Luke 9:28-43a Mountain Tops in Our Faith (Brettell) – Bible study

Sermon Luke 9:28-43 Mountain Tops in Our Faith

By Pastor Daniel W. Brettell

In todays Gospel, Peter, James, and John climb a mountain with Jesus. And at the top of that mountain they have a religious experience that fills them with emotional wonder. This experience is so incredible that they dont want it to end, and when it does end, they dont want to come down from the mountain. They want to stay there on top of the mountain with Jesus.

Have you ever had that kind of experience? Im not just referring to religious experienceshave you ever had an experience or a moment in your life that you just didnt want to end; a moment that you want to recapture and hold onto forever? Perhaps it was your wedding day; maybe the birth of a child; or maybe it was a glorious sunrise over the ocean. Im talking about experiences that changed your life in some way; experiences that are measured in the depth of your emotional response.

You see, thats whats happening to Peter, James, and John in todays lesson. Theyre having an experience that is so overwhelming emotional that they simply dont know how to respond on any logical level. So, they want to stay there on that mountaintop. Whats interesting in the lesson is that Jesus never says to them, No, we cant stay here, its just implied that he leads them down off the mountain. Now, think about that for a moment; Jesus leads them away from the experience; he leads them down the mountain. But imaginejust imaginewhat would have happened if Jesus had said, Okay, well stay here. You go ahead and build those three dwellings for Moses, Elijah, and me. Well just stay put.

Imagine what would have happened.

NOTHING WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!! Thats what I want you to understand today. NOTHING WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!! And we wouldnt be sitting here today. We wouldnt be anticipating the beginning of Lent, because there would have been no agonized prayer in Gethsemane; no pain and suffering on that cross outside of Jerusalem; no cold and dark of the tomb; and no joy of Easter morning. NOTHING! Absolutely nothing would have happened, and we would not be here today as saved and redeemed children of God.

Jesus knew that, so he led his three emotionally-charged discipleshis friendsdown off that mountain top and back to the reality of the world; the reality of what was to come for him . . . and for them. You see, Jesus knew; he knew what was coming. Thats what he spoke to Moses and Elijah about up there on the mountain.

“Behold, two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory, and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem” (9:30-31).

Theres a word in that verse that we need to take note of and carefully consider. Its the word “departure.” In the original Greek, that word is exodon . Does that word sound in any way familiar to you? Listen to it againexodon . If youre connecting it to the English word exodus youre on the right track. And youre absolutely right if youre connecting exodon to the fact that Moses is present. Here in Lukes Gospel we commonly translate exodon as departure. But we could just as easily . . . and just as appropriately . . . translate it as exodus. On top of that mountain, Jesus, Moses, and Elijah are discussing his exodon . . . his departure . . . his exodus . . . that will take place in Jerusalem. In fact, if we use exodus here, we may actually get a better understanding of what Luke is trying to tell us with this lesson. Because this is where the lesson is really making its point.

Think about what exodus means. Think about Moses relationship to exodus. What was Moses doing with the people of Israel? The exodus he was leading them on; what was it all about? In the exodus from Egypt, Moses led the chosen people of God to the Promised Land. When Jesus has his exodon in Jerusalem, he leads us into salvation . . . into the Kingdom of God.

And thats why Jesus couldnt stay up there on that mountain. He had an exodus to lead. He had to come down from the mountain top so he could lead us into salvation. Peter, James, and John had to come down for another reason; and its a reason that applies directly to us and the way we witness to our faith.

On April 3, 1968, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King delivered one of his most famous speeches. In his speech, Dr. King talked about the struggles of the Civil Rights movement. He talked specifically about the struggles against perceptions. He talked about dreams. But this speech was not his I have a dream speech. This speech talked about the realities of 1968, not about the hopes and dreams of a better future. And in this particular speech, Dr. King makes reference to how weas Christianssometimes get caught up in our own mountaintop experiences. In his speech, Dr. King quoted a phrase from an old spiritual. He said:

Its all right to talk about long white robes over yonder, in all its symbolism.

