Listen to the thoughts of American Astronaut James Irwin, member of the
Apollo 15 crew: Hear his first impression of earth as seen from space. “The
Earth reminded us of a Christmas tree ornament hanging in the blackness of
space. As we got farther and farther away it diminished in size. Finally it
shrank to the size of a marble, the most beautiful marble you can imagine.
That beautiful, warm, living object looked so fragile, so delicate, that if
you touched it with a finger it would crumble and fall apart. Seeing this
has to change a man, has to make a man appreciate the creation of God and
the love of God.”
Those thoughts so beautifully expressed led me to wonder exactly what it is
God sees when he looks down upon his creation.
A story is told of a man who dreamed he was in heaven. He found himself in
God's office. One office wall was a huge window looking down on earth. The
earth was beautiful with its blue waters, green forests, and white clouds.
There was a pair of glasses on the table. "They must be God's glasses!" the
man realized. No one was around, and the man was overcome with curiosity
so he tried them on and looked at earth again. This time he saw the world
close up. He saw poverty, sickness, and so much inhumanity that it tore at
his heart. He saw murder, mayhem, and brutality. How can God bear it?, he
thought.
Just then, he heard a voice behind him, "Take off my glasses." As he did
so he wondered what fate awaited him for snooping around God’s office. After
a pause, the voice gently asked, "What did you see?" "I saw hate,
corruption, and evil!" the man answered. "And what did you feel?" the voice
asked. "I felt like destroying the whole planet, and I would do it without
any hesitation or regret."
"That's why you can't use my glasses," said God. "When I look, I see my
children. And I feel compassion for them. You cannot use my glasses and see
what I see, unless you can feel what I feel." (Pause)
In the church calendar today is Transfiguration Sunday. A closer look at
the transfiguration may help us understand how it is possible for us to ever
see and feel what God sees and feels. As you heard in today’s reading Jesus
took Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. While
there they witnessed Jesus’ transfiguration to His rightful Glory. They saw
him conversing with Moses and Elijah about his departure, which would occur
when he reached Jerusalem, his appointed destination. Every Jew understood
the importance of Moses and Elijah, They were among the most highly
respected Old Testament figures. Not only did they symbolize the Law and the
Prophets they symbolized the fulfillment of God’s plan. Moses was not only
the lawgiver who had mountain top experiences; he was the forerunner of
Jesus, a hand-picked deliverer of God’s chosen people. Elijah was not only a
prophet, but a man associated with the end times, one who would turn
people’s hearts back to the covenant relationship they shared with their
God.
Their role in the transfiguration seems more than that though. Luke
clearly describes them in verses 30 and 31. As Jesus’ appearance changes
they appear in glorious splendor and talk to Him. But they are mere men,
whose departure comes before God’s voice resounds from the shekinah cloud,
the cloud that represents the glorious presence of God. Peter, James and
John then hear the direct declaration of God the Father, not mediated or
indirectly relayed through another’s lips, “This is my Son, my Chosen;
listen to him!” The contrast is clear: Jesus alone is the true Prophet,
the Chosen Servant , and the Son of God.
This message plays an important part in the spiritual education of the
disciples, coming as quickly as it does on the heels of Jesus’ first
declaration of the kind of Messiah he was to become, a declaration that may
have caused them to waver. Just six or eight days prior to this, depending
on which gospel account you read , Jesus had told his disciples clearly for
the first time that he must suffer many things, and be rejected by the
elders and chief priests and scribes. He told them he would be killed, and
on the third day be raised. Not exactly what they had in mind when they
began to follow Him I suspect. He had also told them: whoever loses his life
for my sake will save it. Troubling words to hear.
It strikes me as significant that the three disciples who witness this
event, the three who also had witnessed Jesus raising from the dead the
lifeless body of a young girl, are being molded for the special tasks laid
out before them. Peter, James and John would eventually play key roles in
the early church.
These three men needed to know with absolute certainty that the man they
followed was not a mere man, but the Chosen Savior of all mankind, hand
picked by God Himself before the beginning of time. And they needed to
listen and truly understand as Jesus told them the kind of savior He was
going to be. His love for them and for all future believers who would follow
them was so great, He would willingly give His life so they could become
children of God.
After a shaky start Peter would go on to become the first great voice of
the gospel, beginning at Pentecost. He explained the strength of his
convictions with these words: For we did not follow cleverly devised myths
when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but
we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory
from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic
Glory, saying, "This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on
the holy mountain.
