In the Name of the Father and of the X Son and of the
Holy Spirit. Amen.
Grace
and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord
and Savior sanctify you in the truth, for His word is truth. Amen
The
Transfiguration of our Lord (2011)
A
Ministry of Seeing Jesus Only
Matthew
17:8 (ESV)
And when they lifted up their eyes, they
saw no one but Jesus only.
The time of
which St. Matthew writes in the Gospel Reading for today, is that time concerning
the ministry of our Lord Jesus when He has turned His face toward
Peter, has recently
made a Spirit inspired confession that our Lord Jesus is truly,
“The Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16 ESV) and, yet,
when Jesus tells His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer at the
hands of the elders and scribes and be killed and on the third day rise again,
Peter blurts out his disapproval of what Jesus has said. Turning to Peter, our
Lord rebukes him, calling him Satan because he is interfering in our Lord’s
divine commission and he is not setting his mind on the things of God, but on
the things of men. Oh, how many of us are just like Peter, consumed with the
things of man while giving the things of God short shrift? Far too many I suspect.
Knowing His ministry
of salvation leads to and ends at the Cross, our Lord now steels His disciples
for their impending ministries, telling them, as He has denied the things of
the world, they, too, must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow
Him. Therefore, whoever follows Christ must deny themselves; they must reject their ego and deny their
companionship with reason when listening to the Lord. Here the entire, sinful
self is referred to, that which centers in the things of men and has no desire
for the things of God. Just as Peter later denies our Lord saying, “I do
not know the man” (Matt. 26:72 ESV), we must say regarding ourselves,
“I disown myself completely.” This is not self-denial
in the current sense of the word but true conversion, the very first essential
act of the Christian life. After conversion, our hearts see all our sin and the
damnation and the death that is bound up in this sin and turns away from it in
utter dismay, seeking rescue in Christ Jesus alone, for He alone is our Rescuer.
Therefore, the self is cast out and Christ enters in; and then you live not
unto yourself, but unto Christ who died for you. Thus you deny your old self
and enter into a new relationship with Christ. In such a relationship you see Jesus only.
Peter had seen
Christ, he had made the good confession of the true person of Christ, but the
world still clung to his flesh and our Lord knew that Peter’s flaw was not his
alone; all humanity suffered from this corruption. Yet He also knew that Peter
would be an indispensable voice in the establishment of His Church after His
ascension into heaven. Thus He provides Peter, along with James and John,
incontestable proof of His divinity; that He is in fact the Christ, the Son of
the Living God; He brings them with Him upon the mountain where He is
transfigured before their eyes. This man whom they had followed and listened to
for the past three years now stood before them in all His divine glory as the
Second Person of the Godhead, speaking with Moses and Elijah. Just as Moses saw
the glory of God on
What a marvelous
and awe inspiring sight that must have been to see the full divinity of Jesus.
Peter is dumbstruck and blurts out that he should make three tents for each of
these heavenly guests, as if they needed anything earthly. Then when God
envelopes them in a bright cloud, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well
pleased; listen to him” (v. 5), it is too much for the disciples to
bear and they prostrate themselves on the ground, closing their eyes in fear of
what they witnessed.
What Peter,
James, and John saw that night on the mountain with Jesus, they saw firsthand,
visually, with fleshly eyes. Their invitation was to attend a physical,
heavenly event and experience, first-hand, the power and majesty of God. Moreover,
walking away from that marvelous event they remembered that when they opened
their eyes, they saw Jesus only. Oh,
we exclaim, how I would have loved to have been present at our Lord’s
Transfiguration! Truth is you are a witness to His Transfiguration. Oh, not
through fleshly eyes, but through the eyes of faith. Just as Peter’s confession
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God was a Spirit inspired
confession, that same Spirit has inspired you with the gift of faith to believe
that Jesus is the Son of the Living God, the Second Person of the Godhead, and
the Savior of your soul. It is this very truth that shines forth and comforts
us when the trials and tribulations of the world try to overshadow the
Transfiguration Light of our Lord Jesus and snatch faith from our hearts. In
times of distress we close our eyes in prayer, relying on God’s sure promise to
hear our plea, and open them to see Jesus
and Him only.
