January 25

Matthew 17:1

Mountains must have spiritual significance.  Moses received the Commandments on a mountain and here we Jesus transform into God's glory on top of a mountain.  If you think about it, Jesus could have transfigured Himself anywhere, but He chose to take Peter, James and John up to a high mountain top.  So the three men, who are very much alive, see Jesus and a vision of two other men, Moses and Elijah, (who went to be with God long before this event).  It's an interesting combo but the message behind the vision is very clear.  Moses who represents the Law, Elijah who represents the Prophets, vanish when Christ is revealed in His glory.  The transfiguration shows us that Christ fulfills the law and the prophets and that death cannot the destroy the glory that will follow.  But we already know that, so why did Peter, James and John need to be there?  The revelation was given to the disciples to convince, encourage and strengthen them in their faith and obedience.  God's glory revealed in Jesus is a demonstration of His love and His grace for us.  Jesus instructed them not to tell anyone what they saw and I always wondered why.  If I saw a transfiguration before my eyes, I would probably tell everyone I knew.  Let's look back at Matthew 16:15 -- Jesus asked them "Who do you say I Am?" In witnessing the transfiguration, His three closest disciples now have confirmation that Jesus is Lord and our faith is not in vain. He didn't want them to talk about it, I believe He wanted them to live it.  As disciples, Jesus wants us to not just to talk about our faith, but live in a way that demonstrates that we need not live in fear for there is hope of glory that lies ahead.  I pray for all of us that we have a mountain top experience and the same revelation that was revealed to the disciples sinks deep into our hearts and we also are convinced, encouraged and strengthened in our faith and obedience as we go into our day.  I pray God blesses you and reveals Himself in undeniable ways today.




Randi