Listen to Him

Pre-Lent Season: Transfiguration Sunday, 2 March 2014.  

Rev. Bruce Skelton, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Highlands Ranch, Colorado

St. Matthew gives us a clue that something momentous is about to happen when he writes that Jesus took the three disciples up a high mountain, because several momentous events in the Bible took place on mountaintops.  He signals it further with the little word “Behold” or “Lo” as it is rendered in some translations, since this word is often used before something of importance happens or is said. But all of that pales in comparison to the Words that God the Father spoke to the disciples that day on the mountaintop and to us here this morning: “This is my beloved son,  with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

“Listen to him or pay attention to what he is saying.” Why is it, do you suppose that God our Heavenly Father was inclined to include that command after Jesus had just been revealed in his divine glory? Could it be that they were not really listening to what Jesus was telling them?

This is highlighted by the event that precedes this account of the Transfiguration of our Lord in St. Matthew’s gospel. Preceding this text is the account of St. Peter’s great confession of faith. “Who do you say that I am?” Jesus asks his disciples. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” St. Peter answers correctly and he is duly praised by our Lord: “Blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you that on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”  Good job Peter. Now you are getting it.

But then do you remember what happens just after that? Let me read it for you:

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and the chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but the things of man.” 

This goes along with the last verse of our text today: And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.”

You see, Peter and the rest of the disciples’ problem is our problem as well and it is that we don’t truly want to hear everything Jesus has to tell us. We especially don’t want to hear that he had to die a horrible death upon a cross, so that our sins could be forgiven. We don’t want to hear it because it impresses two very important facts upon us; first that we Christians, along with the rest of humanity, sin often and most grievously against our God, and second that it took the death our beloved Savior, the Son to the living God, to ransom us back from the power of sin, death and the devil. The old Adam within us, our sin-fallen nature, recoils at the notion that we are that bad off and that such a sacrifice had to be made, and yet we know that without it we would all be damned in hell forever.

You can see this reluctance to lift high the cross of Christ in many large churches today, with the removal of the cross from the front of their sanctuaries.  It has been replaced with a stage with a large choir dressed in shiny robes, or a flashy Christian rock band, and in the case of one of the largest churches in our nation, there is a large globe that dominates the stage. I wonder what it is that they are truly worshipping?

When you stop and think about it, that is just what St. Peter is doing in our this text, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” Good old Peter, good old works righteous Peter, and we are just like him. What can I do for you today God?  Need me to build you a big church, draw big crowds of people, raise millions of dollars. “No,” comes the answer, from God the Father, “I want you to listen to my Son. My Son who has told you that he must suffer and die for you on a cross and then be raised from the dead, so that you can have eternal life, by my grace through faith in him. I will do it all my child and you need to let me.”

And that kills us or at least it kills the old prideful Adam within us. And it causes us to fall down on our faces in fear and awe and adoration at the majesty and the power and the wisdom of such a God. And just when it feels like we can bear it no longer, we feel a human hand on our shoulder and hear the voice we long to hear “Rise up, and have no fear.” And then we, like the disciples lift up our eyes and see no one but Jesus.

“Listen to him.” rings the words of God our Father in our ears. “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.” Identical to the words spoken by Him at Jesus Baptism, which we meditated on just a few weeks ago, when we began this season of Epiphany, this season of manifestation, where we have beheld God in flesh made manifest.  And here He is in God’s Word for us again this morning, as He was in the word with the water at our baptism, and as He will be when we receive Him later this morning in, with, and under the bread and wine of Holy Communion following His words of institution. We see no one but Jesus, because he is all we ever truly need to see or, more importantly, hear.

And when we listen to Him, we hear God’s Word to us, that word is usually a word of love, as we hear when he spoke to His disciples on the night before his death: As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in His love…This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends.

And so we come to the foot of the cross again, but not in sorrow and regret for what our sins have cost, but in joy and thanksgiving for what our loving God has done for us and all people. And we in turn are compelled by God the Holy Spirit who lives inside these jars of clay to reach out to others with words and deeds of love, so that others might see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven, and come to know his Son who died for their salvation as well.

As I thought of this remembered the story of a little boy named Chad. Now Chad was a quiet sensitive second grader, he was small for his age and wasn’t very popular. He was never invited to his classmates’ parties. Well, one day Chad came home from school and announced that he wanted to make valentines for everyone in his class, 35 in all. His mother was skeptical because she knew that in all likelihood Chad would not get a single valentine in return for all his trouble, but she went along with it. And for 3 weeks she watched as he painstakingly created 35 valentines each thoughtfully made for the recipient.

Valentine’s day dawned, and Chad was beside himself with excitement. He bolted out the door with his creations in his backpack unable to contain his joy.  His mother believed he would be disappointed and probably deeply hurt because he would receive no valentines in return, so she made him cookies and had a glass of milk sitting on the table that afternoon waiting for his return.

When she heard the bus pull up outside she looked out the window and out poured the kids laughing and having a good time, and there was Chad in the rear alone as usual and empty-handed. He walked a little faster than normal and his mother fully expected him to come in and burst into tears the moment he came in the door. She was choking back her own tears and ready to hug him as he marched in the door, but his face was strangely aglow. All he could say was: “Not a one. Not a single one.”  His mother’s heart sank. And then the boy joyfully added. “I didn’t forget a one, not a single one.”

With the wisdom of childhood innocence, little Chad understood that the joy of giving love was as great if not greater than receiving it.

And that is the message we hear from the mount of Transfiguration.  We see Jesus great love for his disciples and for us. He didn’t and he won’t forget a single one. May God grant us his grace to listen to his beautiful gospel; to hear his voice and to believe him, and then to speak and act out his love to a world that is dying to hear it. May God grant it in Jesus Name.

Amen. ​