Are You Aware Of God Transforming Others?
Good Morning Friends,
In one of today’s Gospel readings Jesus asks the disciples who they think He is, so that He can instruct them and us on who we really are to become. The question is raised in Caesarea Philippi. It is here where Herod the Great built a pagan temple. Perhaps Jesus gestured to it as He asks, “What do people say?” Here, near the site of the Transfiguration, the Northern boundary of the Promised Land…here in a land of gentiles, at the base of the triple summits of Mount Hermon, is where the story takes place. Here Jesus announces that He will not yet establish His Kingdom but will instead establish His church on a rock hard foundation of faith. Here Jesus offers the keys of power for those willing to submit to the unity and blessings of following in the way. And in the midst of all this we have the Transfiguration, an often overlooked facet of spiritual life, and a critical precursor to the cross and the resurrection and the giving of the Holy Spirit. And this connection is the overall focus of today’s devotional. On this Super Bowl Sunday…Transfiguration Sunday… as we explore our own sanctification we ask a question of conversion. Are You Aware Of God Transforming Others?
Scripture: Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. ‘And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.‘
Matthew 16:13-20; 18:18-20 (NRSV)
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 dazzling white. 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 make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ While 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!’ 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.’
Matthew 17:1-7 (NRSV)
for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Romans 8:13 (NRSV)
Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16, 25 (NRSV)
but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3:16-18 (NRSV)
Message: If you believe Jesus is the Son of God then you have been given certain authority to defeat the enemy of your soul. You have been given rock solid trust in the trinity. Here our purpose and His presence converge as we are deployed to work in the powerful unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit…His peace, His bliss, the high ground where our earthly rebellion is lifted. Only when we learn to operate in the God given authority we possess as Christians can we live victoriously… trusting in God, the Father Almighty, the sustaining Spirit and the redeeming and renewing power of following Jesus. Now let us look at how all this relates to the three elements of the Transfiguration scene. First Jesus’ glory was revealed. His face shone and his clothing became radiant convincing Peter, James and John that Jesus was the Son of God. Then Moses and Elijah appeared and talked with Jesus, proclaiming that the law and the prophets are fulfilled in Jesus…the whole point of the story. And then finally God the Father and creator affirmed Jesus as the Son of God and that the disciples needed to listen to him even though what Jesus had to say was not easy to hear. So let us get ready to face our future as we consider the elements of this amazing conversion. Let us gaze upon the face of Jesus and contemplate the significance of the event for our own growth. And here as we gaze on an earthly Jesus close the heaven, we might just discover that our capacity for adoration grows and can spill over into the world in which we live. Here as we see the change in the earthly Jesus and the disciples we might just learn to respond to Jesus’ voice as we listen to the leanings of the Holy Spirit and the teachings of the Word made flesh. For here we are transformed as cooperative covenant partners with God. Here we get the connection between what God did with Jesus and Moses and Elijah on the Mountaintops and what God does on the cross and tomb and to the followers of Jesus at Pentecost. And we, who with unveiled faces now hopefully reflect the Lord’s glory and are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory in the clear knowledge that our purpose to glorify God.
Pray we feel the penetrating gaze of God but also his love as we ponder all the divine attributes. Pray we fix our gaze on the penetrating purity of the holiness of God. Pray we are transformed by the Holy Spirit. Pray we gaze upon the person of Christ as we pray. Pray we introduce Jesus to other people through his image in us. Pray from our vantage point in life we can see the Promised Land. Pray our Heavenly Father helps us to be all that He has called us to be. Pray we yield every aspect of our being, of who we are, to God’s transforming love. Pray the veil between Heaven and Earth become so thin that we not only sense God’s presence but become an intimate place of communion with the transformative power of what God desires to change in the world through us. Pray Jesus shine right through us and into the world. Pray we not fear.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 