Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, July 2, 2023

A Glimpse of His Glory

Today, Pastor Michael is talking about the real heart of ReCreate Church.  We have something here that is unique, and we’ve only seen a little flash of what we can truly do!

Today’s sermon is about the Transfiguration and what happens when we see His glory.  

Our takeaway is, “If you glimpse His glory, you’ll tell His story!”.

Jesus let Peter, James, and John to a mountain where he was “transfigured,” which is, in essence, showing them how He’ll appear in Heaven.  Our lives are like that; we are in a world of darkness, and Jesus is the center of our being.  We want people to know Jesus.

Elijah and Moses, two of the greatest prophets in history, appeared with Jesus during the Transfiguration.  Moses died, but Elijah went to heaven in a whirlwind.  And now, Jesus is talking with Moses and Elijah.  Mark doesn’t tell us in his version, but Luke did explain more in his gospel about Jesus explaining his upcoming death and resurrection. But the disciples really didn’t understand what they were hearing!  This was likely due to being overwhelmed and a bit of fear, to put it mildly!

A cloud came and overshadowed them and told them this was His beloved Son, which pretty much eliminated all doubts about what was going on.  “Hear Him!” was God’s command and set them straight that Jesus was whom they needed to listen to! Mose and Elijah were cool guys, but they weren’t Jesus!  

The Transfiguration is a scene of Jesus as a representation of His coming kingdom in its fullness and glory.  Those who saw the transfiguration bore witness to it to the other disciples and to countless millions down through the centuries, and it was recorded as such in the Gospels.

Mark 9:2-4 (CSB Study Bible Notes) 9:2 Six days appears to refer to the time between Peter’s confession and Jesus’s transfiguration. It may also tie Jesus’s experience to Moses’s (Ex 24:15-17). On Peter, James, and John as Jesus’s inner circle, see note at 1:16-20. The high mountain is often identified as Mount Tabor, but Mount Hermon or Mount Meron may be better candidates. As he was transfigured, Jesus’s nature was not changed but unveiled. 9:3 Dazzling connotes extreme whiteness that is beyond natural explanation (Mt 17:2 describes them as “white as the light”). Matthew (17:2; cp. Lk 9:29) adds that Jesus’s face glowed like the sun (cp. Ex 34:35). 9:4 Mark probably intended to indicate Moses as the greater OT figure by saying Elijah appeared with Moses.

Verses can be found in Mark 9: 1-13.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.