A chapter before today’s Gospel reading, we hear Peter tell Jesus that He is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). And “from that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer much… be killed, and be raised on the third day” (Matthew 16:21).
And it’s then, after the disciples hear such somber news, that Jesus tells them that some of them will not taste death, will not die, until they see Him, the Son of Man, in the glory of His kingdom (Matthew 16:28).
And so, a few days go by, and nothing like that happens. So, who will get to see the Son of Man, in the glory of His kingdom? Who will not taste death before he sees Jesus in His glory? And what would that even be like?
Then, six days later, Jesus selects three of the Twelve: Peter, James, and John. They alone will go with Jesus up that mountain. They become the ones who will not taste death before they see Jesus in the glory of His kingdom. The other disciples will have to wait. These three are enough, for, according to Old-Covenant Law, two or three witnesses are enough to prove a fact (Deuteronomy 19:15).
While they were with Jesus, He suddenly changes in appearance. He transfigures and His face shines like the sun; His clothes gleam white as light. We confess that every week in the Creed, that Jesus is “God of God, Light of Light” (Nicene Creed). Peter, James, and John saw that with their own eyes.
John wrote about Jesus in His glory in the Gospel that bears his name: “We saw his glory, the glory of the one-and-only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Peter wrote in his second letter:
When Jesus received honor and glory from God the Father, a voice came to him from the Majestic Glory: “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” We heard this voice when it came from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. [2 Peter 1:17-18]
Jesus, as God, revealed the glory He had earlier concealed. For Jesus is God with us: Emmanuel. They see a glimpse of that, now unveiled, and the sight is glorious!
Jesus glowed with God’s glory. But that wasn’t the first time someone glowed. Every time Moses went up Mt. Sinai to meet with God, he came back glowing. But he only glowed for a while. And the brightness, although visible, was not blinding.
When Moses’ face glowed, that was an after-effect of being in God’s presence. Moses was like something the glows in the dark. When you see a glow-in-the-dark item, the power of its glow doesn’t originate from itself. No, it comes from another source. The glow is stored energy being released later in time.
So, if Moses was glowing from God’s glory, then God was the source of that glory. And so Jesus, being God in the flesh, is also the source of such glory. When Jesus shone, it was His divinity hidden “in, with, and under” His humanity, revealing itself. The glow of Jesus was the glow of His glory as the one-and-only Son of the Father.
That’s the hidden glory of the incarnation. The eternal Son of God, in all His glory, hides Himself within His humble humanity. If you were to see Jesus walking down the street, you wouldn’t have seen anything unusual about Him. Yet, “the entire fullness of God’s nature lives bodily in Christ” (Colossians 2:9). The Infinite contains Himself within the finite; the Creator comes as the creature.
But for this brief moment, Jesus gives three disciples a glimpse of His shining glory. It’s not the full blast: that would blind and destroy any of us! No one can bear the sight of God in His full glory while still in this fallen flesh (Exodus 33:20). But it was enough of a glimpse to let them know that there was more to Jesus than meets the eye.
And while there, a thick cloud came to cover the mountain. They see the glory that once filled tabernacle and temple, the Shekinah. That was the same cloud that covered Mt. Sinai. That was the pillar of cloud by day that guided Israel during their wilderness wanderings. And from that cloud, the disciples heard the voice of God the Father: “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Listen to Him. Hear His words, for His are the words of eternal life (John 6:68). Moses can’t save you—but he can point you to the One who can! Elijah can’t save you—but he can point you to the One who can! Only Jesus can save you. Hear His words.
So then, what were Jesus’ words on that mountain? St. Matthew doesn’t tell us, but Luke does. Luke tells us that Moses, Elijah, and Jesus were discussing His “departure” (Luke 9:31). His departure was His impending death and resurrection.
Jesus came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets. And now Moses, the giver of the Law, and Elijah, the greatest Old-Covenant prophet, will be witnesses of Jesus in His glory. Remember, it takes at least two to prove a fact in the Old Covenant. They pointed to Jesus in the Old Covenant, and now they bear witness to His glory in the New.
Only Jesus can mediate between God and man because He is both God and man. Moses and Elijah reflected the glory of God, but only Jesus shines with the glory of God. Moses and Elijah were like the moon reflecting the sun. But only Jesus shines like the sun with His own light. Only Jesus is the Light of the world.
And in the end, that’s what the three disciples see—only Jesus. He came and picked them up off the ground, lifting them from their fear. They saw no one but Jesus. He’s the One they need. He’s the One you need, as well.
The Transfiguration was a preview of the resurrection. Moses and Elijah were long dead, centuries before. And yet, there they were, alive in the presence of Jesus. He’s the Lord of the living; in Him, we “have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). Jesus gives us a sneak peek of His return in glory, when He will raise the dead and complete the salvation He has promised. Moses and Elijah testify to that truth and glory.
With the hearing of Jesus’ words also comes our own transfiguration. The Scriptures say that we are “being transformed into Jesus’ image with ever-increasing glory, which is from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Just as the divinity of Jesus was hidden beneath the weakness of His humanity, so the new man in Christ, our new nature, is hidden under the weakness of our sinful, fallen flesh. Our “mount of transfiguration” comes on the Last Day, when the Lord will raise us and we will appear in bodies as sinless and glorious as His, perfectly reflecting the light of His glory, without the stain of sin.
But now, we can only experience glimpses of Jesus’ glory, as we let our light shine before others that they may see our good works and give glory to our Father in heaven (Mathew 5:16). To be sure, our sin always clouds that light. Our good works are never entirely good in themselves, since someone who still has a fallen nature is doing them. But they are still good with God’s goodness.
We no longer live, but Christ lives in us (Galatians 2:20). And the Christ, who is in us, through His Spirit, is transforming us into His image, day by day. Living in repentance, dying and rising in our baptism, He is transforming us from the inside out. The old Adam in us dies, and the new self, received in baptism, rises in and with Christ.
So, the Transfiguration wasn’t just something to amaze us. No, the Transfiguration tells you who Jesus is: He is true God and true man. He is God in human flesh. The Transfiguration tells you that even though Jesus’ divinity is buried deeply in His humanity, He is still the fullness of God, living bodily in Jesus.
But it’s Jesus’ death and resurrection that lets you know that He is God for you. For it’s then that Jesus becomes your Redeemer and Savior. In His death, He crucifies your fallen flesh of death. In His resurrection, He raises you into newness of life, when He resurrects a sinless and glorious body on the Last Day. The old, sinful flesh dies; a new perfect and sinless body arises!
In Jesus’ transfiguration, we get a three-fold glimpse of glory. We see the glory of Jesus’ divinity shining through His humanity, as God in the flesh. We see the mystery of our own transformation in ever-increasing glory, as we die to sin and live to righteousness in Christ. But, even more, we see the glory of the resurrection that Moses and Elijah, with all the saints of all time, will have with Christ on the Last Day.
One day, you will see Jesus shining in His full glory. After all, didn’t Jesus say that He would appear again in glory to raise you from the dead and give you eternal life (Luke 21:27)? Yes! And the sight will be glorious!
But for now, the mountain of glory must give way to the mountain of the cross. And the shining Jesus must give way to the crucified Jesus. For without the crucified Jesus, without His death and resurrection, you will not have your transfiguration and rise bodily from death, shining with the glory of God, just as Jesus did.
And so, the Sunday of Transfiguration gives way to Ash Wednesday and the somber season of Lent. But it’s always the same Jesus: shining, dead, risen, and reigning. It’s always the same Jesus—and that’s good, for that same Jesus is true God and true man who comes to save you and give you new life. Amen.
