A Terrifying Glimpse of Glory, Part 3

In Matthew chapter 17, the Gospel writer describes a moment when Jesus took a few of His disciples away to a mountain. During their getaway, Jesus was illuminated with bright lights from heaven. Moses and Elijah appeared. A voice from heaven declared His pleasure with Jesus. And the moment was so shocking that the disciples fell to the ground.

Well, today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll helps us grasp the enormity of this mysterious event called the Transfiguration and what it means to you and me today. He titled his message, A Terrifying Glimpse of Glory. It is easy to forget when it's focused on only the humanity of Jesus that He is also undiminished deity. While at the same time, true humanity. Two natures that do not mix but remain in one person forever.

That's why He's known as the God-man. Undiminished deity, true humanity in one person. The disciples are walking with the one they could easily think of as simply true humanity. So Jesus decides, now is the time for them to see evidence of my full person, which is what the Transfiguration is all about. Now the glory becomes manifested, displayed.

Let's see how it unfolds as we get into chapter 17. Six days later, Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. As the men watched, meaning Peter, James, and John, notice it came without an announcement. He is transformed before their eyes. Still a man, but now his face shone like the sun and his clothing became as white as light. Here, this one who has walked with them, talked with them, been teaching and training them, now emerges in this glowing, glowing presence. And if that isn't enough, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus. I mean, if there's ever a moment to stand and let the wonder in, it's now. But Peter exclaimed, Lord, it's wonderful for us to be here. If you want, I'll make three shacks, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.

Now, you know, what we need is more information. There's a parallel in Mark 9 and in Luke 9. So with me, find Mark 9, hold your place, we'll come there second. First, let's look at Luke 9 and locate verse 31. They were glorious to see, meaning Jesus, Elijah, and Moses.

They're the they. And they were speaking, here we go. Matthew didn't tell us this, Luke does. They were speaking about his exodus from this world, which was about to be fulfilled in Jerusalem. And so they're talking with Jesus about what's coming when he gets to Jerusalem, namely his arrest, the trials, the death, the resurrection, they're talking about all of this. And notice also that Luke gives us a little more information about the disciples.

Peter and the others had fallen asleep. But they awaken with a start and we read, when they woke up, they saw Jesus glory and the two men standing with him as Moses and Elijah were starting to leave. Peter, watch, not even knowing what he was saying, blurted out, hey, why don't I build three memorials, one for you, one for you, one for you. Okay, before I say anything more, let's look at Mark 9, verse 5. Peter exclaimed, Rabbi, it's wonderful for us to be here.

Let's make three shelters as memorials, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. He said this because he didn't really know what else to say, for they were all terrified. Now you see the value of correlation, plus you understand why we pause here to draw upon it because this is an unusual moment that required absolute silence.

Just taking in. If anyone should speak, it's the one being transfigured. If anyone has something to say, he's the one to say it. The cloud overshadows them and a voice from the cloud says, I love this, this is my son, the dearly beloved one, this is my one and only, this is the one I give you as a gift from glory. And then he adds, he brings me great joy, listen to him, listen. Even in the silence Jesus is speaking, his change of countenance is a message.

This awesome interruption as God breaks on the scene as Peter is speaking and God says, listen to the one I've sent. They're finally terrified, we read, and they fall on their faces. I love it that Jesus came over, found them on the ground on their faces and touched them and simply said, get up, don't be afraid, don't be afraid. When they looked up, Moses and Elijah were gone and they saw only Jesus. Now we find them in verses 9 through 13 coming down the mountain and there's a brief dialogue when they remember their days in synagogue school and what they were taught by their teacher. So it's a good time to mention this because they had just seen Elijah and they want to know. They went back down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, don't tell anyone what you have seen until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead. So they ask him, why do the teachers of religious law insist Elijah must return before the Messiah comes?

It's a good question. They've been taught that but they were never given it in context and how it fit into the scheme of things over the chronology of the eschatology of events, the plans for the future. What is all this about? So Jesus replies, Elijah is indeed coming first to get everything ready. But I tell you, and this is so like Jesus in his teaching, he switches a little bit of the subject.

