Mark 9:1–13 · 16 February 2025
Hope and Glory Amidst Death and Suffering
Hope and Glory amidst Suffering and Death
Intro
I wonder how often do you think about death? Now, obviously this isn’t something that any of us probably want to think about, but it is something that is unavoidable. Even in our modern society, which is more sheltered from death than any in history, where people rarely die at home, and people try to prolong life as long as possible in hospitals, we still feel its effects all around us.
As we read through the passage did you notice how much death there was? How often it was mentioned in a passage which really doesn’t seem to have anything to do with death? It seems a bit strange for a passage on Jesus’ transfiguration to be surrounded by as much death as we see. Verse 1: some…will not taste death, verse 9: until the Son of Man had risen from the dead, verse 10: questioning…this rising from the dead, verse 13: they did to him whatever they pleased — that is, they killed him. But actually as we examine God’s word this morning we’ll see how the transfiguration gives us hope in a world of suffering and death, even our own.
To give some context as a refresher of where we are in Mark’s gospel, Jesus has healed a blind man, the disciples have declared Jesus as the Christ, Jesus has told them that he is going to suffer and die and rise again, and that those who want to be his disciples must take up their crosses and follow him. Jesus has been declared as Christ by the disciples, and now he has begun to show them what that means — who the Christ is.
1 – The Transfiguration of Jesus
And so as we come to our passage this morning, let’s ask 7 whys of the text which will help us to understand what is happening in the transfiguration, and its importance in the ministry of Jesus. Why do these things matter, what do they teach us, what if they weren’t there?
1 - Why Peter, James, and John? (9:2)
Our first why comes from verse 2: And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
Why does Jesus only take Peter, James, and John with him up the mountain? We know from reading the gospels that even as Jesus has the 12 amongst his followers, that from them he also has his three closest friends — Peter, James, and John. So in some senses it’s not unusual for Jesus to only pick his inner circle to join him for some event.
But I think that this is also included as a warning as well. Peter has just declared Jesus as the Christ, and while it seems that Peter is speaking on behalf of the disciples, we know that they don’t all believe this in their hearts. At the very least we know that Judas did not, but we don’t know exactly where the others were at at this stage either.
We’ll consider this further in our next why, but only those who have been purified and washed by the blood of Jesus can ascend the mountain of the Lord. When Peter, James, and John — those who are righteous, united to Jesus — behold his glory, they can respond with awe and wonder. But for the wicked to come face to face with God it would rather be as a consuming fire which would burn them up.
This is a warning of what will happen when Jesus returns on the last day. Those who are united to Jesus will see him face to face and rejoice, but the wicked will be destroyed.
2 - Why the Mountain? (9:2)
But why does the transfiguration happen on a mountain? Verse 2 again: And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
In the bible, mountains are the places where heaven and earth are seen to overlap, where God and man meet. This is seen throughout the Old Testament, and now in the New Testament with the arrival of Jesus. In the Old Testament God plants the garden of Eden on a mountain where he walks with Adam and Eve. God provides a ram for Abraham on a mountain to be the sacrifice in the place of Isaac. Moses and Elijah both meet with God upon mount Sinai. Solomon builds the temple on Mount Moriah. The prophets and Psalms are replete with references to ascending the mountain of the Lord, as the place where God will install his king, and as a meeting place for God as a gathering point for the nations.
And then we arrive at the New Testament and we see Jesus. Jesus goes up onto mountains to pray. He teaches from on top of mountains. He feeds thousands on mountains. And here this morning we see Jesus ascend this holy mountain and is transfigured. On the mountain where both heaven and earth overlap we see Jesus as who he truly is. We see both his human and divine natures in one person.
In the psalmist asks: Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.
On the mount of transfiguration Jesus both ascends and descends. As God Jesus descends on the mountain and the disciples see his glory which he has had eternally as the second person of the trinity. Jesus is the pre-existent, eternal Son of God. And as man, Jesus is the one who can fulfil . He is the only one who is worthy and able to ascend God’s holy hill.
Jesus is the messianic King, the son of man who is fulfilling all that the Old Testament pointed towards. And as fully God, fully man, Jesus is uniquely qualified to be the better mediator of the New Covenant.
