it seems possible Mary was there, too, although she would have been a good deal older than he. Thus, Luke would have access to two marvelous sources for his history of Jesus in this one location.
Of course, this is nothing I could state as being beyond reasonable doubt. So little of the historical situation, though, lies in that category even for the historian. At such great remove in time, we can but offer suppositions on matters like this. That said, it is such a fine picture of the Church to see the case in this way. Here is John, pillar of the Church in Jerusalem, last of the apostles. There is Luke, convert of the apostle come late to the cause: Paul. Here is the Jewish contingent, there the Greek. Here is the heart of faith, there the mind committed to Christ. Perhaps, in that light we might think upon Mary as the strength. The three together in one place, with one purpose, to make the One God known. The three united in fulfillment of the main point of the Law: loving God with all your heart, all your mind and all your strength. Isn’t that the body functioning as it ought?
Lord, whether or not this is the way events came to pass, I thank You for this image, the image of these three together, recalling Your life on this earth. I thank You for this image of Your body in balance, as heart, mind and strength are devoted to Your purposes. For here, these things are not in conflict. There is no starving of one aspect to feed another. They are united and working together as the body was intended, and all to promote You, the Head.
Holy God, I see in myself that I have not been in this place of balance. Indeed, I feel so utterly out of balance of late, it is some small terror to me. I don’t understand it. Shall I count it an attack? Be that as it may, I am more concerned to know what it is You are seeking to do. You know my anxious thoughts, Lord. You know that I have that feeling that maybe it’s time to set my service in worship aside, yet it seems You have spoken clearly enough that this is not my course. But, at the same time, I feel so crushed anymore when I serve. It is all pain and sorrow. I do not understand.
Jesus, I have to confess that it seems in many ways that every source of joy in my life is slowly, painfully being cut away. Perhaps I have grown too attached to life this side of heaven. No doubt, this is true, for You have made this life pleasant enough in its way, and in the end, it is all I know. Yes, my hope is in that life to come, but I don’t know that life. I have some ideas as to what I can expect, but it is not my experience. This is. But, lately that experience is of joy trodden under foot, hopes crushed, dreams scattered like dust in the streets. I do not understand.
What I do understand is that I need to understand. I need to hear from You, my King. I need instruction. What is it You would have me to do? What is it You would have me to set aside? I cannot, my God, keep on in this place of desolation. Well, I suppose I can, for You sustain me even in this. But, You know my meaning. My soul withers within me, and even tears are beyond my capacity. Oh, I know. Mourning lasts for a night. But, where, my God, is the morning? Bring it to me swiftly, I pray! Restore unto me the joy of my salvation, for this is indeed the greatest thing. But let it come with understanding. Let it come with a recognition of what it is You have been doing, what Good You have been bringing about by this time of life.
I do not come to You demanding these things, Lord, for You know I cannot, and I know I ought not. But, I do come in the earnest expectation that You hear my heart, You hear my thoughts, and loving Father that You are, You have an answer for Your child. Oh! That I might have ears to hear that answer!
The Event – Parallels and Differences (10/28/08)
Surely, I am not the only one who has looked at the events described here and wondered just how it was these three men knew that the newcomers there with Jesus were Moses and Elijah. I could chalk it up to associations with mountaintop experiences where the presence of the Lord had been manifest, particularly with the inclusion of clouds. But, the cloud, in this case, comes after Peter acknowledges what they have witnessed, speaking of those two men by name.
Maybe they had overheard Jesus naming them in the course of their discussion. They could apparently hear what was being said, for they knew it was about Jesus’ “exodus” which would transpire in Jerusalem. On this point, I would note that it is quite clear that these men still didn’t fully grasp what Jesus had been telling them about upcoming events. Look at Mark 9:10, for example. Even coming down from the mountain from this very situation, they were wondering amongst themselves what Jesus might mean about rising from the dead. So, the prophets may have been discussing His exodus, but I’m going to suggest they never spoke of it directly as death. In a sense, one could argue that death simply could not apply to Jesus, not in its fullest sense at least. So it has been ever since for those saints who depart this stage. They are not spoken of as having died but as having gone to sleep. It is a sleep of death because there will be an awakening from that condition. For the wicked, though, there remains but swift justice and an eternity of truly horrifying spiritual death to accompany the physical.
Returning to the main question, though: It is just as possible that there was direct, heavenly intervention implanting knowledge of who these two were, even as it was possible that their sleepiness in the midst of such wonder was a matter of heavenly intervention. One other possibility would be that Jesus identified the two later, and the histories’ oral aspects rather jumble to sequence. Such a thing is common enough in histories from that era. So, we may be hearing Peter injecting names into the middle of the experience that he only learned from Jesus after the fact. But, that leads to the question of his overall reaction. If he was clueless who these two were, then why the proposal to honor them alongside Jesus? I suppose we might ask the same question even knowing who they were, but that much we have explained: He was speaking as much from fear and nervousness as from real acknowledgement.
I am inclined to hold that the names of Moses and Elijah had come up during that conversation which the apostles overheard. Such is a common enough experience for any conversation between more than two people, that one might name the one his comments are currently directed to. The scene itself is already suffused with the miraculous and even, if I might say, the beyond-miraculous. There is really no need to add further hyper-spiritualized interpretation of events on top of what is plainly presented.
So, with that, let me turn my thoughts to the choice of Moses and Elijah. Why those two? Of course, we can immediately identify them as two major characters in the history of God’s work amongst His people. But, then, why not David? Why not Joshua? Why not Elijah or Ezekiel? There are simply so many others who have been such integral parts of redemptive history. What is it about these two that led God to choose them from among all others? Well, there are many similarities between their parts in history, as I have noted in the preparations for this study. As I have already commented, both had met with God on a mountaintop, and in both cases, the cloud of His presence passed by. This, though, seems but a prophetic foreshadowing of what is happening here in this scene.
