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Program Transcript
Transfiguration Sunday – Seeing His Glory
Some moments change everything. They lift the veil, revealing what has always been true but unseen. The mountain of transfiguration was one of those moments.
Jesus led Peter, James, and John up a high mountain. There, in a flash of divine radiance, the ordinary gave way to glory. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became dazzling white. Heaven touched earth, and the fullness of God’s light broke through.
On that mountain, the disciples saw Moses and Elijah standing with Jesus, the law and the prophets finding their fulfillment in him. Then a voice from the cloud declared, “This is my Son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him.”
In that holy moment, fear and wonder collided. The disciples fell to the ground, overwhelmed by glory. But then, Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up, and do not be afraid.”
The radiance of Christ is not meant to stay on the mountain; it shines into the valleys of our everyday lives. Transfiguration reminds us that glory and grace are not separate; they meet in Jesus.
As we remember the transfiguration, let’s reflect together:
- Where have you caught glimpses of God’s glory in your own journey?
- How can we, as the Church, reflect the light of Christ to those walking in uncertainty or fear?
After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.
4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
6 When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8 When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Matthew 17:1-9
In the light of Christ, we see who God is, and who we are. The same glory that shone on the mountain now lives in us through the Spirit.
As we step from the mountaintop into the valley, may our eyes remain open, our hearts attentive, and our lives radiant with the love of Jesus.
Program Transcript
Transfiguration Sunday – Seeing His Glory
Some moments change everything. They lift the veil, revealing what has always been true but unseen. The mountain of transfiguration was one of those moments.
Jesus led Peter, James, and John up a high mountain. There, in a flash of divine radiance, the ordinary gave way to glory. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became dazzling white. Heaven touched earth, and the fullness of God’s light broke through.
On that mountain, the disciples saw Moses and Elijah standing with Jesus, the law and the prophets finding their fulfillment in him. Then a voice from the cloud declared, “This is my Son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him.”
In that holy moment, fear and wonder collided. The disciples fell to the ground, overwhelmed by glory. But then, Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up, and do not be afraid.”
The radiance of Christ is not meant to stay on the mountain; it shines into the valleys of our everyday lives. Transfiguration reminds us that glory and grace are not separate; they meet in Jesus.
As we remember the transfiguration, let’s reflect together:
- Where have you caught glimpses of God’s glory in your own journey?
- How can we, as the Church, reflect the light of Christ to those walking in uncertainty or fear?
After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.
4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
6 When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8 When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Matthew 17:1-9
In the light of Christ, we see who God is, and who we are. The same glory that shone on the mountain now lives in us through the Spirit.
As we step from the mountaintop into the valley, may our eyes remain open, our hearts attentive, and our lives radiant with the love of Jesus.
Exodus 24:12–18 • Psalm 99:1–9 • 2 Peter 1:16–21 • Matthew 17:1–9
Today is Transfiguration Sunday, a moment that bridges the season of Epiphany and the journey into Lent. Our theme this week is shining with the light Jesus gives. In Exodus, Moses ascends the mountain into the cloud of God’s glory, where he receives the word that will shape a people. The psalmist invites us to stand in awe of the Lord’s majesty in Psalm 99. In his second letter, Peter testifies that the story of Jesus’ glory on the mountain is not a myth. It was a reality he saw with his own eyes — a lamp shining in a dark place. And in Matthew’s Gospel, we join the disciples on the mountain. There Jesus is transfigured, radiant with divine light. He is affirmed by the Father’s voice: “This is my Son, the Beloved … listen to him.” These texts remind us that to encounter the glory of Christ is not an escape from the world. It is a call to return to the valleys of life, shining with the light Jesus gives and listening closely to the One who leads us into God’s mission.
Shining With the Light Jesus Gives
Matthew 17:1–9 NRSVUE
(Read or ask someone to read the sermon passage.)
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will set up three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they raised their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Introduction: The Beauty of Opposites
How many of you like roller coasters? (Perhaps insert a personal story about something you like that is scary but also fun. Feel free to use a different example than roller coasters. Popular activities that induce fear include sky diving, bungee jumping, and drag racing.) Why do we think that an activity that causes us fear is also fun? Being scared seems like the opposite of fun — it’s a paradox.
