Transfiguration of Christ

In Matthew, chapter 17, we read about the transfiguration of Christ. "Six days later (after the revelation to Peter of who Jesus was, the Messiah, the Son of the living God - Mat 16:16) Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain.  As the men watched, Jesus' appearance changed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothing became dazzling white.  Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus.  Peter blurted out, "Lord this is wonderful! If you want me to, I'll make three shrines, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  But even as he said it, a bright cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, and I am fully pleased with him.  Listen to him." The disciples were terrified and fell face down on the ground.  Jesus came over and touched them, "Get up," he said, "don't be afraid."  And when they looked, they saw only Jesus with them.  As they descended the mountain  Jesus commanded them, " Don't tell anyone what you have seen until I, the Son of Man, have been raised from the dead."

There were these following questions in my mind, as I read the passage, that have been on my mind for some time,

1. What was the significance of the transfiguration of Jesus?
2. Why was Moses and Elijah the ones who were present and not one of the other prophets, say, Abraham, Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Nathan, John the Baptist, or someone else?
3. Why did Christ ask his disciples not to talk about what they witnessed here on the mountain top to anyone until after he had been resurrected from the dead?

The transfiguration of Christ is a critical connection of Christ's God-ness and humanness. But then from the very beginning of Christ's ministry, from his baptism onwards the oneness of Christ the man and Christ the God was apparent. John the Baptist and those standing by when Christ was baptized witnessed the Holy Spirit descend upon Christ in the form of a dove and heard the voice from heaven say, "this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased." The Pharisees, the Sadducees, the common man in the temple and on the street, and his disciples witnessed the awesome power of Jesus over demons, sickness, death, the wind and the waves, his power to multiply provisions (he fed the multitudes twice with a few loaves of bread and pieces of fish), his power to provide resources in the most unimaginable of ways (as with the coin in the mouth of the fish that Peter caught to pay taxes as instructed by Jesus) were proof of his powers beyond that of an ordinary prophet of God. His disciples witnessed Jesus curse the fig tree and it withered away. So to all, his supporters and his detractors, one thing was apparent, his power to create, resurrect, restore and destroy! He was not just an ordinary prophet of God!

So why the transfiguration?

One thing we note prior to the transfiguration was Jesus started talking about his death and resurrection. First, not in a plain manner, as he referred to his death and resurrection by stating to a disbelieving crowd looking for a miracle from heaven that the only miracle he was going to give them was the sign of Jonah, as Jonah was in the belly of a whale for three days before being put back on shore. He stated this twice (Matthew 12:39-40 and Matthew 16:4).

But, following Peter's declaration of Jesus as the Son of God, the Messiah, Jesus started plainly and openly telling his disciples of his coming death and resurrection. (Matthew 16:15-17, 21and Matthew 17:22-23). He had started to repeatedly tell his disciples of  what was to come to prepare them when it arrived.  Witnessing the transfiguration of Christ, seeing the presence of Moses and Elijah on that mountain top speaking to Jesus, and then hearing the heavenly voice proclaiming Jesus as God's beloved son and commanding the disciples to listen to him gave the disciples a connection to the old testament prophecies of the Son of God and a glimpse into a realm they had not seen before, but believed in - the afterlife, eternity.  Jesus had begun preparing his disciples for a life after his death, resurrection and ascension. These disciples would be taking the message of salvation through a risen Christ across the world.

Why Moses and Elijah, and not another prophet?

If you look into the characters of Moses and Elijah, there were some similarities they shared with Christ the man.  Moses was the leader of the Israelites ordained by God to lead the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt and in to the promised land so that God may have a new relationship with his people.  Moses was one of the most selfless leaders and God said about Moses that there was no one more humbler than him.  When it came to Elijah, he was a prophet who was so very zealous for the things of God.

Also, there were two other peculiarities about their life and death. Moses following his death we read in the book of Jude that his body was carried to heaven by archangel Michael. Regarding Elijah we read in the book of 2 Kings, chapter 2, that he was carried away to heaven, alive, in a chariot of fire drawn by horses of fire in plain sight of witnesses.  Now here stood Moses and Elijah in front of Peter, James and John speaking with Jesus, the same Moses and Elijah, about whom the Jews knew and the events surrounding their lives that I write here. May I suggest that God was preparing his disciples in the spirit so that they may see the correlation between the Old Testament teachings they knew and the things that were to come in Christ's life - his death, resurrection and ascension.

Jesus knew that following his arrest, without his leadership, his disciples would scatter.  These were experiences that were going to strengthen them during those times of doubt and give them the conviction and resolve to carry out God's work and spread the gospel of salvation through the risen Christ.

Why not witness about the transfiguration experience until after the death and resurrection of Christ?

At the proper time, following the chain of events, the disciples' testimony of what they had heard and seen, with their personal experiences of Jesus, the Christ, carried such conviction that not even the threat of torture and death could persuade them to change their testimonies as they preached the gospel of salvation through the risen Christ across this world. Most of the disciples paid with their life for their convictions.  In their deaths, the disciples sealed their testimonies in blood, giving us the assurance of the hope of salvation in Christ.

May God bless you!

PS: what were Elijah and Moses speaking about with Jesus? Read Luke chapter 9.

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

When we look at the lives of Abraham (the Father of Faith, the Father of a Nation), his son Isaac (the Promised child) and his grandson Jacob (the Promised Nation - Israel), their lives were filled with great struggles, tremendous hardships, terror of death, maddening stress and great personal sacrifices even as they followed God's instructions.  They were obedient though it cost them.  In the end their descendants were blessed, a proven resilient bunch, a tiny pin prick of a nation on the world's map, that has survived its hostile surrounding because God's hand is with them.

All three underwent exceptional tests of faith and in the end God proved to them that He was a Sovereign God, totally in control of their situations, faithful in his promises to each. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob died at peace at a ripe old age, regaining all they had lost and much more. Ishmael (!!) and Isaac together buried their father Abraham at his death at the age of 175. Esau (!!) and Jacob were present, at peace with each other, at Isaac's death and buried him together; Isaac was 180 years old. Joseph, the son who was presumed dead, and his brothers were there to bury their father, Jacob, at his death at the age of 147. Today, when Christians worship, we call out to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, faithful in his promises to the very end.

Apostle Paul echoes his forefathers' lives in 2 Corinthian 4:7-18 (NIV) as he spread the gospel of Christ,

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

This is the way of the Christian, facing exceptional challenges in life, building up resiliency to withstand the onslaught from God's enemy - Satan and his powers.  Our future is secure in God's hands, for we read Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:24,  "the one who has called you is faithful and He will do it."

PS: You can read about the life of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob starting in the book of Genesis 11:27 - Genesis, chapter 50.