The Glory of Jesus, the Son of God ~ Luke 9:28-36

June 15, 2014 ~ New City Church of Calgary ~ Pastor John Ferguson

Intro: One of the themes that we hear frequently in Calgary is, Everyone has an opinion about God, and
everyones opinion is equally true. That sounds very nice, very open-minded. But, if someone says, e.g., God
is a snow-ake, and someone else says, God is not a snow-ake, both statements cannot be true. Both
people can be sincere in their beliefs but they both cannot be true at the same time.

Wouldnt it be great if we could somehow rise above everyones personal opinions about God, and
know something actually denitive? Is it possible to actually learn about God from God?

Illus: When EF Hutton talks, people listen.

At the heart of Christianity is the conviction that God has spoken clearly and denitively through Jesus
of Nazareth. That claim confronts us with two questions: (1) Is it true? (2) Are we listening?

Today, we will continue in our journey through the Gospel of Luke, an ancient investigative biography compiled
by a physician named, Luke, writing to a 1st century Roman ofcial named, Theophilus, in order to help him
understand who Jesus is, and to give him the condence needed to become & continue as a follower of Jesus.

Luke has been taking us by the hand and revealing more and more about who Jesus is by detailing the events
and teachings of his life. He is continually answering the question, Who is this man? A few weeks ago, we
looked at a passage in which King Herod asked the question, Who is this about whom I hear such things?
Then we looked at a text in which Jesus asked his disciples, Who do the crowds say that I am? / Who do
you say that I am? Today, we are going to look at an event in the life of Jesus in which God spoke in a clear
and unmistakeable way revealing the identity of Jesus, and how that should impact each of our lives.

Exploring: Take seriously the claim that God has uniquely spoken through Jesus of Nazareth. What it
means to be a Christian is to believe that Jesus is the unique and denitive revelation of who God is.

Christian: We are going to study a passage that is called The Transguration, and in it you will be
convinced and encouraged to follow Jesus of Nazareth more intentionally, and to be careful to devote
yourself to his teachings more faithfully.


28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up
on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his
clothing became dazzling white. [And he was transgured ("#$%"&'()*) before them, and his face
shone like the sun.]

Hughes 350), For a brief moment the veil of his humanity was lifted.

Keller 113, Moses had reected the glory of God as the moon reects the light of the sun. But Jesus
produces the unsurpassable glory of God; it emanates from him. Jesus does not point to the glory of God
as Elijah, Moses, and every other prophet has done; Jesus is the glory of God in human form.

The author of the book of Hebrews puts it like this: The Son [Jesus] is the radiance of Gods glory and the
exact representation of his being (Hebrews 1:3).

30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke
of his departure [Gr. exodov / exodus], which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

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1. Moses and Elijah are two towering prophets who represented the OT, the Law and the Prophets. Jesus
is greater than Moses and Elijah because he fullls both the Law and the Prophets (Lk 24).

2. Theme of conversation? His departure / exodus.

Wright 114-5, the reason Luke has chosen this wordnot least in connection with Moses!is that
in his death Jesus will enact an event just like the great Exodus from Egypt, only more so. In the rst
Exodus, Moses led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and home to the promised land. In the new
Exodus, Jesus will lead all Gods people out of the slavery of sin and death, and home to their
promised inheritancethe new creation in which the whole world will be redeemed.

32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake,
they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him,
Peter said to Jesus, Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one
for Moses and one for Elijah not knowing what he said.

1. The word translated tents is the Greek word for tabernacle; recall the Tabernacle in the OT.

Make tabernacles, and people could come and see Jesus, Moses, & Elijah. Sort of a religious shrine.

John 1:14, The Word became esh and dwelt (tabernacled) among us, and we have seen his glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Keller 114, Jesus is the temple and tabernacle to end all temples and tabernacles.

2. Peter didnt know what he was saying! Jesus just told him that he had to go, and die, and rise again.

34 And as he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as
they entered the cloud. 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my Son, my Chosen
One; listen to him!

1. Cf. Luke 3:22, You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.

2. Note the titles:

Son of God is a royal title indicating that at long last, the true King had come (cf. Psalm 2).

My Chosen One echoes the OT prophecies found esp. in Isaiah: Behold my servant, whom I
uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights (Is. 42:1). This servant would be wounded for our
transgressions (Is. 53).

3. Listen to him also alludes to Deut. 18:15, I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their
brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And
whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.

Ryken 477, What God said was mainly for the benet of the disciples, however, and also for us.
People had long been speculating about the true identity of Jesus. The disciples themselves were
beginning to confess him as the Christ, without fully understanding what that meant. But here now
was an authoritative revelation from God. Who is Jesus? He is the Chosen Son of God.

36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in
those days anything of what they had seen.

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Cf. Mark 9:9-10, And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they
had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning
what this rising from the dead might mean.

Cf. 2 Peter 1:16-18, For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the
power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he
received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory,
This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased, we ourselves heard this very voice borne from
heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.

John 1:14, We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son.


So, why did Luke record these stories in his historical biography of Jesus?

Luke has been slowly but systematically introducing us to Jesus of Nazareth. He is holding us by the hand and
helping us to see for ourselves from eyewitness testimony just Who is this man? Now, he tells us of an amaz-
ing experience of Jesus closest friends the answer that God himself gave to that question: Jesus is unlike
anyone else! Listen to him! Jesus is my Son! Listen to him! He is my Chosen One! Listen to him!

IOW, when Jesus speaks, everyone should listen.

Main Idea:
To understand Jesus rightly is to see him as the authoritative revelation of God to whom we should listen.

Points of Application:

1. Listen to Jesus.

John 14:6-10, Jesus said to him, I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him
and have seen him. Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us. Jesus said to
him, Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, whoever has seen me has seen the
Father. How can you say, Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father
is in me.

Heb 1:1-3, Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in
these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also
he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he
upholds the universe by the word of his power.

God is there, and he is not silent. He has spoken clearly and denitely through Jesus His Son. The only
question is, are you listening to Jesus?


2. Long for Jesus.

Peter the Apostle often gets a bad rap for being impulsive, not thinking before he speaks, like in this
passage. But, what would have been your response? You had just caught a glimpse of the glory of Jesus
Christ: his divinity breaking through his humanity; beauty beyond description. Wouldnt you want to savor
the moment?

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Paul speaks of the gospel of the glory of Christ in which God illuminates our hearts to give the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:4, 6).

J. Edwards in his diary wrote his vehement longings of soul for the Lord Jesus. In one place he describes
his experience of

the excellent fulness of Christ, and His meetness and suitableness as a Savior; whereby he
appeared to me far above all, the chief of ten thousands. And His blood and atonement has appeared
sweet, and His righteousness sweet; which is always accompanied [in me] with an ardency of spirit,
and inward struggles and breathings and groanings, that cannot be uttered, to be emptied of myself,
and swallowed up in Christ.

He goes on to speak of

the glory of the Son of God as mediator between God and man, and His wonderful, great, full, pure,
and sweet grace and love, and meek and gentle condescension. This grace that appeared to me so
calm and sweet appeared great above the heavens. The person of Christ appeared ineffably excellent,
with an excellency great enough to swallow up all thought and conception. I felt an ardency of soul to
be..empty and annihilated, to lie in the dust and to be full of Christ alone; to love him with a holy and
pure love; to trust in Him; to live upon Him; to serve and follow Him, and to be totally wrapped up in the
fullness of Christ.
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Qtd. in Pleasures Evermore: The Life-Changing Power of Enjoying God, by Sam Storms (p. 160-1).
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