The Lutheran Hour
-
"Listening to Jesus"
- No Sermon MP3 No bonus material MP3
-
Text: Mark 9:7b-8
-
Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Today, the Lutheran Hour joins with the church in saying the resurrection proclamation is not composed of indefensible words and unsustainable wishes. They are God’s truth based upon historical fact. Jesus Christ, the beloved Son of God, has fulfilled the prophecies, kept the Commandments, and completed the Savior’s work. Jesus’ resurrection lends credence and credibility to God’s call as we listen to Jesus the Son of God.
It was a couple of years ago a very dear friend talked to me about some ugly glasses she and her husband received as a wedding gift. These glasses were so ugly the couple wondered if they had unknowingly offended the givers. “Why else,” they asked, “would anyone have given us something this ugly?” The couple contemplated putting the gift in the closet, and then, when somebody they didn’t like invited them to a wedding, they could give the ugly glasses to them. Eventually, they decided to use the ugly glasses for everyday dining. They tossed the ugly glasses around. They taught their children to drink from a cup, using the ugly glasses. Nobody cared if the ugly glasses got broken. To all in the home, the ugly glasses were a source of amusement.
Then, one day our friend joked to another person about the ugly glasses. The friend looked sick. “It sounds like the ugly glasses are a Hummel collector’s item. I don’t know, I’ll have to check.” She checked. The ugly glasses were Hummel’s. The ugly glasses, in the complete set, were worth a little under $1,000. And the ugly glasses–well, they were transformed. From that moment on, the ugly glasses were handled differently. They were put up away from children’s fumbling fingers. Valuable all along, in the eyes of this couple the ugly glasses had been changed–trash had become treasure.
Many of Lutheran Hour’s listeners have watched the PBS program, “The Antiques Road Show.” I like that show not because I’m into antiques. I like it because I like to watch people. There is a certain pleasure in watching thousands of people show up at a giant arena where an expert will put a value on something. The procedure is this: You come in with your family bric-a-brac and some national expert will study your bric-a-brac, ask you a few questions about it, and then put a dollar value on the piece. Like I say, I’m not interested in bric-a-brac. I’m interested in people. I like to watch when the expert says, “Sir, your piece is not some bit of grungy garbage your crazy Uncle Charlie picked up shortly before he went off the deep end. No, there are only two of these bric-a-bracs in the entire world, and your bric-a-brac is worth a gazillion, billion dollars.” When that happens, the bric-a-brac is no longer junk. It’s not garbage. It’s no longer tossable. It is treasured. That’s transformation. That’s transfiguration. That’s trash into treasure.
Our text paints a similar picture. We are told about Peter, James and John following Jesus up a mountain. That was not unusual. For three years, Peter, James and John followed Jesus just about wherever He went. If He said, we’re going on a boat, they followed. To Jerusalem, they followed. To Samaria, they followed. To a mountain, they also followed. Following was what disciples did. Sometimes, like at the feeding of the 5,000, following Jesus meant helping Him and being at the center of the action (Matthew 14:13ff). Sometimes they were wined and dined like important people. That happened in Cana when Jesus performed His first miracle (John 2:1).
Sometimes, following Jesus could give their souls a start. You never knew when you followed Jesus what was going to happen next. One day, Jesus would talk to a storm. That’s not the surprise. The surprise is that the storm listened (Mark 4:37ff). Another day, Jesus walked on the water (Matthew 14:25). Then there was the day He brought a dead person back to life (Luke 17:11), or the time He touched a leper (Matthew 8:2)–that’s something most people don’t do. Following Jesus was almost always a surprise.
But as many times as the disciples had been surprised in the past, nothing prepared them for what they experienced the day they followed the Savior up a mountain. The mountain was probably Mount Hermon, but we’re not sure. As far as Israel goes, Mount Hermon is a nice enough peak, about 7,000 feet high. But it wouldn’t be much more than a foothill, if you moved it to the Rockies. Nevertheless, it was a serious hike the disciples made that day, following Jesus all the way. They made it, because, that is what disciples do.
Then, at the summit, they saw something. These disciples saw something that put Jesus in a different light. Yes, that’s the way to say it. They saw Jesus in a different light. They saw something that you, who do not yet know the Christ, need to see. Now, before I explain what the disciples saw, I want to ask, “What do you see when you look at Jesus?” In Jesus’ day, the disciples sometimes saw in Him, a “rabbi,” a teacher (John 1:38). I’m afraid that’s the way many may be looking at Him this morning. Now, there’s nothing wrong with thinking of Jesus as a teacher. He certainly was that. Jesus, teaching with authority, educated young and old and sinners, and those who aspired to sainthood. But Jesus was, and is, more than a teacher. If, when you look at Him, you only see a teacher, you do not see His true value.
