Before CGI

Mark 9:2-13

      Long before computers could change our view of the world, people saw things that blew everything they knew about the world out of the park. They saw things that so stretched their understanding of their world that they had to make fundamental shifts in how they viewed reality. When, for the first time, someone looked through a telescope and saw a glimpse of the vastness of the universe, it had to have so expanded their understanding of our insignificance. Or looking into a microscope and seeing ‘invisible’ organisms.

      Children still display that wonder as they learn about the world. I watched a small child, maybe three years old, at the beach this weekend. They ran down and sat in the receding water of a wave. Then as the next wave came they got up and with glee ran back up the beach only to turn around and run back down and sit in the receding water. Each time there was a squeal of delight. It was as if the water was playing a game with them for their amusement. What delight!

      Or the way my grandchildren look at bugs. I think I need to get them a magnifying glass. I will put that on my shopping list. I want to see more of their wonder. Or when they run after bubbles in the yard, or jump in piles of leaves, or tromp through snow, or even watch the spinning of a ceiling fan. They hold onto hair as if it were a play toy, and grip skin as if it weren’t attached.

      Jesus gave His disciples a glimpse of His reality while standing on a mountain. They saw Him without the earthly garb inhibiting the brilliance of His deity. We have seen these types of transformations because we have Computer Generated Imagery. Light can shine from someone’s eyes and burn up their opponents. The end of fingertips work as well.

      But Jesus didn’t have CGI. His light was the real deal. And two other things confirmed it. The two biggest characters in Jewish history, Moses and Elijah, are also there with Jesus. They aren’t shining, but their presence validates Jesus role and place in the spiritual hierarchy. And then, the voice of God the Father Himself declares Jesus’ uniqueness.

      And Jesus tells the three who experienced this transfiguration to not share what they had seen. But they don’t get what they have seen. They get stuck on the ‘rise from the dead’ issue. Here they are hearing the voice of God and they get stuck on a small, detail. They have the opportunity to see into God’s reality, and all they can do is puzzle about the resurrection. This is one of the things that they don’t get until after Jesus rises.

      Just because someone has a ‘blow your mind’ experience doesn’t mean they understand its implications for their day to day lives. The miraculous seen does not mean the miraculous experienced. Hearing and seeing the Truth does not automatically mean the application of that Truth to life.

Day 253

Elijah at the transfiguration  

Mark 9

Key Verses: 2, 7, 19, 25, 26, 37, 42

The kingdom of God coming in power. We so often think of this as something in the future only. But the disciples experienced it in their present, our past. The glory manifested in those moments was indicative of the glory Jesus has always had as Deity. For a few moments the earthly veil was pulled back.

This moment is not lost on the disciples. They know this is a sacred moment, with eternity invading time, so they want to make it more permanent. “Let’s set up tents.” But this isn’t meant to be a permanent display, but a temporary exhibit. Jesus is the headliner. Moses and Elijah don’t even get an honorable mention. And that is the way it is supposed to be in our lives. Jesus should get the top billing, and we should not get an honorable mention.

The disciples get stuck in their thinking. It is not until after the Resurrection that their thinking gets unstuck. They missed the Elijah/John the Baptist connection. They also missed the Suffering Messiah one. John the Baptist was killed and so will He be killed.

People are still trying to understand who Jesus is! The religious leaders, the crowds, the teachers, the disciples. They haven’t figured it out, but they bring their hardest cases to Jesus and He is able to handle them. Jesus points them all to faith, faith in Him. Jesus is staying with them. He puts up with them. It is a personal thing. He is calling them to have faith in Him, not just faith in general.  

But the demons know exactly who Jesus is! No doubt or wavering there. They have faith in Him. They know judgment has come! And it does.

Jesus’ own day of judgment is coming. Crucifixion, burial and resurrection. The judgment was His deservedly. It was ours. His death instead of ours. The disciples don’t get it. So often, we don’t get it either. We miss the plain truth. And we don’t ask the questions that need to be asked, just like the disciples. So much stays the same.

Kids, on the other hand, ask questions all the time. They are not afraid to show their ignorance, or their misunderstandings. They just put it all out there. The disciples are encouraged to follow the example of a little child. They don’t worry about this and that. They just do things innocently.

The disciples don’t have these same instincts. They judge other’s motives. They stand in the way of their growth. They cause others to stumble. They must learn that nothing is as important as facilitating people coming to Jesus, rather than standing in the way of the truth.

Day 156

Impact of Jesus' transfiguration

Matthew 17

Key Verses: 2, 4, 5, 10, 18, 20,

Jesus told His disciples that some of them would see Him in His glory, and now it happens. How did the three know it was Moses and Elijah without facial recognition software? No DNA samples were taken and evaluated? We could get sidetracked and miss the Father’s voice from heaven confirming Jesus’ identity. It would be easy, but this is where faith comes into play. Notice the physical changes that take place. This gives “The Shining” a new twist. Jesus shines with the glory He possesses as God. Remember the time Moses was placed in the split in the mountainside, and the Lord passed by. GLORY!

Next time you see the Lord in His glory, don’t do what Peter did. He made it about himself! When God shows up, it isn’t about us! In fact, it is never about us. But Peter wants to set up camp and maybe roast some marshmallows and make smores. And then the Father’s voice resounds and they cower in fear. When the Lord shows up reverent fear is the appropriate posture. When that much holiness is present, our sense of unworthiness comes to the forefront. Judgment could be but a breath away. Our sinfulness could be exposed. Get down on your face!

As they travel down from the mountain Jesus makes the connection between John the Baptist and Elijah. The coming of someone in the spirit and power of Elijah preparing the way for the Messiah’s coming was well understood by Jews of that day. Jesus connects the dots. And in the same breath tells of His own death, also predicted in Scripture by the Prophets, but often less understood by the common Jew. They wanted the powerful, conquering Messiah, not the suffering servant that Isaiah foretells.

I want to set the record straight: not every seizure is the result of demon possession! We don’t know how this boy’s seizures were demon connected, or how people knew the demon departed, but the result was his healing. A life filled with moment by moment terror was transformed in an instant. Fire and water are not the places you want to fall!

Duty and taxes were imposed on the foreigners in an occupied land. When a people were conquered, they paid their new ruler for the right to live on his newly acquired land. Jesus and his disciples are true citizens of God’s territory, the temple. As such they are citizens and not responsible for paying the tax. Jesus makes this connection for Peter, but then provides for the payment in order to not cause problems. Those collecting the tax were just doing the bidding of others, and as such could not make the decision about the moral merits of collecting from a particular individual. They didn’t have the power to exempt anyone from payment. They could get in trouble. So Jesus helps them and teaches Peter in the process.