ROAD to TRANSFORMATION

 

February 12, 2024

 

Luke 9:28-36

About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.  Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.  As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)

While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves and did not tell anyone at that time what they had seen.

 

2 Corinthians 3:18

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

 

There are two things that jump out at me in our Gospel reading above. The first, is that we are told that Jesus along with Peter, James and John go up onto the mountain to Pray. In order to discover silence, we have to be like Jesus and go off to find a place where we can turn off the cell phones and all the other electronics that consume us, a place with no rushing businesses or the chatter of people to deal with.” This is what is happening here, away onto a mountain to pray.

The second part of our Gospel that stands out to me are the words of the heavenly voice saying, “Listen to him.” That is one aspect of prayer that is often overlooked but is very necessary, the act of listening for God in the quiet and in solitude.

Transfiguration is about Jesus and about us. When we are with him, we are in touch with the Holy. The human and the divine are brought together. He is among us. His love, grace, peace, and compassion can transfigure us. And then we look at those around us and recognize that hope of transfiguration is for all.

God wants to speak to us, too; because he knows where we are, how we live, and when we need encouragement. He wants to tell us that he loves us; and he wants to guide us and to reveal himself to us and to use us for his glory. He is always talking… and communicating but are we always listening?

Prayer is our road to transformation. “As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning” (Luke 9:29, NIV). Encounter with the Holy One changes things and us. When we encounter a Living God, his divine power transforms us from the inside out. As our heart changes, our outward person begins to reveal that change. Just like Jesus’ disciples could see this visible manifestation of an inward change, the people in our world will begin to see who God is reshaping us to become.

As we reach for Jesus in prayer, we become like him. “We all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” I wonder, if this is meant to be a signal to us that if we want to witness any transformation in our lives, we must learn to turn to Jesus in our prayers.

Today let us seek God in prayer, let us seek for Him to change our hearts and minds and draw us closer to Him. That God would change us from the inside out.