When you look at Jesus, what do you see? When Jesus walked the dusty paths of Palestine, there were those who saw Him as a religious leader, a representative from God, some kind of prophet (Matthew 16:14). Are you among those who would limit Jesus in this way? Some do, you know. They see Jesus merely as a great religious leader, a fine philosopher like Mohammed, Buddha, Confucius or Zarathustra. Those who think thus of the Savior cherish His spiritual suggestions, for that is, to them, all His words are. “Yes, we should do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Every person should refrain from judging, lest we be judged; and none of us should ever cast the first stone.” If this is your limited view of the Savior, then open your eyes. If you think all these religious leaders say the same thing, read what they wrote. Seriously, take a look. They do not agree. They do not share Divine truth. They are different. And if all you see in Jesus is a prophet, you are selling the Savior short.
When you look at Jesus, what do you see? Some see Him as a spare tire they keep under the mat, in the trunk of their life. He should always be there when they need Him, ready to be called on in an emergency, ready to help them get to where they’re going. But He should never take up much room. Some authors see Jesus’ name as an expletive undeleted, a way of shocking those with delicate sensibilities. Some public servants see the Savior as an unpaid volunteer in their campaign. Through their entire campaign they talk about Christian values and ask Jesus to witness the truth of their promises. Some environmentalists see Jesus as a partner who will help them cut vehicle emissions. They ask, “Would Jesus drive an SUV?’ Comedians think of Jesus as the ideal target for jokes that fail, are foolish, and unfunny. Some collegians see Him as “Mr. Goody-two-shoes,” the poster-Boy for all that’s prudish, narrow-minded, bigoted, and old-fashioned. Some military leaders see Him as a Godly general they can, depending on their political position, follow or fight against. But today, I’m not worried about them. I want to know, what do you see when you see Jesus? If it is anything less than, or if it is anything other than, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, you still are seeing trash and not treasure.
Come back to the mountaintop; stand side by side with the disciples. That day, they saw something which changed the way they viewed Jesus. First, Jesus’ face started to glow. Not with a tempered night light kind of glow that’s gentle to the eyes; not with a reflected light coming from a setting sun. Jesus shown with a brilliant, shield-your-face kind of brightness. He shown with an uncomfortable coming-out-of-a-dark-movie-theater-into-a-sunny-summer-afternoon-kind of brightness. This light was not confined to the Savior’s face–all of Jesus shown, unshielded and undiminished by His robe.
The disciples look again. Now they see Jesus conversing with the great Old Testament prophets: Moses and Elijah. How the disciples knew these men were Moses and Elijah is beyond me. It’s not like they could do a search on the Internet and find a black and white tin-type of these leaders. They couldn’t go to the library and find a good artist’s rendition. Leave it at that. They knew. The Spirit told them, somehow. This was Moses and Elijah. The disciples had seen many things as they followed Jesus, but they had never seen anything that would prepare them for their Teacher glowing and talking with two of the greatest and long gone leaders of Israel.
By now, the disciples are frightened. They are fearful. “What’s next?” I’ll tell you what’s next. A cloud appears. The Bible doesn’t say the cloud rolled in from the sea. It wasn’t a cloud they could see coming from their high vantage point. This was a cloud that wasn’t there, and then it was there. Yes, I know clouds can form around mountaintops. But not a cloud like this one. Because from inside this cloud, a voice spoke. The disciples may not have had a college education, but they were religious men who had gone to Hebrew school. They knew voices coming from clouds was not a normal phenomenon. They would have remembered that a voice from a cloud was the kind of thing their ancestors experienced when they were following God through the wilderness. It wouldn’t have taken them long to figure out that when your teacher is emanating light and visiting with ancient prophets and voices are coming from freshly-formed clouds, it is in everybody’s best interest to pay very close attention. They did. They listened. The voice of the heavenly Father said, “This is My Son, whom I love. Listen to Him.”
