Sermon Illustrations for Transfiguration Sunday (2014)
Illustration
Object:
Exodus 24:12-18
They must have had to sit around for seven days before the Lord made his appearance. And they still had to wait around for forty days! It was cold up on that mountain and I doubt they brought their lunch!
The question I always had as a kid was how did Moses carry those stone tablets down a mountain -- even with Joshua's help? At least stone would last longer than parchment.
Aaron was not the most dependable guy to leave behind. He allowed one of the worst demonstrations of democracy in the Bible! We would all be worshiping a golden calf if democracy won! Moses and God did not go along with the majority, and almost never did in the entire Bible!
We see this in every government on earth, including ours. If we want to stay in power or be reelected, we had better please the people. Pleasing God is secondary. Does the constitution come first? We must decide if God's word comes first in our lives! Is our faith in him number one? What are we willing to sacrifice for him?
We are the ones who must decide for ourselves how important those big ten are. It sure sends a message when we read that Moses saw God in person and was given those "commands." Were they the ten suggestions? Every Christian must decide for oneself -- even if all the rest of the country or world differ! Even if we are told we are prejudiced and are hurting others by coming on too strong with our faith. Should we remove those Ten Commandments from government buildings to show how open minded we are?
Moses was still around when Jesus stood on the mountain. He must have obeyed. He must have put God first. Will we?
Bob O.
2 Peter 1:16-21
The author of our lesson warns against myths when thinking about Christ's glory. There are a lot of myths about his glory. Famed black prosperity preacher and megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes promises that "in order to receive an expected harvest [from God], we must first sow a seed." But there is a lot of poverty still among hard-working faithful people. The new globalized economy promised to create wealth. We need to reinvent ourselves in this new reality in order to find contentment and success, so the myth goes. But sociologist Richard Sennett has observed how the stress on flexibility in our new economy has robbed us of a sense of connectedness and coherence, resulting in anxiety (The Corrosion of Character, especially pp. 9-10, 134-135).
These half-truths and myths about the good life pale in the face of the reality of God's glory. As John Wesley once suggested, compared to Christ in all his glory they are like the light of a lamp compared to daylight (Commentary on the Bible, p. 582)! Christ's glory, Saint Augustine says, is evident in that he is more inward than the most inward place in the heart, wholly everywhere yet nowhere, in many places yet simultaneously in just one place (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 1, pp. 63, 91, 446, 474). Christ's glorification sets humanity free from all the false promises (myths) of prosperity and wealth. Famed modern Catholic theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin claimed that Christ's glorification involves the restoration of all the energies and powers of the universe, for he is "the instrument, the center and the end of all creation…" (Hymn of the Universe, p. 144).
Mark E.
2 Peter 1:16-21
Brussels sprouts are disgusting. Star Wars movies are better than Star Trek. The Steelers are the greatest team ever to set cleats upon Astroturf.
Opinions. That's all they are. Matters of taste. You may believe them fervently. You may be willing to fight and stand your ground for them, but they are preferences, nothing more. And another person will have other preferences. You can disagree with them. You can know that they are dead wrong, but in the end, it's nothing more than a difference of opinion.
The death and resurrection of Jesus is not a matter of opinion. Jesus is Lord whether people believe it or not. Christian faith is not a matter of taste. It is a matter of living in the truth.
Scott B.
2 Peter 1:16-21
A story was circulated that during the last great persecution of the early church there was a discussion as to how to uproot Christianity from the Roman empire. Many ideas were considered for crushing the Christians. An apostate Christian told the emperor and the council that it was of no use to burn the Christians. He said, "If you burn every Christian alive today and leave a single copy of the scriptures, remaining the Christian church will spring up again tomorrow." With the counsel of the apostate Christian in mind the emperor ordered that all scriptures be destroyed.
The authority of the word tells us how we can be changed by the transforming power of God through Jesus Christ. The Bible in the heart will help secure a consecrated heart!
(G.B.F. Hallock, 5000 Best Modern Illustrations, p. 77)
Derl K.
2 Peter 1:16-21
Like all personal attributes, pride in and of itself is not bad; but it becomes a sin when it becomes oversized. We can be proud of our accomplishments and we can even boast of something that we have done exceptionally well. In fact, I teach my college students that it is good to be proud of an exceptional talent you have, because we are all good at something, even several things. What is wrong, I inform them, is when you think you are good at everything and think you know everything. As I instruct my students, we are all good at some things, but none of us are good at all things. To consider one's self good at all things is oversized pride.
