Matthew 17:1-2 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.
The glory of Jesus’ return will shine a permanent light into the darkness, revealing the love of God and His amazing grace to everyone who accepts Him.
Isaiah 60:15-18 15
“Whereas you have been forsaken and hated,
So that no one went through you,
I will make you an eternal excellence,
A joy of many generations.
16 You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles,
And milk the breast of kings;
You shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 “Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
Instead of iron I will bring silver,
Instead of wood, bronze,
And instead of stones, iron. I
will also make your officers peace,
And your magistrates righteousness.
18 Violence shall no longer be heard in your land,
Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders;
But you shall call your walls Salvation,
And your gates Praise.
The return of the King of kings will come, and humanity will witness the brilliance of Jesus reflected in Israel. His chosen people will be exalted in His presence. Though Israel faced rejection due to their unbelief, they will see Jesus and embrace Him as their only Son. Nations that reject Israel will cease to exist. Israel will be revered as the City of the Lord. The blessings of Israel will spread worldwide, and all will be blessed under the Abrahamic Covenant. Once formally despised by nations, Israel will rise to rule alongside Christ. Violence will vanish, and peace will reign supreme. Jesus, the Son of God, will reign forever, providing an everlasting light for all of eternity.
Deuteronomy 28: 1-2 8 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God:
Back in 1500 BC, Isaiah made a bold prediction. He said that if Israel followed God’s commandments, they would become the most powerful nation on earth, just like God promised Abraham and Sarah. The first coming of Jesus and those who didn’t accept Him opened the door for the Gentiles to enter into the inheritance of Jesus as adopted children. In the second coming, those who listened to Jesus and followed His teachings will rule with Him forever!
Isaiah 2:2
Now it shall come to pass in the latter days
That the mountain of the Lord’s house
Shall be established on the top of the mountains,
And shall be exalted above the hills;
And all nations shall flow to it.
When Jesus comes back, Jerusalem will become the holy city of God, and people from all over the world will flock to it. This salvation of the world is a gift from God, given to His chosen people. In the Abrahamic Covenant, God promised to bless all nations through Abraham’s obedience. Carla
These men compose the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples. They occasionally become privy to events that the rest of the group does not see. Jesus’ revelation of His true identity in the Transfiguration can be understood as an advance against evil: The King has arrived to defeat the powers of darkness and claim what belongs to Him. Jesus’ appearance changes in some way, apparently reflecting His heavenly glory. The Greek verb used here, metamorphoō (meaning “to change outwardly or visibly”), describes an alteration in form. This description places Jesus within the prophetic tradition of Moses (Revelation 1:16). Faithlife Study Bible.
The high mountain was probably a spur of Mt. Hermon, which rises to about 9,400 feet above sea level.
Moses and Elijah represented the Old Testament personifying the Law and the Prophets. Their presence indicated that the Old Testament Scriptures had been looking forward to the Messiah and His kingdom. The NKJV Study Bible
Mark 9:2–8 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them…
Luke 9:28–36 Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray. As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening…
1 Thessalonians 5:5 (ESV) "For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness."
Jesus is "the light of the world" (John 8:12), shining with the brightness of God's love, Truth and righteousness. We have the opportunity to reflect that goodness through our lives … but our sin gets in the way. Thankfully, when we follow Christ in faith, He removes every obstruction so that nothing can come between us and Him. And greater still, His Spirit also fills us with spiritual light from within.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:105).
As God's Word lights the way for us, we can guide one another toward what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). First5
And please know this: it is from this self—the broken or wounded self—that compassion and kindness and tenderness and empathy and healing and reconciliation can flow to the world around us.
We spill light from those places in our life.
“The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind.” David Orr
I like Thomas Merton’s take, “Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy. That is not our business and, in fact, it is nobody’s business. What we are asked to do is to love.”
Jesus made it simple, "Let your light shine."
Not, when you get your act together.
Not, when you feel noble.
Not, when you find a specific vocation.
Not, after you've chased all the gloom away.
Just let it shine.
Because the light is already there. Inside of you. Now.
Sabbath Moments
“It means a gradual process of coming home to where we belong and listening there to the voice, which desires our attention. Home is the place where that first love dwells and speaks gently to us.” Henri Nouwen
No comments:
Post a Comment