GOSPELS 17 THE TRANSFIGURATIONThe turning point in the public ministry of Jesus where he now becomes Public Enemy Number One was the message of Jesus to the disciples about taking up the cross. He had said he was going to the cross and now that journey begins. He had become an enemy to the Jewish leaders, and many of his followers had turned away from him. His influence over his followers included people even among his close disciples who wanted him to fulfill his mysterious Kingdom...
GOSPELS 17 THE TRANSFIGURATION
The turning point in the public ministry of Jesus where he now becomes Public Enemy Number One was the message of Jesus to the disciples about taking up the cross. He had said he was going to the cross and now that journey begins. He had become an enemy to the Jewish leaders, and many of his followers had turned away from him. His influence over his followers included people even among his close disciples who wanted him to fulfill his mysterious Kingdom statements and become a political power to rule the world - so now he was going to become a threat even to the Roman Empire, not just because of his commanding influence, but also because of the powerful demonstration of the the undeniable miracles that astonished everybody.
The Bible says in Matthew and Mark and Luke that six days after Jesus had just spoken about us taking up our cross he took his disciples up to the Mount of Transfiguration. The Apostle Peter also describes this event in his second epistle. (2Peter 1:16–18 Matthew 17:1 Mark 9:1–13; Luke 9:27–36). Reading on now from Matthew,
Matthew 17:1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them, as his face began to shine like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus.
Jesus was meeting with Moses, Israel’s deliverer and Lawgiver, who encouraged Jesus, the one who had been victorious over sin and temptation and had become the fulfilment of the Law for Israel. Jesus was meeting also with Elijah, the prophet that destroyed the idols of Israel, and overcame all the powers of Baal when he brought fire down from heaven on top of Mt. Carmel. He encouraged Jesus, the one who had overcome all darkness and had become the fulfilment of all the prophesies concerning the eternal destiny of not only Israel but of all Mankind.
But then Luke adds a significant comment that doesn’t appear in the other Gospels. He says that Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus of His decease (exodus) which He would soon accomplish at Jerusalem, and the Greek word for decease used here does not mean death, the word is exodus. The journey of Jesus, from his cross on the earth and then to the grave and then to the Heavens was his exodus. (Luke 9:30).
And Just as God accomplished Israel’s exodus from Egypt, being led out of bondage as slaves to Pharaoh and led into the Promised Land of Canaan, Jesus is our exodus out of the bondage of the afflictive confusion and disorder of this world. Our togetherness exodus life with Jesus leads us not only out of bondage to the past but into the promise of ‘all spiritual blessings in Christ’ (Ephesians 1:4). Israel was given the real estate of a Promised Land. We are given a spiritual Promised Land great and precious promises of becoming partakers of the nature of God through faith. We have been taken out - in order to enter in.
Matthew writes that while Moses and Elijah were there together with Jesus, Peter spoke up and said, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” Here was another one of Peter’s good ideas that wasn’t a God idea - Peter was thinking ‘It doesn’t get better than this so let’s keep it going!’ and again his good idea was interrupted by God’s idea from heaven. Matthew writes ‘But even as Peter spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. hear him” (Matthew 17 4-8). At this the disciples fell face downward to the ground, terribly frightened. Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” he said, “don’t be afraid.” And when they looked, only Jesus was with them.
Perhaps it is fitting that Peter is the only Apostle who writes about this occasion in 2Peter 1:16 and we can see that he came to know how to ‘hear him’. He had learned to hear Jesus above all his own opinions and above all the other legalistic voices and religious opinions and false prophesies that were abounding in his day. He wrote, ‘… We saw his majestic splendour with our own eyes when he received honour and glory from God the Father and the majestic voice of God said to him, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. (2Peter 1:16-19)
Matthew continues the story from the place where Moses and Elijah had gone back into the Heavens, and Jesus and the disciples descended from the mountain. Jesus told the disciples not to tell anyone what they had seen until after his resurrection, and the disciples then asked Jesus why the scribes had said Elijah must come before the Christ Messiah came. This was also prophesied by Malachi in the last verse of the last chapter of the last book of the Old Testament - I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers (Malachi 4:5,6).