Such is the
focus of my ministry among you; that men should see Jesus only. In my public or
private functions, at the sickbed, in the meeting room, the classroom, the
pulpit, at work or play by word or deed—this is the goal of my ministry among
you as God grants me grace. As I said last week; “For
I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1
Cor. 2:2 ESV).
Of course, this kind
of ministry is not always popular. Satan is continually active in diverting the
ministry of reconciliation down paths that lessen its impact upon his ability
to enslave the souls of men. As a result, some preaching not only fails to help
people see Jesus only, but it actually hides our Lord from their eyes of faith.
It glorifies man, it is silent on sin, and it ignores the Savior. It has no
time for heaven because it is engrossed in the world. When the heart of man has
been hardened by love for money, becomes restless by the business of the world,
excited by its pleasures, and petrified by its materialistic fever, he cannot
see that the only aim of Christian ministry is to glorify Christ. It
is this same ministry that the sainted Martin Luther speaks of in his
commentary on Galatians when he speaks of those who would take our eyes off
Jesus so we might focus on the world and our own righteousness. Christ, who
lives and has risen again, speaks through
However, when
the eyes of understanding are opened by the Holy Spirit, man can focus on that which
is truly of value; not in terms of business, money, or worldly honor, but that
which is spiritual. He will find no nobler, no more useful, nor no more
glorious work than the vocation of the Christian minister, to enable people to see no man save Jesus and Him only.
What a marvelous God we have who sends His Only Son into the world to save man
from his sin and to call men into the ministry of Word and Sacrament to
proclaim the Gospel of the forgiveness of sin; continuing the very work of His
Son.
A ministry that
enables you to see no man save Jesus only brings and offers salvation to your
soul. As witnesses of our Lord’s Transfiguration, this is the ministry that St.
Peter confesses when he says, “For we did not follow cleverly devised
myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16 (ESV) and it is
this same ministry that St. John speaks of when he says, “And
the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as
of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14 ESV).
It is a ministry that loudly and proudly exclaims, “For God did not send his Son
into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved
through him” (John 3:17 ESV), because, “God so loved the world, that he
gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have
eternal life” (John 3:16 ESV). St. Peter, having witnessed our Lord’s
Transfiguration could steadfastly proclaim, “There is salvation in no one
else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must
be saved” (Acts 4:12 ESV). This is the ministry that sees Jesus and Him only. This is the
ministry that proclaims the Gospel, which through the power of the Holy Spirit,
opens the eyes of faith in the hearts of hearers to believe and trust that only
in Christ can salvation be found. When we cry out, “What must I do to be
saved?” the answer is clearly revealed by God’s holy Word: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and
you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:31 ESV).
How
important is it then for each and every one of you to be immersed in a ministry
which seeks only to let you see no man
save Jesus and Him Crucified? Are you wounded? Jesus is the balm. Are you
sick? Jesus is the Great Physician. Are you naked? Jesus offers you His garment
of righteousness. Are you poor? Jesus enriches your soul. Are you hungry? Jesus
is the Bread of life. Are you thirsty? Jesus is the Water of life. Are you in
darkness? Jesus is the Light of the world. Must you face the black and gathering
storm alone? Jesus is your Anchor, He is your Rock. Are you burdened by the
world? Jesus is your Advocate. Therefore, when you are frightened by the dark
dangers of the world, close your eyes in prayer, seeking the Rescuer of your
soul and then open your eyes to see Jesus
and Him alone, standing there, arms open wide to receive into His loving
care. The One who gave His life upon the Altar of the
Cross for the forgiveness of your sin, gladly gives you life eternal through
His precious gift of faith. Therefore, give thanks to our heavenly Father who
has graciously given you a ministry of
seeing Jesus only. Amen.
May the peace
of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus. Amen.