“A Mountain Retreat”

Luke 9:26-38
February 18, 2007

St. Paul United Methodist Church of Little Rock

Rev. John A. Fleming

Robert Louis Stevenson tells a great little story about a ship that was in serious trouble in a storm. The passengers in the ship were told to go to the cabins and to stay there and not to venture out until things were better. One of the passengers, though, defied the orders. He left his cabin and made his way to the ship’s bridge. He was able to sneak past several employees of the ship whose job was to make sure everyone stayed in their cabins. This passenger was able to slip past all of them.

He walked through the doors of the bridge. Several people were in there fighting the storm. The ship’s captain was there. He, of course, was the one in charge. It was his responsibility to guide the ship through the storm. The captain saw the passenger walk through the doors. He looked up from what he was doing. He saw the fear on the passenger’s face. And he smiled a smile of reassurance.

The passenger didn’t say a word. He just looked at the captain and then walked out of the bridge and made his way back to his cabin where his family was waiting for him. Listen to what he told his family. “I have seen the face of the captain. He smiled. All is well.” There are times when we need to see the face of the one in control face to face.

That might exactly be what is happening in our scripture lesson for this morning taken from the ninth chapter of Luke’s gospel. We call this story the transfiguration of Jesus. Three of the four gospel writers record it. This year it is Luke’s turn to tell the tale. Peter, James, and John were there. They were joined by Moses and Elijah, figures from the past. They have an experience that it mystical and magical and hard to describe.

I want to draw your attention to the thirty-sixth verse. It read, “After all this happened. Jesus was found alone.” How does the song that we sometimes sing go? Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face.” Let me ask you this, this morning, “What would a glimpse of Christ himself mean to you?”

There is mystery in this story. It is an epiphany. In my opinion it is the greatest of all the epiphanies. Jesus went up on the mountain to pray. While he was doing that, the disciples saw a great light. It was the kind of light that will give you a sun burn. It is the kind of light that bleach cannot match. The light surrounded Jesus. That can only mean one thing. The light was His glory. Glory is a signature of God. Glory is all you can see of God. Looking at God is like looking at the sun!

Peter and James and John see it. It is a revelation. It is a gift of grace. It is an epiphany. An epiphany happens and it transforms your life. Now you can see what you could not see before. What it does for the disciples is that it gives them a spiritual lift.

Church, could you use one of those? Are there things that are getting to you? Is it depression? Is it getting the best of you? Or maybe it is some difficulty or some duty or some daily routine that just makes you feel blah! The end result is that it makes your soul sag, your spirit falters, and your heart sinks. Maybe one of the lessons here is that Christ comes to give our souls a lift.

Much to the chagrin of my dad, I like contemporary Christian music. He is pleased that I also like the traditional hymns, but I also like the contemporary choruses. One of the songs we sing in our contemporary worship service has these words in it. “Light of the world you stepped down into darkness, opened my eyes let me see. Beauty that made the heart adore you, hope of a life spent with you. Here I am to worship. Here I am to bow down. Here I am to say that you’re my God. You’re altogether lovely, altogether worthy, altogether wonderful to me.” Have you seen a Jesus like that? Could you soul use a lift?

If it does, then maybe the lift you need is an affirmation. Look back at our lesson. Near the end of it, a voice speaks from the clouds. The voice, of course, is God’s voice. It says, “This is my Son, my chosen; listen to Him.”

And of course, this is not the first time we have heard the booming voice of God from the heavens. Just after Christmas, we went to the chilly waters of the Jordan River. As Jesus came up from those waters, God’s voice said, “You are my Son, the beloved. With you I am well pleased.” The voice came at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Now as Jesus turns and prepares to travel the road to Jerusalem, to the cross, the heavens open one more time and the voice comes to remind His only Son, “You are my child, my chosen one. You belong to me.”

You know, I guess you could say that one of the great challenges of our lives is to remember that we are beloved children of God. There are so many other voices that try to tell us something differently.

