Today in the Spirit: Last Sunday of Epiphany A (Transfiguration)
On the Last Sunday of Epiphany every year, we contemplate in our worship the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ. In this season of celebrating the Father God’s power to reveal the glory of the Son in the world, the various accounts of the Transfiguration in the Gospels form a bookend for the worshiper, with the accounts of the Baptism of Jesus assigned for the First Sunday of Epiphany. The church invites us to recall the Father’s voice commending the Son to begin and end the season. In addition, the light and glory on the mount of the Transfiguration will set up a point of contrast devotionally with the desolation of the mount of Temptation on the First Sunday in Lent.
On this Sunday in Year A, the assigned Gospel read is Matthew 17:1-9 (note: we hear the version from Mark in Year B and Luke in Year C). Each Gospel writer provides a unique description of the alteration of our Lord’s appearance. Matthew writes, “And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light” (2).
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In Year A, the church assigns Exodus 24:12-18 as the Old Testament reading, which describes what appears to be Moses’s fifth ascent of Mount Sinai. There, “for forty days and forty nights,” Moses will receive the laws of God, which he will eventually deliver to the people of Israel on tablets of stone (32:15-16). The references to the mountain, the fire, and the cloud in this reading prefigure the light and cloud on the mount of the Transfiguration.
Psalm 99, assigned all three years on Last Epiphany but nowhere else in the Sunday lectionary, affords us the opportunity in our worship to join a chorus of Israelites who might be responding to the sights and sounds of YHWH descending with glory on Mount Sinai: “O magnify the LORD our God, and fall down before his footstool, for he is holy” (5). We also say or sing these words in anticipation of Jesus’ glory revealed on the mount of the Transfiguration, a glory celebrated throughout the Epiphany season.
The New Testament reading from Philippians 3:7-14 (parts of which are also appointed at Lent 5C and Pentecost, Proper 22A) articulate for us as worshippers the goal of the manifestations of Jesus transfigured and resurrected, that we, with Paul, “may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” (10-11).
The assigned Collect distinguishes the Transfiguration of Christ as something particularly extraordinary to be guarded in our hearts. We note the connection the prayer makes between the Transfiguration “before the passion” and “the light of his countenance [strengthening us] “to bear our cross.” The extraordinary revelations of the true nature of Christ are not for mere enjoyment but for fortification to die to self and serve sacrificially in the way prepared for us from above.
The Collect
O God, who before the passion of your only-begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Six Days (Exodus 24:12-18)
12 The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there, that I may give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” 13 So Moses rose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. 14 And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. And behold, Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever has a dispute, let him go to them.” 15 Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 16 The glory of the Lord dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18 Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
Exodus 24:12-18
With the selection of this OT reading, the church invites us as worshipers to note various parallels and contrasts between the experiences of the disciples with Jesus on the mount of the Transfiguration and those of Moses (with Joshua) on Mount Sinai in the presence of YHWH. One of many compelling contrasts to observe is in the behavior of Moses and Peter, the main witnesses of the events. Moses, having climbed Sinai on earlier occasions to meet YHWH, has learned to be very cautious in his movements, to speak only when invited, and to listen carefully. Peter, on the other hand, perhaps out of greater familiarity with Jesus, is impetuous. He has erred in his understanding of the appearance of Elijah and Moses, offering to make shelters for the three presumably thinking they were on the same level.
Devotionally, though Moses can be found in other passages making his share of mistakes in relationship to God, we can seek to emulate his sober and cautious approach here to abiding in the presence of YHWH. Moses demonstrates best what Peter himself will write about much later in his first epistle:
Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:13
The 19th century Russian Orthodox monk Theophan the Recluse describes this sober-mindedness as a military-like standing at attention before God:
One act is required—and that is all; for this one act pulls everything together and keeps everything in order…This one act is [to] stand with attention in your heart.
Today, in the Spirit, Moses, being my model, gives me the wisdom to wait on you. In every circumstance, grant me the good soldier’s discipline to neither jump in before you have given leave nor hesitate at the edges when ordered to move.
Holy Is He! (Psalm 99)
1 The LORD is King; let the peoples tremble; *
Psalm 99, New Coverdale Psalter (BCP 2019)
he sits between the cherubim; let the earth shake.
2 The LORD is great in Zion *
and high above all peoples.
3 They shall give thanks unto his Name, which is great and wonderful; *
holy is he and mighty, a King who loves justice.
4 You have established equity; *
you have executed judgment and righteousness in Jacob.
5 O magnify the LORD our God, *
and fall down before his footstool, for he is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among those who call upon his Name, *
they called upon the LORD, and he heard them.
7 He spoke to them out of the cloudy pillar, *
for they kept his testimonies and the law that he gave them.
8 You heard them, O LORD our God; *
you forgave them, O God, yet punished their evildoings.
