Ash Wednesday and Mid-Week Services

Our Savior Lutheran Church will be utilizing the series, "Sacred Head Now Wounded" as published by Concordia Publishing House. This material does have copyright protection so it cannot be reproduced here.

This series is a wonderful exposition focusing upon the centricity of all that Jesus Christ has done for us. The theme of this series comes from the first verse of hymn “O Sacred Head Now Wounded” (Lutheran Service Book #450) which reflects Christ as the source of forgiveness and the eternal comfort His death and resurrection offers to us…

"O sacred Head, now wounded,
With grief and shame weighed down
Now scornfully surrounded
With thorns, thine only crown.
O sacred Head , what glory,
What bliss, till now was Thine!
Yet, though despised and gory,
I joy to call Thee mine."(v. 1)

I pray that you will find this series points to Christ in this Lenten season and beyond. Because of the price Jesus Christ paid on the cross for us, we humbly and freely receive the grace of God through the forgiveness of our sins.

Please join us at Our Savior Lutheran Church for our Lenten and Holy Week Services...

Lenten Mid-Week Services with Holy Communion

(Light Supper beginning at 5:30 p.m)

2/25 Ash Wednesday with imposition of ashes 6:30 p.m.
3/4, 3/11, 3/18, 3/25, 4/1 6:30 p.m.

Holy Week Services

4/5 Palm Sunday 9:30 a.m.
4/9 Maundy Thursday 6:30 p.m.
4/10 Good Friday 6:30 p.m.
4/11 Easter Vigil 8:00 p.m.
4/12 Easter Sunday 8:00 a.m.
(Breakfast served after Easter Sunday Divine Service)

Quinquagesima - 2-22-09

The Church Season of Epiphany,
Quinquagesima,
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (February 22, 2009)
One Year Series

“SEE YOUR SALVATION”

Readings:
Psalm 89:18-29
1 Sam. 16:1-13
1 Cor. 13:1-13
Luke 18:31-43

Sermon Form: Deductive

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Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 18th chapter of St. Luke, especially the following verses.

Luke 18:31-43 (NIV)

31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. 33 On the third day he will rise again.” 34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about. 35 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, I want to see,” he replied. 42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43 Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Jesus had spent much time teaching His apostles about the Kingdom of Heaven, trying to make them see that He was the Kingdom of heaven. Several chapters earlier in this book St. Luke notes the great turning point is Jesus’ ministry. This was the time when Jesus turned from His earthly ministry and “set His face”(Luke 9:51) literally toward Jerusalem. Today our reading of St. Luke tells of how Jesus is getting ever near to Jerusalem. And on this day Jesus passes by the town of Jericho. And as Jesus approaches there is a blind man who calls out his plea of mercy to Jesus saying,

“Lord I want to see”

The blind man was in good company. Because in the verses just prior to this plea for mercy, Jesus had spoken prophetically about what the apostles would see happen to Him in Jerusalem. He had told them of what would happen when He came into Jerusalem. How He would be mocked, insulted, spit upon, how He would be flogged and ultimately that men would kill Him, that He would die, and that He would rise again on the third day. But the very next line of scripture tells us what the apostles, heard and what they saw for the scriptures tell us that they, “Didn’t understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.”(v. 34) The apostles were physically able to see with their eyes, and they were physically able to hear with their ears. Yet they were still spiritually blinded and the were spiritually deaf to what Christ was telling them.

It would have been easy for Jesus to be frustrated as He led this band of apostles who sometimes heard but did not hear, saw but did not understand. At other times they were blinded by their own thoughts, but Jesus just kept on teaching an he kept on moving towards Jerusalem.

So as Jesus came close by, a blind man cried out to the Son of David for mercy. And notice that this cry continued, even after the crowds tried to shut him up. The blind man cried out because He knew that God would give Him mercy. He knew that God loved Him with an everlasting love.