In the Old Testament mountains are connected with covenant heads. God makes a covenant with Adam in the garden, with Noah on a mountain, with Moses on a mountain, Solomon builds God’s temple on a mountain where God had promised David in his covenant that his son would reign from forever. And now we have Jesus, who is the head of the church, of those who are members of the New and better Covenant.
And so it’s because of Jesus that Peter, James, and John were able to ascend the mountain with him. Because they are united to him, they are able to meet with God face to face on the mountain, not because of their own clean hands or pure hearts, which they don’t have, but because of Jesus’.
This isn’t the last time that Jesus will ascend a mountain. Jesus’ glory is seen on the mount of transfiguration, but it is pointing forward to a second mountain, Golgotha, where Jesus will be crucified and die for the sins of those whom he came to save — his glorious work of redemption being seen even more clearly.
3 - Why the Radiance? (9:3)
On the mountain we’re told, the end of verse 2: He was transfigured before them, and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them.
So, why the radiance? Our third why. In the Old Testament the prophet Ezekiel watches as God’s glory, his light and radiance, leaves the temple because of Israel’s sin. Israel is brought into exile, and even when they return and rebuild the temple, there is despair and sadness because it is no longer glorious as it was before. Israel are devoid of light and hope. Isaiah had said to them that The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory, and yet they don’t seem to be experiencing that.
In Jesus’ radiance in the transfiguration we see him as the divine eternal Son. As the writer to the Hebrews says, He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. Jesus’ clothes are described by Mark as being so intensely white that no one on earth could bleach them. This is a supernatural whiteness, not merely a change of clothes. Jesus is not being displayed here as just the best or most pure among humans, but as something so much more. Jesus is, as he describes himself, the light of the world.
The light which had left Israel, the glory of God which had departed, has now returned. We must not think that Jesus’ divinity is diminished or weakened by his humanity either. As heaven and earth overlap on this holy mountain, the disciples see Jesus as he truly is. Jesus’ divine nature and his human nature are not at odds with each other, but his divine nature serves to exalt his human nature beyond its natural state.
The church father Cyril of Alexandria explains it like this:
“We must not think that he who descended into the limitation of manhood for our sake lost his inherent radiance and that transcendence that comes from his nature. No, he had this divine fullness even in the emptiness of our condition.”
The disciples see Jesus as he truly is, and so great is his glory and the extent of his radiance that it causes them to fear. And as we look to Jesus and consider him we should have a right, holy, reverent fear. Because Jesus will return again. And when he returns it will not be as he came the first time, as a baby, with his glory veiled. But it will be as on this mountain, his glory and radiance seen by all. Those who are his will behold his glory with awe and worship and will rejoice to live in his light forever. But for those who do not follow him they will go to the outer, utter, darkness — separated away from God and the light of his glory.
Jesus’ radiance in the transfiguration shows him to be both the eternal divine Son, and the prophesied messianic son who would be a light to the nations.
4 - Why Moses and Elijah? (9:4)
And as Jesus is transfigured on the mountain, we suddenly find that it is no longer just Jesus with Peter, James, and John on the mountain, but now two others have arrived also. Look with me from verse 4: And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.
Why are Moses and Elijah here? Moses and Elijah are representatives of, and symbolise, the law and the prophets of the Old Testament. On the mountain Jesus is shown to be the one that the law and prophets pointed towards. Jesus said of himself that he did not come to abolish the law or the prophets… but to fulfil them. Moses and Elijah appear on the mountain as witnesses, to confirm that Jesus was the one that they were prefiguring. As we read the Old Testament, we must do so as the writers like Moses, and prophets like Elijah wanted — as always pointing towards Jesus.
But Moses and Elijah also appear as individuals, not just as representatives. On Mount Sinai, both Moses and Elijah asked to see God. Moses could not see God’s face, but saw God’s back, while God came to Elijah in a gentle whisper. But now God grants them what they asked of him, and they see the face of God in the person of Jesus. This for Moses is even greater than the fact that he is currently in the promised land that he was refused from entering during his life. To behold the face of God is far greater than any land.
Is this how you feel? Would you say to God with the psalmist that a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere?
