Sermon delivered on the last Sunday after the Epiphany, February 14, 2010 at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, Lewis Center, OH. If you would like to hear the audio version of this sermon, usually somewhat different from the text below, click here.

Lectionary texts: Exodus 34:29-35; Psalm 99; 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2; Luke 9:28-43a.

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

What is the Human Condition?

Good morning, St. Andrew’s! Today is the last Sunday after the Epiphany. This coming Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Lenten season with its emphasis on penance and self-reflection. This morning I want to look at the Transfiguration of Christ and what it can possibly mean for us because some of the lessons we can draw from it can help us in our upcoming Lenten journey.

During this season of Epiphany I have explored with you the theme of human exile, an exile caused by our sin and the resulting alienation from God, and what God is doing about it. We see this theme emerge again in today’s Gospel lesson, albeit indirectly. After the mountaintop experience of the Transfiguration, Jesus and his three disciples descend from the mountain only to be confronted immediately by the spectacle of a demon-possessed boy, a gawking crowd, and a desperate father pleading with Jesus for help. In this sad spectacle we see all the fruit of our exile: sickness, fear, powerlessness, and alienation to name just a few. We can immediately relate to the characters in this story because there have been many times in our lives when we have been sick, afraid, alienated, and felt powerless or helpless in the midst of life’s dark moments.

Where is God’s Grace?

But it is precisely during these times that we must pay attention to the Transfiguration and what it has to say to us about the nature of our Christian hope because in it we get a glimpse of what God has in store for us ultimately. Luke tells us that Jesus took Peter, John, and James with him and went up on a mountain to pray. As he was praying, Jesus’ body was transfigured. The appearance of his face changed and his clothes were dazzling white. Luke does not use the verb transfigure to describe this as do Matthew and Mark, but the Greek for it is metamorphoo, from which we get our word metamorphosis.

Luke continues and tells us that suddenly Jesus is talking to Moses and Elijah about his departure. The Greek word that Luke uses for departure is exodus and here we get a glimpse of how God is going to end our exile once and for all. In talking about Jesus’ departure or exodus, of course, Luke is talking about his crucifixion. Just as God rescued his sinful and rebellious people from the hands of the Egyptians, so God has rescued sinful humanity from our sin and alienation on the cross. As Paul reminded the Corinthians, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting our sins against us (2 Corinthians 5:19a). For you see, God loves us so much that he took on our flesh, and suffered and died for us, thereby giving us our one and only chance to live with him forever. It is a wondrous gift of love and grace, and here we see our Lord in his transfigured body talking to Moses and Elijah about it. Jesus’ “exodus” to the cross is our ticket out of exile permanently if we will only embrace it through faith. Sadly there will be some who reject God’s gracious offer in Christ but it is extended to everyone and for that we can be thankful.

And if there is not enough good news and hope in this, the Transfiguration also gives us a preview of coming attractions when Christ comes again in great power and glory to finish the work of salvation he started on the cross. In God’s New Creation we will have transformed bodies similar to Christ’s (see, e.g., 1 Corinthians 15:35-57). Just before the Transfiguration took place, Jesus had promised his disciples that some of them would not die before seeing the Kingdom of God and here he delivers. He gives them a preview of coming attractions. We have to be careful about adding too many details about our future resurrection bodies but whatever they look like we know they will be glorified bodies similar to the way Christ’s body was transformed here in today’s lesson. It is a glorious hope, isn’t it, because we know that in God’s New Creation our resurrection bodies will be indestructible and immortal, and not be subject to sickness, death, or infirmity the way our mortal bodies are.

So here we have two important lessons from the Transfiguration. First, we are reminded of how God plans to end our exile and alienation from him. In Christ, God has given us himself in a terrible and costly redemptive act on the cross so that we might be reconciled to him. It is a free gift and offered to anyone who will accept it by faith. Second, in the Transfiguration we get a preview of coming attractions regarding what our future resurrection bodies will be like in God’s New Creation. God has promised us these things and God never fails to deliver on his promises. Let us take hope and heart in that, especially given all the deaths our congregation has suffered recently. In the face of death, we have our glorious Christian hope foreshadowed in the Transfiguration.

Where is the Application?

But what about the interim time, the time between now and when Christ returns again in great power and glory to finish his redemptive work? What does the Transfiguration have to say to folks like you and me who must continue to live and sometimes struggle in a broken and fallen world? I’m glad you asked. It will help me finish this sermon.

Just as our Lord was transfigured on the mountain, so we too can be transfigured spiritually by the power and Presence of his Holy Spirit. In today’s Epistle lesson, Paul reminds us that through the Holy Spirit we are being transformed into the image of the Lord from one degree of glory to another. Paul uses the same verb, metamorphoo, that Matthew and Mark use to describe Jesus’ transfiguration. This reminds us that sanctification, about which Paul is talking, is a process, not an event. It also reminds us that it is God who has the power to transform, not us. This immediately takes a great burden off us because we no longer have to worry about earning our way into heaven or keeping a bunch of rules we cannot possibly hope to keep to be saved from eternal separation from God. As Paul reminded the Romans, the Law only makes us conscious of our sin (Romans 3:20); it cannot save us or make us righteous in God’s eyes.