It makes you think deeper and you realize later what it was he was getting at. He says, but I'll tell you Elijah has already come but he wasn't recognized and they chose to abuse him in the same way they will make the Son of Man suffer. He uses that as an analogy to his own suffering that's in the future when they get to Jerusalem. And then we read, then the disciples realize he was really talking about John the baptizer. Interesting how Jesus switched to that without telling them what he was doing. But as they may remember, we read of it in Luke 1 17, speaking about John who was yet to be born, he will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord.

And Jesus says that's the role the baptizer filled and they finally put it all together. Now, I understand how you must be sitting there wondering how this ties together. I've wrestled with this application wondering how to shape it for our times. And I've come to realize it really has something to say for us in this day. I want to stand against three longstanding habits of our times as I apply what we have just gone through. The habits are moving too fast, talking too much, and reacting too quickly.

It's a habit easily formed when you operate in the press of the crowd and in the midst of a busy city life, which is ours to live. Moving too fast, you soon discover that you are staying too shallow. The Lord wants us to go deeper. He wants us to think deeper. He wants us to be men and women who think his thoughts after him.

And none of them come naturally. It takes time to work that into our thinking. And so I remind you today to slow down. We so happen at this time to be facing a good season to do that.

But if you're not careful, it'll be all about gifts you buy, crowds you have to deal with, trips you have to take, plans you have to make, people you have to feed. Hold it. Slow down. Deep people are that way because they've learned to pace themselves, even in the press of our day. And talking too much, we listen too little and therefore learn less than we could. So be quiet. Say less.

I often say to people whom we bring to Israel and enjoy the tour with us, I often begin the journey with an opening little devotion where I say, while we're together, let's walk a little slower. Let's talk a little less. Let's think a little deeper. Let's write a little more.

Let's let the wonder in. Because God doesn't hurry up to catch up with us, we slow down to walk with him. And as you know, he's in no hurry.

And when you walk with him to learn, you must not talk. Just learn to listen. Third, our tendency in this fast paced lifestyle is to react too quickly.

And we wait, therefore, too seldom. Take time. Slow down. Be quiet. Take time.

Let's commit ourselves for the next several weeks to those three priorities. A long time ago, I wrote some things out that I want to read to you as I close. I don't want you to think about leaving. I want you to think about listening.

So here, I've worked on my words carefully. Boisterous noise, hectic schedules, and constant talking dull our senses. They close our ears to what God is trying to say to us.

In his still, quiet voice. They make us insensitive and numb to his touch. I added this, for 23 years, my family and I lived in the Los Angeles area. We truly enjoyed those years of greater freedom, numerous opportunities, personal growth, and many unexpected undeserved blessings from God.

For all those things, I'm forever grateful. However, I found myself, as did Cynthia, becoming weary of the noise, the incessant crowds at every turn, the accelerated pace, the endless rush of traffic, the relentless press of activities. While we thoroughly enjoyed close friendships and an expansion of ministry involvements, there were times we longed for relief, for the enviable presence of silence and stillness. We would occasionally escape to the mountains to a retreat about an hour and a half from our home where we lived in the busy city.

Where we went was removed from the blare of horns and the grinding roar of the freeways and the constancy of too much shallow and superficial talk. Sitting together up there in the mountains at about 6,000 feet, we often leaned against a massive ponderosa pine or a hundred-year-old oak, and we would absorb the therapy of the forest, saturating our souls with majestic stillness. Quiet rains of autumn washed away the dust of summer, inviting the cold winds of winter, which turned overnight into soft falling snow that blanketed the forest floor with a white so brilliant our eyes would hurt. Such visual feasts mixed with the inimitable sounds of silence made both of us more sensitive to the Spirit's presence and leading, more thankful for God's matchless grace, more aware of his majestic glory. In a word, those soul-calming excursions drove us deeper, deeper than we would ever have gone without such times. Last night alone in my study with just a lamp burning, I turned to a couple of sections of what Clarence Edward McCartney has written.