But what is also clear is that Jesus is not just the one that the law and prophets pointed to, but is greater than them. Jesus is the better Moses. Where Moses inaugurates the Kingdom of Israel through the law on Mount Sinai where he saw God’s back, Jesus has brought in the Kingdom of God in the new covenant and Moses has seen the glory of God in the face of Jesus. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Where Moses’ face shone as a result of seeing God as a reflection, Jesus shines on the mountain because he is the source of light itself.
And all this gives us hope for when Jesus descends the mountain. When Jesus goes down the mountain he is met with verse 19 a faithless generation. This is just like Moses, who descends Mount Sinai where the people have made a covenant before God, only to find they have immediately begun worshipping idols. But as Jesus is greater than Moses we know that things will not turn out the same way. The law that Moses brought did not have the power to change people’s hearts, it could not itself turn people to God, rather it brought death. But the gospel of Jesus brings life. It turns people in repentance away from their sin and idols and back to God. It allows us to see God in his glory and to ascend the mountain to meet him there.
5 - Why Does Peter Say..? (9:5-6)
Let’s continue to verse 5, look with me: And Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” For he did not know what to say, for they were terrified.
Why does Peter say what he says here? If we know anything about Peter in the gospels, it’s that he can’t do something right without doing something wrong too. Jesus walks on water and Peter jumps out of a boat to join him in faith… and then he doubts and starts to sink. Peter declares Jesus as Christ… then acts like Satan and is rebuked by Jesus. Peter says that it is good that we are here… then says Let us make three tents, one for you one for Moses and one for Elijah.
There’s lots we can learn from Peter and what he says. We should recognise what Peter gets right. Peter is right to say it is good that we are here. It is good that he was there, beholding the glory of God in Christ. We should do the same. When we behold God’s glory in scripture, when we hear his word preached, when we see his word in the sacraments, when we pray we should say with Peter: It is good that we are here. It is good to be with Christ and to witness God’s glory.
But we also need to learn from Peter’s mistakes. Peter says he wants to set up three tents — verse 6, for he did not know what to say. As Christians, as people who worship the God who is truth, and whom we worship in spirit and truth, we should not be hasty to speak. The apostle Paul upon his conversion went away for three years to study the word of God and how the scriptures revealed Jesus before he began his ministry. The qualifications for elders prohibit new converts from being eligible. James warns us that not many should become teachers… for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. When we don’t know the truth, when we don’t know what to say, we shouldn’t speak. When someone asks you a question about the things of God and you don’t know, don’t be afraid to say you don’t know. Go, afterwards, and find out the answer, but don’t speak what is false out of ignorance and a desire to do good. Rather than serving God, this brings dishonour upon him by attributing to him what is false.
But what does Peter get so wrong in what he says? Peter still doesn’t fully understand who Jesus is. Just as Jesus had healed the blind man’s sight gradually, Peter has been healed enough to see that Jesus is the Christ, but not what that means, and not his full identity — even as he witnesses Jesus in his divinity upon the mountain. It will only be later that Peter would fully understand what he witnessed.
Peter gets much wrong in what he says. Firstly, he puts Jesus on the same level as Moses and Elijah, wanting to set up three tents for them, as if they were all equal. Moses and Elijah, the law and the prophets, were servants which pointed to the Master. Jesus is not equal to them but infinitely greater than them.
But Peter also wants to keep Jesus in his glory on the mountain. He hasn’t learned from Jesus rebuking him for his own rebuking of Jesus for saying he had to suffer and die. Peter rightly recognises Jesus’ glory, which terrifies him, but he wants to keep that glory on the mountain with Jesus dwelling in a tent there. This isn’t the way of Jesus. Jesus wants to leave the mountain. He wants to suffer and die. He wants his glory to go out from the mountain, not to remain there. Jesus’ desire is for his glory to dwell in believers. He will die to unite them to himself, and leave to send his Spirit to them.
This is why Jesus tells the disciples verse 9 not to tell anyone what happened until after his death and resurrection, because it is only then, in light of that, that they will fully understand what has happened. In the garden Satan offered a different way for Adam and Eve to become like God, rather than following God’s rule and plan. Peter does the same thing before ascending the mountain, and on it. He doesn’t want Jesus to die, he doesn’t want him to follow God’s plan of making all of us like God, being glorified and imaging him truly. He doesn’t realise it, but he is acting just like Satan — attempting to hinder God’s plan for making us like him.
