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The last Sunday of Epiphany is Transfiguration Sunday. Our eyes have adjusted to the light that guided shepherds and sages from afar to the amazing discovery of God born among us. Now they drink in the full brilliance of God\u2019s manifestation in the illuminated Christ. Lindsey and Adam explore Matthew 17:1-9.<\/p>\n
Jesus takes Peter and James up the mountain, where he is suddenly transfigured before their eyes, standing with Moses and Elijah and dazzling like the sun. Awed, Peter asks to build a dwelling place for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, but God interrupts him with a cloud of light and a booming voice. The words spoken at Jesus\u2019s baptism are repeated: \u201cThis is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!\u201d Him<\/i>, not them. <\/i>When the cloud recedes, Jesus is the last man standing; Moses and Elijah are gone.<\/p>\n
Jesus stands with the law and the prophets that Moses and Elijah represent. But they are absorbed into Jesus, who fulfills rather than abolishes. The best of the law and the prophets, all that is good and true, shines in Jesus. What fades away is the human misunderstanding that has led to violence and the notion that God can only be on our side at the expense of others.<\/p>\n
The stories of both Moses and Elijah show leaders who gradually grew in their relationship with God. Their understanding of divine liberation was mingled with their conviction that God destroys enemies; yet they both came to a revelation of God\u2019s glory apart from violence. Adam and Lindsey briefly explore their stories.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, the transfiguration is the story of the transformation of our understanding of God. And that story continues. Peter and James cannot fully grasp what has happened. Jesus warns them to speak to no one until \u201cafter the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.\u201d Maybe this is because a partial understanding of God can lead to self-righteousness and destruction.<\/p>\n
To fully understand who God is and who we are meant to be, we must come down from the mountain and follow Jesus into the pain and tears of humanity. We can only dare to travel into the shadows of sin and suffering with the transfigured Christ, a glimpse of God\u2019s light eclipsing all violence, as our guide. We will take that journey during the Lenten season, and emerge in the radiance of Love\u2019s triumph over death.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”16px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_section el_class=”post-quote”][\/vc_section][vc_section][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1566393555121{background-color: #f6ebdf !important;}” el_class=”optin”][vc_column][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section][vc_row el_class=”olive-branch-bg-l”][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]And we invite you to ponder and pray with us not only on our podcast, but\u00a0 <\/span>every Wednesday, live, at 11 am CT\/ 9 am PT on the Raven Foundation Facebook page<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Adam and Lindsey explain how the transfiguration is the story of the transformation of our understanding of God. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":21449,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4469,4355,14],"tags":[1265,1141,77,87,518,2139],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Epiphany 7A: The Transfiguration - The Raven Foundation<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n