Living a life of faith can involve embracing paradox. A paradox is an idea or statement that seems wrong or impossible but actually makes sense upon deeper consideration. It’s two seemingly opposite things or qualities that can actually be true at the same time. Like, a terrifying yet fun pastime.
Or as Christians believe, you must lose your life to find it.
We live surrounded by these tensions — words and experiences that hold both sides of a truth at once. Life is full of these “both-and,” not “either-or,” moments.
And perhaps that’s why the Transfiguration of Jesus, the story we read in Matthew 17, is so striking. Because here, on a mountaintop, heaven and earth, human and divine, fear and glory, all meet in one breathtaking vision.
In Jesus, all opposites are held together in perfect unity.
The Story of the Mountain
Matthew tells us:
“Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light.”
Try to picture that moment. The dusty, familiar face of Jesus — the one they’d walked miles with, eaten with, laughed with — suddenly radiant with divine light.
It wasn’t that a spotlight shone on him. The light shone from within him. It was his own glory, his own divine life breaking through his humanity.
This is what theologians call theophany — a visible manifestation of God. And it’s what Christians call the Transfiguration. This word in Greek is metamorphoo, from which we get our word metamorphosis.
It means transformation, but not just surface change. It’s the revealing of what’s always been true beneath the surface. The Transfiguration is the revelation of Jesus’ divine identity.
For a moment, the veil between heaven and earth is pulled back. The disciples see Jesus as he truly is: the eternal Son of God, radiant with the glory of the Father, and filled with the Spirit’s light.
This is not Jesus becoming something new. It’s Jesus revealing what has been true from eternity.
The Triune Glory Revealed
And then something even more mysterious happens. “Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.”
Moses and Elijah were two very important figures of Israel’s history. God chose Moses to lead the nation of Isreal, and God gave the people rules that we call the Ten Commandments. God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses to deliver to Isreal, so he is considered the great lawgiver. Elijah was a prophet, and a prophet was a person chosen by God to deliver his messages to the people. These messages often urged people to stop sinning.
So, Moses and Elijah appear with Jesus — one representing God’s covenant law, the other God’s prophetic promise.
They stand beside Jesus, and in that moment the disciples glimpse something extraordinary. All of Israel’s story, all human longing, and all divine promise, converge in Jesus. The Law and the Prophets — two strands of God’s revelation — find their fulfillment in one person.
And then, as if to seal it all, a bright cloud overshadows them. It’s a sign of the Spirit’s presence, echoing the cloud that led Israel in the wilderness, the same glory that filled the tabernacle and later the temple.
And from that cloud, the voice of the Father speaks: “This is My Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
The Son climbs a high mountain, the Spirit appears as a cloud, the Father speaks. The whole Trinity is present and active in this moment of revelation.
The Father’s voice.
The Son’s radiance.
The Spirit’s cloud of glory.
The Transfiguration isn’t just a miracle; it’s a window into the eternal communion of God’s own life.
What the Disciples Saw — and What We See
Peter, James, and John can barely take it in. Peter, always the one to speak first, says, “Lord, it is good for us to be here! If you wish, I’ll set up three tents — one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah.”
It’s almost endearing. Peter wants to hold onto the moment, to freeze it, to make it last. But he misunderstands.
He sees three great figures — Moses, Elijah, Jesus — and wants to honor all three. But the voice from heaven interrupts him, as if to say: No, Peter. Not three. One.
“This is My Son, the Beloved … listen to him.”
Jesus is not one teacher among many, not one prophet among peers. He is the One in whom all others find their meaning. When the disciples finally look up, they see no one except Jesus alone.
When the radiant light fades, when the cloud of glory lifts, when confusion settles — they see only Jesus. He is enough.
What Transfiguration Means for Us
Now, what does this vision mean for us today?
Why does this strange, luminous story appear just before Jesus turns toward Jerusalem and the cross? We can understand it as preview of resurrection, a revelation before the road of suffering.
