Sermon illustrations for Transfiguration Sunday, Cycle C (2013)
Illustration
Object:
Exodus 34:29-35
When we come home from church, is there a radiance in our face that others can see? Does our faith in Christ give us a different look? I have known Christians whose face glowed with joy because of their faith! They were transfigured! I want my children to see that my faith has transformed me so that they will want to grow in their faith also. I don't want to put fear into them just because of my laws into their ears.
Moses' face was still glowing when he came down to see Jesus on the mountain. It never went away in his day either. It was so bright that he had to cover it. Every meeting he had with the Lord renewed that glow.
Some artists paint Moses as having two horns on his head. That reminds us more of Satan! We have to be careful of symbolism! Sometimes our children may only see the horns when we discipline them: in other words, when we bring down the law on them. Moses had just come down with the two tablets of the law. It is not the law that will give us great joy, it is that we have met the Lord and felt his love and his presence.
Sometimes our children need to hear the law -- the law that a good lawyer can't get around. "Don't play ball in our yard or you'll break a window!" we may shout, because we know what can happen if they disobey!
The whole Bible calls into question the principle of democracy! It was a disaster through the whole of scripture. The majority had voted for the golden calf! Shouldn't we allow people the freedom to practice their faith in the way they see it? Evidently not. If democracy ruled we would still be worshiping a golden calf! God had to lay down some solid restrictions on the people's freedom in those two tablets or they would destroy themselves. That vision of Moses' face glowing must have made the Israelites see how far they had wandered from their God! We need to see that glow every Sunday. It is not meant to make us legalists, but to bring us back to the God who loves us and wants us to love him. Jesus tries to correct the people's concept of the law. As he said in just one interpretation of the law, "The Sabbath was created for man and not man for the Sabbath. Laws, especially God's, were given for our good!"
So pay attention to the one who gave the law. Don't get all dragged down in the legal details. Look for the Spirit of the law! Look to the one who gave it to us! Then you will glow.
Bob O.
Exodus 34:29-35
Bob finally had his opportunity to corner Jane after the presentation. "Jane, I didn't say anything earlier when you came in, but there seems to be something special about you tonight."
"I know," Jane replied, "I just found out today that Dave and I are pregnant!"
"So, that was the glow I saw in your face. I knew there was something. I just didn't know how to name it. Now I do," Bob said with a congratulatory smile.
Mark M.
2 Corinthians 3:12--4:2
Jesus was transparent when he declared himself to be the Son of Man, by substituting this title for the word "I." Instead of using the first person singular, Jesus uses the title Son of Man. In a well-known declaration Jesus said, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." Unapologetically, Jesus made it known he was the long-awaited messiah. Knowing that Jesus is the messiah, "we do not lose heart."
Ron L.
2 Corinthians 3:12--4:2
Our text deals with both the glory of Christ (3:18) and the freedom He brings (3:17). We need encounters with these visions of God's glory to help us in our struggles with doubt. Social critic Alain de Botton notes that in settings where religion provides stunning beauty (like the vision of the Transfiguration) to our shared experience, doubt and anxieties occasioned by our insecurity about our place, significance, or importance in the community tends to vanish, as we all experience our Lord in awe, regardless of our social standing (Status Anxiety, pp. 250ff). The millionaire, the assembly-line worker, and the welfare client all enter the Sistine Chapel and are awed by its beauty and in sharing that common experience there they are put on the same "level playing field," none better than the other.
The common experience of God's glory not only frees us from self-doubt occasioned by social status in relation to those of higher position. It also frees us for service. Such a vision of magnificence of the love of God gives "ethical diarrhea," significant social commentator Cornel West says. God's magnificent love flows through and from our bodies with no effort, sometimes against our wills.
Mark E.
Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)
Imagine having Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati Royals in the 1960s), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s), and LeBron James (Miami Heat in the 21st century) on the same team on the basketball floor at the same time! Imagine having Copernicus (16th century), Isaac Newton (18th century), and Albert Einstein (20th century) as your science teachers in the same year. Imagine sitting in on a conversation about human rights and justice between Frederick Douglass (slavery), Susan B. Anthony (women's suffrage), and Helen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberian Nobel Peace Prize winner). Such would be the power of having Moses (the lawgiver), Elijah (prophet of prophets), and Jesus (acclaimed Messiah) on the mountain together talking about God's ways in the world.