Both were prophets of particular renown in Israel, but then so were many others. It seems to me, though, that the greatest similarity, as it would apply to this selection, lies in their being the loci of such concentrations of miracles. It is not that either of these men were miracle workers. It is that they were vessels chosen of God through whom He was displaying His power in particularly wondrous ways to address particularly critical times in redemptive history. These miracles proved beyond all doubt that the men through whom they were accomplished were true representatives of the Living God and were actively pursuing His purposes on His orders. This is something that particularly distinguishes the two, and it is something that is also shared in common with the Son as regards His earthly ministry.
It will be noted, no doubt, that these were not the only miracle workers, nor did the period of miracles end with their respective passing from the stage. After Moses came Joshua, and the record of his campaign to claim the land of promise for Israel is replete with numerous acts of God in his support. The period of intervention that Moses ushered in continued with his successor, but slowly waned as the crisis point was passed. Likewise, Elijah passed on his mantle most literally to his successor, Elisha. In Elisha, it seems the miracles only increased in frequency, but again, over the years, things quickly settled to a point that the miraculous was almost unknown in the life of Israel once again.
So, we come to Jesus, in Whom the fullness of the Godhead was brought to earth for a period of years, and the miracles He performed in this brief career of His outshone those of Moses, Elijah, Elisha and any others one might care to name. Further, the miracles served the same purposes: both to further God’s plan of redemption, and to serve notice to the world at large that this was indeed His Chosen One. Then, just as we see with Moses and Elijah, the power that was manifested in Him spilled over into the work of His chosen successors so that we see Peter, Paul and the others who laid the foundation of the Church are also visited as vessels through whom the miraculous transpires. And again, it swiftly ceased to be the norm for Christian experience. Successive generations, it seems, were far less likely to experience miracles around their ministers.
I have to say that this could be seen as supporting the Reformed position (or for that matter, the anti-Pentecostal, anti-Charismatic position) on the subject. Indeed, I would find this a far more convincing argument for a dearth of real miracle in our day than some of the proofs that are generally offered. However, it could just as easily be argued that there either have been or will be other times in the life of the Church where such heavy and constant manifestation of God’s power is needful to weather a crisis and to mark His man for that time of crisis. To expect this as a daily experience, though, or to hunger after the miracle for miracle’s sake, seems more like crass idolatry, an abuse of spiritual reality, if you will. It smacks of the corrupt perspective that Israel developed towards the visible reminders of Moses’ miracles. I know I mention it often, but that issue of the serpent standard (Nu 21:8-9, 2Ki 18:4) stands as a great warning to us Charismatics, or at least it ought to.
That standard had been fashioned and commissioned for a specific purpose at a specific time, but so impressed were they by this miracle that they preserved the standard. I am sure they did so with the best of motives, so as to have a reminder of what God had done for them in the past. But, over the years it had truly become an idol to them, one to which they would sacrifice incense offerings. If we become thrill seekers, focused on chasing the miracle workers and making their names great in our sight, can we not see that this is the same thing?
One thing is clear. The church, once it learned of this event, understood it as confirming what had been prophesied by Moses. They saw the parallels clearly enough. Mountaintop, the glow of God’s presence not only surrounding, but clinging to the man of His choosing. For Moses, it had been the reflected glow when he came back down. For Jesus, it was even more, it was His own essence shining through; still not the fullness of His glory, but His glory in truth, where for Moses it had been the afterglow of Another’s glory. They knew this much: Moses had promised another prophet like himself would come, and this Jesus had been marked out as that One, in just the same fashion as Moses was so clearly confirmed. They knew, as well, that God’s command was to heed that One He would raise up in all that He would say (Ac 3:22). That is exactly what He speaks on behalf of His Son on this occasion. “This is My Son, My Chosen One. Listen to Him with obedience constantly.”
The one great difference I see in this account, as compared to that of Moses is this: With Moses, when the cloud came and covered the mountaintop, everybody knew it. Indeed, they were so fully aware of it that they were scared beyond measure and wouldn’t go near it. In this case, though, even though the cloud that enveloped those on the mountaintop is, by its description, not just another cloud, we hear no hint that those down below even noticed it at all. Notice the description we have of this cloud. It was bright, Matthew tells us, so well lit that it was as if it were made of light rather than water vapor. Luke’s account makes it clear that the three who were there with Jesus recognized that this was no normal cloud. As it formed around them, they grew fearful. Had they never seen a cloud before? Had they never been overtaken by clouds as they walked through the wilds with Jesus? It seems unlikely. No, their reaction was not to the mere fact of a cloud, but the particular nature of this particular cloud.
And yet, when they rejoin their compatriots below, with the command of Jesus not to speak of what happened, they apparently comply. Nor does it appear that anybody was pressing them for details. Nobody seems to have been struck by the wonder of the strange cloud that had been up there. Nobody comments on an incredible glow from the top of the mountain. Of course, we don’t know if these events were by day or by night. I am going to suppose it was by day because first, one doesn’t generally go climbing mountains in the dark and second, those who stayed behind were still actively ministering. However, I see that Luke speaks of them coming down the next day (Lk 9:37). The others assign no timeframe to their return, so we are well advised to take Luke at his word. It is possible, then, that conditions were such that these things were not visibly noteworthy from the base of the mountain. At night, assuming a direct line of sight, I would expect that a glowing Jesus would be quite visible even at great distance. During the day, this might not hold true. Likewise, the glow of the cloud might not be so obvious at that distance in the brightness of the day. For all that, it might have been generally overcast such that the place where these things were happening was wholly obscured from below. However it transpired, though, God so arranged it that this most incredible of events was a very private affair, and the three were not taxed beyond their ability to comply with His instruction to be silent on those events for a time. There is, then, a taste of God’s Providence in the unfolding of these things.