Let’s look at what we learn through this moment on the mountain.
Wholeness comes through Jesus’ transformation, not ours.
The word metamorphoo reminds us that what happens to Jesus also happens to us through him. The same divine light that radiated from Christ is the light that transforms us. Paul uses the same word in Romans 12:2 NRSVUE: “Be transformed (metamorphoo) by the renewing of your mind.”
Paul does not tell us to transform ourselves. He describes what happens when the Spirit renews us from within, when we shine with the light Jesus gives.
In Jesus, God has already done the transforming work. The Transfiguration is not only about Christ’s glory; it’s a promise of our participation in that glory.
The humanity Jesus assumed — our humanity — is being made whole, healed, and renewed in him. Wholeness is not something we build; it’s something we receive.
In Jesus, the fragmented pieces of our lives are gathered up and made whole. Our strengths and weaknesses, our joys and sorrows, our victories and failures are made whole in Christ.
The transfiguration reveals that death has no final power.
The disciples didn’t fully understand it at the time, but the vision they saw that day would become an anchor for their faith. When they later witnessed Jesus’ suffering and death, they could remember: We saw his glory. We know who he truly is.
The Transfiguration foreshadows the resurrection. It shows us that the light of God’s life is not extinguished by death — it shines through it. The One who stood radiant on the mountain is the same One who will stand radiant outside the empty tomb.
Jesus tells them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Only after the resurrection will they truly understand what they’ve seen. The light of life cannot be contained by death, and in him, neither can death contain us.
This is our hope. Death, failure, evil, and fear do not have the final word — God’s transforming love does.
In Jesus, opposites are held together in wholeness.
The Transfiguration is a story of contrasts reconciled:
- Human and divine meet in one person.
- Earth and heaven converge on one mountain.
- Law and Prophets find unity in one Lord.
- Bewilderment and comfort coexist in one touch.
Peter, James, and John fall face-down in fear — but Jesus comes and touches them, saying, “Get up. Do not be afraid.”
In Jesus, majesty and mercy are never opposed. The infinite God stoops to lay a hand on trembling disciples. The One who shines like the sun also bends low in tenderness.
This is the paradox at the heart of the gospel:
The same God who commands the universe also washes feet.
The same glory that blinds the heavens also comforts the fearful.
And so, the Transfiguration teaches us to hold opposites together. It teaches us to see strength in gentleness, power in humility, and light in the midst of shadow.
God still speaks, listen to him.
The Father’s command, “Listen to him,” is not just for Peter, James, and John — it’s for us, too. We live in a world of noise — endless voices, opinions, and distractions. But on the mountain, God narrows the field.
“Listen to him.”
Not to the world’s anxiety. Not to our own fear. Not to the old scripts of shame or inadequacy.
“Listen to my Son.”
When we listen to Jesus, we hear not condemnation but compassion. We hear not demands but invitation. That voice brings peace to our chaos and unity to our divided selves.
Application: Living Transfigured Lives
So how do we live in light of this revelation?
How do we carry the mountaintop vision into the valley of ordinary life?
Let’s draw out three simple invitations.
- Understand You Are a Work in Progress
Transformation takes time. Negative habits, emotions, or patterns don’t disqualify us from God’s love — they’re the very places his transforming grace is at work.
We can acknowledge our struggles honestly without losing hope. Jesus didn’t shine because he escaped humanity; he shone through it. In the same way, God’s light meets us not in our perfection but in our process.
So, when you fail, don’t despair. When old wounds resurface, don’t hide. Bring them into the light. Nothing can separate you from the love of Christ. Nothing.
- Believe That God’s Delight Includes You
At the Transfiguration, the Father declares, “This is My Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased.”
Those words are spoken over Jesus — but because we are included in him, they are spoken over us as well. God’s pleasure is not something we earn; it’s something we share.
Through Christ, the Father looks at us and says, “You are My beloved child. In you I am well pleased.” To live in that truth is to be freed from the endless striving for approval.