9 O magnify the LORD our God, and worship him upon his holy hill, *
for the LORD our God is holy.
Our psalm this week is the last in a small group of praise songs (Pss. 93,96,97) that begin with, or contain, the line “The LORD reigns,” or The LORD is King (1). One question to ask as we read these songs is, how does God reign? In this psalm, there are two places where the psalmist abruptly switches from third to second person. In these “you” sections, we find the answer to the question:
- “You have established equity; you have executed judgment and righteousness in Jacob” (4). YHWH reigns by bringing up the lowly while bringing down the arrogant.
- “You heard [the priests acting on behalf of the whole people], O Lord our God; you forgave them, O God, yet punished their evildoings” (8). YHWH reigns with a heart always inclined toward mercy.
My Lord, you are a God who has established forgiveness through Christ as the currency of your reign in this world and over my life. Certain of this, as certain as the psalmist of old, I make my transactions—daily, hourly, and moment by moment—with you: my humble confession of sin for your renewing forgiveness.
Lord, the world cries out for equality and meritocracy, but when my head and heart are right, I know there is no real justice without you, and no merit worth anything except that of your Son Jesus. I have often in the past tried to trade with you on what I believed to be my own good character and works. Rightly, you have chastised me so that I might return to the truth. As much as it hurts, I plead for whatever correction is necessary, that I might see the fullness of your chosen Son’s face–and, with the disciples on the mount, see him there alone.
Today, Holy Spirit, build in me the joyful and complete dependence of the psalmist on “the forgiving God” who reigns over all.
Knowing Christ My Lord (Philippians 3:7-14)
7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:7-14
Paul was not a witness to the Transfiguration of Christ described in the Gospels, but with his own experience of seeing the resurrected Jesus in “a light from heaven” (Acts 9:3), he might as well have been. In his own writings and in his speeches in Acts, we find the impact of his conversion experience telling on him with a compulsion not just to complete a task like a soldier under orders but to be present with and “know” the Lord who has saved him and who commands him.
It is so easy for us to get caught up in our activities, even our Christian activities, with how successful we are and the impact we are making. Paul’s testimony on his own state of mind, in prison, at the end of his days, leads us to ask ourselves: For all our doing things for him, do we “know” Jesus Christ? Do I note his presence when doubts and trouble seem to fill all my thoughts? Do I catch his smile with each sudden return to balance?
Today, in the Spirit, we ask for the grace of Paul’s increased familiarity with Christ in and around us.
Jesus Only (Matthew 17:1-9)
1 And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. 3 And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 5 He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 8 And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. 9 And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.”
Matthew 17:1-9
“But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Rise, and have no fear’” (7). We find this detail of the Transfiguration narrative only in Matthew. And note: it is not after the three disciples have lifted their eyes to see Jesus, but before that, he touches them and speaks to them. Thus, their encounter of “Jesus alone” (8) is a mixture of, yes, light and cloud and thunderous voice, but also tender touch, helping hand, and assuring word. This is in contrast to the way YHWH presents himself to the people of Israel on the summit of Mount Sinai, and their thinking he is “like a devouring fire” (Ex. 24:17).
Devotionally, beloved, we find in the NT in general, and the Transfiguration accounts most explicitly, a divinely inspired narrowing of our attention as believers on the person of Jesus Christ. Moses (representing the law) and Elijah (the prophets) come into view, but only, at least by my reading, as a reflection of the blinding light of Jesus, not by their own; and after some time, they disappear, leaving Jesus as the only figure to adore. And what should our vision of Jesus alone be? Just as it was for the disciples: Jesus as supremely sovereign and likewise infinitely caring. Our object in life is to come to know him in the fullness of both of these qualities.
We call up again the words of Paul, as ever giving inspired words to describe the goals to which the narratives point. Late in his life, in prison, and having experienced countless demonstrations of the authority and kindness of Jesus Christ at work on his behalf, he articulates his goals:
…that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Philippians 3:10-12
Today, Holy Spirit of Jesus, as I myself seek to know God through Jesus, let us, like the disciples on the mount of the Transfiguration, be assured that he alone is all we ever need.
Today in the Spirit
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Today in the Spirit: Last Sunday in Epiphany (Transfiguration) C
The Anglican Church concludes Epiphany by reflecting on the Transfiguration of Jesus, focusing on Luke 9:28-36. This event teaches about faith and the call to discipleship, paralleling Moses’ radiant face after meeting God. The readings emphasize the importance of love and grace in the community of believers, urging actions rooted in compassion.
Today in the Spirit: The Last Sunday of Epiphany B (Transfiguration)
On the Last Sunday of Epiphany each year, we contemplate the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ. In this season of celebrating the power of God the Father to reveal the glory of the Son in the world, the various accounts of the Transfiguration in the Gospels form a bookend for the worshiper with those of the…