Lord, have mercy. What does it mean? It means first of all, that the blind man recognized that Jesus is Lord. That is to say, Jesus is God and has power over life and death. Because of this, the blind man could cry out to Him this plea Lord for mercy. He is asking that God won’t give Him what He deserves, for he knows that he deserves the blindness and I don’t mean of his eyes it is the blindness which our sin brings to all of us. But, the blind man prays that God would open his eyes in sight just as He opens our eyes to see His mercy. For Jesus know that no one deserves to be blind physically, yet we are all spiritually blinded because of our sin. Yet, rather than giving us what we really deserve, Christ gives us His mercy.

The blind man in Jericho didn’t try to make sense of all these things. He didn’t complain to God that his life was so miserable or that so-and-so had it so much better than him. The words the blind man used to speak to Jesus was, “I want to see,” but you know a better translation might be, “I want to look up again.” So, really in a sense he had said Lord Have mercy, I want to look up again, I want to look up and see my salvation.

This week, on Ash Wednesday, we begin our Lenten journey to the cross. It is a time of deep reflection for the Christian. This is the time when we look at our sin with the eyes of the Law and realize the depth of our sinfulness and depravity. Our eyes turn downcast with the knowledge of all that we have done, all the failures of life, all the failures of our world, and where the world has failed us. But this is also the time when we look to Jesus Christ, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising its shame. We cry out with the Church of all ages, Lord, have mercy, I want to look up to see my salvation. I want to journey to the cross, but realize Christ is already there, for me.

I can think of no better way see God’s mercy than by hearing the words of King David, who said, “I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. 3 Do not trust in princes, In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation. 4 His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; In that very day his thoughts perish. 5 How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, Whose hope is in the Lord his God, 6 Who made heaven and earth, The sea and all that is in them; Who keeps faith forever; 7 Who executes justice for the oppressed; Who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free. 8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind; The Lord raises up those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous.”

A blind man sat on the side of the road on the way to Jerusalem and cried out, “Lord I want to see, I want to look up and see my salvation.” We sit here in this world and we feel joy and sorrow, we feel pain and pleasure. Put that aside. Look up at the cross and see, cast your gaze upon Christ hanging up there, and then be comforted and rejoice. Because of the faith, because of the mercy, because of His death and resurrection, Christ will give you more than a vision of a better place.

For one day all our worldly sins and blindness, all our errors and transgressions, will vanish and not even be a dim memory. For when Christ said, “Your faith has made you well” He points to the faith which He freely gives all the baptized children of God. And in that faith given to you He tells you to receive your sight. See that the Lord is good, look up and see your salvation, look up at the cross and see your salvation. For when that day comes when we leave this world and our eyes close, and then we will immediately receive sight to see He who has done all that needs to be done. For there will Jesus who has already followed His Fathers will. For there in heaven you, Christ’s people, will see Him, you will look up and see your salvation and then you will bow down as you eternally praise God. AMEN

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Sexagesima - The Baptism of Chloe Ryanne Wright - 02-15-09

The Church Season of Epiphany,
Sexagesima, The Baptism of Chloe Ryanne Wright
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (February 15, 2008)
One Year Series

“Seeing and hearing”

Readings:
Psalm 85
Is. 55:1-10
1 Cor. 11:19 – 12:9
Luke 8:4-15

Sermon Form: Deductive

+INI+

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 8th chapter of St. Luke, especially the following verses.

Luke 8:4-15 (NIV)

"4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” 9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’ 11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop."

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

A large crowd gathers to see and hear Jesus speak. And so, to this gathered crowd, Jesus tells a parable about a farmer who goes out to sow some seeds. Now apparently this farmer is not all that careful of a farmer. Because, there’s no talk of cultivating, or preparation, just a farmer who casts seeds in what we would say is a most reckless way. He’s not putting that seed carefully in the ground, he scatters it here and there, some on a path, some in rocks, some in thorns, and then some seeds land on good soil. And the results that this farmer gets from throwing the seeds willy nilly every direction? Well that’s pretty predictable too, only a quarter of those seeds fall in the good soil and produce a good crop. So from all this information we know that the parable is not a story about how to be a good farmer. Because, a good farmer wouldn’t intentionally sow seventy-five percent of his seeds in the wrong place. And an even greater twist is the explanation of the parable which Jesus gives, “the knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, ‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’”(v. 10) So now we know, the farmer is like no farmer we know, there are some who see, who may not see and some who hear who are not able to understand. So in this parable Christ is obviously talking about a totally different way of,

