Reflection on Luke 13:31-35

 

Luke 13:31-35

31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to [Jesus], “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. 33 Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ 34 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”

Reflection

Earlier this week I was asked to give a talk on compassion.  Strangely enough, the image that Jesus gives us in our gospel reading for today, where he describes himself as a mother hen, actually came up during the discussion of compassion.  And, I think it is important enough to share it with you.

But, before we can get into what compassion has to do with Jesus’ description of mother hens, I think that it is important that we look into what compassion actually means.  I am willing to bet that most of us think we know what it means.  We typically think that it has a mix of concern, love, care, and forgiveness.  That might be exactly what it means in the end, but I like to know for certain.  And, what I like to do when asked what something means biblically is to do a word study. 

I know.  You all came today just hoping that you would get a chance to experience a word study!  But truly, I like to look at the Hebrew and Greek meanings of these common words in order to understand what the Bible might be trying to talking about when using them. 

So, when I look at the Greek word for compassion (splagchnizomai), I see that it means “a twisting of the intestines.”  That makes sense, because when you are moved with a strong sense of compassion, indeed, your stomach feels twisted. 

That is interesting, but, the more fascinating meaning comes when we look at the Hebrew word for having compassion.  The Hebrew word for having compassion is “rakhum” (others spell it “racham” in English).

The fascinating thing to me is that Rakhum is very closely related to the Hebrew word for “womb,” which is “rekhem.”  And, because it is so closely related, compassion has to do with both a feeling in the area of the womb (similar to the twisting in the Greek), but it means more than that because half of the world has no womb.  So, compassion in the Hebrew also has to do with caring for the baby that comes from that womb.  In other words, the word Rakhum pictures a mother caring for her vulnerable baby.

Compassion conveys this intense emotion of motherly love and is sometimes translated as “deeply moved” in a motherly way.

And that motherly image makes me think of a mother that theologian Paul Tillich saw while running through the war torn streets of World War II. 

And as he ran, seeking safety from bullets fired from as unknown source, he glanced into a foxhole, into a trench used by soldiers.  There he saw a mother.  She was hunkered down in a protective stance over her baby, nursing the precious child.  His glance at the mother was momentary, but it became a picture that was forever burned into his mind.  It was a picture of rakhum.  It was a picture of a mother caring for her vulnerable baby.  It was a picture of compassion.

Rakhum.  Compassion.  A deep, motherly love.

I thought a lot about this sort of compassion while snuggling our little ones, just a handful of years back.  As their warm little bodies soaked into my own skin, I thought about how I would do anything to keep them safe as I raised them up.  Rakham.  Compassion.

This image of deep, motherly love has also transformed the image of God that I have whenever reading Exodus 34:6.  It reads: “The Lord…a God merciful (rakhum) and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” 

With rakham on the brain, my image of God in this scripture is transformed into the image of a heavenly mother who is forever patient with her children’s eccentricities, forgiving of their mistakes, and devoted to their wellbeing; snuggling them close when the world gets to be too much.

One day, while I was talking to my mom about this sort of close snuggling, my mom mentioned that I did not like to be snuggled as a child.  “You were never a snuggler,” she said.  “In fact, even as an infant, when I held you close, you tried to wiggle and push away.  But, don’t feel bad about that.  Just because you pushed away didn’t mean that you didn’t need to be loved and cared for.”

It struck me that I was kind of like that throughout my childhood, and even into young adulthood.  There was this time that I was following my mom as we both drove on the interstate in order to visit my grandmother.  The whole way my mother was going 55mph on a 65mph interstate highway.  Sometimes, we dipped as far down as 45 mph.  It drove me insane.  The trip was taking so much longer.  When we arrived, I confronted my mom, and asked, “Why were you going so slow?” 

She responded to my frustration with words that stopped me in my tracks.  “As I looked in the rearview mirror, it looked to me like you needed me to go slower.  I just wanted to make sure that you didn’t get lost.”  A mother’s love.  Compassion.  Rakhum.

