I

It’s quite a story. The transfiguration of Jesus. The goodness of God is radiating forth… Moses (standing for the Law) is there… Elijah (standing for the Prophets) is there … Jesus, the Beloved of God, is there….

So… what’s missing? What’s the problem in this text?

What’s not there?

Peter is not there. He’s geographically present; he’s physically located on top of the mountain with Jesus and his friends. His intellect is there, enough to come up with some clever ideas. (3 spiritual leaders.... 3 tents.... Have a little mountain retreat...) His willingness to act is there.

But still, in some way, Peter is not there there fully enough to experience what’s actually happening in that sacred moment. He’s not there with his whole heart and mind and soul and strength…

But why? Why is he not fully present? And, if he’s not there, where on earth is he?

We get a clue from the story that precedes the transfiguration (Luke 9:18-23), where Jesus asks Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” … And, of course, Peter, being a real keener... says, without so much as a moment’s hesitation, “You are the Messiah of God” (the Christ).

You would think that Jesus would have been impressed by that. I’s obviously the “right answer.” But does Peter really know what he’s talking about? Is his understanding of that word “Christ” or “Messiah” the same as Jesus’ understanding of ? Apparently not… Because after Peter makes this bold proclamation about Jesus being the Christ, Jesus goes on to say:

“I must undergo great suffering, be rejected by all the religious authorities, be killed, and then be raised from the dead.

And not only that – all of you who want to be my followers… have to turn away

from seeking your own glory… and experience your own cross… not just once, but on a daily basis.”

Whoa! Whatever Peter had understood the word “Christ” to mean, that wasn’t it.

You see.... Jesus was the best thing that had ever happened to Peter, this poor fisherman. Remember how, in their first encounter, Peter is totally overwhelmed by Jesus’ goodness, and says to him, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:6) Peter feels worthless… like trash.

But Jesus perceives something in Peter that Peter cannot perceive in himself. When Jesus looks at Peter he sees a precious child of God. And so Jesus relates to him in a radically different way than Peter was expecting a famous rabbi to relate to a lowly fisherman. Without any pretense or rigid scruples. Jesus genuinely loves him, treats him with kindness and respect, and offers him an opportunity for a new life as a disciple. And Peter drops everything and follows him.

And so, when Jesus starts talking about “going to Jerusalem” and “being put to death,” Peter can’t bear to hear it. This was anything but “good news;” it was a cause for outrage and despair. Peter had been feeling a goodness in his life that he'd never felt before, and he knows it’s connected to Jesus, and now Jesus says he’s going to die. How would we feel?

We can just imagine the voices blaring in Peter’s mind: “This should not be happening! This is not what I signed up for! Why didn’t he tell me that he was going to “freely accept death” before I opened my heart to him?” … Peter was just so extremely upset that he had “checked out,” not physically, but spiritually he was just not there anymore.

Then, the voice of the Living God penetrates this fog that Peter is lost in and says:

Wake up, Peter! No matter what you think should or shouldn't be happening right now, Listen to Jesus!

II

Have you ever noticed that a lot of ordinary “people like us” – probably the vast majority of people, are often “ not fully here” ? …not fully present… Just as it was for Peter, our lives can so often get clouded with despair. We may be here, in church, in the sense that we’re physically located in the building. Our minds may be here enough to catch the ideas that are being put forward, and to come up with some ideas of our own. Our willingness to act may be here. But still… we’re often not here fully enough to experience the sacredness of this particular moment, and how overflowing it is with the radiant goodness of God. Even right now… transformation is waiting to happen… Jesus is present…. The Living God is present…. Who knows… maybe even Moses and Elijah are present….

But we may not be fully present. Why is that? Why are we so often not fully here…?

Maybe, like Peter, some part of us gets lost in an inner struggle about painful things that have happened or are still happening in our lives. Things that impair our ability to perceive and feel the presence of God's goodness in our lives and in others. Maybe there are voices in our minds, like there were in Peter’s… shouting: “This is not the way it should be! This is not what I want!”