“SEEING AND HEARING”

Well that is totally confusing, and not very understandable, why would somebody talk like that? Well, things are not always as they seem. For instance, later in the service today, in fact in just a very few moments, we will have the great honor and blessing of baptizing one of God’s littlest children, her name is Chloe Ryanne Wright. And here today are a lot of visitor’s and guests, family members and friends, gathered together with others who have been attending this church for a longer time even many years. Some who are here today may see and hear the baptism of Chloe and know the significance of what baptism means. Just like some may hear the parable which Christ spoke and know the significance of what it means. Some may see and hear all that happens today, yet they may not understand anything about the baptism or the parable of Christ.

Some may wonder about the baptism, the water and the words while others may wonder what Christ meant by the casting of all those seeds and different soils. Some here may think they know what kind of soil they are. Some may they think that by just looking around they know what kind of soil some of the other people are in this church may be too. But truthfully if anyone tries to comprehend anything of what I just said, they will not have heard, nor will they see much of anything.

Upon hearing the parable of the sower, do not wonder what kind of soil you are. Because if you start to think of yourself as the good soil or the bad soil, then you will see yourself as the good or bad soil. If you know that God is that sower and the Word of God is the seed, and if you see yourself as bad soil then you have not seen or heard correctly. And not only that if you see yourself as the good soil then again you have not seen or heard correctly. So now your saying to yourself, this guy is telling me that no matter what I think I see and no matter what I think I hear I’m wrong. And to that I would say congratulations, now you’ve got it and you say I’ve got what?

God is a farmer who does not care where He sows the seed which is His Word. He sows the seed by proclaiming His Word to us. Whether you see of yourself as good soil or bad does not matter, God proclaims His Holy Word to everyone. The person that hears God Word does not make it good, God’s Word does. God’s Word is what makes you good, His incarnate Word Jesus Christ transforms the bad soil into good.

Still confused. Well look at it this way. When Chloe Ryanne Wright is brought forward in a few moments, what you will see is a baby, and a group of people. You will hear a bunch of words and see a bit of water splashed onto her tiny head. The words will come from a common man no better or worse than you, and the water came from a spigot just like you may have drunk from earlier today. But if that is what you see and that is what you hear, then you too are, “seeing, but you do not see; you are hearing, but you do not understand.”(v.10)

For in Baptism it is, “Certainly not just the water, but the Word of God in and with water does these things, along with the faith which trusts this Word of God in the water. For without God’s Word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the Word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, Chapter three:“He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying.”(SC)

So it is God’s Word combined with the water which makes the Baptism. It is God’s Word sown into your ears which gives you faith and that is what makes the soil bear His fruit. To human eyes it appears that God does not sow wisely because He sows His Word of salvation to everyone regardless of whether they see themselves as good or bad. In human terms God would not be considered a wise farmer for He sends His only Son to die on the cross to insure that the harvest is successful.

There is good soil and bad soil in the church, and there is good and bad soil in all of the world. But what you see or what hear about this soil does not tell the whole story, for man does not make himself into good or bad soil. Rather it is God’s Word combined with water in baptism applied to soiled mankind that, “yields a crop, a hundred times more than (what) was sown.”(v.8) God said, “My word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”(Is. 55:11) Today the Word comes out of Gods mouth and declares to Chloe, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;”(Is 43:1) When you were baptized God said the same thing to you, in baptism you are His.

