Series: Sermons
“We’ve got some difficult days ahead.
But it doesn’t matter with me now.
Because I’ve been to the mountaintop.
And I don’t mind.
Like anybody, I would like to live a long life.
Longevity has its place.
But I’m not concerned about that now.
I just want to do God’s will.
And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain.
And I’ve looked over.
And I’ve 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 I’m happy, tonight.
I’m not worried about anything.
I’m not fearing any man.
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord”.
A vision––
a vision of God and of God’s destiny for God’s people;
a mountain-top experience––
an experience that gave Martin Luther King jr hope and confidence…
and drove him on to be courageous…
to further God’s purposes in the world…
even in the face of danger, difficulty and, ultimately, death.
Mountain-top experiences…
many of you may have had them––
those fleetingly precious moments, when we experience God…
deeply…
fully…
powerfully…
even overwhelmingly.
In our story from Mark’s Gospel this morning…
Peter, James and John had one too.
Atop a high mountain, they glimpsed the true nature of Jesus.
The description that we have here is not meant to be taken literally.
It’s meant to be pictorial and evocative.
It’s a story that’s been crafted full of traditional symbolism…
trying to make some profound theological points…
and attempting to describe the indescribable.
But I’m not so interested in that this morning––
about what this story says about Jesus…
or about God.
Rather, I’d like to focus on the disciples’ experience in the story.
As Mark crafts the story…
in the midst of this powerful, overwhelming experience…
good-old Peter calls out…
“It is good for us to be here. Let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”.
“It is good for us to be here”.
But good for whom?
For Peter personally…
because it was a deeply moving experience for him…
one that he wanted to prolong as long as possible?
No!
That’s not Peter’s concern––
certainly not in Mark’s version of the story.
Peter thinks that it’s good that he’s there so that he can build some shelters.
But note: only three shelters––
one for Jesus…
one for Moses…
and one for Elijah.
There’s no mention of one for himself, or for James, or for John.
If Peter’s concern was trying to prolong the experience…
then why didn’t Peter also want to build a shelter for himself and the others?
Besides, the sort of shelter that he wants to make is rough and temporary…
not intended to last.
Despite how it’s often interpreted…
a desire to prolong the experience is not what’s going on here.
So what is Peter actually saying here?
As Mark crafts his story…
and constructs his portrait of Peter…
in his mixed-up, muddled way, Peter thinks that it’s good that he’s there…
because it’s a chance to do something.
After all, that seems to be his natural response––
that’s how he comes across in the Gospels––
Peter is a doer.
He’s the one who makes things happen.
He’s the one who takes the initiative.
He’s the one who ensures that what has to be done, gets done.
Peter simply can’t sit still––
even if he’s on top of a mountain…
even if he’s experiencing one of those fleetingly precious moments…
of beauty, wonder, and awe…
even if he’s confronted by God in a powerful…
overwhelming…
indescribable sort of way.
Peter simply can’t sit still.
He’s got to do something.
But then, in Mark’s wonderfully symbolic story, there comes––
seemingly in response to that––
the divine voice from the cloud:
“This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!”
Peter wants to do something.
Peter needs to do something.
But God’s word to him is simply “listen”.
“Listen”.
In other words, stop all of your activity.
Stop trying to do something––
because, in the process, you may miss out on something special.
Just stop.
Listen.
Embrace the experience.
And, simply, be.
As if to say, perhaps, ‘there will be plenty of time to do things later, when you’re off the mountain;
there will be plenty of time to do important things––
things that make a real difference.
But, for now, appreciate the moment for what it is.
Let it surprise you.
Let it overwhelm you.
Let it inspire you.
Let it transform you.
Let it expand your vision.
Stop.
Listen.
Embrace the experience.
And simply be.
You know, it’s easy to fall into Peter’s trap, isn’t it?
We live such frantic lives in this modern world of ours.
There are so many things that compete for our time…
our attention…
and our energy.
There are so many things that need to be done.
There are so many things that won’t happen unless I do them.
We’re always rushing, busy.
And that also happens in the Church––
maybe especially in the Church.
The great psychiatrist, Carl Jung, once said:
“Religion is a defence against the experience of God”.
And I think he’s right.
So often we can get so caught up in the externals…
in the practicalities and procedures…
in the form and the function…
in the doing…
that we actually don’t experience God.
And, in many ways, the ethos of the Church only encourages that—
with all of its meetings and committees, rosters and activities.
Furthermore, as followers of Jesus, we’re called to live out our faith.
We’re called to live as God’s people in the world.
We’re called to make known the inclusive, healing, forgiving love of God.
We’re called to be involved in our community.
We’re called to be involved in our society and our world––
reaching out to those in need…
helping those in trouble.
And, of course, we’re committed to keeping the Church going.
But, like Peter, in our busyness and activity…
do we miss something in the process?
Do we miss those fleetingly precious experiences…
when God comes to us…
powerfully…
deeply…
overwhelmingly?
Do we miss those times when God offers us special insights––
glimpses of splendour…
signs of hope…
reminders of grace…
experiences that expand our vision…
broaden our perspective…
challenge our thinking…
and reorient our lives?
Do we miss them because we’re too busy doing…
because we’re too busy trying to keep the institution of the Church going?
As God, in Mark’s story, said to Peter on a mountain-top…
so God says to us:
Just stop.
Stop all the busyness and frantic activity.
Stop always doing.
Stop and listen.
Stop and start seeing with new eyes.
Look beyond your routines and your to-do lists.
Look beyond this world and its brokenness and pain.
Behold a greater reality.
Be open to the God who is above all…
beneath all…
and in all.
Just stop…
look…
listen…
and be––
so that you might also become.
Surely, in the end, that is the real transfiguration.
That is where the transformation of us, and our world, begins.