With that quotation, Dr. King is referring to the promised rewards in Gods heavenly kingdom. But he goes on to say:

But ultimately people want some suits and dresses and shoes to wear down here. Its all right to talk about streets flowing with milk and honey, but God has commanded us to be concerned about the slums down here, and his children who cant eat three square meals a day. Its all right to talk about the new Jerusalem, but one day, Gods preachers must talk about the New York, the new Atlanta, the new Philadelphia, the new Los Angeles, the new Memphis, Tennessee. This is what we have to do.

What Dr. King was echoing was what Jesus intended when he led Peter, James, and John down off that mountain top. Jesus was telling his disciplesnot through words, but through actionsthat staying on that mountaintop might seem like a good idea in the short term, but it isnt going to accomplish anything in Gods world. Listen to how Dr. King finished his speech. I wish I could preach the way he did, but listen with your hearts and your minds to these incredible words. Dr. King said:

. . . I dont know what will happen now. Weve got some difficult days ahead. But it doesnt matter with me now. Because Ive been to the mountaintop. And I dont mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But Im not concerned about that now. I just want to do Gods will. And Hes allowed me to go up to the mountain. And Ive looked over. And Ive seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And Im happy tonight. Im not worried about anything. Im not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.

The next morning, as he stood outside his hotel room, a shot rang out, and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King was dead; killed by an assassins bullet.

Dr. Kings words say more about the Transfiguration experienceand say it far more eloquentlythan I can ever hope to do. In our lives we climb that mountain with Jesus many times. We experience the near presence of God in our lives, time and time again. Sometimes we miss the moment because there are too many distractions in our lives. But other times, the momentthat encounter with Godstrikes us full force, and we are never again the same. That experience takes hold of our lives and we are forever changed.

But God wants us to do something with that experience. He wants us to hold onto the experience, but He wants us to come down from the mountaintop and use the experience. God wants us to come back to the nitty-gritty, day-to-day aspect of our lives and use the mountaintop experience to help others . . . because thats where youll find the real glory of God.

It would have been easy for Jesus to say, Yeah, sure; lets stay up here on the mountain top; you guys build those three shelters and well just stay up here near to God. But therein lies the problem. You cant contain God inside any shelter . . . or tabernacle . . . or Temple . . . or Cathedral . . . or Church. You cant find the real glory of God thereonly the reflection of that glory. Think about the beauty of any religious structurefrom the simplest little chapel to the grandest Cathedral. We call them the house of God, but does God exist only inside the four walls of those structures? NO! God wont be contained or constrained within the walls of any human-made structure. God isnt even contained inside of Gods own creation.

We build our churches, our Temples, our Cathedrals to the glory of God, but God is not contained simply within the walls of those structures. God is in here and God is out there . . . among Gods people. The true glory of God is found wherever there is a need for us to practice our faith; wherever there is a need to help a neighbor; wherever there is a need to speak a word of comfort. And God wants us out there where the need exists. Thats the message of todays Gospel. God comes to us in our lives, and sometimes God comes to us in those incredible mountain-top experiences. But God wants us to use those experiences to spread his Word; to spread the Good Newsboth in words and in actions.

Jesus came down from the mountain top so that he could lead us on an exodon, an exodus, to our salvation. And heres the Good Newswe are saved; we have received that salvationnot because of anything we have done, but rather it is entirely because of what Jesus did when he spread his arms for us on that cross. So, be thankful for that wonderful gift and use it to provide for others.

Each time we worship together, it is a mountain-top experience, but we cant stay here, my friends. To paraphrase Dr. King, We have been to the mountain top, and we have seen the promised land, and we have nothing to fear. So now, we have to come down from the mountain top, so that we might tell others what weve seen. Thats Gods message to us. Thats what God meant when he said, This is my beloved son; listen to him. And what is Jesus saying to us? Hes telling us to spread the Good News both in what we say and in what we do. The glory of God was on that mountaintop, but it also has to be in our hearts. Theres an old Gospel hymn with the words, Theyll know we are Christians by our love. Those words should guide us in everything we do and say.

We have to follow the example Jesus set when he guided his disciples down from that mountain. Jesus will lead; we will follow. But we also have an obligation to tell others what we saw and what we experienced on top of that mountain. We have an obligation to tell the Good News and to practice that Good News.

Let us pray.

May the love of God, which passes all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus; who takes us to the mountaintop and then sends us down to do his work in his world. Amen

Scripture quotations from the World English Bible

Copyright 2010 Daniel W. Brettell. Used by permission.