Our Scripture reading today was the amazing story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. As we just heard, Jesus went up a high mountain with three of his followers, Peter, James and John.
Today, let’s hear this story from the perspective of Peter. This was an important moment in his journey with Jesus but it wasn’t the only one. Peter had already been travelling with Jesus for several years. In Matthew chapter 16, the chapter immediately before this story, we read that Jesus asked his followers, ‘Who do you say that I am?’ and Peter answered ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.’ That was a very important moment for Peter. He was moving from following a man from Nazareth, a place not so far from his own home, to declaring that this was indeed God’s own Son.
Not long after this, Jesus began to tell his followers that he must go to Jerusalem, where he would be abused, and killed and would rise from death. Peter was very distressed to hear this and said, ‘”NO! This can’t happen!’ Jesus told him, ‘You don’t understand the things of God.’ Another very important moment with Jesus.
Within days of these important conversations, in Matthew 17, we read, ‘After six days, Jesus took Peter, James and John and led them up a high mountain.’ They were alone. Suddenly Jesus changed and became dazzling with light.
Have you ever been driving in the late afternoon, turned a corner and suddenly been blinded by the sun in your eyes? It is a very scary moment. The brightness is dazzling but confusing and you can’t see anything clearly. Perhaps Peter, James and John felt like that. The light was too much.
Two men then appeared and began talking with Jesus. The disciples recognised them. These were great men of the past, Moses the lawgiver and Elijah the prophet.
Peter wanted to take action quickly. He was impressed and amazed and wanted to honour these people.
He started to say, ‘I will put up three shelters, one for each of you,’ but while he was still speaking a bright cloud covered the mountain and they heard a voice ‘This is my Son. Listen to him.’
Peter and the others were terrified. They fell to the ground and shut their eyes against the brightness. Then they felt Jesus touch them. He said, ‘Don’t be afraid.’ When they opened their eyes, they saw … only Jesus. What an experience! They never forgot that.
There are times when some of have a very special experience of Jesus and we don’t forget it. For others of us, we haven’t had a dramatic moment of special revelation, but we have been following Jesus for most of our lives.
Today we invited three senior members of this congregation to share something of their experience as a follower of Jesus. We have asked them to answer two questions:
- An important time in my Christian journey was when…
- I am still a follower of Jesus because…
Did any of these stories sound familiar? Have you had a special time when you have felt close to God or a moment when you have encountered Jesus in your own world?
For some of us, it may be at the time of a death or a birth. It may have been in a private moment as we were touched and uplifted by music or poetry, art or the wonders of nature. Perhaps it was during a church service or a Christian camp or conference where we heard the voice of God in a special way. Perhaps we have been reading the Bible and some words have touched our hearts.
We cherish those special moments. But our spiritual walk may be a long one with many times when we do not feel uplifted or certain. Even if we have known some high moments, like Peter on the mountaintop, there will always be those other times that are tough and challenging.
Peter had a bumpy experience over many years. There were the times when he was very close to Jesus – and the time when he denied that he even knew who Jesus was. Peter knew that Jesus was crucified but was one of the disciples who ran away from that awful scene, leaving the women to be present. Peter knew the grief of the crucifixion and the wonder of the resurrection. On the day of Pentecost, Peter was a leader. If we read the Acts of the Apostles, Peter is part of the story over and over again, sometimes following closely to the risen Jesus and sometimes not so much.
Near the end of the New Testament, we find two letters written by Peter. The second letter was written, we believe, in about AD 66, over thirty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. By now Peter is an older man, at least in his sixties or maybe older. He writes that he doesn’t think that he will live much longer. He has never forgotten that moment on the mountain with Jesus. He writes:
16 When we told you about the power and the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not telling clever stories someone had made up. But with our own eyes we saw his true greatness. 17 God, our great and wonderful Father, truly honored him by saying, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.” 18 We were there with Jesus on the holy mountain and heard this voice speak from heaven.
As an older man, Peter could say, ‘With our own eyes we saw his greatness’ and ‘we were there with Jesus on the holy mountain and heard this voice speak from heaven.’ Many years had passed since that time. Peter had been persecuted, he had travelled. He had made mistakes. He had struggled with controversy. He had been at odds with fellow Christians over how to understand Christian faith. He had been imprisoned for his faith, and miraculously released. He had been involved in big debates about how a follower of Jesus should live. He knew that it was a very dangerous thing to be a follower of Jesus, one of the despised Christians; the Roman Emperor Nero had blamed and horribly punished Christians for the fire that gutted Rome a few years earlier. But Peter has never forgotten that experience on the mountain. He was still following Jesus in old age.
Some of us who are part of this congregation have lived long lives. Many of those of us leading this service are over eighty. Our life experience has been varied and we hope that we have learned something along the way. None of us have escaped from the normal ups and downs of life. But we are still here. We are still following Jesus. Not just because it is our habit and our custom. During COVID, we all found that it was very easy to stay home on a Sunday morning and not bother to come to church. Maybe the important question is not ‘What was your high spiritual moment?’ or ‘Have you ever had a special moment with God?’ but ‘Why are you still following Jesus? Why are you still here?’ I invite you to talk to some of us who are older and ask us about our faith. We are not really old, just chronologically enriched.
Did you know that this week is the 30th anniversary of this congregation? In the little booklet that we prepared for the 25th anniversary, there is a story by the first minister with Uniting Church in Gungahlin, at a time when there were only three suburbs in the whole of Gungahlin and most of it was still empty paddocks and a dusty building site. They met first in a small community centre in Nicholls. That first minister, Rev Mark Greenlees, wrote about the first service, held on 11 February 1996.
He wrote, ‘When our first service was advertised by mistake, we decided that if we were going to be there, we were going to do it properly. There were only eight people there; our family of five, Rob and Suzie, and Alison. We had this lovely service. We sat in a circle and we said, this is a beginning and we have no idea where it is going to take us. We had Communion together and it was that very first moment of saying “here we are and we are going to share together”. I did a kid’s talk for our kids, and preached and we sang some songs. Then we had some coffee and said, “I guess we’ll meet again next week.” And they did!
Thirty years later, after that small beginning, this congregation is still here, following Jesus. And today we will celebrate this with cake!
In his old age, the apostle Peter wrote to communities of Christians. He remembered his experience on the mountain.
16 When we told you about the power and the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not telling clever stories someone had made up. But with our own eyes we saw his true greatness. 17 God, our great and wonderful Father, truly honored him by saying, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.” 18 We were there with Jesus on the holy mountain and heard this voice speak from heaven.
He began his second letter with these words, and it is my prayer for us all.
2 Peter I; 1-2
1 From Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ.
To everyone who shares with us in the privilege of believing that our God and Savior Jesus Christ will do what is just and fair.[a]
2 I pray that God will be kind to you and will let you live in perfect peace! May you keep learning more and more about God and our Lord Jesus.
Amen