Application: We must understand that we are a lamp unto the world, but none of us is a sun who can illuminate the entire world. We are not the Son, only a servant of the Son.
Ron L.
Matthew 17:1-9
I always wonder about Andrew. He was the only brother left out, but he was the one who brought Peter to see Jesus! I admire his humility. He stuck with Jesus anyway!
Jesus allowed the three, his closest, to be with him and observe that vision. It is amazing to try and envision that experience. Would the Pharisees have accepted Jesus if they saw it? How many doubters would be convinced by that transfiguration? Did Jesus make a mistake by only inviting three to witness the transfiguration?
Maybe it is dumb, but how did the three recognize Moses and Elijah if there were no photos or even paintings of them? They could have been anyone! Did Jesus introduce them?
Peter is always jumping in with a bright idea. Since the Jews knew no one higher than Moses and Elijah, would it elevate Jesus to make him one of those three shelters? Great idea? But God seemed to be shouting, "Shut up! Listen to my Son!"
Are we today in this country trying to build three altars: one to Moses, one to Muhammad, and one to Jesus? That way we wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings! But then, we had no vision on the mountain that would put things in proper perspective with only Jesus' altar there! Shocking prejudice! We forget Jesus' command that we should not be ashamed of him, or we would end up outside the gates. When I visited Morocco, I saw that they allowed all faiths to be present. They even allowed a synagogue! But you had no doubt that Muhammad was the head honcho.
In Nepal there would not have been room for all the Hindu gods if you made an altar for each one. Buddha would only have one, but we saw altars all over Nepal for the many gods the Hindus worshiped. The Nepali liked the idea of only one god and came to our churches by the droves! Besides, our God did not demand "Baksheesh" up front to worship him. We did not have stewardship Sundays to raise money. We did not have to pay to have healing prayer.
When we have an "experience" of God's presence, as some Christians do, we may also be terrified. We will never forget that experience. It will stay with us. It may be a turning point, as Paul's experience on the road to Damascus was. It was a turning point in my life. My buddy in seminary had an experience in his life when his secretary said, "Mister Moekle, you ought to be a minister."
I think Jesus' advice may still be worth remembering. We should not shout to others about our experiences. We should not brag about them. We should keep them in our hearts and only share them when God gives us his permission, when they can be a help to someone else.
Bob O.
They must have had to sit around for seven days before the Lord made his appearance. And they still had to wait around for forty days! It was cold up on that mountain and I doubt they brought their lunch!
The question I always had as a kid was how did Moses carry those stone tablets down a mountain -- even with Joshua's help? At least stone would last longer than parchment.
Aaron was not the most dependable guy to leave behind. He allowed one of the worst demonstrations of democracy in the Bible! We would all be worshiping a golden calf if democracy won! Moses and God did not go along with the majority, and almost never did in the entire Bible!
We see this in every government on earth, including ours. If we want to stay in power or be reelected, we had better please the people. Pleasing God is secondary. Does the constitution come first? We must decide if God's word comes first in our lives! Is our faith in him number one? What are we willing to sacrifice for him?
We are the ones who must decide for ourselves how important those big ten are. It sure sends a message when we read that Moses saw God in person and was given those "commands." Were they the ten suggestions? Every Christian must decide for oneself -- even if all the rest of the country or world differ! Even if we are told we are prejudiced and are hurting others by coming on too strong with our faith. Should we remove those Ten Commandments from government buildings to show how open minded we are?
Moses was still around when Jesus stood on the mountain. He must have obeyed. He must have put God first. Will we?
Bob O.
2 Peter 1:16-21
The author of our lesson warns against myths when thinking about Christ's glory. There are a lot of myths about his glory. Famed black prosperity preacher and megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes promises that "in order to receive an expected harvest [from God], we must first sow a seed." But there is a lot of poverty still among hard-working faithful people. The new globalized economy promised to create wealth. We need to reinvent ourselves in this new reality in order to find contentment and success, so the myth goes. But sociologist Richard Sennett has observed how the stress on flexibility in our new economy has robbed us of a sense of connectedness and coherence, resulting in anxiety (The Corrosion of Character, especially pp. 9-10, 134-135).