Mark M.
Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)
Did you notice two interesting things about this passage that can make you wonder? First is that Andrew is not with the group; yet he was the one who brought Peter to Jesus. He must be a humble man to stay with Jesus after the other three got promoted -- notice that there were two other brothers!
The next thing to notice is that the disciples recognized Moses and Elijah. There were no photos of them. How did they know they were the ones who appeared? I only mention those two things because we can get so lost in details that we can miss the real message in a passage of scripture.
How quick we are to celebrate an occasion! An Olympic star from our town wins and we put up a statue! When Billy Graham came to Cheyenne the whole town came out for his meeting! Now few remember those days. The disciples wanted to put up some tabernacles in honor of that great transfiguration to remember it! Notice that Jesus was going to be one of the three! But Jesus does not want some earthly monument even like a great cathedral to be built in his honor. He wants his presence in our hearts!
When we have great experiences, let them change us and not just build memorials to them. The disciples could only carry that experience in their minds. They didn't even tell anyone about it -- presumably until they wrote of it or told someone to put it in the gospels. Jesus told many whom he cured to tell no one! He was not broadcasting! He missed many PR opportunities. He had a more important message for all of us!
The interesting thing about that last healing section is that he seemed upset with his disciples, among others, because they could not instantly heal the boy with the demon in him. It looks like he expects a great deal of us. If healing is one of his goals for us, then we have failed him.
We had a healing service from the Lutheran occasional services book one evening, and we always got a few out. I'm not sure they believed they would be healed miraculously, but one was to go in for a heart bypass surgery the next day. Nothing happened that night, but he told us the next week that when he was prepared for surgery, another doctor just happened to be in the gallery that day. He was traveling through and had devised a new procedure that precluded radical surgery. Our man approved and he was out of the hospital in two days instead of the weeks he expected. We felt that all those coincidences were, in fact, the miracle that we had prayed for.
This entire text reminds us that the ways of God are not our ways and we should not try to put God in a box. Just shut up and listen -- and obey!
Bob O.
When we come home from church, is there a radiance in our face that others can see? Does our faith in Christ give us a different look? I have known Christians whose face glowed with joy because of their faith! They were transfigured! I want my children to see that my faith has transformed me so that they will want to grow in their faith also. I don't want to put fear into them just because of my laws into their ears.
Moses' face was still glowing when he came down to see Jesus on the mountain. It never went away in his day either. It was so bright that he had to cover it. Every meeting he had with the Lord renewed that glow.
Some artists paint Moses as having two horns on his head. That reminds us more of Satan! We have to be careful of symbolism! Sometimes our children may only see the horns when we discipline them: in other words, when we bring down the law on them. Moses had just come down with the two tablets of the law. It is not the law that will give us great joy, it is that we have met the Lord and felt his love and his presence.
Sometimes our children need to hear the law -- the law that a good lawyer can't get around. "Don't play ball in our yard or you'll break a window!" we may shout, because we know what can happen if they disobey!
The whole Bible calls into question the principle of democracy! It was a disaster through the whole of scripture. The majority had voted for the golden calf! Shouldn't we allow people the freedom to practice their faith in the way they see it? Evidently not. If democracy ruled we would still be worshiping a golden calf! God had to lay down some solid restrictions on the people's freedom in those two tablets or they would destroy themselves. That vision of Moses' face glowing must have made the Israelites see how far they had wandered from their God! We need to see that glow every Sunday. It is not meant to make us legalists, but to bring us back to the God who loves us and wants us to love him. Jesus tries to correct the people's concept of the law. As he said in just one interpretation of the law, "The Sabbath was created for man and not man for the Sabbath. Laws, especially God's, were given for our good!"
So pay attention to the one who gave the law. Don't get all dragged down in the legal details. Look for the Spirit of the law! Look to the one who gave it to us! Then you will glow.
Bob O.
Exodus 34:29-35
Bob finally had his opportunity to corner Jane after the presentation. "Jane, I didn't say anything earlier when you came in, but there seems to be something special about you tonight."