We see this image of God as a mother who cares deeply for vulnerable children in the teachings of Jesus. 

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Luke 13:34).

Jesus says that he wants nothing more than to hold his people close, like a mother hen.  Yet his people push away just as I did as a child. 

However, that pushing away does not change the rakhum (the deep, motherly love) that Jesus has for his people.  Jesus is explicitly pictured as a mother hen, stretching her wings over her chicks, willing to put her body on the line as the fox comes to snatch, steal, and tear apart.  That is what foxes do by the way.  They come to snatch and eat the eggs and the chicks.  That is how Herod is pictured as he terrorizes his own people (Luke 13:32).

And, even though the children are “not willing,” even though they push away from Jesus, he still casts out their demons and heals their sick.  And, Jesus still goes to the cross, dying for them.  He dies in the same way that a mother hen, covering her chicks with her wings, dies.  The mother hen is the one snatched away, and Jesus is the one who is snatched and taken to the cross.  That is rakhum.  That is compassion. 

Oh, how he wishes that why might follow in the same footsteps.

It should be no surprise that Jesus wants us, his own hands and feet in the world, to show that sort of compassion to everyone Jesus calls his children.  Jesus tells us that we should even show compassion to our enemies! 

He says, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” (Luke 6:27-28).

Never forget, the very people who you consider your enemies are God’s children as well.  Even though they push away from Jesus, push away from love, God still cares for them also.  Jesus died for them too.  Jesus shows them rakhum, compassion, a deep motherly love that does not give up or let go.  Jesus wants to hold them close under the shadow of his wings.  To that end, when one of our enemies does evil to us, rather than retaliating back with evil, Jesus suggests:

“From anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.” (Luke 6:29).

What Jesus is suggesting is that if someone does evil to us, we do not retaliate with evil, after-all they too are a child, cared for by God.  At least this is what the Apostle Paul thought that Jesus was saying.  He teaches, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all” (Romans 12:17). 

Rather than pay them back with evil, and rather than laying down and submitting to their evil, Jesus suggests that we do something that makes them stop in their tracks and think about what they are doing. 

For example, when someone takes away your coat, give them your tunic as well.  In our world that mean when someone takes your pants, give your underwear as well!  When you allow them to do more harm than was first intended; when they see you completely naked, it might shock them into showing compassion. 

I have never felt the power of this sort of compassionate resistance more than when a classmate in seminary who was from Africa told us her story.  Her nation had recently split into two warring factions, and these warring factions even split small villages into enemies.  In her small village, a murderous rampage from one of the factions swept from door to door.  When a man with a gun burst through her door and pointed the gun at the children in the house, this woman stood right in front of the gun, barrel to her head, and said, “My brother in Christ, why would you do this?  We played together as children.  I took care of your children.  You are not this person.  You cannot do this.”

He could not do it, and it was all because of her rakhum.  It was a rakhum that not only extended to her children, which caused her to step in front of the gun.  It was a compassion that extended to her enemy, her brother in Christ, as she invited him to turn around and show compassion.  Life continued for everyone that day.  And, it was all because of rakhum; compassion; a deep, motherly love.  The same compassion as Jesus Christ our Lord.

Reflection on Luke 4:1-13

 

Luke 4:1-13

1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tested by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over he was famished. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” 4 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’ ”

 5 Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And the devil said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8 Jesus answered him, “It is written,

 ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’ ”

 9 Then the devil led him to Jerusalem and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written,

 ‘He will command his angels concerning you,

to protect you,’

11 and ‘On their hands they will bear you up,

so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

12 Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13 When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

Reflection

The end of this story has ominous words.  After Jesus passes the tests and the temptations of the devil, the story says that “When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13).  Evil is never done.  It is always there.  Even when you do well, it is crouching nearby, ready to strike.  God tries to teach this to Cain after he fails to provide an acceptable offering.  God says, “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it” (Genesis 4:7).  He does not master it.  Evil strikes and unfortunately it is his brother who suffers from Cain’s weakness to temptation.

