Transfiguration & Asbury

Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him to the top of a mountain to pray (Lk 9.28). Mountain praying would not be something unusual to the disciples. Throughout history, God met with his people on mountaintops. History begins on a mountain in the land of Eden with a sanctuary at its heart. Abraham meets God on a mountaintop when he sacrifices Isaac. After being delivered from Egypt, the children of Israel worship at Mt Sinai, the same mountain where Moses met with God earlier in the burning bush. The temple is built on a mountain, and, according to Hebrews 12, we still ascend a mountain in our weekly worship. The three disciples had ascended mountains to worship throughout their lives, many times singing the Psalms of Ascent (Pss 120—134) as they went to worship festivals. But on this particular day, God pulled back the veil to reveal to them what happens on the top of the mountain every time they pray … even when they don’t see it.

God spectacularly revealed his glory. Though rare, this was not unique. The children of Israel experienced this at Sinai. Just as Jesus was transfigured before the eyes of the disciples, Moses was transfigured on the mountain. The children of Israel couldn’t look upon his face because of the brightness of glory (Ex 34.29-33). Some believe that this epiphany of Jesus was his divine nature bursting through the veil of his humanity. There is truth to that, but that is not the emphasis. Jesus speaks of himself in this context as the Son of Man. This reference gains layers of meaning throughout history, but its fundamental meaning is “Son of Adam,” the one to whom God gave the blessing and command to be fruitful, multiply, and have dominion. God’s intention for Adam, in the beginning, was that he grow to share his glory. Adam fell short of the glory of God (Rom 3.23). Jesus is the second Adam, the Son of Man, who will obtain this kingly glory. God reveals Jesus’ destiny in his resurrection and ascension and, with that, the destiny of man united with him.

Peter thinks this mountaintop experience is it. This is the final glory. Consequently, he wants to build tabernacles to house the glory just as Moses built the tabernacle to house the glory of God. Peter is overwhelmed by the sight and, at that time, doesn’t have perspective … though it could be argued that he should have. Six days earlier (Mt 17.1), after the confession of Peter that Jesus was the Christ, the King, Jesus explained to his disciples that he must suffer and die before entering his glory through resurrection. The glory on the mountain is temporary. It is only a taste of the coming glory. The glory is real and encouraging, but it is not final. Final glory only comes through death and resurrection.

Though Peter’s experience is visually much greater than what any of us have ever experienced, many of us Christians can sympathize with his desire. There are times when God pulls back the veil just a bit for us to experience a special taste of glory. These may be emotionally charged times of fear, excitement, or both. Because our hearts long to be free from all the effects of sin, we want to set up camp there. We don’t want to move.

Recently, in the little town of Wilmore, KY on the campus of Asbury University, many are claiming that such a revelation of glory is taking place. What started as a regular chapel service has turned into a non-stop, 24/7, worship service that has lasted for over a week at the time of this writing. People are traveling there and reporting. There are different takes on what is going on. Some liken it to one of the Great Awakenings of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. I’m not here to critique what is going on. I know that God moves in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform. As a college student, I remember a milestone in my Christian life being a Truth concert. (For those much younger than me, Truth was a CCM group that was sort of a Christian mix between Chicago and Pentatonix.) I was drastically changed at that time through music that now makes me cringe for the most part. God doesn’t normally speak through asses, but he once spoke through Balaam’s ass to accomplish his purpose. He has used their human counterparts on many other occasions. God can use these unusual events to reveal his glory, transforming lives.

That is the test any time we claim an experience of God’s glory: transformed lives. As I always heard growing up in these types of environments, “It’s not how high you jump. It’s how straight you walk when you hit the ground.” The fruit will determine whether or not this was a legitimate move of God. Will these people listen to the Son as the Father instructed the disciples on the mountain? If, for example, Asbury becomes a more inclusive campus for the sexually deviant (LGBTQ+) in the name of this work of grace, we’ll know that they haven’t heard from God. If the young men and women, get connected with churches, become faithful husbands and wives, bearing and rearing godly children, working to shape the world under the lordship of Jesus, then we’ll know that God did a work. The test comes when the students go back to class and then graduate. This may be an exciting time, but crosses are waiting for everyone at the foot of the mountain that must be taken up to follow Jesus.

Before you start going after these experiences, I want you to remember something that I alluded to at the beginning. God’s glory is always present with his faithful people in their ordinary times of worship where his Word is proclaimed and his Sacraments are administered faithfully. God may veil us from the spectacular visions, but we are gathered with saints of all ages in his heavenly presence (Heb 12.18-24; see also Revelation, which is a worship service (Rev 1.10)). We walk by faith, listening to him, and not by sight.