Sermon preached at St. Alban's, Spirit Lake, on February 18, 2007
(Year C, Last Sunday after the Epiphany, BCP Lectionary)
by the Rev. Carl D. Mann

Texts:   Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 99
1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13
Luke 9:28-36

Remember back in junior high science class when we learned different ways to look at a solar eclipse without looking directly at the Sun because if you looked directly into the light of the Sun you would burn your retinas and would literally be blinded by the light?

Judaism had a similar admonition: God tells us in Exodus 33:20, “But you cannot see my face; for man shall not see me and live." The unbridled glory of the full countenance of God was so intense that the object of His gaze would be consumed in a fiery holocaust. This is why Elijah wrapped his face in his mantle and stood just inside the entrance of the cave when communicating with God. To step out of the cave in the full presence of God was to become toast. This is why Moses hid his face beside the burning bush upon Mount Horeb. He knew that he was on holy ground and that God was speaking to him from out of the bush. But just because that shrub wasn’t being consumed didn’t mean that he wouldn’t be. And this is why God placed Moses in the cleft of the rock and covered him with His hand while His glory passed by, only allowing Moses to see His back as He was walking away, which is what happened just before this morning’s reading from the Old Testament.

The splendor of God’s majesty is so brilliant that just being in His presence as His glory passes by will light you up like a halogen bulb. And that’s not His face directly but that which radiates from Him, even while being shielded by His own hand. Just looking at God’s back was enough to cause the skin of Moses’ face to shine, and he wasn’t even aware of it. His face manifested the glory of God so much that he had to wear a veil while talking with the Israelites so that they would even come near enough to him to listen. They knew that he had been talking with God and the light reflecting from his face was so bright they were afraid that they might die because looking at him was, in their eyes, the same as looking at God.

Now fast forward to today’s Gospel. Jesus has gone up a mountain to pray with Peter, John, and James who as usual are having a hard time staying awake. As they are dozing in and out, Peter’s eyes are fixed on Jesus. Now that’s odd! His face appears to be changing! It’s getting brighter, almost glowing, and yet it’s in the middle of the night. Is he just catching the reflection from the light of the moon? No, it’s much brighter than that, and yet even as it increases in brightness, I can still see every feature on his face, every wrinkle, every hair of his beard! And look, now his clothes are starting to intensify, too! How can this be? His tunic and cloak are covered with the dust of the road and the wilderness just as we are and yet now they appear to be as dazzling as a star and as white as snow! And look, there are two men standing beside him. They are so close to his radiance that they appear to be shining, too but the light isn’t coming from them directly. It’s as if they are basking in his glory and the light is reflecting off of them. I wonder who they are. Oh, I know! The one on the left is Moses and the one on the right is Elijah! This is fantastic! I wonder what they are talking about. I think I heard something about “exodus”. That makes sense with Moses and all. Wow, Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus! By golly, I was right; he is the Christ of God. But where is the light coming from? It’s not reflecting off of Jesus. It seems to be emanating from him, almost like it’s coming through him. But how can that be? Wait! Where are they going? Oh, don’t leave now! This is the most amazing thing I have ever experienced! I don’t ever want it to end! “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah!” Why did I say that? What’s that? It’s like a cloud descending upon us but it’s not cold like a fog or a mist; it’s warm and tender like a loving embrace! What was that? I wonder if John and James heard that. I thought I heard someone speak in a very commanding yet soothing voice. It sounded like He said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” Oh man, I bet that was the voice of God! But if that was God and what He said was true, that means Jesus is not only the Christ of God but also the Son of God! This is incredible! But where is he? Ah, there he is, all alone now, back to normal. Moses and Elijah are gone. What am I going to do? I can’t tell the others about this. They would never believe me, especially Thomas. I have no proof that this even happened. Even John and James have a blank look on their faces like they just woke up. Maybe I was sleeping? Maybe we were all sleeping and I just had a wild dream. Well, I’m not going to say anything unless one of the other guys brings it up because I don’t want to look like I’m crazy. Imagine, looking directly at the face of the Son of God, which is like looking at the face of God himself and not being burnt to a crisp. Everyone knows that’s impossible. And yet it seemed so real; so glorious. It was like catching a tiny glimpse of heaven.

It’s not hard to imagine why the disciples didn’t discuss this with each other. They couldn’t believe their eyes or their thoughts because what they had just witnessed was beyond their comprehension; it was a mystery! God had revealed His divinity to them through the person of Jesus. They had witnessed the glory of God through the person of Jesus. They had seen God face to face through the person of Jesus and were alive to tell about it. But even with all that had been made manifest to them on top of that mountain, they still didn’t get it. Why? Because this mountain top experience was only a foreshadowing of that which was to come. But the completion had not yet occurred.

When Peter heard them talking about the exodus, it was not exactly like he thought. Scripture tells us that Moses and Elijah were speaking to Jesus about his departure. Remember John the Baptist shouting the words of the prophet Isaiah, “Prepare the way of the Lord?” The Greek word for way or road is hodos. In today’s passage it says that Moses and Elijah were speaking to him about his exhodos or departure from the way. This is from where we derive the word exodus.

Now does this mean that Jesus is giving up on his ministry? Is he forsaking the way by which to live that he has been preaching to his disciples? No! What Jesus is about to do is enter into the second phase of his divine mission which is the way of the cross; the salvation of the world; that of reconciling humanity with Almighty God.

You see, it’s no coincidence that Moses and Elijah are with Jesus at this crucial moment in his life. Respectively, they represent the Law and the Prophets, both of which Jesus has come to fulfill as the Jewish Messiah. But there is more to it than that. Jesus’ exodus is the means by which salvation will occur. In the original Exodus, Moses freed the Hebrews from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, and led them through the wilderness and into the Promised Land. By Jesus’ exhodos; his death, he will free mankind from the bondage of sin and death; that which separates us from God, and by his Holy Spirit he will lead us through the bewilderment of this life into the promised joy of Eternal Life with the Father.

Moses had to wear a veil over his face in order to shield the people from the indirect glory of God that radiated from him. In the Temple in Jerusalem, there was a veil-like curtain that separated the Holy of Holies from the Court of the Priests. Behind this curtain was thought to be the dwelling place of God. No one but the High Priest was allowed beyond this curtain, and then only once a year on the Day of Atonement with the blood of the sacrifice.

Jesus Christ is the personification of the veil. He is that which exists between the Father and us in order to protect from the intensity of His glory but he is also the means by which we have access to the Father. Jesus tells us, “To see me is to see the Father. No one comes to the Father except through me.” You see, Jesus is the way; he is the hodos and the exhodos. But the completion of salvation only occurs by way of the cross. When Jesus offered himself in sacrifice, dying on the cross in atonement for our sins, we are told that the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. This signifies that our salvation is the work of God and not the work of people. But it also signifies that no longer will there be anything that separates us from the presence of God. Not only does Moses have access to God. Not only does the High Priest have access to God. From that point in history, the whole world has access to God through Jesus Christ! This is the New Covenant! This is the Good News! Our exodus begins when we enter through the veil. Once through the veil, then we shall strive for the greater gifts and live a more excellent way. Do we fully understand this mystery? No, for our knowledge is imperfect. But when the perfect comes, then the imperfect will fade away. As for now, yes, we see in a mirror, dimly, but then, when all is complete, we will see him face to face, and live eternally! Gloria Patri