Evil is never done.  It is always waiting.  Temptations to sin will always arise.

So, I have to say that it is no surprise that after over a year of healthy eating, consuming virtually no sugar except during certain celebrations (which was the plan), and consuming almost no cholesterol even though I love steak, and chicken, and shrimp, just a couple of days ago my resolve busted into delicious little pieces.  It started with the bag of Chips Ahoy cookies, lurking in the pantry near the box of garbage bags, ready to spring into a cup of milk before dramatically and deliciously jumping into my mouth.  And, that would not have been too bad if it had not been for the fatty, juicy, savory roast beef creeping up on me from the refrigerator behind.  Once that filled my stomach, it all just went downhill from there.  I found myself floundering in all of the temptations that can be found in the kitchen, and it made me feel very, very happy. 

That is the problem with temptations.  They do have a wonderful, sweet and savory pay off. 

As I said before, it was no surprise that I failed so miserably after over a year of doing great.  Having experienced the vastness of human nature over the course of my pastoral career, I simply shrugged and said to myself, “Of course, you failed.  Evil is never done.  It is always waiting.  Temptations to sin will always arise.”

What is surprising is that Jesus, after 40 days of eating nothing, Jesus does not cave when tempted to use his power to turn a stone into bread.  I tell you, if that had been me, that stone would have been a huge, Reese Peanut Butter Egg in seconds.  But, the Bible says, “The devil said to [Jesus], ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.’  Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone’” (Luke 4:3-4).  Jesus does not cave into the temptation.  Jesus does not fail the test.  When Jesus is out in the wilderness, he does not complain, demanding food like the Israelites before him (Exodus 16).  Jesus trusts that God will provide the food. 

Our failure is no surprise.  Jesus’ complete trust is truly surprising.

A couple of months ago, a pastor was caught in the act of arranging an inappropriate relationship with a minor.  The pastor actually drove the minor across state lines.  Charges were brought against the pastor, and all who knew the pastor were astounded.  Some people felt hurt.  Those who worked close with the pastor felt betrayed.  And, though I felt deep compassion for the victim and for the pastor’s family who were all floundering from his sin, I simply said to myself, “Of course the pastor did this.”

I had no inside knowledge about this pastor’s sins, nor did I predict it.  But, after over 20 years of ministry, having experienced the terrible moral failures of pastors (who are just people with funny little, white plastic things attached to their necks), I was not surprised.

The problem with temptation is that it deludes you into thinking that what you are doing is right.  It deludes you into thinking about yourself, and you forget that other people are valuable; created to be images of God.  That child is a person of value.  The people we try to influence are people created and love by God.  The temptation to influence people to satisfy our own desires is enticing, and can easily go unnoticed by the one who has been struck by its bite.  Of course, the Pastor used power inappropriately.  Evil is never done.  It is always waiting.  Temptations to sin will always arise.

What is surprising is that Jesus, who is sent on a mission by God to influence the world, does not use that mandate to force his own desires.  Evil does not infiltrate Jesus’ mission.  The Bible says that the devil, when showing him all the kingdoms of the world says to Jesus, “’To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.  If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.’  Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him’” (Luke 4:6-8).  Jesus does not cave into the temptation.  Jesus does not fail the test.  He does not look down from the heights as King David did when he glanced down and saw a beautiful woman, and try to claim anyone for his own selfish purposes (2 Samuel 11).  Jesus trusts that God will provide the wisdom and direction for his life. 

Our failure is no surprise.  Jesus’ complete trust is truly surprising.

It was no surprise when the girl shouted to the sky, “Prove to me that you are listening to me!  My life is falling apart, and I need to know that you are there!  Send a shooting star to prove that you exist!  Prove to me that you care!”  It was no surprise that she was shouting to the sky.  We all have, haven’t we?  And, it was no surprise that when she searched the sky for that streak of light she saw nothing.

God does not respond to our tests.  God does not jump when we say jump, God does have to listen to anything that we say and does not need to be swayed by any of our words.  The temptation to put God to the test is strong, but doing so almost always results in deep disappointment.  Yet, we still do it.  Evil is never done.  It is always waiting.  Temptations to sin will always arise.