"I know," Jane replied, "I just found out today that Dave and I are pregnant!"
"So, that was the glow I saw in your face. I knew there was something. I just didn't know how to name it. Now I do," Bob said with a congratulatory smile.
Mark M.
2 Corinthians 3:12--4:2
Jesus was transparent when he declared himself to be the Son of Man, by substituting this title for the word "I." Instead of using the first person singular, Jesus uses the title Son of Man. In a well-known declaration Jesus said, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." Unapologetically, Jesus made it known he was the long-awaited messiah. Knowing that Jesus is the messiah, "we do not lose heart."
Ron L.
2 Corinthians 3:12--4:2
Our text deals with both the glory of Christ (3:18) and the freedom He brings (3:17). We need encounters with these visions of God's glory to help us in our struggles with doubt. Social critic Alain de Botton notes that in settings where religion provides stunning beauty (like the vision of the Transfiguration) to our shared experience, doubt and anxieties occasioned by our insecurity about our place, significance, or importance in the community tends to vanish, as we all experience our Lord in awe, regardless of our social standing (Status Anxiety, pp. 250ff). The millionaire, the assembly-line worker, and the welfare client all enter the Sistine Chapel and are awed by its beauty and in sharing that common experience there they are put on the same "level playing field," none better than the other.
The common experience of God's glory not only frees us from self-doubt occasioned by social status in relation to those of higher position. It also frees us for service. Such a vision of magnificence of the love of God gives "ethical diarrhea," significant social commentator Cornel West says. God's magnificent love flows through and from our bodies with no effort, sometimes against our wills.
Mark E.
Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)
Imagine having Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati Royals in the 1960s), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s), and LeBron James (Miami Heat in the 21st century) on the same team on the basketball floor at the same time! Imagine having Copernicus (16th century), Isaac Newton (18th century), and Albert Einstein (20th century) as your science teachers in the same year. Imagine sitting in on a conversation about human rights and justice between Frederick Douglass (slavery), Susan B. Anthony (women's suffrage), and Helen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberian Nobel Peace Prize winner). Such would be the power of having Moses (the lawgiver), Elijah (prophet of prophets), and Jesus (acclaimed Messiah) on the mountain together talking about God's ways in the world.
Mark M.
Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)
Did you notice two interesting things about this passage that can make you wonder? First is that Andrew is not with the group; yet he was the one who brought Peter to Jesus. He must be a humble man to stay with Jesus after the other three got promoted -- notice that there were two other brothers!
The next thing to notice is that the disciples recognized Moses and Elijah. There were no photos of them. How did they know they were the ones who appeared? I only mention those two things because we can get so lost in details that we can miss the real message in a passage of scripture.
How quick we are to celebrate an occasion! An Olympic star from our town wins and we put up a statue! When Billy Graham came to Cheyenne the whole town came out for his meeting! Now few remember those days. The disciples wanted to put up some tabernacles in honor of that great transfiguration to remember it! Notice that Jesus was going to be one of the three! But Jesus does not want some earthly monument even like a great cathedral to be built in his honor. He wants his presence in our hearts!
When we have great experiences, let them change us and not just build memorials to them. The disciples could only carry that experience in their minds. They didn't even tell anyone about it -- presumably until they wrote of it or told someone to put it in the gospels. Jesus told many whom he cured to tell no one! He was not broadcasting! He missed many PR opportunities. He had a more important message for all of us!
The interesting thing about that last healing section is that he seemed upset with his disciples, among others, because they could not instantly heal the boy with the demon in him. It looks like he expects a great deal of us. If healing is one of his goals for us, then we have failed him.
We had a healing service from the Lutheran occasional services book one evening, and we always got a few out. I'm not sure they believed they would be healed miraculously, but one was to go in for a heart bypass surgery the next day. Nothing happened that night, but he told us the next week that when he was prepared for surgery, another doctor just happened to be in the gallery that day. He was traveling through and had devised a new procedure that precluded radical surgery. Our man approved and he was out of the hospital in two days instead of the weeks he expected. We felt that all those coincidences were, in fact, the miracle that we had prayed for.
This entire text reminds us that the ways of God are not our ways and we should not try to put God in a box. Just shut up and listen -- and obey!
Bob O.