The Testimony (10/29/08-10/30/08)
Before I think about the testimony itself, there is one quick observation I would make regarding the Weymouth translation’s perspective of Luke 9:32. It has that verse saying, “Now Peter and the others were weighed down with sleep; but, keeping themselves awake all through, they saw.” While this idea that they had managed to stay awake in spite of how tired they were is not entirely ruled out by the Greek which is being translated, it does feel like a stretch. It seems the translators asked themselves the same question I had, how they could possibly sleep under the circumstances, and found no answer. Having no answer, it seems to me that they have translated their opinion into the passage rather than translating the passage to form their opinion. This is, of course, always a danger, and one to which I subject myself constantly.
Translation in itself is subject to error, as concepts in one vernacular are not always directly represented in the other. Add to this the historical divide, the lack of connection with societal jargon of the day, and things that would have been obvious to the original readers might be completely lost on the translator. Now, when one steps even further away, moving from strictly translating the text to paraphrasing it to suit the modern ear, or what have you, the danger of writing one’s own opinions into the results is great. As such, I am not trying to accuse the Weymouth translators of some intentional error. I would say they are probably no more guilty of intent than I am. I have found many times in my own studies where the paraphrase I thought captured the sense of the text rang false upon further study and stood in need of correction. This simply strikes me as a similar case for that translation. It seems an attempt to assume the best of the apostles, but the scene and its record require no such attempt to be made. We shall find these same three again sleeping at the critical moment as the story unfolds. It is but a reflection of the truth of their human nature, and need not be whitewashed in any way.
That aside, it cannot be missed that these guys were scared by what they witnessed. We can argue the abject terror aspect of that fear, although the language tends to support it. If we were not so terribly post-modern in our perspective, we could probably even appreciate the utterly overwhelming nature of the event and empathize with their fear pretty fully. But, we are almost incapable of feeling what they felt. Our sense of the supernatural is so attenuated, so deeply buried under the cold data presented by our scientific filters, that we really don’t note much more than a fine story here. How quaint! They saw ghosts. As if!
Look! These three men were being assailed by the supernatural, as it were! This was no demonic attack, obviously, but still: the senses reel at so much that exceeds all hope of explanation. Glowing friends? Dead men talking? Clouds of light that form, as it were, in an instant? Of course they were afraid! I have little doubt that they were near to being out of their minds, much as others are described on having witnessed far less of the power of God operating around Jesus. When He healed, people freaked. When He raised the dead, same deal. These three had seen that sort of thing often enough, walking and working with Him. That sort of stuff didn’t shake them anymore, it was just part of the package. But this was something completely different, completely other. Nothing could prepare them for that scene, and nothing could prevent fear from rising up as they faced it.
However much they knew and loved Jesus, to whatever degree they understood Him to be the Son of God, this was simply too much for the mind of man to accept. Now, let me say this: I don’t think their fear was as the fear of something evil. I don’t think their fear was the dread of immediate danger, as though they were certain they were about to be struck dead. That sort of fear would be more likely to induce in them the urge to run screaming from the area, not to bow their faces to the ground. No! This is that sort of fear that we call awe, or reverence. That it looks so much like the other sorts of fear should be a hint to us as to how greatly we’ve watered down our concept of awe and reverence.
This is the thing I see in these three, as they react to events; they trust Jesus. However weird things are getting, they trust Him. They may be overawed by what they see, but they are not feeling as though their lives are at risk. Just contrast their reaction now to the reaction we see from them in Gethsemene. There’s a vast difference. Here, it’s drop to the ground and show reverent submission. There, it was the fight or flight response that we know in ourselves. Honestly, I’m not sure we even understand the reaction they display here. It’s a foreign concept to us. As I said, we’ve lost the connection between fear and reverence.
They are similar and yet so different. Fear puts to flight, fear raises us up in arms to defend ourselves. Fear, as somebody told me recently, is rooted in dread of death. Reverence recognizes the utter superiority of another. It recognizes them as having power over oneself. Does that power include the power of life and death? Absolutely. But, fear is something reserved for the unstable tyrant, the imperious dictator who might choose to take your life on the slightest whim. Reverence belongs to the benevolent ruler, wise in his ways and just in his reactions.
As we see it in these men, that reverence is marked by a clear acknowledgment of submission and a clear acceptance of one’s inferiority to that which is revered. That is not meant in any denigrating way. It is simply a statement of fact. Faced with God, it is a fool who does not fully grasp his own inferiority. Faced with God, it is a fool who does not submit himself to that all-powerful One. That Peter and the others are utterly overwhelmed to find God so present in this One they have been traveling with for so long, even if they did already recognize Him as the Son of God, this is going to be unsettling. How could it be otherwise? To find two of the great heroes of history, two of the pillars of God’s work standing so near, and they so long dead: of course it’s going to be unsettling!
The only reason we could possibly have for not realizing this is that we don’t really, at our core, believe these events could ever happen. In fact, we are quite likely challenged to believe they ever did. This is not something we are keen to confess. If you ask us whether we believe the Bible is the true, we will certainly tell you it is. If you ask us whether we believe that the events described as historical therein really happened the way it says they did, we will almost certainly say that we do. If you ask us whether we think those things could happen again in our day, well… you might find us becoming a bit more political with our answers. We would probably tell you yes, but we would just as probably give you all manner of qualifying reasons why it doesn’t.
In the majority of denominations, you would be likely to hear something along the lines of, “yes, God could do these same sorts of things today, but He won’t.” There might be any amount of theological discussion to follow, backing this claim. The reality, though, is that our unwillingness to fully grasp that possibility as truly possible is more a reflection of how greatly corrupted our central beliefs have become. We have been trained to reject the miraculous as impossible. We have been trained to think of the sorts of things the Bible claims as historical fact as being nothing but another set of myths. We have been trained to think of these things more as moral tales, fables with a good point to make. We do our utmost to break free of that training, but somewhere deep inside of us it still has a hold.
