Over the past several years, a core of my study has been focused on the times in the scriptures when the veil between the earthly and heavenly realms grows thin, and we get a glimpse of the reality that awaits. The Mount of Transfiguration is maybe one of the most exciting of those stories.

Though Peter had recently confessed Jesus as the Messiah, his understanding of Him was still terribly incomplete. When Jesus explains His impending suffering and death, Peter objects boldly... one might even say he rebukes the Lord for speaking such things. His still young spiritual mind could possibly imagine a glorious Messiah, or maybe even a suffering servant, but he hasn’t yet reached the place where he can see them both belonging to the same person.

That’s where we find Peter, James, and John as Jesus takes them up the mountain.
There, His appearance changes right before their eyes. His face shines bright as the sun; His clothes become white and pure in an instant. Then, Moses and Elijah appear and talk with Jesus, linking this moment to both the Law (Moses), the Prophets (Elijah), and to God’s long history of revealing Himself on mountains.

What the trio saw wasn’t the addition of something Jesus had previously lacked, but a tiny glimpse of the glory He’d always had.

For most of His earthly life, that glory remained veiled, hidden beneath the ordinary appearance and actions of a man from Nazareth. His feet would cake in the dust of desert roads, and His body would grow weary with the journey. He ate, sang, worshipped, and lived among people who frequently misunderstood Him. But on this mountain, the mortal covering was peeled away, and the disciples saw their teacher as far more glorious than they could have ever imagined.

In one of the most “Peter-esque” moves of all, he responds by offering to build three shelters, perhaps hoping to preserve this moment, maybe to honor Jesus, Moses, and Elijah... but the Father interrupts his quest.

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased. Listen to him!”

While Moses and Elijah are important parts of not only this but the whole biblical story, Jesus doesn’t stand beside them as a peer, as just another faithful messenger. He stands as the beloved Son. The Law and the Prophets bear witness to Him, not the other way around. His voice isn’t one among many; it is THE One to which the disciples must listen.

The words of God take on new meaning and weight when you consider what the Lord had told them just a short time ago; that He would suffer and die. I’m sure as He heard the Father’s directive, Peter remembered the words he had spoken about Jesus and His forthcoming pain. The disciples must listen to Him when He speaks of the Kingdom, but also when He speaks of suffering. They can’t accept the miracles while rejecting the cross. And just as they, we, can’t confess His identity while trying to correct His mission.

Blinded by the encounter, the disciples finally lift their eyes only to find Jesus standing alone, his countenance returned to normal.

This week begins here, in this divine moment. Before we see Jesus’ path descend to betrayal, rejection, and death, the Father opens the eyes of the inner three so they may see exactly who is walking it. This reaffirms that the suffering which lay ahead won’t diminish or dull His glory. It will, in fact, reveal the obedient path by which the glorious Son fulfills every ounce of the Father’s saving purpose.

Place yourself in the disciples’ shoes. What would your reaction be to the news that your beloved teacher would suffer and die while you stood idly by, helpless to make a difference? What parts of Jesus’ teaching here are easiest for you to receive? Which is hardest? Which part are you tempted to resist or reinterpret?

Father, thank you for preserving this wonderful window into the glory of the Son. Like the disciples, I’m aware that sometimes even when I hear your Word clearly, I want to argue and find another way. Forgive me when my heart follows its own path. Fix my attention on Jesus and teach me to trust in His identity, not my own. Let the reality and truth of His glory steady my faith when obedience is costly, or the road ahead is uncertain. Amen.

“When the road becomes difficult, the glory of Jesus reminds me that __________________.”