Plastic Surgery and Tan-in-a-Can
The facts of the story are simple enough: Jesus and 3 disciples go up a mountain, Jesus is praying when he is suddenly transformed or transfigured. His face changes and his clothes become dazzling white.
Then Moses and Elijah -- both long dead -- appear with Jesus and talk with him. Peter, one of those three disciples, wants to build three booths -- one each for Jesus, Moses and Elijah -- but a voice from heaven
interrupts, saying, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!"
Why is this story in the Bible? What does it mean? And what does it have to do with us today? Well, there is enough meaning in this passage to cover several Sunday’s worth of sermons, so we’ll focus in on just a couple points: the similarities of our 2 passages and the 2 transfigurations.
We read in Luke, verse 29, “And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.” This recalls the story of Moses, who encountered God on Sinai as a "devouring fire on the top of the mountain" (Exod 24:17) and whose face shone brightly "because he had been
talking with God." Moses’ face shone so brightly that, when other people were present, he found it necessary to wear a veil (Exod. 34:29-35).
There are other parallels between Moses in Exodus 34 and Jesus at the Transfiguration. Both incidents: (1) occur on a mountain (2) involve Moses (3) have God speaking from a cloud and (4) speak of the glory of the Lord. Luke "understands Jesus as a new Moses, who brings the new law to his people and will deliver them out of bondage in a new exodus".
And yet, Jesus’ glory "is different from the glory of Moses. Moses face was radiant because he had looked upon the face of God and reflected God’s glory as a mirror would. Luke has Jesus shining of himself, thus identifying him with God.
And while Jesus was still “glowing”, Moses and Elijah "appeared in glory" (v. 31). They were speaking of (Jesus’) departure.
Moses, you will remember, led the Exodus from Egypt. The Exodus from Egypt was the great salvation event of the OT, freeing Israel from bondage to the Egyptians. Jesus’ “Exodus” (his death/resurrection)
is the great salvation event of the NT, freeing believers from bondage to sin and death.
The Exodus from Egypt led God’s people to the Promised Land. Jesus’ Exodus leads us into the kingdom of God, our Promised Land.
Now, Jesus has just told the disciples in verse 22 that he "must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised".
So what happens when all this is going on. Well, Peter is doer! He springs into action. At a time when most anyone else would sit in stunned silence, Peter says, "Hey, why don’t we build 3 shelters?!"
None of the Gospels tells us why he wants to do this: Maybe he wants to keep Jesus safe on the mountain rather than seeing him exposed to suffering,
rejection, and death. Maybe he wants to prolong the mountaintop experience. We don’t know.
A little boy was out in his front yard, throwing a ball up in the air. A passerby asked the boy what he was doing. He replied, "I am playing a game of catch with God. I throw the ball up in the air and he throws it
back."
I am in no position to comment on God’s ability to play ball, but I do know that whatever goes up must come down. Well, except for maybe Charlie Brown’s kite! But as a rule, whatever goes up must come down.
But, oh how we hate to come down off that mountain! We want to hang on to that moment for as long as we can. "Let’s just stay right here and let the rest of the world go by for a while." “Let’s build 3 shelters.” But to freeze that one moment in time shuts off the possibility of the next moment.
Anyway, we don’t really know because the voice from the cloud interrupts so that Jesus never responds directly to Peter’s suggestion to build booths.
Which leaves us with the 2 transfigurations. That’s right. You heard right, TWO transfigurations.
I am going to tell you all something really shocking this morning. Today is “Transfiguration of the Lord” Sunday, but I have to tell you, this is wrong. Because Christ was NOT transfigured!
Now, before you bring me up on charges of heresy,
we have, just a bit ago, heard the story of the alleged transfiguration of Christ. We know that Jesus, Moses, Elijah, Peter, John and James were all present.
The Gospel tells us that Moses and Elijah appeared in glory after some apparent changes in the appearance of Jesus. You see, transfigured means transformed – changed. And the most basic thing we know about Christ is that he is God Incarnate. And one of the most basic things we know about God is his changelessness. Something to think about.
You see, this is a very misunderstood story. We THINK it’s about Jesus. But it really isn’t. It’s not really about the transfiguration of Jesus. It’s about Peter’s and John’s and James’… and our transfiguration. They were the ones who were transfigured on the mountain. And we are the ones who are being transfigured today.
The problem is, we are all too eager to transfigure or transform ourselves in the wrong way. Many people work hard and spend a lot of money to get a new one -- a new face, a new look, a changed appearance. Just look at Michael Jackson.
Transfigurations are big business because we are very aware of the face we present to the world. Plastic surgery is a big business. Tan-in-a-can. Anti aging cream. Face lift. Tummy tuck. All of these cosmetic things we use to change our appearance. And we will alter our face, and other parts, to our advantage if we can.
Sometimes the change is not just in looks but in our whole image -- including our name.
Let me see a show of hands if your favorite actor is Issur Danielovitch Densky. He changed his name and became Kirk Douglas. How about Archibald Leach? He became Cary Grant. Frances Gum? She transfigured herself and her image into Judy Garland.
And would you have paid money to see Marion Michael Morrison in the movies? Maybe, but Marion didn’t take that chance, he became John Wayne.
In the Bible many people got new names to go with a new life and a new image. Abram became Abraham. Sarai became Sarah. Jacob became
Israel. Saul became Paul. Simon became Peter, "The Rock."
We can change our appearance. We can change our names. We can change our whole image. We can make all the cosmetic changes that we want. We can make ourselves totally unrecognizable to the world. It doesn’t matter.
We can put diamond earrings, a pearl necklace, and a fur coat on a skunk, but it’s still gonna stink. If we are dead on the inside, there is no way we can cover that up. The change, our transfiguration, must begin on the inside.
Moses’ face was shining because of what was happening on the inside. It wasn’t because he got sunburned from being out in the sun too long. We all know what happens when we are out in the sun too long without protection. Our outer appearance must reflect an inner transformation.
How many of you have heard it said about a woman who is pregnant that she is “glowing”? She exudes this “radiance”. Well, she’s “glowing” and “radiant” because of the change that is taking place on the inside.
This little girl went to her mother one day and asked her if it was true that God was bigger than anything in the whole world. Her mother replied, “Of course he is.” “Well, then, is it true that when we believe in Jesus, he comes to live in our hearts?” the mother said, “Yes, that’s true, too.” “Well, if God is bigger than anything in the whole world and He chooses to live in our hearts, wouldn’t He show through?”
That’s true. We can change our name, our image, and our hair color. We can lift this, tuck that, enlarge or shrink all different parts of our body. We can wear colored contacts, fake fingernails, fake eyelashes, fake hair, and hip, happenin’ clothes.
Spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to change your outside and you can fool the world. But you can’t fool God. Spend 10 seconds of your time asking for God’s forgiveness, asking him to change you and you will be transformed.
It doesn’t matter what is on the outside as long as we have Jesus on the inside. If we do, we will look different because Jesus will show through, but more importantly, we will live different. We will be transfigured. And that’s something you can’t get in a can or from a plastic surgeon.