So, we Charismatics get all excited about the tingle-inducing events we may experience in church, and we think we’ve really felt God’s presence. Maybe some of us have. Maybe we’ve sensed the vaguest passing of the tassels on the hem of His robe. But, for the most part, I would not count on us having sensed much of anything. We chalk it up to the Spirit of God being in our midst. Perhaps. But, I see very few who react to the purported nearness of God in any fashion that reflects what the Bible relays as real accounts of people who have been near to God. What I see in the apostles on this occasion is what I see universally in the account. When heaven really breaks through like that, when God really manifests Himself in anything even vaguely approaching His fullness, there is one reaction: on your face, wholly submitted, not so much as daring to look up.
This is where these three men were at. However muddled their thinking, they understood that much: God was here. This was holy ground, and they were wholly unfit for events. But, they also knew Jesus. They knew Him to be God’s Son. They may not have understood all the implications of that, but they knew this much: He had not brought them here to die. He had brought them here to pray, to pray to this God, to pray to this God Who was now very evidently Himself, and yet greater than Himself, if you will allow it. He had brought them here, then, for their edification. I think we can rest assured that they learned. They learned just what it meant that this One was God’s Son. It meant He was God even as He was human. It meant they had experienced that Old Testament grace: God had lowered Himself to them, made Himself known to them in this weak, human form, but He was still God in full and wholly undiminished. He was, in short, utterly and solely worthy of their reverence. And so, they gave it to Him.
Now, while Jesus causes them to seal up this testimony for a time, it is clear that these three are brought here that there might be a legally acceptable testimony to what had just transpired. Two or three witnesses, that is what the Law required, and that is what was established here. These three had seen. These three would be able to establish for the others that this One who died, this One whom they had seen again thereafter, was no phantasm, but truly God. It’s not just some necromancy done on His body. We have seen greater things than this, and we can tell you now that the One You saw after His death was truly Himself and no other. We have seen His glory and we see Him again.
That the three understood the importance of this can be felt in the fact that both Peter and John, the two who survived to write of these events, both made mention of the occasion in writing to the faithful. Consider John’s opening to his gospel, written so long after things had happened. I don’t know as I’ve ever really associated his words with this moment of the Transfiguration, because I tend to read it in the order written, so his comment comes long before the event. But, there it is. “The Word became flesh and lived among us. We saw His glory, the glory of the Father’s only begotten” (Jn 1:14). As I say, reading those words, we tend to diminish the glory He speaks of having seen. It reduces almost to the point of “we were privileged to hang out with His awesomeness for a few years.” We might take it as meaning little more than, “Yes, I personally knew the Man.” But, it’s so much more. It’s not that we saw Him. Hundreds of people saw Him. But, we saw His glory! John may well have been the only one left at that time who could make that claim!
Then, look to Peter. “We heard it ourselves! We were with Him on that mountain” (2Pe 1:18). What was it Peter heard? He had heard the Father’s proclamation over His Son, “This is My Son…” (2Pe 1:17). He brings this up to establish clearly that the teaching he has given to the church was not something he’d come up with for himself, nor something the apostles together had cooked up. It was no tale at all, but an eyewitness account. It was a personal testimony of one who was there. Why do you suppose it was so critical to these men that those who took up the office of apostle must be eyewitnesses to the ministry of Jesus? Paul was barely accepted for just such reasons. Him, an eyewitness? Only from a distance! But, he sure had the personal call to office, didn’t he? And yes, He had been around the edges, fully aware of Jesus’ ministry, if not a part of it. He may well have been amongst those delegations sent out to check this Jesus out. I suppose if he were, we would be likely to find mention of it, but the lack of mention does not fully negate the possibility.
I’m sorry, but what I’ve seen passing for God’s presence these days just doesn’t compare. That alone explains why the reactions to His presence likewise don’t compare. I do not discount that something real is transpiring on these occasions, but I’m not so sure we can claim to have been in His presence, as much as we’d like to say we have. I think we have probably cheapened His presence by those claims, and I suspect that when we finally experience the reality of His presence we will feel it necessary to apologize for our earlier foolishness.
The True God (10/30/08-11/1/08)
I just want to note the rather curious coordination of timing that God has. Here we are, on the eve of that night we know as Halloween, and I am in the midst of studying one of the eeriest, dare I say scariest moments in the earthly ministry of Jesus! Talk about a sight to scare the kids! You’ve got clouds glowing and forming out of nothingness, disembodied voices, dead men walking, this Man over there shining like the sun! I tell you, you won’t find anything in anybody’s front yard that could touch this! And all that without the least hint of evil.
God, You’re funny sometimes. I have to say. Thank You for that touch of lightness in this time of heaviness. Oh, and do please give me some certainty as to whether I am finally doing what it was You’ve been trying to get me to do or not. If I’ve gone off course to the left or the right, my Lord, correct me. If I am where You want me, comfort me. I’ll leave it there for now. Whatever You wish, my God. Let that be my desire as well. And, Lord, guard my tongue and my heart until this is settled in me. Thank You.
Looking at Peter’s response to the situation, one might wonder at his thought of building tabernacles, or tents. What is he thinking? Why would he think this was a great idea? I saw a note somewhere along the course of studying this which suggested it was the nearness of the Feast of Booths that suggested this thing to him. If so, it could only be in the most tangential of ways. Such an explanation for his suggestion would mean that he was now expecting that they would remain on the mountaintop through the Feast, which would be in opposition to the requirements of the Law. Further, if this was his purpose, then there ought to be six booths being made, for there are now six on the mountaintop.