6 - Why Does the Father Say..? (9:7-8)
God however, will not let Peter’s mistakes and opposition go unanswered. Look from verse 7: And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, “This is my beloved Son; listen to him.” And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only.
Before the Father even speaks to Peter and the disciples, he already begins by correcting them. Rather than having Peter build a covering for Jesus, God will provide the covering, and a cloud covers them on the mountain. Many commentators note that the cloud, described in Matthew’s account as a bright cloud, is likely the Holy Spirit, showing the full Trinity of Father, Son and Spirit together on the holy mountain. He also corrects Peter by leaving Jesus alone on the mountain and removing Elijah and Moses. They are not equal to Jesus. He is not a mere prophet or teacher. He stands alone.
A few verses prior in Mark, Jesus asked the disciples who the people say he is. He then asks them who they say that he is. On the mountain now God the Father says who Jesus is. Jesus is the Father’s beloved Son. He is the divine eternal Son of God, and his chosen messianic Son. Peter rightly understood Jesus as the Christ, and the Father confirms that he is right in saying that, but also shows Jesus to be his divine Son in his transfiguration, and by his declaration.
The Father does not stop there, but declaring Jesus as his beloved Son says also listen to him. This declaration is for Peter, the disciples, and all who hear this word today. Listen to the Son. Listen to the Son, not in opposition to the law and the prophets, but as the one whom they reveal. And most importantly, listen to him in what he says regarding his suffering, death, and resurrection.
Remember where this episode occurs. Verse 31 of Mark Chapter 8: He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. Verse 34: If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Chapter 9 verse 9: He charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. Verse 12: How is it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt?
This episode of Jesus’ transfiguration, where his glory is revealed, is surrounded by the describing of his suffering and death, and the suffering and death of those who follow him. Peter tried to rebuke Jesus for talking about this. But the Father says: Listen to him. We must listen to Jesus when he declares that his glory comes through his suffering, death, and resurrection. And we must listen to him when he tells us that the same is true for us if we are to follow him.
7 - Why Does Jesus Say..? (9:1;9-13)
So let’s continue in our passage and listen then to what Jesus says, verses 9 and 10: And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead might mean.
Jesus tells the disciples not to talk about what they have seen, until after his death and resurrection, because it is only in light of those that his glory on the mountain is fully understood. The transfiguration gives hope because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. It shows us what will happen to us because of his work on the cross. It shows us that for those who are united to Jesus through his death, and are risen with him, that he has redeemed and elevated our humanity through his deity. This is why the Father says to listen to what Jesus says. Jesus connects his glory to his suffering and death.
Jesus said in verse 1 to the crowd and his disciples that there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power. The kingdom of God has been coming progressively throughout Mark’s gospel. It comes with the birth of Jesus, the Christ, the messianic King. It comes at Jesus’ baptism and the beginning of his ministry as he heralds in the kingdom. It comes on the mountain as the disciples witness his glory as the God-man. And it comes on the cross as Jesus dies, redeeming a chosen people for his kingdom.
Peter, James, and John however, still don’t fully understand what Jesus is talking about, and so verse 11, shift to talking about Elijah, probably because they have just seen him and don’t know what to make of it. Look with me: And they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come?” And he said to them, “Elijah does come first to restore all things. And how is it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.”
The prophet Malachi wrote in the last words of our modern bibles: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
Elijah did come again, but not the Elijah that appeared on the mountain. Elsewhere Jesus tells that John the Baptist fulfilled Elijah’s role. And he did begin the restoration. He baptised Jesus. Jesus called the twelve disciples, mirroring the twelve tribes of Israel. John the Baptist preached on the need for repentance and turning back to God. Jesus even exhorts the disciples over and over not to harden their hearts like Israel did. He wants them to be faithful to God and not to come under the destruction that God promised on those who do not turn to him in Malachi.
Jesus says here that John the Baptist’s suffering and death is a mirror of Elijah’s suffering and death. But not only that — the Son of Man, Jesus himself, will suffer in accordance with the scriptures. The disciples still have in mind a Messiah who will be a triumphant king who will free Israel from oppressors with an army and reign in Jerusalem. They are forgetting the scriptures which tell that Jesus would be a suffering servant who would die for his people. But Jesus has shown on the mountain that this suffering does not diminish his glory. He is the pre-existent Son as well as the suffering messianic son.
