Sunday, February 18, 2007   Transfiguration of our Lord Sunday

Pastor Gary E. Benson

Zumbro Lutheran Church, Rochester, Minnesota

 

 

“It is Good To Be Here!”

“It is good to be here!”  How many times have you proclaimed such words?  Maybe you had heard a beautiful concert or seen a great sporting event.  Maybe you were reunited with family or friends, or when you had gotten away from the routines and expectations of daily life you were relaxing and, simply in gratitude, thought or shouted, “It is good to be here!”  A couple of weeks ago, as I was riding the chair lift to the top of the mountain at Winter Park, my spirit echoed –“It is good to be here!”  Or today, in this place, as we worship and have the reunion of the Bluegrass Band, it is pleasing to say, “It is good to be here!”  Let’s say it together, “It is good to be here!”

 

Affirmations are wonderful; they are uplifting, and it is energizing when we can say, “It is good to be here!” However, such moment of joy is often preceded by many moments/days/months/years of challenge, difficulty, uncertainty — just plain feeling tired out, exhausted.  Isn’t this the truth: we live amidst the challenges of life where our own families or church members deal with life challenging health / relationship / employment issues? Each of us could share the litany of hurt/pain/loss/uncertainty that drives us also toward valleys of despair, doubt, darkness. 

 

On this Transfiguration of our Lord Sunday we easily pick up on the mental image of mountaintop experiences (life is good, great), however, again before the disciples said, “It is good to be here!” where had they been? The text begins, “Eight days after these sayings…” (days after being run ragged by the crowds, days after the feeding of the five thousand, following days of doing that which they were sent to do: proclaim, cure, heal; days after seeking to meet the demands of others expectations – they needed a break before they had a breakdown). How many times haven’t you echoed that? 

 

When the disciples were ready/waiting/longing for a break, what did Jesus say, “Let’s go mountain climbing!”  You have been there, having to drag yourself up and out and through another challenge right at the point of exhaustion.  As if to say, we practice and practice, we are tired and want to go home, and then Bob says, “Let’s go through it all again, and, then, oh, let’s add a few new songs.”  You may think, “Bob, you have got to be kidding.” Yet you don’t quit, you don’t give up or give in – you move forward.  Or more seriously, medically, when we think we have arrived then we hear more appointments, more treatments, more pain, more unknown.

 

In spite of their feelings, they took up the invitation of Jesus. Peter, James, and John trekked up the mountain. It would be more than a place apart, a quiet time of prayer and rest, it was a sacred revelation.  You know the story. As Jesus prayed, “his clothing turns dazzling white.”  The tired and exhausted disciples literally see “the glory of God.” Suddenly they are uplifted, fired up, assured! And more, they see Moses (of Mount Sinai fame) and Elijah (who rode to heaven in a chariot).  Still, the disciples really don’t get it. They are stunned, star struck by the radiance/the moment. And what do they say? “It is good to be here!” (Like, let the concert go on forever!) “Let us make three dwellings: one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

 

Yes, we enjoy the affirmation, “It is good to be here!” but as the saying goes, “We have not arrived!”  The mountaintop was not a destination, simply a stop along the journey. The real journey would take Jesus and the disciples down the mountain, and, as we know, literally through “the valley of darkness and death.”  The departure, the exodus off the mountain would be an entry into “the valley of darkness, the cross, and death!”

 

Where are you today? Where would you find yourself in the text? On the mountain? Are you reluctant to take up the invitation of Jesus?  Certainly, I think for most of us we are much more familiar with the terrain of the valley than the glory of the mountaintops.  This past week:

·        Medical challenges of many of our members

·        Hunger and homelessness – yes, even here in Rochester

·        Ongoing war in Iraq and Afghanistan

·        Personal matters that weigh heavily on hearts and minds

·        Or, maybe for many this week, we could mask the “pain and valleys” momentarily with candy and valentines

·        Still, the human conditions find empty and restless souls, tired and exhausted spirits looking for renewal, refreshment and hope.

 

Such litany of life in the valley is precisely why it is good to be here.

• Not at the coffee shop, to read paper/talk about the weather

• “This is my beloved Son, listen to him!”
• Again, it is good to be here, because amidst all the voices that meet us – that pull tug and invite – that would shape, challenge, or entice us, as the People of God, we need the Word of God.
• It is good to be here to witness and receive, “This is my body given for you, my blood shed for you.”
• It is good to be here to confess and sing
• It is good to be here to be reminded that as a witness of the glory of God’s love and grace, we go out as reflections of the light. Our symbol is neither a mountain nor a valley, but a cross that bridges and brings hope.

 

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.”