It is clear to me that he intends something far more by his suggestion, and those that translate the word as tabernacles seek to point that intent out more clearly to us. Tent, booth, tabernacle: these are all terms by which we translate the same underlying term. But, they have very different significations to us. We don’t generally consider Moses as having been instructed to pitch a tent for God, but that is essentially what he did. However, we sense the significance of tabernacle there, and so it is translated in that way. When it comes to the Feast of Tabernacles, we don’t, in that case, think of all Israel setting up places of worship for them to star in. Yet, given the construction of these booths, we don’t think of tents either. They are something in between.
The clear point here is that there was a significance to those occasions where the tabernacle usage applies, and that significance is that these were occasions where the tent or booth was indeed set up for the singular purpose of being a portable temple. This was not something God just invented out there in the wilderness. When Moses set the people about the task of fabricating that tabernacle, they were not bemused by the strangeness of his directives. It was something they had in common with other tribes and nations of that region. One might suppose it would be pretty common to any such nomadic people. If you have no fixed address, you must bring your place of worship with you, after all. These were not modern times where every town and village would have someplace for you to go meet your God. For that matter, there weren’t all that many towns and villages to stop at.
In sum: Peter is once again confessing the presence of God in this Jesus Whom he follows. As the NET suggests, it seems he may have confessed a tad too much here, by extending the same sort of reserved for God honors to Moses and Elijah. However, their glow of glory may have suggested to him that here, too, God was present. And, in a sense, he is quite right to think so. Just as we are quite right to speak of God being present in ourselves, or in our fellow believers; indeed, more so with these two, who literally glow with the presence of God upon them. The distinction that Peter fails to make in his agitated state is that for these two, it is just that: the presence of God upon them. For Jesus, it is the Presence of God bodily before him. So, we find the cloud, that most significant emblem of God’s immediate presence on the scene, wrapping itself around these three men that they might more accurately recognize the significance of what they are witnessing.
Yes, God is here. Yes, Peter, He is here, and He has been here with you, teaching you, walking with you, calling you aside to pray, for some years now. You were beginning to recognize that, but you still didn’t catch the full impact of it. Now you know. I am in Him and He is in Me, for I am Him and He is Me.
I have already touched on our cheapened sense of God’s presence, I know, but here in the response of the three witnesses, I cannot help but be reminded of it again. For all our claims of God being present in our services, and mighty moves of God at this retreat or that conference, I rather doubt there has been so much as one occasion among all of these which caused the sort of reaction we have in Peter, James and John. In their reaction, on the other hand, I see a continuity of the sole response shown in all of Scripture. When God is on the scene, the only possible reaction is submission. That is, as I believe I have noted, what this falling on one’s face is all about. It is the submission of reverence, not the fainting of the over-excited. It is not, so far as we have description of the experience, that taser-like electrical shock at the hand (or mere gesture) of some evangelist or minister or what have you. It is, really, a very logical response to the very real situation. God is here. I can but bow down to Him, and offer myself for what little I am worth.
We in America have little historical experience to enable us to appreciate such a response. We are, after all, the rebels who broke free of the king. We bow to no man. We are of the mindset that government ought to submit to us and not we to government. It is of the people, by the people and for the people. There’s none of the servile in us. So, when we see this kind of reaction from those who encounter God, we are apt to misinterpret the meaning of it. When we hear that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, what we hear is force applied. We hear the acknowledgement of power which has, as it were, coerced that confession. We understand that no choice will be left but to speak and act as this dominating, victorious Christ demands. We hear it as announcing a Christ who is rather like a dictator or tyrant. See, we don’t really know what to make of that Lord thing, either. We are at a severe cultural disadvantage in this matter.
So, we play our own cultural values over the scene, and assign our own sensibilities to those in the scene, and wind up with a much different picture than has been painted. These three are not being coerced. There is no demand made that they bow down as they do. There is nothing of the king requiring an oath of fealty from them. They have acknowledged the presence of their absolute and undeniable superior all by themselves. They sense the royalty – in this case, a royalty far and away beyond that of any Jewish or Roman ruler they have crossed paths with – and they sense the thoroughgoing incongruity of their presence amongst such royalty. In this setting, they cannot be more than servants, and so, they set themselves in the proper stance of the servants they are. We are Yours, Lord, and we serve at Your pleasure.
Compare and contrast this with the typical scene in a Charismatic service. No, we’re busy jumping about in excitement, dancing and singing, and – if we feel there is some wielder of God’s power about – perhaps a falling out under the power of the Holy Spirit. Let me suppose that all of this is real. Let me suppose that all of this is holy and acceptable in the Lord’s sight. The case can be made. But, to confuse this with the presence of the Lord Himself? I cannot see it. We are so ready to claim a desire to see God’s face, so ready to beg Him to come into our midst. We fail to learn from the very history He has provided us with in His Word. His presence, however much we may love Him, remains a rather scary business. He remains exceedingly and abundantly pure and holy, and His presence can only reveal to us that we are neither pure nor holy. His presence can only make painfully clear to us how totally unfit we are to be in His presence. That He tolerates us at all ought to be reason enough to bow down to Him. What more reason do we need to honor this One Who puts up with us, unfaithful servants that we are? Instead, we try to pump ourselves up. Wow! He came to visit. We must be something!
More and more, I am coming to see something about our Charismatic approach to things that smacks of addiction. I must stress, under the circumstances that I am not denying the real operation of the real gifts of the Spirit. I am, however, suspicious that the greater part of what passes for Holy Spirit activity today is out and out deception. It’s entertainment for the addicted masses. Just watch what has happened with this revival and that. Every one must be more spectacular than the last. Every one must present something new, something never seen before in God’s house. Not one of them thinks to ask why it’s never been seen. Maybe because He didn’t want it? Maybe because it has nothing to do with Him? But, the masses flock, and the masses coo over the latest hot-spot on the spiritual circuit. They may gently question whether it’s legit or not, but in the end, it doesn’t matter all that much. They’ll watch it and promote it and adopt it anyway.