It changes how we see others too. If God delights in them, how can we not? So, we become a people who extend grace instead of grudges, who forgive quickly, who see others not as problems to fix but as people to love.
- Be Quick to Comfort the Fearful
When the disciples fall to the ground in terror, Jesus doesn’t scold them; he touches them. “Get up. Do not be afraid.”
What a picture of divine compassion. The same Jesus who shines with uncreated light reaches out with human hands. The same voice that commands the wind whispers comfort to trembling hearts.
We are called to do the same — to be people who offer a steady hand to those overwhelmed by life. Not with platitudes, but with presence. Not to fix it, but to remind them they are not alone.
The Spirit — called the Comforter — now lives in us to continue this ministry through us. Every time we comfort someone in pain, the touch of Jesus reaches through ours.
The Transfigured Vision of Wholeness
At the heart of the Transfiguration is a promise: That all the fragmented, divided parts of our lives are being gathered into wholeness in Christ.
He is the meeting place of opposites — the true and final integration of heaven and earth, God and humanity, glory and humility.
And because he has brought our humanity into his divinity, nothing in us is wasted. Even our contradictions, our tensions, our unfinished edges — all can be transfigured into beauty.
In Christ, the opposites don’t cancel each other out; they are redeemed and harmonized in divine love.
Conclusion: Seeing Jesus Alone
When the disciples opened their eyes after the cloud lifted, they saw no one but Jesus alone. That’s the vision we need too. Not Moses, not Elijah, not the competing voices of law or performance or fear — but Jesus alone.
All-powerful, divine glory and healing, merciful grace are not opposites; they are one and the same in the radiant face of Christ.
And the voice that spoke from the cloud still speaks to us now: “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him.”
Listen — Jesus’ words transform us.
Look — Jesus shows us who we truly are in him.
Rise — Jesus is with us, and we do not need to be afraid.
For the light that shone on the mountain shines in our hearts, revealing the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. May we shine with the light Jesus gives us.
Amen.
Jane Williams—Year A Transfiguration Sunday
Sunday, February 15, 2026 — Transfiguration Sunday
Matthew 17:1–9 NRSVUE
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Program Transcript
Jane Williams—Year A Transfiguration Sunday
Anthony: Okay, let’s transition to the next pericope. It’s Matthew 17:1-9. It is a Revised Common Lectionary passage for Transfiguration Sunday, February 15.
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will set up three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” 8 And when they raised their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. 9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Speaking of letting your light shine: Transfiguration Sunday. It’s celebrated annually on the Christian calendar, and I’m curious what makes this mountain-side experience worthy of such an annual reminder?
Jane: I think we always want to pay attention to something that the Gospels really highlight for us. And Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all tell us this story of Jesus’ transfiguration.
And so, as we enter into this story, we are doing that in the company of people who have heard it from the first century onwards, who’ve heard this story as one that deepens our understanding of God in Christ and therefore deepens our own Christian calling.
I think, for me, what’s really striking is that it is the reiteration of God the Father’s affirmation of the Son at baptism. And then this reaffirmation here in the Transfiguration. If the baptism is Jesus is total identification with us in our humanity, entering down into the waters of chaos to be reborn as the One chosen and called by God, this is Jesus’s reaffirmation in the love of the Father as he heads towards his death.
So, a really pivotal moment in the gospel stories where Jesus’ identification now is going to go even deeper. Jesus is going to come into death for our sake, so that there, Jesus will find him. And it’s a most profound place for the Father to say to the Son, “you’re my beloved” again, in the hearing of those who know Jesus and love Jesus.
And for us to hear that, those words that Jesus takes with him to the cross as he heads towards Jerusalem now in the final ending on the cross, a really, really significant grounding of that call to be with us even into death in the love of the Father.
Anthony: I imagine when Peter and James and John were going up on the Mount and they did not have on their bingo card, so to speak, that Moses and Elijah were going show up.
Jane: No.
Anthony: And I’m curious. What, if anything, should we take from that? Is it significant? Is it just an afterthought? What’s going on here?
Jane: I think it’s clearly theologically deeply significant that these are two absolutely outstanding narrators of the character of God, Moses and Elijah, in what we call the Old Testament scriptures.