What is surprising is that Jesus is able to push away the strong temptation to force God the Father’s hand.  Jesus could.  Out of everyone in the world, the Son is the one who actually could try to sway that hand of God the Father.  But, Jesus refuses.  The Bible quotes the devil’s temptation: “’If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’  Jesus answered him, ‘It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test’” (Luke 4:9-12).  Jesus does not cave into the temptation.  Jesus does not fail the test. 

Jesus continually trusts God the Father in a way that we cannot.  Of course, we can trust, sometimes.  We too can withstand temptation, for a period of time anyway.  For me, it was a little over a year that I resisted the sugar and the cholesterol.  Even though I faltered in the end, I still say that a year of resisting is pretty good, if I do say so myself.  And, I do.  But, such an admission reveals the truth: evil is never done.  It is always waiting.  Temptations to sin will always arise.  It waits for an opportune time.  And, we will fail.

But there is one who does not fail, even when temptation is lurking and waiting for the right time.  He is the one who was not sidetracked as he headed to the cross.  He is the one who did not save himself when voices urged and tempted him to do so from below his cross.  He is the one who followed through on loving to the end.  That is why we trust Jesus Christ, Our Lord.  He is the one who surprises; the one who cannot be tempted or swayed to abandon his mission; the one who does not fail to love each and every one of us.  Temptation has no hold over him, therefore, temptation cannot claim us forever either, because where he goes, so do we.

Yes, temptation may be lurking, but Jesus can be found deeply alive in our hearts, and minds, and hands.  Return to the Lord.  Trust in the Lord.  His love is not swayed.  And, his love endures forever.

Reflection on Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

 

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

 [Jesus said to the disciples:] ¹“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
  ²“So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ³But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
  ⁵“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ⁶But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
  ¹⁶“And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ¹⁷But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, ¹⁸so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
  ¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Reflection

Do you want to know something that can be considered simply dust?  Do you want to know what will blow away with the wind?  Being fake.  When Jesus calls people hypocrites, he does not quite mean what we mean when we say it today.  Being a hypocrite to us means “saying one thing and doing another.”  But, in Jesus’ time, it simply meant: “acting” or “pretending” for a dishonest reason.  In other words, what is truly dust, what is truly empty of true meaning and dignity is being “fake,” a “phony,” “capping” or “lying,” “putting on an act,” or being a “poser.”  Being fake.

When a person or community makes certain that their generosity is seen by others, “so that they may be praised by others,” Jesus points out that their generosity is not truly about helping a neighbor in need (Matthew 6:2).  Rather, it is about how the person looks to others when giving.  It is more about reputation than it is helping.  And, Jesus would have us know that being a fake is nothing but dust.  Once it blows away, there is nothing left that is of value. 

Do you want a test, to see whether your generosity is simply dust?  Ask yourself, “Do I care if I get a thank you?”  If you do, then your love of neighbor is fake; nothing but a show; nothing but dust.

Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

When a person or community prays in public spaces with fancy words, “so that they may be seen by others;”  so that everyone can hear how devout and eloquent they are in prayer; so everyone can see just how close they are to God, Jesus teaches that their prayers are not about talking to God at all (Matthew 6:5).  Rather, it is about how they look when praying.  And, Jesus would have us know that being a fake is nothing but dust.  Once it blows away, there is nothing left that is of value. 

Do you want a test, to see whether your prayer life is simply dust?  Ask yourself, “Do I care if others hear my prayer and do I care what others think concerning my prayer?”  If so, your prayer life is fake; nothing but a show; nothing but dust.

Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

In the ancient world, when a person intentionally looks dismal as they fast and refrain from food or luxury, “so as to show others that they are fasting,” so that everyone can see the sacrifice that they are making for the Lord, Jesus teaches that their acts of sacrifice are not truly sacrifices at all.  In our world, when people give up their time or sacrifice their wellbeing in order to help another, and at the same time complain about the personal strain the sacrifice is causing, Jesus would teach that the sacrifices are not sacrifices at all.  Rather, it is about how the person looks when sacrificing for others.  It is about having all eyes on them.  And, Jesus would have us know that being a fake is nothing but dust.  Once it blows away, there is nothing left that is of value. 

Do you want a test, to see whether your sacrifices are simply dust?  Ask yourself, “Does anyone else need to know what I have done?”  If so, your sacrifices are fake; nothing but a show; nothing but dust.

Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

Hear Jesus out.  There is nothing wrong with giving.  There is nothing wrong with praying.  There is nothing wrong with sacrificing a part of your life for God and for others.  There is nothing wrong with “Loving God” and “Loving neighbor.”  After-all, these two together are the most important thing that anyone can do in life Jesus says. 

Jesus teaches, “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37-39). 

But, what makes it all empty, what makes it all dust, is when the giving, praying, and sacrificing actually has nothing to do with God or neighbor.  When it only has to do with you, it is not heavenly.  Rather, it is dust, it is earthly, where “moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19).

Remember that you are dust, nothing more.

But, also remember that though you are dust, you are God’s dust.  God took you from the ground, and molded you and shaped you with heavenly hands.  God’s lips breathed life into the dust that is you and you came alive.  God did it once, and God can do it again.

You may look at yourself and see that you are nothing but dust, and that might be true, but God knows that you are heavenly dust.  God can shape your giving, your prayers, and your sacrifices in such a way that they provide the very love that has been breathed into you, as a gift to others. 

Jesus teaches that when you give, pray, and sacrifice for God and others, you might want to try doing it in secret, because, when done in secret, God will use it for heavenly, purposes.  And, you will be rewarded by being a part of God’s mission to spread love and mercy throughout the world.  You will be rewarded with a divine heart.  “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

Yes, you are dust, but you are not fake.  You are God’s dust, molded for heavenly purposes, and for that we give thanks to God.

Reflection on Luke 9:28-36

Luke 9:28-36 [37-43a]

28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking about his exodus, which he was about to fulfill in Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep, but as they awoke they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us set up three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah,” not realizing what he was saying. 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. 

[ 37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 Just then a man from the crowd shouted, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. 39 Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. 40 I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was being brought forward, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43a And all were astounded at the greatness of God.]

Sermon

We all sat there, staring at the words of the Bible projected on the wall with the PowerPoint projector, and the word that stood out to me was “pray.”  Asking people to point out the word that seems to speak to them is a good way to enter into the Bible and let God’s word start working on your heart, by the way.  So, often we read the Bible as if it is a chore to get done, like washing the dishes.  Few people like to do it, so you just plow through until the task is completed. 

But, the word of God does not work that way.  It is not a chore that you need to get done, or a simple box that needs to be checked.  The word of God, the Holy Scripture, is meant to stop you in your tracks.  It is meant to make you wonder and explore.  It is meant to mold you and shape you.  It is meant to bring you closer to God.

Understanding this, the leader at my retreat would plaster the word of God in huge letters of light on the wall, virtually surrounding us.  And, the word that God was hoping would speak to us that day was this very text, the story of the transfiguration.

Now, I have to admit that this story has never been my favorite, so a little eye rolling may have occurred when I saw this story surrounding me on the wall.  It is just too glittery.  It is just too trite.  Shiny, glowing, happy Jesus is the basis of a lot of cheap dollar shopping center art.  And, I hate that because Jesus is not cheap.  Jesus gave his life to save a bunch of mess ups and haters like us.  Jesus is like a soldier that takes the bullet fired by one of his own to save his enemy.  That sort of love is the opposite of cheap.  That sort of love is costly.

But at that retreat, the story spoke to me in a powerful way that it had not before.  Plastered huge, in front of my eyes was the word “pray.”  The story goes, that after talking about the difficult road ahead, which leads to his death, “Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. And, while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed” (Luke 9:28-29).