And pity the church that doesn’t keep things fresh and exciting! The addicts will quickly tire of what used to be enough. The thrill is gone, and the thrill seeker will move on to whatever other venue offers a new sensation. It ought to be pretty clear that something’s wrong here. Somewhere in all of this, we have set aside the God Who Is, and begun worshiping our own opinions. We have set aside questions of holiness before a Righteous God, and focused in on entertainment for the masses. We offer as worship what is really no different than any concert down at the local arena, except that we don’t directly charge admission.
But, they sing along, we say. Yes, and so they do down at the arena, too. Only difference is those in the arena already know the words, and don’t need overheads to keep up. Am I overstating the case? Perhaps. However, where in all of this modern worship service is the concern for Truth? Where is the devotion to making certain that our faith is upon the One Who saved us? Why is it that we have such a low view of doctrine and theology? Is it because a careful look at the Truth of God would require us to set aside the things we like about our church? Let me put it even more bluntly. Where is the reverence? When the service has become all about our tastes and our entertainment, where is the reverence? Where is the concern over our besetting sins? Where is the kingdom focus? We’re too busy cheering over the prophecies of, “peace, peace” and the promises of health, wealth and happy days here at home.
Let me just restore a sense of the True God, as He has revealed Himself. When He met with Abram, what was Abram’s response? Abram fell on his face. And that was his position while God talked to him (Ge 17:3). Here was his change of name, Abram to Abraham. Here was the Covenant establishing God of all Creation establishing covenant. The very nature of His having done so made it absolutely clear to Abram that it was none of his doing. The terms of covenant were such that he really had no hope of complying, and God, by the fashion of His establishing this matter, made clear that He was the one that would uphold both ends of the deal. But, notice Abram’s position: submission. As you will it, Lord.
Look at Ezekiel. He found himself in the presence of a being whose appearance dazzled. As I listened to R.C. Sproul describing this passage earlier this week (albeit after I had noted it for comment here), he explained what Ezekiel was witnessing here. What he was seeing was the ‘portable throne of God’. He knew it. He recognized it for what it was. And so, seeing this one with the appearance of a rainbow, it was so radiant, and who reflected the glory of the Lord, he responded in the only sane fashion possible: He bowed down on his face and listened as the voice spoke (Eze 1:28). Only when commanded to do so, did he stand up.
Likewise, John, as he received the Revelation out there alone on the isle of Patmos. Here was the Lord present before him. Bear in mind that this was the same Lord he had been with for those three years of ministry. He was not an absolute stranger, yet in the aspect He was revealed on this occasion, He might as well have been so. Clearly, John knew this was Jesus, but just as clearly, he knew this was Jesus in His fullness, in a fashion John had never seen Him before, even at this Transfiguration. No, this was the LORD! There He stood, the seven stars of the church in His right hand, the emblem of His absolute reign over the Church. There He stood with the two-edged sword coming from His mouth, the emblem of His righteous judgment over all. And His face! If it had glowed on this occasion on the mountain, now it was as if the sun itself were contained within His head. John says, “I saw Him, and I fell at His feet like a dead man.” (Rev 1:16-17).
Is this our justification for the whole slain in the spirit experience? I would have to say it’s insufficient. We have seen nothing of the kind. We have known nothing of the kind. For all that, I would still suspect that John had dropped into a position of submissive reverence, as we see on these other occasions. It would be such a thoroughly ingrained response to the presence of the King of kings. Remember, this isn’t his first time in the immediate presence of God. He was there at Jesus’ baptism. He was there at the Transfiguration. He was there with the risen Lord at His Ascension. This may have been something above and beyond those earlier experiences, but he knew Who was here and His response could only be to bow down and confess himself servant of the Lord.
In all these cases, it is only after the touch of the Son, and His command, “Don’t be afraid”, that those who have submitted themselves so thoroughly to His rule rise up. Only when He has said, “get up”. Indeed, where He has not said so, as in Abram’s case, there was no getting up. There was only bow down and listen. Are we prepared to submit that fully to the lordship of our Lord? Are we willing to come to a full stop on our plans and programs and refuse to do another thing until and unless we have His direction? Surely, we ought to! Just look at the command given in regard to our Lord. Be constantly listening to and obeying Him! Thus the Amplified puts it. That is, indeed, the significance of the command. It is insufficient to listen to Him. That’s mere entertainment. It is insufficient to obey Him occasionally. That’s man in control, self the final arbiter. I’ll obey if I happen to agree. On, constantly listening, constantly obeying. Anything less is idolatry.
The Premise and the Result (11/02/08)
It would be easy, as one reads through the accounts of the Transfiguration, to lose sight of why these three had been called to go off with Jesus in the first place. In fact, only Luke makes mention of the reason they were given: to go and pray. I have to say, this makes me think again that Luke is likely giving us John’s recollections. That one who had spent those long days of prayer on Patmos, and been so deeply rewarded for the experience; would he not be likely to remember this other occasion where prayer had led to such a breakthrough of heaven? Nor, was this the only occasion.
Looking through the Gospel record, one thing is clear: Jesus had a habit. He had a habit of getting off alone by Himself to pray or, if He could not get away alone, to pray right where He was. There is another thing that I think we must notice about the matter of prayer. When there is earnest prayer, heaven breaks through. Of course, we see this most often in Jesus’ own example, which ought not surprise us very much, for He is surely the most earnest in prayer.