Moses, the one to whom God entrusts the law, that is to shape his people’s life so that they may live out of God’s own character, God’s self-given character in the law. Elijah, the one who’s constantly calling the people back to faith, to God’s faithfulness to them and their faithfulness to God.
So, the law and the prophets here shown as witnessing to Jesus. So, the creed calls the Holy Spirit, the One who speaks through the prophets. And I think you get throughout the New Testament, you get this sense of God’s, the faithful continuous arc of God’s company, God’s faithfulness to us, God’s presence, God’s narration of God’s self to us.
And Jesus is the fulfillment of that. Moses and Elijah are clearly secondary, you might say. They’re saying they’re like the Father, saying, “Look at this. Look at Jesus. When you want to know about God, look at Jesus.” And yet that’s not a writing off, it’s not a wiping out of the way God has always interacted with God’s people, but a culmination of it in Jesus Christ that we’re seeing here.
So, huge theological significance. And reminds us how important it is for us as Christians to pay attention to the whole of scripture. And not just the New Testament, but the whole of God’s interaction with people from and creation through to fulfillment.
Anthony: And thinking of Jesus being left alone in terms of Moses and Elijah appearing no longer and God saying, “Listen to him.” And it reminded me of something one of your colleagues said to me, “Jesus is the highest resolution image of God that we have.”
Jane: Yeah.
Anthony: And it’s a lovely way to think of it, that in him, the fullness of deity was pleased to dwell. God self-reveals and it’s glorious.
Jane: And it’s incredibly moving, isn’t it? That quite rightly, the disciples are terrified. And Jesus reaches out and touches the sister God who reaches out in our reality and touches us. So, their fear and awe were proper. They were in the presence of the Shekinah, the great Presence, the glorious presence of God. And yet that glorious presence comes to find us in a human form to enable us to be touched where we really are.
Anthony: One of the things that has always struck me about this text is the ending.
Jane: Yeah.
Anthony: They came back down the mountain. Peter was so overwhelmed by the experience, he’s, “Let’s hang out here. Let’s build some tabernacles and just stay up here on the mountain.” But life gets lived in the ordinary, mundane, common. Anything you want to say about that? I know you said you have a heart for mission. I’m just thinking that through with this text.
Jane: It is at the heart, isn’t it, of everything that Jesus shows us about God is that God comes to find us. And so, our spirituality is not removed from reality. We are not called to step out of the world and become people who have no interaction with day-to-day living but actually to follow Jesus into the reality of the world around us.
And I love Peter. I think Peter so often blurts out what each of us would say. But we always wait for a Peter to say it for us.
Anthony: That’s right.
Jane: And so that longing to stay where we are, especially in a moment of glorious worship or encounter or something like that. But those moments are given to us so that we can take the good news into the whole world.
Anthony: Amen and amen.
Program Transcript
Jane Williams—Year A Transfiguration Sunday
Anthony: Okay, let’s transition to the next pericope. It’s Matthew 17:1-9. It is a Revised Common Lectionary passage for Transfiguration Sunday, February 15.
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will set up three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” 8 And when they raised their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. 9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Speaking of letting your light shine: Transfiguration Sunday. It’s celebrated annually on the Christian calendar, and I’m curious what makes this mountain-side experience worthy of such an annual reminder?
Jane: I think we always want to pay attention to something that the Gospels really highlight for us. And Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all tell us this story of Jesus’ transfiguration.
And so, as we enter into this story, we are doing that in the company of people who have heard it from the first century onwards, who’ve heard this story as one that deepens our understanding of God in Christ and therefore deepens our own Christian calling.
I think, for me, what’s really striking is that it is the reiteration of God the Father’s affirmation of the Son at baptism. And then this reaffirmation here in the Transfiguration. If the baptism is Jesus is total identification with us in our humanity, entering down into the waters of chaos to be reborn as the One chosen and called by God, this is Jesus’s reaffirmation in the love of the Father as he heads towards his death.