Stop there. Don’t continue. The claim of that command places you and every human being at a crossroad. No longer can Jesus be just a teacher, just a philosopher; just a prophet; just a good fellow. Either He is God’s Son, and we should listen to Him, or the words are a lie and should be rejected and we should live our lives without Christ the best we can. There are no other options. There are two paths: one leading to eternal damnation; the other leading to divinely inspired repentance, forgiveness, redemption and salvation. I will tell you, as plainly as I know how, much of the world has chosen to ignore those words. They will say the disciples misunderstood. They will say the altitude was playing tricks on their oxygen-starved minds. They will talk about mirages and the tricks light can play. They will say these words were written long after the event and the disciples were making things up. You can, like the world, rationalize, minimize and downsize those words. If you do, you are part of a world where war is inevitable, tears are predictable, and sadness is foreseeable. You can take that path and Jesus, God’s treasure, born in Bethlehem, crucified on Calvary, and He will remain trash.
Or you can believe those words. “This is My Son, whom I love. Listen to Him.” The crossroad is in front of you. Now, I have a fair guess as to what may be in your mind. Those of you who go to the movies or turn on the TV are used to seeing Hollywood perform all kinds of special effects that make this spectacular event seem small and insignificant. We have seen Charlton Heston open the Red Sea. Trekkies have gone along as Captain Kirk took them to where no man has ever gone before. Fans of Harry Potter have been amazed as broomsticks have flown and mail has been delivered by owls. We have seen ET phone home and walked in the homes of hobbits. Our jaded ears and eyes may not be nearly impressed as the disciples were that day on the mountain.
But if you cannot discern the difference between God’s reality and Hollywood pretend, I’m sorry. The words from the cloud still demand an answer. Was Jesus, no, make that IS Jesus the Son of God? If He is the Son of God, what are His words we should hear? They are fair questions. Let me deal with each in the short time we have left.
Is Jesus the Son of God? You are not the first person to ask that question. Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, having spent his life preparing the way for the Savior’s coming, even as he was getting ready for his martyrdom, asked that question. This is what Jesus said, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor” (Luke 7:22).
Is Jesus the Son of God? Anticipating your question, God gave numerous prophecies, hundreds–in some cases, thousands– of years before the Savior was born. All of those prophecies were designed to help questioners, like you. God was saying, “When you see in one person all of these prophecies being fulfilled, you’ll know: This is My Son, this is your Savior.” If you take the time and you should, you will find those prophecies–every one of them–was fulfilled in Jesus. At the beginning of His life, according to prophecy, Jesus was born of a virgin. At the end of His life, according to prophecy, He was crucified and none of His bones were broken. No less than a dozen times, the Gospel writer Matthew goes out of His way to say, “This happened so Scripture might be fulfilled.”
Is Jesus the Son of God? Oh, my friends, He is. Do not doubt, but believe. He is the Son of God. And if nothing else will convince you, on Easter Sunday stand before His empty tomb and know that Jesus defeated death so that all who believe could be saved. To stop the story of Jesus’ resurrection, all that was necessary was for someone, anyone, to produce His body. Jesus’ enemies couldn’t come up with a corpse. There was none to produce. Jesus’ followers knew there was no body. They knew Christ had risen. You couldn’t rise. I couldn’t do it. Only the Son of God can do that. If you doubt me, go to a cemetery and wait. See what happens. I’m thinkin’ “nothing.” Because of an empty tomb, I know this is God’s Son. That’s why I know I’d better listen.
I’d better listen to Him when He says: “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except through Me” (John 14:6). Hear Him. Jesus is not saying He is one of many ways that lead to the Father. Jesus is not claiming to be one of many equally acceptable truths. He is the only truth that takes us to life. Hear Him. Hear Him when He says, “I am the bread of life. He that comes to Me shall never hunger; and he that believes on Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). Not a bread of life–the One, the only food that can answer our spiritual appetites. Hear Him. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). Jesus is not saying He is one of many lights. He is the only light that can take you out of your present personal darkness into a life of light.
There are so many wonderful things that Jesus said. I wish I had time to tell them all. What I can do is make this invitation. If this is new to you, don’t be surprised. It’s new to many people. If your life up to this moment has been aimless, useless, and meaningless, don’t be shocked. That’s the way it is without Jesus. If you want more–if you need more, then call us at Lutheran Hour Ministries. We will be giving the number before the end of the broadcast. Today, the heavenly know the only Savior they will ever see. Today the heavenly Father wants you to see Jesus for what He really is, the greatest treasure you will ever know, the only Savior you will ever see. Today the heavenly Father is asking you to be a disciple, to follow Jesus, your Savior and your Lord.
