Last Epiphany, Year B, 2009

2 Kings 2:1-12; Ps. 50:1-6; 2 Cor. 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9

We’re always preaching and teaching about reading the Bible here at Faith.

Because reading the Bible regularly is part of taking the Christian life seriously, which is one of our core values.

And reading the Bible regularly is part of having our lives transformed which is another one of our core values.

So here today we have two classic readings.

The Old Testament lesson from the Second book of Kings which gives us a little scene from the end of the life of the prophet Elijah.

And the Gospel lesson about the transfiguration of Jesus.

They’re both really cool stories.

But they’re both a little wacky.

I’m not about to be heretical, trust me.

The story of Elijah and Elisha is kind of like a little Dr. Suess vignette.

There’s this back and forth banter with…

Do you know…yes, I know.

Stay here for the Lord has sent me…no, I will not leave you.

Back and forth, back and forth.

And then this chariot of fire and horses of fire appear and Elijah ascends in a whirlwind.

Have we all got that image in our minds?

Here is this seasoned prophet Elijah being scooped up into the sky.

After, of course, he does the Moses parting of the water thing.

And then the new prophet, Elisha rips his clothes in two and waits to get the double dose of the spirit that he asked for.

This is not everyday Cameron Park stuff.

What is it supposed to mean to us for today?

And then the transfiguration.

Another classic Bible story.

Jesus heads up a high mountain with three of the disciples…Peter, James, and John.

Out of the blue, Jesus starts to glow…his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them.

Not only that, but out of nowhere Moses and that same Elijah pop into the scene.

The disciples are all terrified, which seems like a pretty reasonable response.

But it’s Peter that speaks up and offers to make three little houses for them.

You can only imagine he was a loss as to the right thing to do for 2 dead guys and a glowing Jesus.

And then the voice from the clouds.

“This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him.”

And then, poof, Moses and Elijah are gone.

And Jesus tells Peter and James and John to keep the whole thing hush, hush until after he’s risen from the dead.

End of story.

Again, this stuff is not happening every day in Cameron Park.

What is it supposed to mean?

Because if we can’t make the Bible make sense then why read it?

Is the Bible true?

Are these stories true?

Do they have anything practical to offer you and I?

I don’t think you’re going to be surprised that I think these stories have important things to tell us about God and ourselves and our lives.

One of the problems can be getting past the stuff that seems so wacky to us…

Like chariots and horses of fire and people getting whirlwinded up into heaven.

And like glowing people talking to dead guys and voices coming out of the clouds.

How can we connect to stories written for people worried about losing a sheep in the wilderness when we’re wondering where our lost emails are?

How can we connect to stories written for people who knew that the community water well was a center of politics and relationships…

…when we can hardly figure out what the center of anything is what with instant global communication, facebook, twitter, and the mind numbing draw of tv and computers?

How can we connect to these stories?

How can we find truth and meaning in them for us, today, now, here in Cameron Park?

The starting point is to relax.

Take a deep breath, let it out, and then remember that the Bible has been a source of truth and meaning and mystery for thousands of years.

Nobody understands the Bible perfectly…nobody.

Everybody who reads the Bible and wants to take it seriously…struggles with it.

It’s OK to ask questions and to be confused.

And its good to invest time to do a little Bible study and to put yourself into groups where you can talk about the Bible and learn.

Read a Bible with some study notes in it to give you a little history and background about what you’re reading.

Don’t get stuck in details that seem weird or unbelievable.

Don’t get stuck trying to fit each story into history.

Look for truth and meaning.

Take this story of Elijah and Elisha.

Elijah is a man of God, full of the spirit and a prophet, and a mentor to Elisha.

What we hear in this story is all about the gift of spirit and power belonging not to a person, but to God.

Elijah knows that God is the source and that it will be God that passes it on as God wills.

The images of fire and the parting of water are images of power that belong to God not to us.

And Elijah is clear about that.

Don’t we wish that more people in power had a sense that real power belongs to God alone?

Do you wish that you had a clearer sense that real power belongs to God alone?

That message is truly a message for right now.

Then there’s the transfiguration.

Don’t get caught up in what goobers the disciples were.

This is a story about Jesus being God, which is still shocking news to the human race.

The high mountain, the dazzling radiance, the appearance of these two incredible saints of God.

And the cloud and the voice.

Here is the heart of it.

Did those words sound familiar?

This is my Son, the Beloved.

When Jesus was baptized in the Jordan river by John the Baptist there was that same voice.

This is my Son, the Beloved. With you I am well pleased.

That is the ultimate job reference.

But here the message is different.

This is my Son, the Beloved…listen to him!

Listen to him…now there is one excellent piece of advice.

Is the story weird to us?

Of course it is.

But the truth and meaning of it are so simple and yet so deep.

Jesus is God and God is with us.

If you go back and read chapter 8 in Mark it makes more sense.

Jesus has been feeding the four thousand, healing the blind…all kinds of signs and wonders.

And in chapter 8 right before this Jesus has just chastised Peter for not understanding that God’s plans are the most important thing in life.

Not comfort, not getting ahead, not being popular.

God’s plans for us are the most important thing in life.

We can wonder and shake our heads that Peter could question Jesus and the path of suffering Jesus was on.

We can imagine that if we had walked the same dusty roads with Jesus that we would have gotten it.

We can think that we wouldn’t be so clueless.

But I think we would have been just as clueless as the original disciples.

Really for us here in the United States how hard can it be to live our lives on a foundation of knowing that all real power belongs to God and that Jesus is God?

We have no major persecution, no threats of bodily harm, no restrictions on gathering or having Bibles.

But it is hard.

Because wherever we go, whatever time in history we live, we are human.

And in our brokenness humans have always struggled to let God be God.

The power and control that we have, that we think we have, is ultimately an illusion.

Life can change in a moment, in an instant.

And this is the only moment that we have to live for God.

This is the only moment that we have to follow Jesus.

Don’t neglect the Bible just because you don’t think you have time to really understand it.

Take a nibble, take a bite.

Spend time in one book, one chapter, one verse.

Go home and read Mark chapter 9 verse 7.

This is my Son, the Beloved…listen to him.

Listen to him…listen to Jesus.

Just think about that one verse and all that it means about who God is and what God is up to in our lives.

Take it seriously, let it change you.

It will change you.

Jesus is God and God has made a way for us to be forgiven.

To be made whole, to have our wounds healed.

God has made a way for us.

Come to Jesus, live for Jesus.

This is the moment we have to choose Jesus, to listen to Jesus…

This is the moment we have to follow Jesus.