So, a really pivotal moment in the gospel stories where Jesus’ identification now is going to go even deeper. Jesus is going to come into death for our sake, so that there, Jesus will find him. And it’s a most profound place for the Father to say to the Son, “you’re my beloved” again, in the hearing of those who know Jesus and love Jesus.
And for us to hear that, those words that Jesus takes with him to the cross as he heads towards Jerusalem now in the final ending on the cross, a really, really significant grounding of that call to be with us even into death in the love of the Father.
Anthony: I imagine when Peter and James and John were going up on the Mount and they did not have on their bingo card, so to speak, that Moses and Elijah were going show up.
Jane: No.
Anthony: And I’m curious. What, if anything, should we take from that? Is it significant? Is it just an afterthought? What’s going on here?
Jane: I think it’s clearly theologically deeply significant that these are two absolutely outstanding narrators of the character of God, Moses and Elijah, in what we call the Old Testament scriptures.
Moses, the one to whom God entrusts the law, that is to shape his people’s life so that they may live out of God’s own character, God’s self-given character in the law. Elijah, the one who’s constantly calling the people back to faith, to God’s faithfulness to them and their faithfulness to God.
So, the law and the prophets here shown as witnessing to Jesus. So, the creed calls the Holy Spirit, the One who speaks through the prophets. And I think you get throughout the New Testament, you get this sense of God’s, the faithful continuous arc of God’s company, God’s faithfulness to us, God’s presence, God’s narration of God’s self to us.
And Jesus is the fulfillment of that. Moses and Elijah are clearly secondary, you might say. They’re saying they’re like the Father, saying, “Look at this. Look at Jesus. When you want to know about God, look at Jesus.” And yet that’s not a writing off, it’s not a wiping out of the way God has always interacted with God’s people, but a culmination of it in Jesus Christ that we’re seeing here.
So, huge theological significance. And reminds us how important it is for us as Christians to pay attention to the whole of scripture. And not just the New Testament, but the whole of God’s interaction with people from and creation through to fulfillment.
Anthony: And thinking of Jesus being left alone in terms of Moses and Elijah appearing no longer and God saying, “Listen to him.” And it reminded me of something one of your colleagues said to me, “Jesus is the highest resolution image of God that we have.”
Jane: Yeah.
Anthony: And it’s a lovely way to think of it, that in him, the fullness of deity was pleased to dwell. God self-reveals and it’s glorious.
Jane: And it’s incredibly moving, isn’t it? That quite rightly, the disciples are terrified. And Jesus reaches out and touches the sister God who reaches out in our reality and touches us. So, their fear and awe were proper. They were in the presence of the Shekinah, the great Presence, the glorious presence of God. And yet that glorious presence comes to find us in a human form to enable us to be touched where we really are.
Anthony: One of the things that has always struck me about this text is the ending.
Jane: Yeah.
Anthony: They came back down the mountain. Peter was so overwhelmed by the experience, he’s, “Let’s hang out here. Let’s build some tabernacles and just stay up here on the mountain.” But life gets lived in the ordinary, mundane, common. Anything you want to say about that? I know you said you have a heart for mission. I’m just thinking that through with this text.
Jane: It is at the heart, isn’t it, of everything that Jesus shows us about God is that God comes to find us. And so, our spirituality is not removed from reality. We are not called to step out of the world and become people who have no interaction with day-to-day living but actually to follow Jesus into the reality of the world around us.
And I love Peter. I think Peter so often blurts out what each of us would say. But we always wait for a Peter to say it for us.
Anthony: That’s right.
Jane: And so that longing to stay where we are, especially in a moment of glorious worship or encounter or something like that. But those moments are given to us so that we can take the good news into the whole world.
Anthony: Amen and amen.
Small Group Discussion Questions
- Does the story of the Transfiguration shape how you see Jesus not only as fully human but also as fully divine — the visible image of the invisible God?
- How is our transformation in Christ (our metamorphosis) different from self-improvement or willpower?
- What does it mean for you to “listen to” the Son?
- How might our congregation look different if we lived from this deep awareness of being hidden in the Beloved, of being loved and accepted by God?
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