So whether you recall your baptism or not or today in the baptism of Chloe Wright whether you hear and do not understand or whether you able to see the baptism or not, know that God’s Word is doing just as He has said it would for “It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.”(SC) Blessed are the people of God, who are the soil of this earth who like Chloe have been transformed by the waters of Holy Baptism. The eyes and ears of mankind may not be able see or to understand preachers, parables, or baptisms. But through God’s Word all who believe and have been baptized will not only see and hear, but they will one day understand, for from what He has sown they will understand that they will hear and see His face for all time.

AMEN
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Septuagesima - 02-08-09

The Church Season of Epiphany,
Septuagesima
One Year Series

Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (February 8, 2009)

“Equal to Us”

Readings:
Psalm 95:1-9
Ex 17:1-7
1 Corinthians 9:24 – 10:5
Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon Form: Deductive

+INI+

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father

and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 20th chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verses.

Matthew 20:1-16 (NIV)

1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went. “He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6 About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ 7 “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ 8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ 9 “The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’ 13 “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

In the Gospel lesson a parable is told about some workers who were called to work in a field. Some were told they would be paid a denarius, or one day’s wage. Other worker’s were also called to work in the field and they were promised they would be paid whatever is right. And at the end of the day some received their promised denarius. And the others received what they were promised too, they got whatever is right, which in their case was also a denarius. A good story if it were to end their but it doesn’t, the workers who came early were not very happy. The workers were not happy because they had worked a full day and received the same pay as they workers who worked a whole lot less time. The workers who came later in the day had not borne the heat of the day, and the owner had the audacity to make those short time workers equal to them. The first workers grumbled, as if to say “How dare he?” We were called out early, we worked the long day, we did as we were told. We did a good job too or we wouldn’t be here at the end of the day to collect the pay. How dare that man make those other workers

Equal to Us

That was their grumbling, you have made them equal to the likes of us. Maybe the heat of the day had affected them, because now it’s all about them and us. What an attitude of self-righteousness that is. They think, not only were we here before they were, we worked longer so we must be just that much better than them. They are just not equal to us. It’s a matter us and them, we and they, and of fairness and it is a matter of equality. Quite frankly we are no different. It has been driven into our heads too. From the days of the founder’s of our country who wrote, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” It was self-evident that all men were created equal, but in fact even as the pen was drying on those words the in-equality was still abounding. Prior to the signing of the constitution many groups could not vote, they had all struggled together to make headway in the fledgling country but all was not fair, it certainly wasn’t equal. Now the years have passed and some headway has been made but all is still not fair in all that goes on around us. It has been said that, “We sometimes complain about quotas, salary caps, and affirmative action, yet when the shoe is on the other foot we smile and thank God for the gift of inequality that helps me but hurts my neighbor.” We have that same feeling of superiority in the church too, for those who have been Christians their whole life. We hold that it must be self-evident that we have worked harder and worked longer than these new people who haven’t got a clue what we went through. How dare they come into the church and be expected to be treated as equals when they’ve not put their time in. And when they’ve put their time in and worked through the heat of the day maybe then we will consider them as equals.

You know it would be easy to think that this parable was just about the equality of Christians. But really when Christ tells the parable about workers and He does not mention who believes what, who is the better in their upbringing. The parable is about workers who believe that they are unequal to others based upon what they have done. That makes them self-righteous, they are holding themselves above others based solely upon what they have done. The workers from the morning set themselves as the standard from which to measured, and if you don’t measure up then you, they, them, are not our equals.

But a strange thing happens on the way to the payment table. All are paid the same, all are made equal, all are paid that single denarius. And that is where the grumbling began. What was that landowner thinking? Yet how does the landowner speak to the grumpy grumbling workers? The owner simply addresses their complaints by calling them, “friend”(v. 13) Then he reminds them, “I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?” Oh yes they had but that was not the point, the point was that they worked harder and longer and received a payment equal to that of all the other workers. That is unfair. The result of the owner’s generosity is unequal treatment and that is simply astounding. His generosity, kindness, grace and goodness causes the workers to become envious, to be hateful toward those who are not their equal those other workers who came last.