These half-truths and myths about the good life pale in the face of the reality of God's glory. As John Wesley once suggested, compared to Christ in all his glory they are like the light of a lamp compared to daylight (Commentary on the Bible, p. 582)! Christ's glory, Saint Augustine says, is evident in that he is more inward than the most inward place in the heart, wholly everywhere yet nowhere, in many places yet simultaneously in just one place (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 1, pp. 63, 91, 446, 474). Christ's glorification sets humanity free from all the false promises (myths) of prosperity and wealth. Famed modern Catholic theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin claimed that Christ's glorification involves the restoration of all the energies and powers of the universe, for he is "the instrument, the center and the end of all creation…" (Hymn of the Universe, p. 144).
Mark E.
2 Peter 1:16-21
Brussels sprouts are disgusting. Star Wars movies are better than Star Trek. The Steelers are the greatest team ever to set cleats upon Astroturf.
Opinions. That's all they are. Matters of taste. You may believe them fervently. You may be willing to fight and stand your ground for them, but they are preferences, nothing more. And another person will have other preferences. You can disagree with them. You can know that they are dead wrong, but in the end, it's nothing more than a difference of opinion.
The death and resurrection of Jesus is not a matter of opinion. Jesus is Lord whether people believe it or not. Christian faith is not a matter of taste. It is a matter of living in the truth.
Scott B.
2 Peter 1:16-21
A story was circulated that during the last great persecution of the early church there was a discussion as to how to uproot Christianity from the Roman empire. Many ideas were considered for crushing the Christians. An apostate Christian told the emperor and the council that it was of no use to burn the Christians. He said, "If you burn every Christian alive today and leave a single copy of the scriptures, remaining the Christian church will spring up again tomorrow." With the counsel of the apostate Christian in mind the emperor ordered that all scriptures be destroyed.
The authority of the word tells us how we can be changed by the transforming power of God through Jesus Christ. The Bible in the heart will help secure a consecrated heart!
(G.B.F. Hallock, 5000 Best Modern Illustrations, p. 77)
Derl K.
2 Peter 1:16-21
Like all personal attributes, pride in and of itself is not bad; but it becomes a sin when it becomes oversized. We can be proud of our accomplishments and we can even boast of something that we have done exceptionally well. In fact, I teach my college students that it is good to be proud of an exceptional talent you have, because we are all good at something, even several things. What is wrong, I inform them, is when you think you are good at everything and think you know everything. As I instruct my students, we are all good at some things, but none of us are good at all things. To consider one's self good at all things is oversized pride.
Application: We must understand that we are a lamp unto the world, but none of us is a sun who can illuminate the entire world. We are not the Son, only a servant of the Son.
Ron L.
Matthew 17:1-9
I always wonder about Andrew. He was the only brother left out, but he was the one who brought Peter to see Jesus! I admire his humility. He stuck with Jesus anyway!
Jesus allowed the three, his closest, to be with him and observe that vision. It is amazing to try and envision that experience. Would the Pharisees have accepted Jesus if they saw it? How many doubters would be convinced by that transfiguration? Did Jesus make a mistake by only inviting three to witness the transfiguration?
Maybe it is dumb, but how did the three recognize Moses and Elijah if there were no photos or even paintings of them? They could have been anyone! Did Jesus introduce them?
Peter is always jumping in with a bright idea. Since the Jews knew no one higher than Moses and Elijah, would it elevate Jesus to make him one of those three shelters? Great idea? But God seemed to be shouting, "Shut up! Listen to my Son!"
Are we today in this country trying to build three altars: one to Moses, one to Muhammad, and one to Jesus? That way we wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings! But then, we had no vision on the mountain that would put things in proper perspective with only Jesus' altar there! Shocking prejudice! We forget Jesus' command that we should not be ashamed of him, or we would end up outside the gates. When I visited Morocco, I saw that they allowed all faiths to be present. They even allowed a synagogue! But you had no doubt that Muhammad was the head honcho.
In Nepal there would not have been room for all the Hindu gods if you made an altar for each one. Buddha would only have one, but we saw altars all over Nepal for the many gods the Hindus worshiped. The Nepali liked the idea of only one god and came to our churches by the droves! Besides, our God did not demand "Baksheesh" up front to worship him. We did not have stewardship Sundays to raise money. We did not have to pay to have healing prayer.
When we have an "experience" of God's presence, as some Christians do, we may also be terrified. We will never forget that experience. It will stay with us. It may be a turning point, as Paul's experience on the road to Damascus was. It was a turning point in my life. My buddy in seminary had an experience in his life when his secretary said, "Mister Moekle, you ought to be a minister."
I think Jesus' advice may still be worth remembering. We should not shout to others about our experiences. We should not brag about them. We should keep them in our hearts and only share them when God gives us his permission, when they can be a help to someone else.
Bob O.
