Jesus Reveals His Glory – March 8, 2019

“As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.’”
Luke 9:33a

Jesus Reveals His Glory

What an event this was! Jesus reveals a glimpse of glory! Wow! Moses and Elijah are there in glorious splendor! Wow! The Father speaks from the cloud! Wow! Peter, James, and John get to see and hear it! Wow! To be there must have been amazing! It’s no wonder Peter said, “Master, it is good for us to be here.” And it’s no wonder he wanted to stay! This was amazing!

But there is one more “wow.” The biggest “wow” of all is that Jesus does not stay. Jesus walks back down that mountain. Why? He walks away from the Mount of Transfiguration, so he can willingly walk to another mountain, to Mt. Calvary, where he suffers and dies. Can you imagine? The glorious, all-powerful God-man was willing to set aside the full use of his glory and power, and instead was willing to carry a cross. And for what purpose? To save you! To save me!

So what is the ultimate point of the Transfiguration? Is it merely for Jesus to show off his power? No, Jesus doesn’t need to show off. Is it merely for us to be scared, seeing our sinfulness? Is it merely for us to get a small glimpse of life eternal, as we see Moses and Elijah chatting with Jesus as Jesus reveals his glory? While it surely shows us those things, there’s more.

The ultimate point of the Transfiguration event is to show us Jesus’ love! Yes, Jesus has all power and glory. He is the all-powerful God. But Jesus also left that mountain to go to Mt. Calvary because he loves you dearly! What could this lead you to say but, “WOW!”

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, lead me to look with even more gratitude to your sufferings and death, knowing that you did all those things for me! Assure me over and over again that you love me. Amen.