We too reflect that attitude of self-righteousness, we know more, we’ve done more, and those who are new just can’t be considered our equals. We say, “How can a person like me who has lived such a rough life get the same grace as one who has lived a godly life?”

Repent, for there is no self-righteousness in the kingdom of God. Righteousness comes from God. And in His eyes all who believe and baptized are equal in His sight. Whether you were baptized as an infant or on your deathbed the reward is the same and it is much more than just a days wages. For Christ sees when you entered the harvest field, because he knew you before you ever lifted a hand. He chose you, He called you by name, and then He placed His Name upon you in Holy Baptism. And that water combined with God’s word is the same water and word that all receive who are baptized into the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It makes you, we, they, them, everyone equal, regardless of the length of service. Whether you serve from stature or whether you serve from a low estate. We are told that all of heaven rejoices when one sinner repents, and by God’s forgiveness we are made equal on the account of the actions of Christ. For He is the landowner who pays us the same whether we were called early in the morning of our lives or whether He called us as the sun fades on our lives.

And if we want to say that’s unfair that we’re being treated equal to others when we should be treated differently, know that God, it would seem, did treat one person differently, and that person would be His Son. God sent His Son into this world, and His Son was crucified so that we all may receive equality. Christ took an unequal share of our sin, in fact He took all our sin, with Him to that cross. And that unequal burden to the very Son of God, gives us the promise that all the sins of the world have been paid. His payment of death was not fair, it was not equal, yet the grace which He freely gives us is given in equal shares. In your baptism you were offered an equal share, today in Holy communion your are offered an equal share. And the share Christ gives is His free grace. He forgives your sin sick soul, He renews your faith, He gives you the promise of eternal life.

Life is not fair, it is not equal, it can be long or it can be short, it can have straight paths or winding road, it can be disastrous at times and it can be a blessing, but it certainly won’t be fair. But that’s okay, it really is, because at the end of time, and the end of all days, at the end of your life, you will receive your payment and it will be equal for all who would believe. And your payment will be equal to more than a days wage for you will be given an eternal and heavenly rest. Amen.

The Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

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The Transfiguration of Our Lord - 02-01-2009

The Church Season of Epiphany,
The Transfiguration of Our Lord
One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (February 1, 2009)

“A Glimpse of Glory”

Readings:
Psalm 2
Ex 34:29-35
2 Peter 1:16-21
Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon Form: Deductive
+INI+

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 17th chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verses.

Matthew 17:1-9 (NIV)

1 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus. 4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8 When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus. 9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Dazzling white shining like the sun. Have you ever noticed how something bright and shiny attracts the eyes? Think about it. Probably the most common time we see a bright flash of light is when we’re taking photographs. Photographs capture special moments in time, people, places, or events, which we really want to remember at some future moment. The pictures we take record the major events in our lives, pictures of newborn babies, babies beginning to walk, a baby who maybe the third or fourth generation of a family. We capture the moment when our children head off to kindergarten, and we take their picture with classmates, as they grow up, sports, musicals, band, graduation, college, and marriage. We take pictures of our friends, our vacations, our homes, and our flower gardens. Some moments are so sweet, so glorious, that we don’t ever want them to end, so we freeze them in time. Then someday in the future we can go back and look at those photos, and see how glorious all these events were. And so it is with Simon Peter, he just wanted to capture the moment. But in capturing the moment of Christ’s Transfiguration, Peter had already forgotten what Jesus just told him. Less than one week before this very moment, Jesus had told Peter and all the disciples that, “the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.”(Mk 9:31) But the walk up the mountain must have cleared Peter’s memory, because when He saw Jesus Transfigured, He didn’t want it to end, Peter was captivated by a:

A Glimpse of Glory

On the Mount of Transfiguration, God used a brilliant light to draw the disciples’ attention to Him in a new way it was a glimpse of His glory. There on the mountain, God showed Jesus in a light different from anything the disciples has ever seen before. Their friend was not just a carpenter, not just a teacher, not just a rabbi. He was much, much more than all of those things. It was pretty obvious too, because “a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”(v. 5)

On that day God used the light that reflected from Jesus’ garment to proclaim the Deity of Christ to the disciples. The disciples had followed Jesus around the countryside listening to Him preach, teach, and bring and encourage faith to the most common of people, the most unlikely people of the world.