Jesus answered them; “Elijah does come and will restore all things. But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but he had to suffer and was killed. So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist. They understood then that Jesus meant that John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah and so was not recognised. They were still left with the quandary of Jesus saying that Elijah would still come, and he would restore all things, so they wondered why Elijah had just appeared on the mountain and left again, and when and why was he going to come a second time? They knew Malachi's prophecy about Elijah coming before the Great day of the Lord to turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the children to the fathers so when would that happen? They didn’t yet understand about the second coming of Jesus in the Last days and about the need for the ministry of the spirit of Elijah for the healing of family relationships in the earth in the last days before Jesus comes the second time – parents and children and brothers and sisters.
Jesus had just likened the ministry of John the Baptist to the ministry of Elijah, in coming to prepare the way for Jesus. But there was a curious difference between the ministries of John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus the first time and of Elijah preparing the way for Jesus to come the second time. When John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah he was arrested and killed and that would also happen to Jesus. But Elijah was never arrested and killed as a prophet in his day –Elijah finally ended up going straight to Heaven in a Chariot, and he had just now made a return visit to Jesus on the top of a mountain. That means that Elijah is still alive, and he has to come back again and restore those things of the healing of families that prepare the way for the second coming of Jesus, as Jesus had just said. That completes the John the Baptist and Elijah picture that Jesus is giving us.
People are understandably eager to see revival in our day and in our land, and to witness the power and the glory of God in the midst, and it has happened from time to time over the last two thousand years – revivals come and go. It would be a double blessing if the prophetic word spoken through the prophet Malachi of God’s burden about restoring families in the earth could be part of the foundation and the framework for another outpouring of the Holy Spirit, for the softening of the hearts for God’s family of humanity in the earth. That would be a new kind of revival. In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit is described by the prophet Hosea as the rain that falls to bring forth the harvest, and the rain comes first as the gentle rain that softens the earth and then comes the latter rain that energises the yield of the crop for harvest.
Hosea 6:3 Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the former and latter rain to the earth.
The world at this time is like one big unforgiving family quarrel with bitter hostility from one group being aimed at another group and no holds barred, and the only currency that is being valued is power over others. People prize the power to judge and condemn those who do not agree with them. The true currency of God’s people is God’s love and truth and the mercy that will bring about the unity of the Spirit in the bonds of peace. This can begin among people who know their God. This is God’s work, and it has started with God and it will continue, and by his grace we will hear the voice of his Beloved Son as he speaks from the Father’s heart into this world now. This is something that we do not make happen because it cannot be forced and it will be resisted, but we can be there ready to respond when God shows us that he is doing something in setting up occasions for love and truth and mercy to occur that we could not have arranged, and we then open our hearts to it and see the Holy Spirit at work in our world.
let's pray that by the grace of God we could be able to say ‘these are the days of Elijah- Amen… It's interesting that when Peter wrote after he'd learned to ‘hear him’ he then said listen to what the prophets said – take earnest heed to what they're saying - he was talking about those ones that were speaking about Jesus being the fulfilment of all prophecy. He's giving us a key there, he was saying there are things hidden there that the prophets have said and they have a day and a time and an hour to be fulfilled.
They won’t be simply filled as some kind of historic event that's very interesting for people to read about on the news. They will fulfil the eternal purpose of God its all about whattalk about what Jesus is doing. every prophecy written in the Old Testament is something that only Jesus could fulfil some of them have not yet not been fulfilled - in fact it was James that said for the Lord will not come until the restoration of all things when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. We move towards times of refreshing every time we come closer to the Lord - yes James said the heavens will retain him, watching over, until those times of refreshing come. It is a dry earth that we see today.
Thank you, Lord for your Holy Spirit, falling now. If we can just be on our toes in the spirit as it were, with no sense of urgency but a mindfulness of the importance of what God's heart is for this world - even in sending his Son that none should perish, or be wasted - that’s what that word means - and receive eternal life. Bring people that you have in your heart before you - bring them before the Lord. So thank you Lord - you're doing this work. The gentle rain is happening now, I don't know how – and I think if the heavy rain came we wouldn't be ready, we’d make another denomination of it - and we have 36,000 already and we don't need another mega one with a special kind of brand, with people vying for a place of recognition and influence. We need God to work in our hearts, joining with one another in agreement. These are the days of Elijah!