1. Summary
Jesus’ transfiguration takes place in his human body. It reveals his divine nature as the eternal son, and confirms his status as the Christ.
As Patrick Schreiner says:
The humanity of Christ didn’t suppress his deity, and his deity didn’t suppress his humanity. It freed it, liberated it, enhanced it.
The glory that we see on the mountain is the glory which belongs to him as the Christ, as Peter declared, who will suffer, die, and rise again — and also his glory as the second person of the Trinity, the eternal Son, confirmed by the Father in the Spirit.
And this whole section of Mark’s gospel, from Peter’s declaration of Jesus as the Christ, to Jesus’ talk of his suffering, death, and resurrection, to his transfiguration on the mountain, and the restoration that has begun — is a parallel of the life of the Christian. We begin our walks as followers of Jesus by declaring Jesus as Christ. We suffer and die, with the hope that we will rise again with Jesus. We are being transfigured into the image of the Son, and have hope that we will be fully transformed when he returns.
And this brings us to our second point this morning.
2 – The Transfiguration of the Saints
We can have hope in our transfiguration because of Jesus’ transfiguration.
In his book on the transfiguration again Patrick Schreiner says this:
Transform and transfigure are different English words but the same Greek word: μεταμορφόω. The relationship between Jesus’ metamorphosis and our own metamorphosis is essential. In Jesus’ metamorphosis we see “how the divine can penetrate the human without destroying it”. In our metamorphosis we see “how the human can be conformed to the divine without ceasing to be human”. The most important undertaking is to ask how this forms us into the image of Christ, how we can progress in sanctification, and how we become “partakers of the divine nature” as 2 Peter says.
As Christians we think a lot about the fact that we are saved. We think about what we are saved from. We think about who saves us. About how we are saved. But we often don’t think about why we are saved. And by that I don’t mean: why would God choose me, but why in the sense of what is the result, or goal, of our salvation, or what are we saved for. The answer is that we are saved for our glorification — which we see in Jesus’ transfiguration which displays his glory.
As we consider our own transfiguration then we’ll consider it in three ways. First, our ongoing transfiguration in our sanctification. Second, our future transfiguration when Jesus returns in our glorification. And finally, the hope we have in our transfiguration in suffering and death.
2.1 – Our Sanctification
Our transfiguration is an already-but-not-yet reality. We are already being transformed into the image of Jesus, but are awaiting the future hope when we will be fully transformed. And we call this process of our being made like Christ — sanctification.
Paul writes in 2 Corinthians Chapter 3: But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.
How then are we being transformed or sanctified? Firstly, we’re sanctified through the ordinary means of grace.
2.1.a – Through the Ordinary Means of Grace
It is not through extraordinary means, or special circumstances, or extra-biblical programs or methods that we become more like Christ, but through the ordinary means that God has prescribed in scripture.
As we gather together on Sunday we should see Jesus in all we do, beholding him in his glory. Our unity and love for one another as we walk together should cause us to see in each other this sanctification, as we become more and more transformed into the image of Jesus.
We behold Jesus in the sacraments, the word of God made visible. In baptism we see a picture of Christ’s death as we watch a believer baptised. They go down into the waters of death with Christ, and are brought back up into new life with him. They go down into water which washes them like Jesus’ clothes on the mountain, whiter than any launderer could bleach them. Only Jesus’ blood can wash someone that clean, removing their sin.
In the Lord’s Supper we behold Jesus’ sacrifice as we see the bread broken and wine poured out. The Lord’s Supper is often called communion, as we are united to Christ as we feast upon him crucified and receive all the benefits of his death. The 1689 Baptist Confession says this of the Lord’s Supper in Chapter 30 paragraph 1:
The supper of the Lord Jesus was instituted by him the same night wherein he was betrayed, to be observed in his churches, unto the end of the world, for the perpetual remembrance, and showing to all the world the sacrifice of himself in his death, confirmation of the faith of believers in all the benefits thereof, their spiritual nourishment, and growth in him, their further engagement in, and to all duties which they owe to him; and to be a bond and pledge of their communion with him, and with each other.1689 London Baptist Confession · 30.1
Jesus says in John’s gospel that whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him. We are spiritually nourished through the sacraments and grow in our sanctification through them, being transformed further into the image of Christ.