So, we find Him praying there at the scene of His baptism, and what is the result? The heavens were opened (Lk 3:21). Early on in His active ministry, we find it established that He often took off by Himself to pray (Lk 5:16). In other words, it was not a one-off reaction to a particularly busy or stressful period. It was habitual – a constant in His life. There is another occasion shortly thereafter where Jesus praying leads to heaven’s breakthrough, although we might not generally note this as one of those occasions. Jesus had once again gone off to pray all night alone on the mountain, and it was here that He received His directions as regarded choosing the twelve who would be His apostles (Lk 6:12-13). As I say, this is not one of those spectacular heavenly breakthroughs, as we measure things, but it was certainly a critical one.
Again, Luke points us to an occasion of Jesus praying, and this time, the disciples have gone to find Him (Lk 9:18). So, Jesus breaks free, as it were, and takes that moment to ask His apostles what they understand about Him. I think it worth noting that Jesus was not taken by surprise as these twelve came to Him. The God of all Providence is not taken by surprise. There is no such thing as coincidence. These are words I have come to live by, as best I am able, for they are the words by which God first introduced Himself to me. This occasion from the lives of the apostles was no different – no coincidence. They have come because that was intended. Jesus has been praying, and there is another breakthrough of heaven about to transpire. Curiously, it is not Luke who tells us the outcome, but rather Matthew (Mt 16:17). See, Peter proclaimed the Truth: Jesus, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus, in response, made it clear that Peter hadn’t arrived at this conclusion by his own powers of observation. No! Heaven had broken through. The Father in heaven had revealed this to Peter.
One can make the same point in regard to the occasion of Jesus walking on water (Mt 14:23). He had gone off to pray by Himself, and this time, he sent the apostles off in a boat. There would be no seeking Him out on this occasion. Now, I have to admit that my general perception of this in the past has been that He needed that prayer time to recharge after such an intense period of ministry. However, that view is entirely backwards. The time for prayer is prior to ministering. The time for prayer is when we have need of heaven’s God, not after He has already done the work! That is as much as to say that the time for prayer is now and always, for we always have need of heaven’s God. But, on this particular occasion, Jesus has indeed gone off to pray, and His companions have gone off in the boat, where He will shortly join them. Now, there can be no doubt of a heavenly breakthrough on this occasion, as we find Jesus walking out to the boat, whilst that boat is out in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. And, were that not enough, we also find Peter joining Him there atop the waves!
I must take note that this was no frivolous event. Jesus hadn’t done this just to surprise the boys. He didn’t call Peter out on the water for entertainment value. God does not play such games, I don’t believe. Oh, He does things for the shear joy of blessing His children on occasion, to be sure, and those things may be done with an eye towards the child’s amused delight. But, this is a different matter. This is the heavenly breakthrough, and when heaven breaks through into this world, it is for a purpose, for God’s purpose. If we reduce it to entertainment, then we are failing to see through the eyes of our Father. These things are done for one reason, and one reason only: to further the purpose of redemption.
Now, we might say that redemption is an accomplished fact at this point, and there would be truth in that. When Jesus proclaims, “It is finished!” from the cross, He means it. It is finished. The work of redemption is done, and that redemption is now permanently available to man. But, it is clear enough, looking around us today, that not all have availed themselves of redemption’s promise. Not all have heard about the atoning blood of the Christ of God, and many who have heard have failed to grasp the powerful reality of that singular Truth. While redemption is accomplished, the work of redemption proceeds, and in that work we are given a part. It is the work of the Great Commission. It is the finest expression of the commandment to love one’s neighbor as oneself. What greater love can we express than to bring the means of rescue to one who is otherwise destined for an eternity of hell?
Why do I labor this point? Because this is where we particularly need the power of prayer. This is where we need to see heaven break through. But, we’ve become so caught up in the commercialism of our culture that our prayers have become all about us. Oh, God. My car’s broke down, bring me a new one. Oh, God! My family’s broke down, help me mend it. Oh, God! I’m no longer living the dream, restore it! Why, didn’t You say that we perish for lack of vision? Surely, You wish to pour out blessings upon me! Oh, Lord! I’ve let the devil steal my blessing. Make him restore it!
I have to ask: can we find any sort of Biblical model for this sort of prayer? Yet, it is common enough in our experience. But, the prayer that avails, I dare say, is that which is done with self when once we have confessed our dependence. “Give us our daily bread.” Why? Because, otherwise we starve. But, that is spoken in full awareness of God’s Providence, and with the full assurance of Scripture’s testimony: “Never have I seen the righteous begging for their bread.” No! This is no begging. This is not, “Oh, God! I’m starving! Feed me quick!” It is, as I have said, a confession of dependence.
God, apart from You, I cannot even feed myself. I admit as much, knowing that I am not apart from You, and that You shall attend to my needs, for You are my Father. Now, then, let me attend to Your mission. Let my eyes be focused on the field You have set me in, that I may work the work of the Kingdom. In short, Your will be done. Inasmuch as my will has any significance, let it be found joined with Your will. Indeed, my God, so work in me that I truly do will and work for Your good pleasure, for this is my reason.
Notice the end result of these things for those three who have been with Jesus. When they opened their eyes, all they saw was Jesus! That’s the way the Message chooses to translate Matthew 17:8, and I have to say, there’s something powerful in that choice. All they saw was Jesus. I will grant you that this is hardly the intent of Matthew’s words. He is clearly relaying the simple fact that Moses, Elijah and the cloud of the presence of God had all departed the mountaintop, and there were just the four of them there once again. However, there is, as I said, something powerful in that perspective the Message brings out.
You see, when we finally get ourselves alone to pray with Jesus, when we really allow Him to guide our prayers and to lift our thoughts to the things of heaven, this is bound to be the result. When we open our eyes, all we shall see is Jesus. I cannot for a minute claim that I have been in that place anywhere near as often as I ought to be. It seems to me one of those things that we only experience in our own ‘mountaintop experiences’. This scene, along with the parallels in the life of Moses and Elijah are the very definition of that mountaintop experience we so long for.
