“Who do you say that I am?” Matthew 16:13
The Transfiguration of Jesus is one of the most crucial events in the earthly life of Jesus! All three synoptic gospels see it as a pivotal turn in Jesus’ ministry. Yet oddly, we Protestants tend to downplay its significance. We celebrate the incarnation every year at Christmas. We rejoice in His death and resurrection at Easter. But by and large we give little attention to His manifested glory in the event called the Transfiguration, even though all three synoptic gospels view it as a major event with massive implications for our understanding of Jesus! That is what has drawn me to this study. I want to know Jesus better. I want you to know Jesus better. These events reveal things that are vital for our faith and understanding of Who Jesus is. What I hope to do over the next several weeks is learn from these events leading to and centering on the Transfiguration.
Traditionally the earthly ministry of Jesus falls into three basic periods, each about a year long. It begins with a Year of Obscurity where he’s largely unknown – preaching, teaching and healing the sick in and around Galilee. That leads to a Year of Popularity as large crowds begin to follow everywhere he goes, drawn by his healing and teaching ministry, saying “No one ever taught like this man with such authority and power!” That leads to a Year of Opposition as the religious leaders target Jesus with plots to get rid of him! They see Him as a threat to their authority. The result is that most of that final year leading up to Jerusalem is marked by controversy and open hostility.
As we begin our study in Matthew 16:13f, we find that opposition has really begun to heat up, so much so that Jesus sees the need to get his disciples out of harm’s way by taking them north, away from the Jewish lands into the Gentile region of Caesarea Philippi. Why? So He can be alone with them and begin to pour into them a deeper understanding of Who He is and what it will mean for them to follow Him faithfully to the end! But they have no idea what’s coming. So for their faith in Him to remain intact under fire, they’ve got to know Who He truly is. And dear church so must we! If your faith is going to stand in the crucible of opposition from a hostile world, you’ve got to be clear about Who Jesus is and why it matters! That’s the study we begin this morning.
May God give us grace to see Christ in all His glory. And seeing, may we believe!
Pastor Scott