As we gather on the Lord’s Day we do what we’re doing now. We hear the word of God preached. It is, hopefully, and ordinarily, for our encouragement, our rebuke, our growth, and our maturing. It is for our sanctification. As we hear the word of God preached we must do as the Father tells the disciples and listen to the Son. It is only through hearing the word of God proclaimed, and then doing as it tells us that we are transformed into the image of Christ.
And finally, as we pray — both corporately and privately — we exercise the trust that we have in God. We show that the Holy Spirit is working in us by expressing our reliance on him, and not in ourselves.
2.1.b – By the Spirit
And this brings us to our next thought which is that we are being transfigured through the ordinary means of grace, but by the Holy Spirit. All these things that we have mentioned are useless unless they are experienced in faith, by the Spirit.
The Spirit descends on Jesus in his baptism and descends again on him in the cloud on the mountain. And Jesus promises that he will send this Holy Spirit to his followers when he returned back to heaven. It is by the Spirit that we are transfigured, through his working in us.
Jesus says to the disciples that The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. And while Jesus is primarily referring to the disciples remembering all that Jesus taught them while he was with them on earth, it is true that the Holy Spirit works in the same way now, teaching us through the scriptures what is true, and causing us to remember and obey what we have learned.
We may often feel that our sin which we struggle against each day is keeping us from being transformed into the image of God, but we must remember both — that it is a process which takes place across our earthly lives and also be encouraged that the Holy Spirit is so much more powerful than even our deepest, darkest sins.
2.1.c – As Children of Light
And so as we are transfigured through the ordinary means of grace, by the Holy Spirit, we do so as children of the light. We see Jesus in his radiance on the mountain. The Nicene Creed describes Jesus as light from light.
Paul tells us in his letter to the Ephesians that at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. We have cast off sin, we have declared Jesus as the Christ, we have ascended the mountain, and now we must live as children of light, having beheld Jesus’ own radiance and glory.
We must cast off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light.
Paul also says in Romans chapter 12: Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed, which is the same word for transfigured again, by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. We must test and discern what is good in order to do the will of God, which is the goal of our sanctification. As we are transfigured more and more into the image of the Son, we will do as he does, and carry out the will of God as we love what he loves and desire what he desires.
Peter writes these words to encourage us in his second letter.
2 Peter 1:3–7 · ESV
3His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
The same Peter who wrote those words is the Peter who failed before he ascended the mountain, on the mountain, and would fail many times after he descended the mountain. But for Peter, the transfiguration gives us hope. We have the current hope of being called to God’s own glory, and the future hope of becoming partakers of the divine nature.
And so he says for this very reason we must live as children of light. Even as we fail as Peter did we look to Jesus’ transfiguration for hope. We are being transfigured, slowly, but for his glory. As we are being transfigured we hear the Father say to listen to the Son. We listen to Christ and obey everything that he commanded, for his glory and our good.
How often do you feel like you’re living in the light when you go to church on a Sunday, or you go to a conference, or read a book, or hear a song — but then shortly after it feels like you’re back in darkness, surrounded by suffering and death? Fix your eyes on Jesus. Fix your eyes on his glory on the mountain. The glory which is glorious because of his death and resurrection. The glory that we will see not by faith, but by sight when he returns again. Take up your cross and follow him, knowing that suffering for Jesus and dying with him is for his glory and our own.
2.2 – Our Glorification
Our hope is not just for transformation in this life, but for our future transfiguration when Jesus returns. For our glorification.
Paul again in Romans says:
Romans 8:28–30 · ESV
28And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Jesus doesn’t just become incarnate and take on a human nature to rescue humans or to mediate for humans, though those things are true. But he does so to glorify and deify humanity. In the transfiguration Jesus is the first transfigured human, as an image of the future hope that we have when we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
Jesus’ redemption doesn’t merely return us to our original created state as humans, back in the garden of Eden, but in our glorification we are exalted with him above the angels. We partake in the divine nature, we have communion with God and union with Christ by the Spirit. We become truly like Christ.
