#74 Lu. 9:27-36 SEEING THE KING IN HIS GLORY

    Jesus had informed His disciples that He was going to Jerusalem to
suffer and to die.  He then informed them that if they would follow Him,
they, too, must also be willing to suffer.  He even warned them that if any
man would be ashamed to follow Him that He, likewise, would be ashamed of
that man when He would come in His glory.  The time would come when Jesus
would set up His kingdom and would rule in all His glory.
    He spoke, of course, about the Mellennial Reign, which will take place
when He returns to the earth and sets up His throne in Jerusalem.  The
disciples at that time expected Him to take the throne very soon, but in due
time, they would realize that this would be a long way off.  Jesus would
first leave this world and go back to heaven.  Then at some future time way
off in the future, He would return to this world and set up His millennial
kingdom.
    In our text today Jesus gives three of those disciples a preview of the
kind of glory that He will have in the millennium.  I told you earlier that
at that present time they expected Him to set up His kingdom and rule the
nation Israel very soon.  They probably did not understand at that time that
He would rule the whole world, but they did understand that He would rule
the nation Israel.  I also told you that in due time they would come to
understand that He would not set up the kingdom at any time soon.  So lest
they all become disillusioned and disheartened that He would not immediately
set up His kingdom, Jesus gave three of them a sneak preview of His future
glory.

I. The three whom Jesus carried with Him into the mountain

    V. 27, "But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, which
shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God."  Let me say
that Jesus certainly could not have meant that they would not die until the
Millennial Kingdom would be established.  All of those disciples have long
been dead and the Millennial Kingdom has not yet been established.
Therefore what He meant was that some of them would not die until they had
seen the King in His glory.  Seeing Jesus in the same glory that He would
have when He would rule in the Kingdom should prove to be an exciting and
challenging experience for them.  It should help to reassure them that one
day He would sit upon the throne and that when He did he would have this
same kind of glory.
    The fact is that they would not have long to wait to get this preview of
His glory.  V. 28, "And it came to pass about an eight days after these
sayings..."  Note particularly the expression that Luke uses here.  Luke
said that about eight days after Jesus told them that they would see His
glory that it took place.  It is important that we note the word, "about,"
lest we think that there is a conflict between what Luke said and what
Matthew and Mark said.  Both Matthew and Mark said that it took place six
days after and Luke said about eight days after.  The explanation is that
neither Matthew nor Mark counted the two days on either end of the six.
Jesus told them on one day, but that day was not counted by Matthew nor
Mark.  The day on which He told them plus six makes seven.  Then add another
day in which the event took place and you will see how Luke counted the
days.  He got eight days rather than six, but the way he said it was "about
eight days."
    (V. 28), "...he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a
mountain to pray."  It is easy to understand why Jesus did not allow all
twelve of the apostles to go into the mountain and see His glory.  Judas was
in the group and He would not want Judas to see His real glory.  At least
not at this time.  One day Judas will see His glory, but it will be too late
then for him.  By that time his destiny will be fixed.
    Just why Jesus chose Peter, James and John may not be fully understood,
but we do know that Jesus showed a special closeness to these three.  It was
probably because these three had a very special love for Him.  It was
probably also because He had plans to use them in a very special way after
His resurrection.  James would be the first martyr.  Simon Peter would
become one of the chief leaders.  John would write five books of the New
Testament including the Book of Revelation.

II.  The Lord glorified

    V. 29, "And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered,
and his raiment was white and glistering."  Later on the Isle of Patmus
after Jesus had ascended to heaven, John would see a vision of Jesus walking
among seven golden candlesticks and John says that the countenance of Jesus
is as bright as the sun shining in its strength.  That is, His countenance
was as bright as the noon day sun.  Did you ever try to look at the sun.
That is how bright the face of Jesus did shine when Peter and James and John
looked upon it.
    Luke said also that His raiment was white and glistering.  That is, the
human body within His garments was also shining brightly and it made His
garments light up like a neon sign.

III.  The appearance of Moses and Elijah with Jesus

    Furthermore, Peter, James, and John saw two men along with Jesus.  V.
30, "And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and
Elias."  They saw Jesus, the promised Messiah King, and Moses and Elijah
were there talking with Him.  Moses, as you know, was the man who led the
Children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt and through whom God gave the law
to Israel.  Moses represented the law.  Elijah was one of the more prominent
of the Old Testament prophets.  Elijah here was representative of all the
Old Testament prophets.  Although both of these men had died physically many
years before, yet they still lived on beyond the grave and they appeared
there on that mountain talking with Jesus.
    How did Peter, James and John know that they were Moses and Elijah?
They had never laid eyes on either one of them before.  I am not certain how
they knew.  They heard these men talking with Jesus and so perhaps they
heard Jesus call their names.  Or, perhaps, the Lord just revealed their
identity to them in some mysterious supernatural way.  But the fact is that
they knew.  Peter, James and John knew who Moses and Elijah were and they
knew which one was which.
    V. 31, "Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should
accomplish at Jerusalem."  Jesus and Moses and Elijah talked about the
approaching death of Jesus at Jerusalem.  They must have talked about the
manner of His death that He would be crucified.  They must have talked about
the purpose of His death, that He would die to provide salvation for lost
sinners.  Moses, himself, must have acknowledged that this is something that
the Law could never do.  It was something that the law of Moses was never
intended to do.  The blood sacrifices in the law of Moses were only types of
the death of Jesus that would take place at Jerusalem.
    And did you notice the terminology they used in discussing His death.
They did not talk about the death that would be inflicted upon Him.  They
talked about the death that He would accomplish at Jerusalem.  He was not
going to Jerusalem to be overpowered and put to death.  He was going to
Jerusalem to give His life a ransom that men might be saved.  He would
accomplish His death at Jerusalem.

