David
Know the Bible
Those words come at the end of a profound passage where disciples of Jesus have an encounter they’ll never forget. But they still don’t understand Jesus.Isn’t that the story of life sometimes? You can be close to Jesus and still fail to comprehend what He’s saying. Sometimes you can see something miraculous happen and still refuse to surrender to Christ.
Jesus takes Peter, James, and John to the mountain to pray. As Jesus is praying, everything shifts. “And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering” (Luke 9:29).
We don’t know how long He prayed. But when He stopped, it was as if a veil had been lifted. This was a peek into the glory of God. No longer was Jesus just a teacher. No longer was He a prophet like Moses who appeared with Him. This was the Son of God revealed in His glory.
Jesus speaks with Moses and Elijah about His “decease” which means His death that is coming. Even in the glory of the mountain, Jesus still kept focus on the cross. It should tell you something. The glory of Christ and the sacrifice of Christ are tied together. The Gospel reveals that the God’s plan was centered on the cross.
The Father speaks from heaven: “This is my beloved Son: hear him.” Do not merely admire Jesus. Do not attempt to figure Jesus out. Simply hear Him. And do what He says.
Peter didn’t get it. He begins speaking and proposes to build tents so they could stay on the mountain. Tired of life. Exhausted by the journey. Peter wanted to soak in the moment. He wanted the mountain without moving downward to do the mission.
But wanting to stay on the mountain is another way of saying you want the blessing of God without the blood of Jesus.
We live in a society wanting the spiritual experience without the daily disciplines of the Christian life. We want to know God without submitting to Him.
Jesus and the disciples come down the mountain, and they find a father pleading for Jesus to heal his son who is demon-possessed. The disciples tried and failed to cast the demon out. Listen to the response of Jesus in Luke 9:41. Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.”
Oh, that great sin of the flesh… reasoning things out in your mind instead of trusting God. “How long shall I stay with you and put up with you?” The power of God was there, but they lacked faith.
Jesus commands the demon to leave, and the boy is healed. Everyone is astonished. But in the middle of their amazement, Jesus says this:
“Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men” (Luke 9:44).
In other words, they kept marveling at what Jesus did but missed the main point of why Jesus came. They wanted power. He continued directing them toward the cross.
They still didn’t understand.
In fact, after Jesus finished teaching them, they began arguing about who was the greatest. After seeing His glory. After hearing about His death. Listen to what Jesus says in response:
“For he that is least among you all, the same shall be great” (Luke 9:48).
Greatness in God’s kingdom is not determined by your position or stature. Greatness comes by way of humility.
Jesus takes a little child and places him among them. That’s the picture. Complete dependence on Christ. Humility. No agenda to puff yourself up. That goes against everything we want to embrace in our flesh.
John asks Jesus about someone casting out demons in His name they hadn’t invited. Jesus response is beautiful:
“For he that is not against us is for us” (Luke 9:50).
They thought they had to guard their territory. Jesus reminds them that people who love and follow Christ are for us.
This entire passage is disciples wrestling with what Jesus is doing versus what they think Jesus should be doing. They wanted the blessing of God without going to the cross with Jesus. They wanted popularity. Jesus had radical plans for humility. They wanted control. Jesus teaches trust.
The battle rages on today.
You can hear the Word preached. You can read the Word and study it. You can even talk about the Word all day long and still miss its application. Jesus warns us in James:
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22).
Hearing without obeying is dangerous.
Jesus isn’t calling you to chase mystical moments with God. He’s calling you to follow Jesus. Hear what He says and do it. “Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46).
The mountain is glorious. But the journey down the mountain proves your faith. It’s found in the mundane. It’s found in the difficult. The moments where you don’t see the glory of the mountain, but you see the cross in front of you.
If you want to walk with Christ, you’ve got to embrace both realities.
The question that lingers in my mind after reading this passage is this: Are you listening to Jesus, or are you just standing near Him?