And, I do not know why it never occurred to me before, but the shiny Jesus on the mountain is not some sort of gaudy fashion show for the world to see, but rather the scene is more like the children at the door of the bedroom listening in on their parent’s private prayer.  Seeing the shine of Jesus is a peek at what is normally hidden behind. 

And, it got me to thinking that prayer too is not just something that we do to check off the list of things that good, Christian people do each day.  Nor, is it yelling into the fast food drive-through speaker system, giving our requests that we hope and pray will come out close to being right when we pull forward to the pickup window. That is not what prayer is all about. 

As I stared at the words on the wall, as I read about Jesus praying, I realized that prayer is about getting close to God, after-all God does show up in the cloud and talk to everyone in Luke 9:35, but even more than that, I realized that prayer requires being who you truly are.  It is about showing up in front of God as real.

What I see when Jesus prays, is that when coming before his heavenly Father, Jesus allows all that he presents to others to drop away; to be who he truly is.  And, who Jesus is, is divine and pure.  The Bible says that “the appearance of this face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning” (Luke 9:29).  That is who Jesus is at the core.  That is who Jesus is at the heart.  And, that is how Jesus becomes present with his heavenly Father.  Prayer starts with taking off all that we put on in order to be presentable to others, and being truly who we are.

Now, I guarantee that if you were to peek in while I pray that you would not see a shiny glowing servant of God.  Your eyes would not be forced to look away because of the unbearable shine of my life, rather you would look away because of the horrible monstrosity you would see before you.  You would see what my family sees as I wake up in the morning, and even they do not deserve to see that.

But, the truth of who we are is where we start when we pray and come in the presence of God.  After-all, how is God going to shape or mold anything about us if do not allow our true selves to show up?

So, prayer is about showing up as we are, but it is about so much more.  When Jesus prayed, what was on his mind was the road ahead that he knew led to a cross.  I do not know if he had any apprehension or confusion that he had to endure in order to figure out how to courageously move toward the cross, but what I do know is that, while in prayer, Jesus’ heavenly Father gave to him Moses and Elijah.  And, they were not there to just come back and take in the scenery.  The Bible says that, “They appeared in glory and were speaking about his exodus, which he was about to fulfill in Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31).  They came to reassure him, that what he was about to do was as important as the Exodus of Israel from the oppressive Egyptians.  They came “in glory” to reassure him that the pain he would suffer was for a reason (Luke 9:31).

And, I cannot help but think that the disciples are allowed to peek in on this prayer because God wants us to see that when the road ahead seems impossible for us, in prayer, God will provide.  A little later, Jesus teaches, “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you” (Luke 11:9).  He does not give this teaching out of thin air, he teaches it because he knows.  His road was impossible, he went to God in prayer, and God sent Moses and Elijah!  “Ask and it will be given you!”  He knows!  He knows!  And, because of it, he takes the hard road to Jerusalem, and allows himself to be slaughtered like the Passover lamb.  Because he knows, we are forgiven and freed from the bondage of sin and death like those Israelites where freed from Pharaoh so long ago.

We are saved by Jesus because he took the time to honestly and whole heartedly pray.  He brought his true self, and was open to hear whatever his heavenly Father wanted him to hear.  And, because of that, it made all the difference in the world.

And as I stared at the words, projected and emblazoned upon the wall that day, I was invited to see the power of a deep, honest prayer.  Like one of the disciples, I was allowed to see what it is to have a deep relationship with our heavenly Father, where nothing is hidden, and where I am invited to listen to what God has to say, and go where God wants me to go.  Even the disciples are invited into the prayer.  The great cloud of God surrounds them as they come in honest fear, and God tells them, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” (Luke 9:35). 

You too are invited into the prayer.  You too are surrounded by the cloud of God, invited to come naked, stripped of all the façade that you use as a wall against the world, invited to come, imperfections and all, but instead of Moses and Elijah meeting you, God the Father will send Jesus to guide your way forward.  “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” God says (Luke 9:35).  So, we come as we are and listen.  That is prayer.