IV.  The rash proposal of the Apostle Peter

    V. 32, "But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and
when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with
him."  Peter, James, and John had actually fallen asleep before He was
transfigured.  I assume that, as on other occasions, Jesus gave Himself to
prayer and they drifted off to sleep while Jesus prayed.  At any rate, they
awoke to hear the voices of Jesus, Moses and Elijah as they talked.  They
may not have heard all of the conversation, but they did hear them
discussing the death of Jesus at Jerusalem.
    V. 33, "And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto
Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three
tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias..."  Moses
and Elijah departed from Jesus.  I am not sure if they walked away or just
vanished into thin air, but they were gone.  Just about the time that they
disappeared the Apostle Peter spoke up.  The Apostle Peter is pretty well
noted for getting his foot in his mouth and this is one of those times that
he lived up to his reputation.  He said (and I am going to put it into my
own words)----.  He said, "Oh, Lord, how wonderful it is to be here to
witness this marvelous event!  Why never in my life have I ever seen
anything so beautiful!  Your face and your whole body lit up with a
brilliant light.  It was just wonderful to behold!  And there was Moses and
Elijah!  I never dreamed that I would have the privilege of seeing Moses and
Elijah!  Lord, I'll tell you what I wish you would do.  I wish you would let
us build three tabernacles as memorials to this event.  We can dedicate one
of the tabernacles---one to you, one to Moses and one to Elijah."
    (V. 33), "...not knowing what he said."  Luke said that Peter did not
know what he said.  Not that he was talking incoherently.  He was not out of
his head.  He just did not understand how foolish his proposal was.  In the
first place, I don't think Peter understood just how much
three tabernacles would cost to construct.  Where in the world would he and
the other disciples get that much money?  But more importantly, why build
tabernacles to Moses and Elijah?  Simon Peter did not understand how God the
Father would react to such a suggestion.  God did not at all favor the idea
of making a tabernacle.  God did not want a tabernacle made in the honor of
Jesus and He most certainly did not want any made to the honor of Moses or
Elijah.

V.   The reaction of God the Father to Peter's proposal

    Simon Peter had not finished making his suggestion about the building of
the tabernacles until God the Father came down quickly in the form of a
cloud and hovered somewhat threateningly over and around Peter, James and
John.  V.  34, "While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed
them..." This was the same cloud that had come down before the Israelites in
the wilderness to lead them.  It was not a natural cloud at all, it was
Almighty God, the Heavenly Father.
    (V. 34), "...and they feared as they entered into the cloud."  I think
the Apostle Peter got the idea right quickly that he had said the wrong
thing.
    V.  35, "And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my
beloved Son: hear him."  God the Father did not at all want a tabernacle
built to Moses.  God did not want them to build a tabernacle to Elijah.  God
The Father did not even want a tabernacle built to Jesus.  He did want them
to hear Jesus.  God wanted them to worship Jesus as His Son.  He wanted them
to believe Jesus.  He wanted them to obey Jesus.  But He did not want them
to build a tabernacle to anybody, not even to Jesus.
    V.  36 "And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone.  And they
kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they
had seen." Back in verse 33 we saw Moses and Elijah depart from Jesus.  By
this time there is no one to be seen by the apostles but Jesus and Jesus
alone. Luke seems to imply that Jesus was no longer shining.  His appearance
was back to the way they were accustomed to seeing Him or at least was soon
back to His normal appearance.

VI.  A timely question for us today

    Wouldn't you have loved to have been there with Peter, James and John?
Wouldn't have loved to be there and see Jesus in His glorified form and to
have heard the discussion with Moses and Elijah?
    Obviously it is too late for that.  But the time will come when the
saved will gather before His throne and we will see His glory.  The light
that will come from His countenance will light up the whole new earth so
that the light of the sun nor moon will not be needed.
    The time will also come when the unsaved will bow before His throne and
will acknowledge that He is God.

Conclusion:

    The time is here now when unsaved men, women, boys and girls should turn
to Him for salvation.
    The time is here now when the saved should serve Him.