This is a reversal of what happens in the garden of Eden. In the garden Satan preys on that which is good, he manipulates the good goal of humans becoming like God and presents a different way for that to happen than obedience to him, by eating of the tree. And as Adam and Eve sin and fall they become children of death. And so God gives them clothing of death. Animals are killed and they wear their skins.
But in the new creation, those who are children of light, those who are sons of God, brothers of Christ, we are instead given glorified bodies, clothed in white, radiant as Christ on the mountain, whiter than any man could whiten. We are washed by the blood of Jesus whiter than snow.
We see what happens to humans on the mount of transfiguration, that we will be glorified like Jesus. Jesus’ divine nature purifies, exalts, and glorifies the human body, and so we have hope that the same will happen to us when he returns.
If you were to buy an Irish Rugby jersey today you would probably pay around €80 or €90 for one. But if you were to buy one that Brian O’Driscoll wore in a test match you would pay €500 for one. A jersey is just a jersey, but when someone famous wears it, it becomes worth more — not less. The player isn’t made any lesser for having worn the jersey either. It hasn’t diminished him. But he has raised its worth and quality up to his level. This is what Jesus does for humanity, for those who are united to him. Jesus is not made lesser or weaker by taking on a human nature, but he raises up our stature and exalts us with him. We receive glory and honour because he receives glory and honour.
The passage that we’ve looked at this morning takes place off the back of Jesus healing the blind man from being blind, to partial-sight, to full-sight. We live by faith now, but that is not our end goal. We long to live by sight, to see and be with Jesus and to behold his glory face-to-face. When Jesus returns we will see him in his glory even more so than in his transfiguration. His glory will be revealed fully with the whole host of heaven and all the saints. This will not be a private display for a few disciples on a mountain, but will be public for all to see.
Philippians 3:20–21 · ESV
20Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject all things to himself.
2.3 – Our Hope
And yet we also must remember that our glorification only comes through following Jesus to the cross. We become like Jesus in his death. As we have already discussed, Jesus ties his glorification and our own, to suffering and death — with the hope for resurrection.
Paul again says in Romans that if we are children, then heirs — heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
We cannot divorce the transfiguration and Jesus’ glory from his suffering and death, as Jesus himself doesn’t. And in the same way we cannot divorce our own suffering and death from our transfiguration in this life, and full glorification at Jesus’ return.
The Christian life isn’t one of accepting Jesus as Christ, ascending the mountain and beholding Jesus as God and then thinking everything will be okay or go smoothly in our lives. No, we pick up our crosses and follow Jesus. We share in his sufferings as we are transformed into his image.
Jesus’ transfiguration gives us hope that our sufferings, the death that surrounds us, and that which will come for us, is not a threat to our glorification. It was not a threat to Jesus’. But that just as Jesus’ suffering led to his exaltation, so it is for us if we are united to him.
Again Patrick Schreiner says this:
The purpose of the transfiguration is to give hope by revelation. Jesus’ double sonship gives hope to the disciples by showing them that his suffering is not the end of the story, because he is more than Israel’s king. He is the one true God of Israel, the eternal beloved Son.
Conclusion
The first and most famous question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism is this:
Question: What is the chief end of man? Answer: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.Westminster Shorter Catechism · 1
Your glorification in your transfiguration by your uniting with Christ is something which brings glory to God! When you are changed and transformed and image Christ more and more it brings glory to God! Our glorification, the end result and goal of our salvation and redemption, is itself for the glorification of God in Christ.
We are given a glimpse of the future glory that awaits us in the new heavens and earth in the book of Revelation. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”
We look forward with hope to the day when we will ascend the mountain of the Lord and dwell with him eternally in his fully exalted, glorified, resurrected state — not on the mount of transfiguration as Peter wanted to keep him.
The transfiguration reveals Jesus as both the pre-existent Son of God who is eternally glorious, and the messianic Son who receives glory from the Father because of his mission. Jesus’ death and suffering are not divorced from his glory, but central to, and united to it.
As we look to Jesus’ transfiguration it gives us hope in the finished work of Jesus, and in our own transfiguration, both as we are conformed to his image in our lives as we suffer for his sake, but also for our future transfiguration when we are made like him in our glorification at his return.
As we finish, let’s end with Peter’s own recollection of this event.
2 Peter 1:16–19 · ESV
16For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17For when he received honour and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” 18we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.