James would become the first of the disciples to die for his faith, secure
in the knowledge that Jesus had conquered death. John would become a major
writer of the gospel message for this stated purpose: so that you may come
to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through
believing you may have life in His name . Peter James and John were given
mountain top experiences to illuminate the valleys where they would live our
their discipleship. (Pause)
Jesus’ transfiguration transformed His disciples. The American Heritage
dictionary defines transfigure as: To alter the outward appearance of. It
defines transform as: To change the nature, function, or condition of; to
convert. Peter James and John saw Jesus’ transfiguration, His altered
appearance. They heard the command to listen to Him. And they were
transformed. Their very nature was changed.
But it is important to remember that their transformation was a
process–it didn’t happen immediately there on the mountain. Like us, they
were on a journey and their progress was made in measured steps. Today’s
scripture tells us “ And they kept silent and in those days told no one of
the things they had seen.
It is only after the resurrection , the ultimate mountain- top experience,
that the disciples’ transformation becomes evident. It is then that they
begin to transform the valley of human need by their witness, and the early
church is born.
Paul tells us in second Corinthians : Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where
the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us who contemplate
the glory of the Lord are being transformed into His image with everlasting
glory which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
From the first moment we place our trust in the Lord,every single one of us
is in the process of being transformed into the image of Christ. If you
wonder how that is possible listen to this modern parable from Megan
McKenna.
Once upon a time there was a king who ruled a small kingdom. It wasn’t a
great kingdom, and it was wasn’t really known for any of its resources or
people. But the king did have a great and perfect diamond that had been in
his family for generations. It was kept on display for all to see and
appreciate. People came from all over the country to admire the diamond and
gaze at its beauty.
Then one day a soldier came to the king with the news that, although no one
had touched the diamond, for it was guarded night and day, it was cracked.
The king ran to see for himself and sure enough there was a crack right
through the middle of the diamond.
Immediately he summoned all the jewelers of the land and had them examine
the diamond to see if there was anything that could be done to repair the
large flaw. One after another they examined the diamond and gave the bad
news to the king; the diamond was irredeemably flawed. The king was
devastated, and so were his subjects for they felt they had lost every
thing.
Then out of nowhere came an old man who claimed to be a jeweler. He asked to
see the diamond. After a careful examination he looked up and confidently
told the king, I can fix it. In fact, I can make it better than it was
before.
The king was shocked and a bit leery. The old man said, “Give me the jewel
and in a week ‘I'll bring it back for your approval. The king was not about
to let the stone out of his sight, even if it was ruined. So he gave the
old man a room in the palace, provided anything he required for his work and
food and drink to sustain him. Then he sat back to wait.
The whole kingdom waited. It was a long week. At the end of the week the
old man appeared with the stone in his hand and gave it to the king. The
king could not believe his eyes. It was magnificent. The old man had made
the diamond even more beautiful than it had been before. He had used the
crack that ran through the middle of the stone as a stem and carved an
intricate, full-blown rose. leaves, and thorns into the diamond. It was
exquisite.
The king was overjoyed and offered the old man half his kingdom because he
had taken something beautiful and perfect and improved upon it.
But the old man refused in front of everyone, saying, "1 didn't do that at
all. What I did was to take something flawed and cracked at its heart and
turn it into something beautiful"
That is what is happening to us. We are hearing the voice of God’s chosen
one whispering in our ear and we are being changed in the very depths of
our nature. We are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus. His Spirit
resides in us, continually transforming our hearts. And it is Jesus’ Spirit
in us, molding and refining, which takes our flawed and cracked lives and
shapes them into a thing of beauty. We are being shaped into the humble
servants of God that He intends for us to be.
It is His Spirit in us that allows us to look with compassion and love on
one another, to see the possibility of the world as God created it to be.
We are flawed; we are willful and we are sinful, but we are God’s children
and He loves us. That means He will continue to transform us until the
process is complete, and we reflect the images of Jesus, His beloved Son.
It is He who and gives us the freedom to see the world as God sees
it.....through His glasses.
Take a moment and look around you. Look at the people on either side of
you, those in front of you and those behind. And hear God’s voice gently
ask ‘What do you see?” Look again with God’s eyes and see what God sees. See
your family, friends, and neighbors, who like you, are in the process of
being transformed. Remember we are not changing ourselves, we are being
changed by God’s hand at work in our lives.
As you go your way this week, look carefully at those you encounter. Try to
see them with God’s glasses, and if you see no sign of God’s spirit in them,
stop and remind yourself why we are being transformed. We are being
transformed so we can reflect Christ to others. We are the only Jesus some
people will see this week. So let His light shine through you.
(Comments to Nancy at rasey@VOYAGER.NET.)
