Six Days Later

The Holy Gospel According to St. Matthew, the 17^th Chapter

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

Six days later. That, is when today’s story begins. But six days later from what? Six days before this, Peter had declared to the world that Jesus was the Messiah! The Son of the Living God! Then, in nearly the next breath, he turned around and told Jesus that under no circumstances should Jesus go to Jerusalem and be killed. Six days before this story, Jesus had told Peter first that he had been blessed with a vision of truth from God and then, immediately, had to turn right around and tell Peter, “Get behind me Satan.”

Peter had tremendously brilliant moments of holy clarity… an amazing ability to see how God was intimately involved and at work in the world. AAAANNNNNDDDDD Peter ALSO had equally tremendous moments of not-quite-as-holy distractions from the world around him.  Distractions from a world which was violent, oppressive, corrupt and actively out to get Jesus… a person he loved and had committed his life to follow.

I’m personally inclined to go easy on Peter for getting distracted by the “crazy” of his world and losing his faithful focus on Jesus. I’m mostly inclined that way because I am also VERY easily distracted by the “crazy” of my world! I too, all too easily lose my focus on Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. Thankfully, it also looks like Jesus was also inclined to go easy on Peter when he got distracted by the crazy, violent, corrupt, out-to-get-them world in which they lived. After telling Peter “Get behind me Satan” Jesus didn’t kick Peter to the curb. Instead, he took Peter, along with James and John, and led them up the mountain for some time apart from the crazy world for God to help them all get undistracted from the “crazy” and refocused on Jesus.

There on top of the mountain Jesus was transfigured. Which means he got super shiny… as shiny as the sun… shiny enough to turn the disciples attention back from the crazy of the world! Then, God pointed at the super shiny Jesus and said, “Look! THIS is my Son, HE is THE most important thing…LISTEN to him…DO what he does…LIVE like he lives… He is right HERE with you!”

The world Peter lived in WAS super distracting. It had a corrupt local ruler who was the puppet of a dictator in a foreign country. The local corrupt ruler was supported by one religious faction that had twisted their faith because twisting it lead to power and profit. The rich were getting richer with the help of the corruption and the poor were getting poorer with the help of that same corruption. Peter’s world was a constant distraction, constantly pulling Peter’s attention away from Jesus… and that was without Twitter or 24 hour cable news!

Like I said before, I’m inclined to go easy on Peter for getting distracted by the world he lived in, mostly because I know how much I get distracted and lose my focus on Jesus in the crazy world in which we live. I am incredibly thankful that it is Jesus’ way, NOT to kick distracted disciples to the curb, but instead, to take them by the hand and lead them to a place of calm where distracted disciples, like me and maybe you, can become refocused on the Way, the Truth and the Life that is Jesus the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.

Now there are many mountains and other places out there where that MIGHT happen. A holy moment of divine clarity can and does happen in lots of different places all the time. For some of those unforeseeable moments we’re even lucky enough to be looking up at just the right moment and there it is! A transfiguration moment… a moment of divine refocusing. It CAN happen anywhere… it’s true!  However, there is ONE place where that kind of transfigurational, divine, refocusing happens in a time and a place that is much more predictable than all the others.

That place is here. That time is now. Each week the Holy Spirit basically takes each of us distracted disciples by the hand and leads us here. To this place. At this particular time. Each week we hear again the stories which commend to us the Jesus Way of living life. A Way that is distinctly different than the world’s ways. Each week I hold up the bread and the wine and together we see Jesus, lifted high, shining like the sun. THIS is the time and THIS is this place, where we can predictably count on seeing Jesus. The Messiah. The Son of the Living God!  And with that vision we can be refocused from the distractions of our crazy world and in that moment, in some mystical way God reminds us over and over again that THIS is my Son, HE is THE most important thing…LISTEN to him…DO what he does…LIVE like he lives… He is right HERE with you!

You and I are called to live the Jesus Way of living, which is an infinitely challenging thing to be asked to do as we live in this crazy, distracting, corrupt, violent and difficult world of ours. God knows we, like Peter, will inevitably be distracted and lose our focus on God’s Son. But in God’s infinite love, with Christ’s deepest compassion and with the Holy Spirit’s guiding hand we are led each week to come together... to hear again how we are called to live in our crazy world by this unique Jesus Way of living... to see again God’s Son lifted up in bread and wine, shining like the Sun and be invited again to take Jesus with us… to take Jesus IN US… back down from each mountain top encounter with God, into the crazy, distracting, corrupt, violent and difficult world in which we live.  The hope.  My hope.  Our hope, is that what we take with us... and in us... will somehow, in some way, seep out of us and infect the entire world.  Eventually turning the whole crazy lot of it, into the Kingdom of God.  Amen.