Foretaste of the Sermon to Come
A little nibble of the Revised Common Lectionary
Sunday’s scriptures are Exodus 34:29-35 and Luke 9:28-36 [37-43a]
Mountaintop experiences in the Bible are usually references to the theophany Moses and the Israelites experienced when God resided on Mt. Sinai and could be seen to be in residence when there was a cloud or fire over the mountain.
So in Sunday’s gospel, there is not much symbolism in Jesus’ taking Peter, James and John up to the mountain where he will be transfigured. You might be thinking there is a whole lot of symbolism – the mountain, the cloud, Elijah, Moses, the transfiguration of Jesus – but readers of the Hebrew scriptures know exactly what these things refer to. The prophet Daniel had a vision of God with a dazzling appearance and wearing clothing as white as snow, so Jesus’ transfiguration would definitely bring this image to mind. Malachi prophesied that Elijah will come again before the “great and terrible day of the Lord”, and here is Elijah, just as Jesus is moving toward his passion and that great and terrible day on the cross where his death and resurrection will usher in a new way – the Kingdom of God. Moses is the Law, so between Moses and Elijah we have the Hebrew scriptures’ Law and the Prophets, which Jesus says he has come to fulfill – to accomplish all that the Hebrew scriptures foretold and to complete all righteousness as required by the Law. Moses, Elijah and Jesus talk about Jesus’ departure, which in Koine Greek is the word exodus – the death that Jesus will accomplish in Jerusalem is the exodus into a new promised land, again, the Kingdom of God – then, now and not yet. And, because this Sunday is the last Sunday in Epiphany, we have the second of God’s epiphanies, or unveilings, (the first was at Jesus’ baptism) in his voice telling the disciples to listen to Jesus, to listen to God’s very plan of salvation. The importance of this cannot be overstated. Jesus’ words will be his lasting gift, effecting all of our salvation through the continuation of that word as read, preached, and incarnate the sacraments.
As much as Peter would like to have built homes for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah to preserve them there on the mountain, do they come down from the mountain and bask in their mountaintop experience? No! Jesus gets right back to work doing what only God can do, which is to cast out demons and heal, building his kingdom as he goes.
Jesus ushered in, gifted, the Kingdom of God on earth. As citizens of this kingdom, we don’t just sit on our thrones let someone feed us grapes. We roll up our sleeves and get to work, proclaiming it, gathering in Jesus’ name, partaking of the sacraments, welcoming new citizens, caring for the marginalized and being Christ to the world until his return. This is where we get our mountaintop experience, our theophany. This is where Jesus promises to show up. Thanks be to God!