And Peter’s reaction to the Transfiguration was rather odd. Christ had told Peter of all things that had to happen. Peter looked at the transfigured Christ, but he really didn’t see Him. The Peter who had recently said to Jesus, “You are the Christ.”(Mk. 8:29) was blinded by the “white” clothes of Christ. Peter’s reaction is also odd because it must have rung in the disciples minds, that long ago Moses’ “face shone because of his speaking with (God)”(Ex 34:29) Maybe that is what popped into Peter’s mind, the fearful reaction of Aaron and the sons of Israel which was a glimpse of the glory of God in the shining face of Moses.

So there stood Peter, James and John, before Christ whose clothes became impossibly white. And if that wasn’t enough, Elijah and Moses arrived to speak with Jesus. But wait, there’s more, “a bright cloud enveloped them.”(v. 5) And almost immediately the whole event was over, the dazzlingly white clothes were gone, Elijah and Moses gone too. In a flash it was all over, it was but a glimpse but their eyes still burning with the blue spots from the bright light and the voice ringing in their ears, it was there and then it was over.

Then Peter does something that we are also compelled to do. He doesn’t have a camera, but he has the next best thing. He’ll build three shelters, as if to place a roadside monument for future generations to look at the chiseled words, ‘On this spot Jesus was here wearing a very bright white suit, He talked to Moses and Elijah, and God said a few words too.” Nope, Peter didn’t have a camera but out of fear he came up with the next best thing, he wants to build a roadside monument to God.

We too file away pictures of great events, not only past ones, but we dream of future ones too. We think of events fondly. How many times do we say, “God I wish it was like the good old days.” And so there we stand next to Peter, we try to file Gods eternal grace for us into our own precious moments in time. There we are with Peter making roadside monuments to the past. Whether it be worshipping the past, trying to capture the present, or longing for a future change, it’s all the same. Because in every monument we build to us, we are glimpsing at our own glory and so w are breaking the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before me.”(Ex 20:3)

But then again, maybe Peter, James, and John were just plain scared. They had been startled by an extraordinary light a glimpse of the glory of God. We can only wonder it they knew what it all meant. And quite frankly, it would be some time before they would witness the answer to that question. The Light of Christ had shined in to their darkened world, and obviously that present Light gave them more of a future than they could ever have imagined or understood.

On the other hand, the disciples have us at a serious disadvantage. They were there and we were not. They saw the light, they felt the fear, they suffered the confusion, and they heard the voice of God. To have been there must have been extremely spectacular and awe-inspiring. What we wouldn’t give to travel in a time machine to see what they saw and hear what they heard on that mountain. How could you experience such a great event and not be changed or transformed. Then we look at our lives as it flashes by and we recall in a glimpse all the glory of our lives and then somehow we are saddened or depressed because all this must come to an end.

Yet in contrast, the glimpse of the glory that is Christ’s, is not for just a moment, but it is forever. So then, why do we need this story of Christ’s transfiguration? We need this story because it reminds us of the record of the brilliant Light that has come into the darkness of our world. It is a glimpse, but not the final glimpse.

That same glimpse of the Light of glory shines upon us in our baptism as we are marked by the sign of His cross. That glimpse of Glory is received by us in Holy Communion as we partake of the true body and blood of Jesus Christ, given and shed for our sins. From the cloud on the Mount of Transfiguration God said, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”(v. 7) On the Cross Jesus said, “It is finished.”(Jn 19:30) In His Words and His actions your sins were forgiven, and you are transfigured. God the Father said, “Listen to Him!” as He takes away your sin. Hear and be comforted that He gives you the eternal promise that the brightness of His light, of His healing, of His peace is not just given to you for a glimpse, but it is freely given to you to gaze upon, forever. Amen.

The Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

+SDG+