Well, let me exhort myself for a moment here: Take Jesus’ example! He didn’t just moon about, longing for such experiences. He made a place for them. He went off to the mountain. He took that time to get alone with God, to pray for hours. We (or at least I) tend to have all manner of excuses for why we can’t do that. Life is too busy. There’s just so much going on, what with work and kids and church and so on. Who’s got time to go off and pray for hours on end? So, we wait for retreat, and maybe – just maybe – that one time out of the year we might put in an extra hour or two. And, we get so excited. Wow! We’ve really been alone with God this time! Truth is, we’ve barely scratched the surface. Truth is, we’ve still been giving Him the minimum, even there on retreat. He’s still waiting for us to take time. He’s still waiting for sons and daughters that want to be with Him, not just enjoy the benefits of being in His charge.
That’s our problem. We have, as a culture, largely forgotten what family ties are really all about. Family life has been so disrupted by our style of living that relationship is all but gone. We might remember to phone home every now and then, or drop a quick note. But, (and I know this is true for myself), the art of remembering others is dying fast. Send cards? Nah. That’s just Hallmark trying to guilt-trip us. Weekly call? Nah. That’s just the phone company’s advertisements playing on our emotions. This may be true enough, but the fact is that we are called to relationship, particularly with family. But, as we move cross country, and this thing and the other grab our attention, we forget about those who aren’t immediately present. We may even forget about those in our own house. You know, the TV’s on. The computer’s on. Don’t bug me. And over time, this becomes the sum of our experience. Shut off all the entertainment and what happens? Silence falls.
There’s not enough relationship left to even carry on a meaningful conversation. Or, maybe we’ve just forgotten how to converse. No. That’s really not it. Put us in other settings and we find enough things to talk about. But, we’ve become strangers in our own homes, outsiders in our own families. We sit at the dinner table much like we might sit at the counter in the diner, carefully avoiding any intrusion on the lives of these people to our left and right. We don’t know them, and we wouldn’t want them to think we’re prying, or something. Oh! That we might look around ourselves and see Jesus! Oh! That we might wake up and have His perspective.
The NLT, translating Luke 9:32, comes out with this: “Peter and the others had fallen asleep. When they woke up, they saw Jesus' glory.” After some fashion, this strikes me as the story of Christian life. We had fallen asleep. Arguably, we were born asleep and had never been awake before in all our supposed life. But, when we woke up, we saw Jesus’ glory. When we woke up, it was because we saw Jesus’ glory. No, we have not been blessed to witness what these three witnessed. But, there is that point in each one’s life where the reality of Jesus suddenly broke through.
We may have heard about Him before, but it didn’t really register. It was, perhaps, a nice story we learned as a kid. But, it held no reality for us. Jesus may have been an historical figure, or maybe He was just a fable, a morality tale. But, we hadn’t really seen Him as yet. We were asleep. We were asleep in that very Biblical sense: dead for all that we were eating and breathing and such. We were dead, separated from God and still en route to an eternity in that condition. But, praise God! We weren’t dead dead. We were sleeping! God had already purposed that we should awaken. And so, He opened our eyes and they were opened. And so, we were blessed to wake up to the reality of Jesus one day, to suddenly see Him in everything.
If you’re like me, and I have no reason to think you aren’t, then you go through periods and phases. There are times when we recapture some of that perception of Jesus as all and in all. At other times, our awareness of Him is reduced almost to nothing. We are forgetful creatures, after all.
Maybe we sense it in our experience of worship. There are those times when every song seems to bring us closer to God and those other times where it all seems flat and lifeless. Has God changed? No.
Maybe we sense it in the preaching. You know, I have known so many times when the message from the pulpit reflects almost exactly what I’ve been recognizing in these times of study. So many times! But, what a difference in response I can experience! Sometimes, it’s like raw energy pulsing in me, as I realize how marvelously He has orchestrated these things. Then, there are times when I recognize the orchestration, but it just fails to do anything for me. Has God changed? No.
Maybe we sense it even in our own devotion times, or study times, however we may choose to call it. There are those occasions when we just can’t wait to see what God’s going to show us next. Then, there are those times when it begins to feel like little more than habit and drudgery. Has God changed? No.
Were I to ask why God allows us to oscillate like this, I would have to plead ignorance. I don’t know. I can say this, though: When those low points come, they do create a certain thirst. The memory of the high points beckons. We remember from whence we have fallen, and it creates an earnest desire to return. Earnest desire leads to earnest effort to remember the way. Recollection brings us back to prayer, real prayer. Granted, we are likely to start with that “poor me” sort of prayer that has so little to recommend it. But, there is something of repentance in it.
God! I’ve been neglecting You again. I’ve been looking to my own interests and priorities, not Yours. Will You forgive me? Yes, I know You will, and I thank You for it. Now, will You restore my sight, that I might see the things You see in the way You see them? Would You, Sovereign Lord, put me back in service, not to please me, but to please You? Would You reveal to me the things You have purposed for me to do? Would You grant me the joyful satisfaction of knowing that I am indeed doing just as You have purposed? Would You guide me? For I am blind in myself. Would You empower me? For in myself I can do nothing. My God! Such a servant I have been! Restore me to the place of usefulness. Set me in the position of Your choosing, however great, however small. Whatever it is You would have me to do, let me find the way in You and be about doing it. Open my eyes once again, my Lord, and let me see Jesus. Let me see Your vision. You, Who alone know the end from the beginning; give me from Your perspective, that I might see those around me not as lost causes, but as works in progress. Give me from Your perspective that I might see myself in that same light: no better and no worse. Let Your forgiveness be found in me, not just as my experience but as my expression.