And so, we start blocking out things which are real, but which we don't want to be aware of.

And, then, before you know it, we find ourselves like Peter, somewhat …removed… somewhat detached from our lives…. from our bodily experience… from the thoughts we would rather not think…. and the feelings we would rather not feel…. and the people with whom we would rather not deal. And then, it becomes very hard to feel what is so good … about the good news of Jesus Christ…

III

So how does Peter's predicament get resolved? How does his fogginess get cleared up? Well, if we follow the story, it seems that things had to get worse for Peter before they could really get better.

In spite of his genuine love for Jesus, and all the big promises he makes about never leaving Jesus side, Peter does leave. The second that he realizes that his own life is threatened, he runs away, and he denies that he ever knew Jesus.

And that's when it hits him: how terrifically fragile his love for Jesus had really always been, in spite of all his big talk. And he realizes how Jesus knew all of this about him all along, and yet Jesus still loved him. And that's when the Love of God in Christ gets through to Peter. And he breaks down and weeps… for the first time… …uncontrollably… and something in him, something very distrustful and defensive and self-centered… dies. All the stony walls around Peter's heart started coming down. And suddenly, he wasn't in a fog anymore.

From that moment, even though Peter hadn't actually seen Jesus yet, he seemed to know in his bones now that although Jesus had been crucified, He was still ...somehow... Really Present in his life. It is as though when Peter hit the bottom, he discovers that Jesus was there, on the bottom, waiting to catch him and console him, and assure him that he was still loved.... in spite of everything. And so, Peter experiences a kind of transfiguration in his own life. He was changed. And he was the only one (at least among the male disciples) who was changed.

When Mary Magdalene and her friends came and told the disciples of their encounter with the angel at the empty tomb, not one of the disciples believed them.... except Peter. Peter ran to the tomb, his heart pounding.

Because Peter already knew that it was true. He was already perceiving the Real Presence of Jesus. His mistrust had already been overcome by the love of God being poured into his heart. He had already experienced a kind of death and resurrection of his own in response to the Risen Lord.

IV

What about us? The gospel remains the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Crucified & Risen One is invisible, yes, but is still really here, really present, right now. Not just in this church building. But within us. The spiritual awakening that Jesus made possible for Peter, Jesus also wants for us. Not just in one big dramatic event, but in every day of our lives. He wants us to know the power of his death and resurrection in our own lives.

But how can that happen? What do we have to do? Well perhaps the best counsel is the word that the Father spoke to Peter and the other disciples on top of Mount Tabor in today's gospel reading:

“Listen to Jesus.” “Listen to Jesus.” How do we listen to Jesus?

The message that I hope you will take home with you this morning and reflect on throughout the week is that there are two (2) things that Jesus is always, even now, saying to each one of us:

1^st: Jesus is always saying: “I love you, as the Father has loved me.” That means, in other words, “I love you completely, perfectly, and eternally.¹ It is our acceptance of that love for us that clears away the fog of despair and enables to perceive ourselves and the world through the eyes of faith, as Jesus does.

So if at any moment of the day this week you find that you're “not fully here”, you're upset about the past or fretting about the future, and not really present to whatever is happening in your life right now – then you know that you've likely lost consciousness of the complete, perfect, and eternal love of Jesus. Because that Love wakes us up, and makes us happy to be alive, even in the midst of life's hardships.

And 2^nd: Jesus is always saying: “Follow me.” In all the details of your life, follow me, We may ask: “Jesus, how can I know where you're leading me in all of the details of my life?” Well, we know how to recognize Jesus – Jesus is the one who loves us completely, perfectly, and eternally. That is the One we're seeking. And so we seek Him, we listen for Him in our hearts. Whether we are at church, at the supermarket, at home or at work... if we seek Him, we will ever surely find him. And once we find Him, we will want nothing but to follow His lead. Thanks be to God.

Rishi Sativihari

Transfiguration Sunday, 2012

Trinity Anglican, Lambeth, Ontario