Sermon: Magnificent Light
Text: Luke 9:28-36
Date: February 14, 2010
Rev. Emily Tanis-Likkel, Eagle Harbor Congregational Church
During our very short courtship, my husband Brett was somehow under the false impression that his wife-to-be was pristinely organized. I wasn't trying to trick him, but hey, he was madly in love. He didn't know everything about me--but knew enough to want to spend the rest of his life with me. When two people are in love, each one thinks about the other constantly. When together, the degree to which they are physically entwined is only slightly dependent on the appropriateness given the location and situation. After the passion settles and real life kicks in, the day in, day out joy and struggle and sacrifice of love begins. After the gifts are open and the last thank you sent, one partner will surely do something that makes the other think, who are you? But something else may happen too. As they grow in learning the complexities of each other, and if they allow the intensity of life to make their love stronger, they forge a deeper bond. Then one can go away without the other pining away, unable to do anything else -- not because something in the love has died, but because the love has grown deeper and more mature. Relationships evolve over time, experience transformation again and again, each time becoming something new.
Peter, like a lover who cleaves to his beloved, wanted the moment of Jesus revealing his glory to last forever. Peter saw the beauty, but didn't yet grasp the complexity of Jesus, how much he would sacrifice, how far his grace would reach. Peter did not sense the immensity of the moment. He saw it according to what worked for him -- and missed the deeper meaning of Jesus' revelation of glory, that his relationship with the world was about to evolve, was about to be transformed, that he was preparing for his exodus to the cross. Peter, through his sleepy fog, saw Jesus as 2 dimensional, so beautiful and lovely and awe-inspiring, he wanted to stay there with him forever. And Jesus was mysteriously beautiful, standing transfigured on that mountain. But the moment didn't last -- because Jesus had to get going. The disciples did too, because the crux of Jesus' ministry was close at hand.
In the calendar of the Christian church, today marks the final Sunday of Epiphany. Epiphany, a sudden appearing of God's glory, began with the wise ones who followed the star. It ends today with transfiguration. Jesus had gone up to the mountain to pray, taking three friends: Peter, James and John. He must have been praying for some time, because his friends had fallen asleep. It was while he was in prayer that his face began to shine, that his whole being changed. By the time the disciples rubbed the sleep from their eyes, Jesus was deep in conversation with Moses and Elijah, and they were all wrapped in magnificent light. The subject of their talk was Jesus' exodus. As Moses led God's people out of slavery and into Promised Land, Jesus' departure would bring about freedom, hope, and new life. Elijah showing up fulfilled the Scripture that he would signal when the Messiah was among the people. The radiance intensified as the disciples found themselves in the light as well, and heard the very voice of God. This is my Son, my chosen -- listen to him! The disciples wanted to bottle up the moment, but it was not to be. Jesus had an exodus to accomplish, and they all had to get going. As Epiphany draws to a close, and Lent begins this Wednesday, we are beckoned on a journey of confession, self-reflection, possibly sacrifice of that which distracts us from following Christ. We are asked to listen to God speaking in our lives, and not simply hearing but allowing for transformation in our lives, change that leads us to do what we would not have had the guts to do otherwise.
When couples get so busy that they don't take the time to embrace, to check in with each other, to encourage and compliment the other, the result can be resentment, misunderstanding, or worse. The work of a marriage or partnership necessitates a day in and day out turning toward each other instead of away. Our relationship with God requires the same. How do we listen to Jesus in our everyday lives? In order to listen, we need to stop. We need Sabbath time to re-orient ourselves to God, to deepen our understanding of the greater purpose of our lives, we need to stop the hurry of our lives and listen. Some of you know that I am giddy about spiritual retreats. I love the time away, the connections made, the insights received. They often seem just a bit too short. Our connections to God are renewed in all kinds of ways. When we worship God, when we sing and pray and listen to God and to one another in community, we have the opportunity to lay aside our own agendas, to re-set our gaze on Jesus, to soak in the light of Christ, and let it energize us. And it is not only found in worship, but by getting outside, by reading a good book, Bible study, journaling, calling a friend, creating art or cooking dinner. Whether it be a weekend retreat, a daily meditation, a morning walk, or singing our hearts out in the car, this renewal can give us the energy and spiritual fuel to do the work of love that God is calling us to do.
When I saw Avatar, I was deeply moved by the beauty of Pandora, a paradise in which the bonds between creatures, the interconnectedness of all life was honored and upheld. The main character, Jake, comes to the realization that he was more truly himself in Pandora than he was anywhere else. He said, "Everything is backwards now, like out there (in Pandora) is the true world, and in here (among his fellow humans) is the dream." Now, I don't believe that we are actually in a dream, but this reminded me that we don't always have the eyes to see God's realm, but it is more real than anything else. In the film, some of the other humans only saw Pandora according to how it could benefit them. Jake, however, laid aside his own plans in order to deepen his own bond with the Navi people and the creatures of Pandora. He fell in love. It was not a relationship one would guess would work. Jokes abound about men and women from being of different planets, and in this movie, they actually are. To live in Pandora, Jake had to follow Neytiri, his beloved. He had to live as she did, move as she moved. He had to treat all creatures with respect, and he had to shed his material possessions. He was persecuted for it -- the world he came from, the realm of consumerism, greed and self-absorption just didn't get him. The love and passion between Jake and Neytiri fueled their willingness to sacrifice for each other, to put the other before themselves, to commit to each other for as long as they both would live.
Jake's life took an incredible turn. He had no idea when he started out on the journey to Pandora that he would become so completely transformed. The Navi people told him that to become one of them, he had to be born twice. As science-fiction as it sounds, so do we. As we examine our own agenda for the day, the goals of our month, our year, our lives, may we pray, asking for God's guidance. Is there something else we are being beckoned to do to further the kin-dom, is there something that is wasting our time that we can give up? Pray for courage, then, to rise and get going. There is a saying by Judith Campbell, "when your heart speaks, take good notes." When we have an insight about how we are to live, about where God is calling us, about what love entails -- we need to move beyond reveling in the insight. We need to get up, get going, and do the work. Some of us experience spiritual highs and lows. Some may believe in God but not feel they have a spiritual pulse at all. Either way, we are invited, like the disciples, to behold the glory of God. We may get a better glimpse of our God when we move out of our comfortable circles, beyond what is easy -- when we share our faith; when we are open to miracles, second chances, and are willing to become vulnerable.
The disciples witnessed Jesus shining, and prophets appearing long after their death, and if they had any question of his divinity, it was answered on that mountain. The disciples received a spiritual high that they wanted to hold onto. But it wasn't about them. They were instructed by God not to set up tent - not to stay at that retreat indefinitely, but to go about the work of discipleship -- by listening to the voice of Jesus. And Jesus says: feed and clothe the poor, preach the Gospel, welcome in the stranger and marginalized. As we prepare to move into a new season when we recall the journey of Jesus to the cross, may we pause to soak in the wonder of Christ, the deep abiding love of God our Creator, the energy of the Holy Spirit. May we listen deeply, and follow.