Tuesday, March 2, 2010
February 14, 2010 - Transfiguration Sunday
I was struck this week by this line in the gospel, verse 32, where it says “Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep.” Because I can identify with that. I think most of us know that feeling, where you can barely keep your eyes open, where your eyelids just stay closed longer and longer, where you start to do the little head bob, as you fight to stay awake for whatever reason. Seems lately, for me, it happens most as I watch TV at the end of the day, snuggled up under a blanket on the couch – and you just want to give in, to drift off, to stay right where you are, where it's nice and cozy and warm.
Well, that's not so bad at the end of a long day, although I'm usually better off getting off the couch & just going to bed, but I think this gospel story speaks to another kind of sleepiness – a spiritual sleepiness. Just last Sunday, we heard how Jesus called Peter and the brothers James and John to follow him, but this week, we've fast-forwarded quite a bit. And since then, they've been a lot of places with Jesus, and they have seen and heard some amazing things – healings, and feedings, and teachings.
But most recently, all this stuff has taken a rather unpleasant turn. Just 8 days ago, Jesus sat them all down and told them for the 1st time how it's all gonna end, how he's going to undergo great suffering and rejection and be killed & how following him will mean losing their lives to find them, denying themselves, and taking up their cross every day. Not really what they signed on for, you know?
The next thing we know, “8 days after these sayings”, Jesus calls these 3, Peter and John and James, and takes them up on the mountain to pray. And Luke doesn't tell us what time it is when they go up there, or how long they were there praying with Jesus and each other – but by the time the action starts taking place, they have almost nodded off, their eyelids are drooping, they are weighed down with sleep. But somehow they manage to see this mystery take place – Jesus' appearance changes, just like that, and his clothes become brighter than even Clorox could make them, and then Moses and Elijah are there, talking with Jesus, just like that!
But there's a part of Peter (and probably James and John too, but Peter always seems to be the spokesman for the group) that hasn't quite woken up yet. Because as Moses & Elijah are about to leave, Peter says, “Hey, Jesus, let's build some booths and stay here a while.” You know, we'll just camp out here a little bit. Because while maybe the mountain wasn't physically nice and cozy and warm, it sure was tempting to stay up there. Because up on the mountain, they were far from the demands and pressures of the work Jesus had called them to. Up on the mountain, nobody is asking too much of them, and they've seen some of the heroes of the faith, and most of all, all those scary things that Jesus had just told them about Jerusalem and the cross and death all seemed a world away – and just like us on a cold winter day, it was so tempting to just stay where they were, to snuggle down under the blankets and pretend the world doesn't exist. This moment on the mountain is kinda like the snooze button – just 5 more minutes, Jesus.
There are a lot of times and places in our lives where we'd like to do that – where we find ourselves somewhere that's nice, and cozy, and warm – and boy is it tempting to stay there! And a lot of times for us who are trying to follow Jesus, it's church! Not that we want to stay here forever, we all know that unwritten rule about not going much more than an hour in worship ;) – but the feeling that we have about church is that it's a safe haven, a place to hear and see the heroes of the faith, where we can just sit by and watch the action unfold, and not have to be take part in it. We want to hang out with the people we know and let the demands of the world take care of themselves. It's a nice little escape, and some days, we just want to capture it, to set up camp and stay a while, and settle down for a long winter's nap.
But just as Peter's saying this, a cloud comes down & overshadows them, and they hear a voice from the cloud – and it says, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”
“This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” That's what the voice says, but you know the funny thing is, when the cloud is gone & they look around and realize that it's just them & Jesus again, Jesus doesn't say a thing. He doesn't say a thing – the next day, he just heads back down the mountain.
Jesus goes down the mountain, away from glory, away from security, away from complacency and comfort; Jesus goes back down the mountain, back to the great crowd that's waiting for him, back to the people in need, back to the man who's only son is struggling to survive. Actions speak louder than words, and Jesus comes down... down into hurt, down into pain, down into desperation. Jesus comes down from all that the mountain represents, to where the people are.
Jesus comes down – because that's what God always does. Jesus comes down because it's the story of his life from the very beginning, when the Word became flesh and lived among us. Jesus came down to show us the Father's heart, to make God known. Jesus came down, to walk with us, to meet us in the places of our deepest needs. Jesus came down, to offer us healing and wholeness and mercy, wrapped in infinite love. Jesus came down, he's right here for us now – we don't have to climb up some special mountain or up into heaven to find him. Jesus comes down to us.
This is the one God calls us to listen to, and his example calls us to wake up and follow him, to come down from the mountains where we feel safe, and cozy, and sleepy, to come down with him into the valleys where there are real people with real needs, to reach out to them, as Jesus has reached out to us, so that all, not just a select few, may be astounded at the greatness of God.
Amen.
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