No, as Paul reminds us today, we are free to obey God out of love and gratitude for what he has done for us in Christ, confident that even now the Holy Spirit is working in us, helping us to become more like him, and sustaining us in our weaknesses. But what does a life of Christian obedience look like? Paul tells us in Romans 12:1-2. He tells us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. Paul further reminds us not be conformed to this world but to be transformed (there’s that verb again) by the renewing of our minds. At first blush this might seem like it is up to us to follow a bunch of rules so that we can do this. But this ignores the fact that God’s Holy Spirit is the One doing the work in us. What we have to do is cooperate with him.

How do we have our minds transformed? By seeing the glory of the Lord as Paul reminds us in today’s Epistle lesson. The mirror Paul talked about by which we see the Lord’s glory is God’s word in Scripture. This means we have to take reading Scripture seriously and faithfully if we want to enjoy the Lord’s glory. We do not do so begrudgingly or out of obligation but rather joyfully because of all that God has done for us in Christ. Our salvation is forever. It does not pass away. When we take the time to read our bibles regularly, we are allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us to transform our minds to better know and understand God’s truth. This makes us better able to know what his glory looks like so that we can appreciate it more when we see it. As the ancient theologian Origen wrote, the more we rise upward to Christ the more we allow his Light to shine on us and illuminate (transform) us. Finally if we ascend far enough with Christ we will not only receive enlightenment from Christ, but like Peter, James, and John, we will hear the very voice of the Father. This is what it means to have our minds transformed by God. It is his Power, not ours, and the more intimately we know him, the more he is able to make us be like him.

Reading Scripture is also the best way to protect ourselves from the detrimental effects of the world. Make no mistake. The world wants us to conform. You do not have to look too far to see this at every turn. Whether it is an emphasis on promiscuous sex or unbridled individualism that encourages us to do our own thing regardless of the cost to ourselves or others, the world does not want us to be transformed into God’s image. Daily Scripture reading, aided by the Power of the Holy Spirit, is a powerful antidote to that. Spend time each day meditating on God’s word and memorizing some of it. Allow God to transform you as you do so and trust his Spirit’s Presence and guidance as you do.

Likewise, if we are to allow the Holy Spirit to work within us, we must also pray regularly and often so that the Spirit can help us conform our will to his. The human will typically does not conform to the will of God because we are alienated from him. Prayer is an effective antidote to stubborn and sinful willfulness, and as we pray for wisdom and understanding, surely the Holy Spirit hears our prayers. As Paul reminded the Romans, we often do not know what we ought to pray for but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. This suggests a Spirit who is actively engaged in us, rather than some passive being who is indifferent to us and our needs. And so when we pray, we make ourselves open to the Spirit’s influence, and by faith trust that he works in us to transform us into the very image of Christ. We can also look to see the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness (Galatians 5:22-23)—as evidence that this is happening, even when we are not consciously aware of his transforming power.

Last, we allow the Spirit to transform us through our relationship with other believers. There is no such thing as an isolate Christian. We were created for fellowship and are part of Christ’s Body, the Church. Trying to live our faith by ourselves only makes us easier pickings for the Evil One. Instead, we are called to have intimate fellowship with one another so that the Spirit can work in and through us to help transform us into Christ’s very likeness. As Jesus reminds us, where two or three of us are gathered together in his name, so he is there among us (Matthew 18:20). Do you enjoy this kind of intimate fellowship with your Lord through other believers? If you do not, you are cheating yourself of real opportunities for the Holy Spirit to work in you and transform you into the person you were created to be.

All this, of course, can be helpful as we begin our season of Lent this Wednesday. It is a perfect time for us to commit to the holy habits of daily Bible reading, prayer, and fellowship. As we make the commitment to discipline ourselves in this manner, we can do so trusting that God is good to his promises and he has promised to give us his Holy Spirit to work in us and transform us, getting us ready to live with him forever. It is a magnificent thing to ponder!

Summary

The Transfiguration of Christ reminds us, in part, of God’s plan to end permanently our exile from him. It also gives us a preview of coming attractions of what our future resurrection bodies will be like in his New Creation. In the meantime, God has promised not to leave us alone. Otherwise, why would he tell us to listen to and obey him?

We are profoundly broken creatures who are incapable of transforming ourselves. But it is to the glory of God and the Good News of Jesus Christ that we do not have to fix ourselves. Through the cross, God has made it possible for us to live with him forever. Until he comes to finish his redemptive work, God has promised to transform us by living in us through the Presence of his Holy Spirit. God has promised to transform us into his very image, the image that was damaged so badly in the Fall. This process is long and arduous and will require our active participation with him. But the reward is so much greater—living for all eternity with the Source and Author of all life.

Will you say yes to God’s invitation to live in you and transform you? You must do your part, but you are not responsible for your transformation. God will do that for you and God always delivers on his promises. And one day when his work is finished in you, you will see him as he is, face-to-face, and like the disciples’ reaction when they saw Jesus transfigured on that mountaintop, you will want to be part of that forever. That’s good news, folks, now and for all eternity.

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen.