Communion With the Christ:: The Mount of Transfiguration:

"Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them" Matthew: 17:1

Mountains, in the pages of the Holy Bible are places of great significance They are seen as places where humanity encounters the Great God: The Place where people meet their God.

In the Book of Genesis: 22:1-18, God "tested" the Patriarch Abraham upon a mountain, asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Issacs; to whom God had assured Abraham would be the heir of great promises that would impact not only Abraham's descendants, but all humanity.

God reached out to Moses upon Mt. Sinai in the burning bush, Exodus:3, and the again God spoke from the top of Mt. Sinai Exodus19 & 20, manifesting His glory in fire, smoke and the shaking of the Earth.

After the presentation of the Covenant Moses and 70 elders of Israel ascend Mt. Sinai and met their God and "ate and drank" with Him. Exodus: 24:9-11

We can read throughout the Psalms of Mt. Zion, that place where God and His people came together, where God reveals Himself and meets His people. These are just some of the examples how God uses mountains showing us that to meet Him to know Him is the highest thing. Knowing our God is the summit of existence, to know the great God, to experience His divine self-disclosure to each of us in the person of his Holy Son Jesus Christ.

Mountains are that place of meeting between God and each of us.

Mount of Transfiguration

In 2Peter: 1:16-17, the Apostle St. Peter recounts to Christians of his day, and to all of us throughout the ages when he, St. James and St. John saw the glory that is revealed in Jesus there upon the "holy mountain" ,that is , when they saw Jesus Christ Transfigured, and they heard the conformation out of the Heavens that this "is My beloved Son" .

"After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground, terrified But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid. When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus." Matthew: 17:1-8

The Transfiguration is, that moment when we see this truth, that Jesus is the Son of the living God. It is the summit of our lives when we see that Jesus is the One by Whom the Great God reveals Himself, that is, we see Jesus in a way that we might never had thought of before. He is then transfigured in our hearts and minds. He is seen as much more than just a philosopher or historical personality, we see, that He is the Son of the Living God.

He Takes Us Up

As it says: "Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them" Matthew: 17:1

It is Jesus Himself who leads each of us to the high mountain of revaluation. It is a moment for all of us, when the notions and views which we once held are rolled back and we see the glory of God in Jesus. We grasp that truth , that all Scripture was written for this moment, to tell us about Jesus and all that He accomplishes for each of us and, that is:

"Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus." Matthew: 17:3

All the law, symbolized by Moses and the Prophets, symbolized by Elijah speak of the Great God meeting us in the person of Jesus. Jesus is the point of it all. It is all about Jesus. All the Bible itself points us to Him.

"Search the scriptures, for you think in them to have life everlasting; and the same are they that give testimony of me "John:5:39

There is nothing higher, nothing greater. God has given us His Son, and in His Son, He gives us Himself. Jesus' mission was to reveal the Father, the Great God.

" I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one comes unto the father, but by me." John: 14:6

Some may ask "how have we seen God?" ...Jesus answers them in the same way He answers the Apostle St. Phillip:

"From now on, you do know him and have seen him. Philip said, “Lord, show us the father and that will be enough for us. ” Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.

How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father." John:14:8-13

If we see Jesus, we are seeing the Great God. It is , as if we are there on that high mountain with Jesus and the glory of God is seen in Him, when we see this we can have but one response that is to worship in deep reverence. that is what is being acted out , even in the Apostles as as they are overwhelmed by the glory of that moment and they fall prostrate, it symbolized the response of any who see the glory of God and come top grasp that Jesus is the Son of God.

"When the disciples heard this, they fell face-down to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus" Matthew:17:6-8

He Touches Us

When we see this there on that mountain of our lives, that place where Jesus is transfigured before us and we see who He is we can have no the response in deep reverence but to worship. It is at that moment of worship that Jesus comes to us, as He did to the overwhelmed disciples and touches us clamming our fears as He did theirs' .We raise our eyes to see Him alone. None but Jesus. It is Jesus alone that makes this moment of Transfiguration what it is.

He is the One that God shows us Himself in, it is that High Place of seeing the Glory of God in His Son. This is the mountain of He invites to ascend and meet Him in Jesus. There is no higher mountain than that of the Mount of Transfiguration

Benediction: May we each and all ascend the Holy Mountain ,as did the Apostles, and see our Lord Jesus Christ Transfigured , Today, Tomorrow and Forevermore ... Amen.