“Come on, Ken, let’s get that old radio out to the garbage.” Dad was referring to an antique radio that had been cluttering up the basement since before I was born. Almost five feet tall, the massive 1930’s radio featured turned wooden legs and sliding doors. It was quite a work of cabinetry. Nevertheless, powered by tubes and unable to get FM, the radio was a nuisance, serving no function other than taking up space. I know those who keep everything will shudder to hear that Dad and I carried the radio out to the curb. Monday was garbage day and it would be gone. The garbage man never got the chance. Within 10 minutes, a truck pulled up and two men, almost dancing with glee, loaded up the radio and disappeared. I never saw them or the radio again. That day I wondered–today I am sure–that those men knew just how valuable that tower of tubes really was. Our trash became their treasure. That’s what the Savior wants to do for you today. He wants you to reject the world that says “Jesus is trash.” He wants you to believe, with all your heart, believe the saving truth: Jesus is God’s Son, the Savior, and your true treasure. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for March 2, 2003
ANNOUNCER: What’s the difference between faith and feelings? I’m Mark Eischer in the studio with Pastor Ken Klaus. We’re continuing a discussion from last week’s program. Basically, it concerns the difference between faith and feelings. We ended up saying feelings can’t always be trusted.
KLAUS: That’s exactly right. Feelings come and go, rise and fall, ebb and flow. But God, in His great mercy, has given us new birth and a living hope through the resurrection that can never perish, spoil or fade–kept in heaven for you. God offers us a faith and a relationship that can be absolutely trusted by all people at all times and in all places. Let me tell you what I mean. Do you remember the tragic events of 9-11?
ANNOUNCER: I don’t think any of us will ever forget.
KLAUS: After that happened, I overhead a lot of folks, some of them Christians, throwing out the challenge, “Where is God? Why would God allow such a thing?” Those folks had their faith rocked. Once they felt they could trust God, but now they feel God has somehow betrayed them.
ANNOUNCER: But He hadn’t.
KLAUS: No, He hadn’t. It was the hatred and perversion of humankind. God didn’t want those things to happen. God didn’t approve of those events. God was saddened by what sinful humans were doing to each other. God always is that way. He doesn’t move.
ANNOUNCER: And that’s also what Jesus was saying to Thomas the week after His resurrection. After Thomas saw Him alive, Jesus said, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
KLAUS: That’s right. It is precisely when we don’t feel God’s presence when we need to trust Him all the more. It’s precisely when a repentant heart doesn’t “feel” forgiven that the individual needs to know God has forgiven him for the sake of Christ.
ANNOUNCER: And where does such assurance come from?
KLAUS: It comes come from the Word of God. In the Word of God, we find that God tells the truth–all the time, in every circumstance. We can trust in the Lord with all our hearts and avoid leaning on our own understanding. Proverbs says that. A pilot I once knew told me from the beginning of flight school he was taught to trust his instruments. The teacher told him, “Your instincts will fool you. The day will come when you will feel you are flying one way, but in actuality, you are doing another. You must learn to trust your instruments.” That’s also what the Lord is saying to us.
ANNOUNCER: What instruments?
KLAUS: The instruments of His Word and Sacraments. Those are the instruments God has chosen to lead us, unerringly, into His Kingdom.
ANNOUNCER: You’re sure about that?
KLAUS: I’ve seen a lot of experts who, on the same day with the same information, felt the market would go up or down or stay the same. Only one of those feelings would be right. “Feelings can’t be sure.”
ANNOUNCER: And we need something more solid?
KLAUS: We need the sureness of God. That’s what the writer to the Hebrews was talking about when he said, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Look at those words: sure and certain of what we do not see.
ANNOUNCER: But would it be right to say faith is purely logical or some kind of an intellectual exercise?
KLAUS: I’m glad you asked that, too, because that kind of thinking allows the pendulum to swing too far the other way. Even though salvation is not based on our feelings, it is not based on our logic or intellect, either. It is based solely on God’s grace. God’s grace can reach a very smart intellectual, in an intellectual way. God’s grace can also reach and save little children, even before they are capable of logic.
ANNOUNCER: By God’s grace.
KLAUS: By God’s grace. Ephesians 2:8 says it well. “By grace you are saved through faith.” I could add, ‘not by intellect, nor by feelings, but by grace.’ How do we get that faith? Not from our works or anything we can do, but simply by allowing God to give us the gift of salvation which was purchased at the cost of His Son’s life.
ANNOUNCER: I can understand that.
KLAUS: And I hope you feel good about it, too.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. The next Lutheran Hour message is titled, “Rusty Treasures.”