"And Our Redemption See"

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

'Tis good, Lord, to be here!

Thy glory fills the night;

Thy face and garments, like the sun,

Shine with unborrowed light (LSB 414.1).

So goes the first stanza of the familiar hymn written for the Feast of the Transfiguration, which we celebrate here today. And indeed, 'tis good, Lord, to be here!

It is good to be in this place, in the presence of the Lord, to hear and see the Lord of Hosts display His glory for His creatures to see, even if for a brief moment in time. The glory of the Lord fills the night and shines out through the day, eclipsing even the sun itself in His brightness and radiance. The face of our Lord Christ shines with truly unborrowed light, light more pure than even that of our brightly-burning star. Our Lord's garments are transfigured to be as white as snow, whiter than any fuller's soap or laundress' bleach could hope to get them.

This is the glory of the Lord on display for the people of God to see. This is the Word made flesh who dwells among us, just as St. John declares. In His face we see the glory of the immortal, invisible Father in heaven, whom no one has seen, whom no one may see and live. In the light of Christ, we see light. In His radiant face we behold the glory of the Father, full of grace and truth. In this brightly beaming face, we see the radiance of grace and mercy, the countenance of God which He is pleased to lift up upon us, the face which He makes to shine upon us, being gracious to us and showing His steadfast love to us.

'Tis good, Lord, to be here,

Thy beauty to behold

Where Moses and Elijah stand,

Thy messengers of old (LSB 414.2).

It is good to be here, to sit at the foot of the mountain and see our Lord holding converse nigh with Moses and Elijah. Our Lord shines with grace and mercy in the company of the Law and the Prophets. Everything that has been foretold about our Lord is coming to pass. The plan of salvation is coming to fruition.

But what in the world is going on? Why is Jesus metamorphosized? Why do none of the holy evangelists explain the significance of the account they narrate? Our Lord even commands His apostles not to tell anyone about what they have seen or heard until after His passion and resurrection. Why? “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.” (Luke 16:29).

It is good to see our Lord transfigured on the mountaintop. There is nothing wrong with catching a hint of the glory of the Lord to be revealed in the great and latter day of the Lord. But the glory of the Lord knocks Peter, James, and John flat on their faces. They are blinded and bewildered, and utterly terrified.

That is the same reaction the people of Israel had when Moses came back from talking with the Lord on Mount Sinai. His face glowed from being in the presence of the Lord, and the people were frightened. Why? Because the presence of the Lord is an awful place for sinners to be. Because even being in the presence of Moses and Elijah is enough to still a beating heart.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says.” (Rev. 2:7) You have the Law and the Prophets. You even have the Evangelists and the Apostles. Listen to them. Hear the Word of the Lord. Read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the Holy Scriptures. The Word of the Lord is revealed in the sacred writings. You have these before you always. Listen to them.

The three disciples saw Jesus and they fell on their faces. And yet, Peter got up and said, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If You wish, I will make three tents here, one for You and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” St. Luke adds the editorial comment here: “He did not know what he was saying.”

The Father gives instructions to the apostles – “Listen to Him!” Listen to Jesus, and not “cleverly devised myths” (2 Peter 1:16). Listen to the Word of God, which is open and public and clear. You cannot stay on the mountaintop. The “Rocky Mountain High” wears off, and then you have to find something concrete and solid upon which to rest your faith.

If you want to see Jesus, then look where He is to be found. Look where you find Moses and Elijah, where you find Malachi and Matthew, where you find John and Jeremiah. Look in the Scriptures. For the Scriptures testify of Christ. The occasional mountaintop experience is not all it's cracked up to be, because sooner or later the sun sets and it gets cold up there on the hill.

You have the Law and the Prophets. Listen to them! Satan has been working very hard for a very long time at getting the children of man to listen to him, to the wind – to pretty much anything but the Word of the Lord. And it works, too – an awful lot of the time. Eve listened to the serpent's hissing instead of the Word of the Lord, and Adam listened to her.

The trouble is that the Word of the Lord speaks loudly and clearly regarding the will of the Lord for you. Sometimes the Word of God is harsh. Sometimes He says that you cannot have what you want. He says that your neighbor's wife and his things and his life are not yours, so keep your hands and your eyes to yourself. He says that your brother's good name and reputation are gifts from God, so help him to protect and improve them. He says that all life is a gift from God, in whatever form and on whatever timetable it comes along, so support and encourage those in peril of life and limb.

