What Do We Do When We Come Down from the Mountaintop?
Good Morning Friends,
The Bible does not mention the custom of Lent, however, the practice of repentance and mourning in ashes is found in scripture. Lent begins soon, but this Sunday however is Transfiguration Sunday. Today marks for me the beginning of a period of contemplation of the journey to the cross… the sacrifice for our salvation. It begins with a mountaintop transformation then the reality that we need to face our need for repentance. So What Do We Do When We Come Down from the Mountaintop?
Scripture:
9The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt.’ And so that place is called Gilgal* to this day. 10While the Israelites were encamped in Gilgal they kept the Passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho. 11On the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year.
Joshua 5:9-12 (NRSV)
15Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain, carrying the two tablets of the covenant* in his hands, tablets that were written on both sides, written on the front and on the back.
Exodus 32:15 (NRSV)
9Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, ‘O man of God, the king says, “Come down.” ‘
2 Kings 1:9 (NRSV)
17Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4Then Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I* will make three dwellings* here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ 5While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved;* with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’ 6When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Get up and do not be afraid.’ 8And when they looked up, 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.’ 10And the disciples asked him, ‘Why, then, do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ 11He replied, ‘Elijah is indeed coming and will restore all things; 12but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but they did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man is about to suffer at their hands.’ 13Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them about John the Baptist.
Matthew 17:1-13 (NRSV)
17Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfil.
Matthew 5:17 (NRSV)
Message: In today’s scripture the children of Israel find themselves at the precipice of possessing the promise but they lack a leader. Before they could take the land they had to go through the pain and discomfort of spiritual preparation. It is not exactly like a mountaintop experience but there are some similarities. In the story line God has just commanded Joshua to circumcise the Israelites. He does that. Here we learn that God can heal us spiritually if we are willing to face our sins. This is a good preparation for Lent.
When we come out of the desert…when we come down from the mountaintop we are called to live into who we are called to be. Those people who go to the mountain come back changed. It happened to Moses. It happened to Elijah. It happened to Joshua. It happened to Jesus, Peter, James and John. Today we see the Law and the Prophets converging on a mountaintop with Jesus. When we are on the mountain we can forget about our problems for a while. When we are on the mountain we can see Jesus. When we are on the mountain we can hear from God. But we cannot always be on the mountain. We must come off the mountain to endure our problems. We will encounter confusing situations. We will encounter complicated and catastrophic situations. We will encounter common everyday occurrences. But even in the valley we can still see Jesus and we can still hear from God. We are to press on to the victory God has planned for us. Don’t give up, Jesus is still with us.Friends, as we come down from the mountaintop know that there is the conversion of individuals but it is also a conversion of community. There is a battle to be won. A new day has come.
Pray that our hearts be circumcised…trimmed of pride… cut off from envy… removed from anger…saved from sloth… Pray that our greed is reduced to ashes…our gluttony is gone and our lust lost forever to the love of God. Pray that we enter the Promised Land and take possession of it. Pray that we celebrate the surrender… the healing….the sacrifice…the leadership in the Passover meal. Pray we accept Jesus as our warrior leader…as our Lord leading us out of slavery. Pray that today we cross the river, stop and collectively celebrate life. Pray we become people of integrity that are consecrated to move in the power and the might of a victorious God. Pray that we embrace the change that is required and find the reward of eating the fruit in the Promised Land. Pray we live as a Church, as a family, bound by solidarity and love.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 