One is this piece. He writes, There's nothing so impressive as silence. He writes, I like to wander into some great cathedral and standing alone in the nave, listen to the silence of the immense pillars, the soaring arches, the angels and saints looking down upon me from stained glass windows above me. And finally, from his book, Bible Epitaphs. I have no dread of a cemetery. Sometimes it's better to be there and have fellowship with the dead who are buried than to walk down the streets of our cities and meet the unburied dead.

That is, those in whom faith and hope and love and purity have long been dead, leaving only the animal alive. In the cemetery, the Bible of life is open and a passionless voice reads to us the great lessons and tells us to apply our hearts unto wisdom. Sometimes we can learn more from the silence of the dead than from the speech of the living. Whether it be a little churchyard where under ancient elms the dead lie close to holy walls, or the dark spaces of some cathedral where the dead sleep under sculptured sarcophagus and lettered marble, or some wilderness battlefield where the nation has gathered the bodies of the soldiers who there gave their last full measure of devotion, or some rural hillside where the wind blows free by the banks of a river that flows silently and swiftly away like man's life.

Wherever it may be, the resting place of the dead has always something worthwhile to say to the living. Slow down. Be quiet.

Take time. May we bow together in this quiet place. This may be the first time for you in most of your adult life to be this quiet.

When you're quiet and always when you're alone, your thoughts reflect on where you've been and what your life has been like. If you look back over the pages of your past and cannot find a time when you truly gave your heart and soul to Jesus, the master, the savior, do that now. You don't have to say a word. You don't have to do a thing. In your mind acknowledge, I come before you, O God, distant and lost, and I realize my need for Jesus. Please, occupy my life.

I receive him now. Into my soul, I take him into my heart. If you've been moving it too fast a clip, I suggest you slow starting today. If your tendency is to talk too much, I suggest silence. The discipline of silence for an extended period of time. And if you're the type to react to whatever, I suggest you take time to let the wonder in.

Drive a little slower. Think a little deeper. Look only to Jesus. O Father, may the mind of Christ, our savior, live in us from day to day. And may his beauty rest upon us as we seek the lost to win. May the word of God become our diet. May time with you mark our lives. We leave this place different than when we came.

May that difference continue through this week and through this season. For Jesus' sake, amen. You're listening to the Bible teaching of pastor and author Chuck Swindoll. He titled today's message, A Terrifying Glimpse of Glory. And to see what resources we have available for today's topic, please visit us online at insightworld.org. But just before our time is gone for today, let me point you to one of the most helpful resources offered by Insight for Living. As you've grown to appreciate and even rely on the clear and practical Bible teaching on this program, you'll be glad to learn that Chuck has condensed his life's work into a study Bible. It's written in the refreshing style Chuck is known for and laid out in a format that's easy to navigate as well. Someone left a note on our website recently and they commented that their copy of this study Bible is well worn. And this person added, I want to thank God for your wisdom, clarity, and simplicity in writing. Well, the Swindoll study Bible represents decades of personal study by Chuck, preparing for sermons and writing books, and it belongs in your personal collection of study tools. To discover the different options available to you and to purchase a copy of the Swindoll study Bible, go to insight.org slash offer.

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Our goal is to create special moments when you deepen your love for the Bible and draw closer to your Lord. Experience an unforgettable 12-day tour to Israel with Chuck Swindoll and Insight for Living Ministries, March 6-17, 2022. To help you grasp the significance of each site, you'll be accompanied by hand-picked Israeli guides, and we choose the best, along with seminary-trained pastors and professors to enhance your spiritual journey. No organization I know of offers this level of exceptional, in-depth instruction and personal care for Holy Land travelers.

To learn more, call 1-888-447-0444. Just imagine walking along sacred sites and watching the Bible come to life. Make your reservation by calling 1-888-447-0444 or go to insight.org slash events. Insight for Living Ministries Tour to Israel is paid for and made possible by only those who choose to attend. Join us when Chuck Swindoll describes how to overcome unwanted obstacles that stand in your way. Listen Friday to Insight for Living. The preceding message, A Terrifying Glimpse of Glory, was copyrighted in 2016 and 2021, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.