Peter, James, and John should have counted themselves fortunate to be able to witness the transfiguration of our Lord, and live to tell about it. There was not even any blood shed on the occasion. When Moses and the elders of Israel went up on the mountain to speak with God, they first had to be covered in the blood of the covenant.

For without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. And without the forgiveness of sins there is no way for a sinful human being to be in the presence of the Lord. But then, of course, the apostles did not voluntarily enter into the presence of the Lord.

Fulfiller of the past

And hope of things to be,

We hail Thy body glorified

And our redemption see (LSB 414.3).

Moses and Elijah appear at our Lord's side, the icons of the Law and the Prophets, the Scriptures of the Old Testament, the former covenant which is passing away – although not being abolished or abrogated. They appear to testify to the person and work of our Lord, just as the voice of the Father from heaven identifies Him as the Beloved Son. Moses and Elijah are the types of what would come after them. They are the patterns which will be filled in later with the thing itself. They are the signs which point to the Man Himself.

And so they come to testify to Jesus as the fulfiller of the past and the hope of the future. They stand at the side of Christ to hail Him as the glorified and transfigured Lord. And so the apostles fall on their faces, blinded by the glory of the Lord revealed in the face, yea the whole body, of our Lord Christ. The apostles are blinded by the transfiguration of our Lord, and yet this is just the opening act of His trip to another mountain – Mount Calvary. They see the glorified body of Jesus, but that body has not yet accomplished their salvation. Rest assured, however – they will see the Lord's Christ high and lifted up in glory.

Before we taste of death,

We see Thy kingdom come;

We long to hold the vision bright

And make this hill our home (LSB 414.4).

Indeed, before Peter, James, and John tasted death, they saw the Kingdom of Heaven come to earth. They saw what was prefigured in Moses and Elijah, and what was presaged by the Transfiguration. They saw the Lord Jesus Christ high and lifted up, not in radiant splendor upon the throne of heaven, but in ignominy and shame upon the cross. They saw the vision bright in the midst of the deep darkness – our Lord Jesus Christ crucified and dead upon the cross for us men and for our salvation. They saw not the fleeting radiance of the Transfiguration, but the everlasting glory of God revealed in His all-merciful act of shedding His blood for you, for the forgiveness of your sins.

We may long to hold the bright vision of the Transfiguration in our minds and make that mountain our home, but that is not the way things work. Visions do not create faith, nor do they forgive sins. Visions merely give us a glimpse into the reality that God has already revealed. We do not make the Transfiguration mount our home, because God is no longer there. For this same reason, we do not make pilgrimages or maintain holy shrines. You do not take a vacation to go visit God.

You do not go to God, because He comes to you. He comes to you in His Word, and He comes clothed in His Church. St. Augustine once wrote, “His garments are a type of His Church. For garments, unless held up by the one having donned them, fall.” The Church stands and falls not on visions and mountaintop booths, but on the Word of God and the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For it is this, and none other, that forgives sins, restores life, and promises eternal salvation to all who believe, as the words and promises of God declare.

'Tis good, Lord, to be here!

Yet we may not remain;

But since Thou bidst us leave the mount,

Come with us to the plain (LSB 414.5).

It was good for Peter, James, and John to witness the Transfiguration. It is good for you to have the Spirit at work in your heart. But you may not remain within these walls forever, any more than those three could remain on that mountaintop. You may not remain, because life goes on, because the Church is in motion to serve a world in chaos.

But since our Lord bids us leave the tranquility of the mountaintop and the safety of the sanctuary, He feeds and clothes us for the journey forth. He spreads a table before you in the sight of your enemies and feeds you with overflowing cup and abundant plate. He feeds you with food better than anything served to Moses and Elijah. For which of the prophets was ever blessed to eat and drink the very Body and Blood of our Lord? He fortifies you with this food and drink, that you may be strengthened in faith and enlivened by the forgiveness of your sins. And He clothes you with His robe of righteousness, so that you may be well-dressed for the work of mercy which He sets before you. It is no longer you who live, but Christ lives in you.

Look to the hills, whence comes your help. Look up, and see the glorious vision of your redemption. You will not see the bright, beaming face of Transfiguration, but the bloody and bruised face of Calvary, now crowned with glory and risen with healing and salvation for you, and for all people. Fix your eyes on this Jesus, and see no other.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.