Not long ago I went to see someone in the hospital. It was a hospital I don’t go to often. I went to the information desk. I asked for the room number. The volunteer there gave it to me. And then she asked, “You’re a preacher, aren’t you?” I told her that I was. I asked her, “How did you know?” She answered, “Well, you look like a preacher. You talk like a preacher. You walk like a preacher. I just knew.”

That is a far cry from one of my first hospital visits when I moved to Little Rock in 1998. At the time I was the Associate Pastor at First United Methodist Church. I went to see someone in the Intensive Care Unit. I asked for directions. The volunteer exclaimed, “Who are you?” I told her that I was a preacher. She said, “You’re a preacher? How old are you?” No one says that to me anymore!

Now, apparently, I look like a preacher. I walk like a preacher. I talk like a preacher. What does all that mean? Listen to this. We can easily become what we do. We can easily become what others think we should become. We measure who we are by a lifetime of successes and failures. Those things tell us who we are. But there is another voice, a stronger voice. It is God’s voice. The voice reminds us that we are His beloved children.

I don’t know how it was for you growing up. But for me, I wanted nothing more than for my parents to be proud of me. I longed to hear them say the words, “We love you no matter what.” God says that to us. We just need to live in his love. We need to remember the affirmation that Paul gives us when he says that nothing is able to separate us from the love of God that we know in Christ Jesus. Couldn’t our souls use a little lifting up today?

Turn back to the lesson another time. There is more to learn. You will remember that Peter wanted to make a monument of the moment. He wanted to build a retreat center on that mountain. He wanted to stay up there. He wanted people for centuries to know what had happened on that spot.

Jesus wouldn’t have any of that. Peter says, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three dwellings. One for you. One for Moses. One for Elijah.” Luke adds that Peter did not know what he was saying.

So it is a building project. It is a proposed mountain retreat for future disciples. Maybe Peter thought, “ I can see them now, by the church bus load, gathering for a little time away.” Let us just stay up here. It is wonderful up here. Peter wanted the feeling to last forever. Who could blame him?

I did not read the entire lectionary lesson this morning. There is more. When Jesus and the three disciples come down from the mountain, a man greets them. This man has only one child. The child is sick. The disciples who did not go up on the mountain could not help him.

Life, you see, is not lived up on the mountain top. Please hear this. We all need to go up on the mountain from time to time. I recommend personal retreats. We all need to spend a little more time with Jesus. Doing that reminds us who we are. Doing that reminds us whose we are. Doing that helps us with the daily life. Doing that helps us to remember that we are loved by God. But life is not lived up there on the mountain top. It is hammered out in the valley. Life is about being among the people. Luke is clear about that. If we’ve learned nothing in the past two worship services, we’ve learned that. We are supposed to be with those who hurt. We are supposed to be with those who struggle. We are supposed to help people walk the road to recovery. Jesus did not have to answer Peter. His silence says it all, “Do not make a shrine out of this. Do something with this?

So the question is simple. What will we do with this? Here is what I think. We must follow Jesus down from the mountain, to reach out to others who are hurting.

A preacher reminded me of the of Reverend William Booth. William was a Methodist preacher who got fed up with his church and decided to do something else. His spirit led him to start a Christian mission in London, on the east side. He declared war on things like poverty and homelessness. These are the kinds of things you find in valleys. William Booth started an army. You may have heard of his army. It is still in existence today. It is the Salvation Army. William Booth said this, “While women weep, as they do now, I will fight. While children go hungry, as they do now, I will fight. While there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight.”

And we should, too. If you have a heart, please help us. Discipleship is always a matter of the heart. The decision to follow Jesus is always made with the heart. I’ve often thought that the longest journey we ever take is from our head to our heart. And now Jesus begins his longest journey, towards Jerusalem and the cross. Following Him makes no sense. But I will. I hope you will, too.

(Special thanks to my parents, Jo and Mary Fleming, for assuring me as I grew up. Special thanks to God who loves us all no matter what we do. Thanks be to God. Amen!)