Lexham Press
The Greek word translated “transfigured” gives us the English word “metamorphosis,” which means a change on the outside that comes from the inside. When Jesus began to shine, it was not because the angels in heaven had turned a powerful spotlight on him. It was because his divine nature was radiating through his body and his raiment. Jesus revealed his divine nature in its glory.
The remarkable “transfiguration retreat” reported by Matthew, Mark, and Luke (Matt 17:1–13; Mark 9:2–13; Luke 9:28–36) gave Jesus opportunity to glorify the Father and prepare himself and three of his disciples for his imminent suffering and death. Jesus was not alone on the mountain. Peter, James, and John accompanied him at his request, then Moses and Elijah appeared and the Father spoke from heaven.
It is our privilege to learn from the disciples’ experience on that mountain. As we’ll see, the transfiguration teaches us three essential truths about Jesus.
1. Jesus, the Son of God, shines with the glory of God
In the ancient Near East, the Gentile nations had temples, priests, and rituals, but only the nation of Israel had God’s glory dwelling in their sanctuary (Rom 9:4). When Moses dedicated the tabernacle, God’s glory moved in (Exod 40:34–38), and when Solomon dedicated the temple, the glory filled the house (2 Chron 7:1–3). The idols of the nations were without life or glory and could do nothing, but the living God of Israel is glorious in everything he is, says, and does!
The tragedy is that, over the centuries, the people of Israel repeatedly sinned against the Lord and even put idols in his temple. Eventually, the glory of God departed from the sanctuary. The Prophet Ezekiel records how the glory moved from the mercy seat in the holy of holies to above the threshold of the temple, then to the eastern gate, and from there it left the temple completely and went over the Mount of Olives (Ezek 10:1–19; 11:22–23). The priests could have written “Ichabod” over the temple, “the glory has departed” (1 Sam 4:19–22). Yet Ezekiel also revealed that the glory would return and dwell in the temple in the future kingdom (Ezek 43:1–5).
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, God’s glory returned to the people of Israel in the person of the Son of God (Luke 2:8–9). “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory” (John 1:14). Jesus glorified God in his life, teachings, and miracles, and especially in his death and resurrection.
But on the mount of transfiguration, Jesus radiated his glory in a way his disciples had never seen before. This glory revealed that Jesus is indeed the Son of God.
The transfiguration was a revelation of the glory of his coming kingdom when the cross would be replaced by the crown.
Jesus was on his way to Calvary, and his transfiguration was a sign that the suffering he would endure would ultimately lead to glory. It was a revelation of the glory of his coming kingdom (Matt 16:27–28), when the cross would be replaced by the crown (Heb 2:9). After his resurrection, Jesus asked the two Emmaus disciples, “Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:26).
Too many believers think that suffering in the will of God is a strange thing, for, if we are obeying God, he ought to shelter us. When Peter first heard that the Master would die on a cross, his response was, “Far be it from you, Lord”; and Jesus rebuked him (Matt 16:21–23). Suffering is one of God’s tools for preparing us for glory, not only today but when Jesus returns (1 Pet 4:13).
Those who have trusted Jesus Christ already have his glory in the person of the Holy Spirit within them (John 17:22; 1 Pet 4:14), and that glory is revealed in the way we live and the works we do (Matt 5:16). It will be revealed when we reach our heavenly home, see Jesus, and rejoice in his presence. Meanwhile, we walk by faith, knowing that the Lord always keeps his promises. Charles Spurgeon said that the promises of God shine the brightest in the furnace of affliction, and he was right. Suffering and glory go together as do God’s grace and our suffering. “The Lord will give grace and glory” (Ps 84:11).
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2. Jesus achieves a greater exodus
Not only was the Master radiant with divine glory, but so were two men, Moses and Elijah, who suddenly appeared and conversed with Jesus about “his decease which he was about to accomplish in Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31). Moses represented the law and Elijah the prophets, for in Jesus we see the fulfillment of the law and the prophets (Matt 5:17). “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).
The word translated “decease” is the Greek word exodus (ἔξοδος), a suitable word for the topic of conversation Jesus was having with Moses and Elijah (Luke 9:30–31). Moses supervised the exodus of Israel out of Egyptian slavery, and Elijah led the unfaithful nation out of pagan idolatry and back to the Lord (1 Kgs 18).
Jesus accomplished the most important exodus of all, for he delivers lost sinners from the power of darkness and takes them into his glorious kingdom (Col 1:13). In the days of Moses in Egypt, it was the blood of the lamb that protected the Jews from death and enabled them to go free, and it is the blood of God’s Lamb today that sets us free (John 1:29; Eph 1:7). Jesus became a prisoner that we might be set free.
Elijah did not close his ministry by dying but was carried alive into heaven, just as God’s people who are alive at Christ’s return will be caught up to glory after the dead are raised (2 Kgs 2:9–12; 1 Thess 4:13–18). One day, he will take his bride, the church, far above the mountaintops and into the glory of heaven. What a marvelous day that will be, and it will mean glory forever!
3. Jesus alone provides salvation
This is the second time Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him on a special ministry. The first occurred when he raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead (Luke 8:51–56), and the third would be when Jesus went into the garden to pray (Matt 26:37). It has been pointed out that each of these occasions was connected with death.
- In the home of Jairus, Jesus showed himself as the conqueror of death.
- On the mount of transfiguration, he was seen glorified in death.
- In the garden, he surrendered to the Father’s will unto death.
The three disciples were “heavy with sleep” (Luke 9:32), a fault they repeated in the garden (Luke 22:45); but when Peter was fully awake, he realized that Moses and Elijah were leaving. His suggestion that he build booths for Jesus and his guests was evidence that his mind was still confused because he didn’t really know what he was saying. But while Peter was still speaking, the Father interrupted him by placing a cloud over them and speaking to them. Throughout his life, Peter was interrupted: here by the Father and later by the Son (Matt 17:24–27) and by the Spirit (Acts 10:44–48).
Moses and Elijah were sent to encourage Jesus and not to remain on earth. Jesus was on his way to the cross and nothing could deter him (Luke 9:51). Alas, Peter still didn’t understand the significance of the crucifixion (Matt 16:21–23)!
This is the second time on record that the Father spoke from heaven to encourage the Son. He spoke at the baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:17), before Jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil; and the Father would speak again as Jesus drew near to his sacrifice on the cross (John 12:27–28). In each of these three instances, the Father encouraged Jesus as he approached suffering and death.
At Christ’s baptism, the Father had said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Here on the mount he repeats those words, but he adds, “Hear him!” One of the most dangerous things we can do as disciples of the Lord Jesus is to tell the Lord what to do instead of letting him tell us what to do. “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become his counselor?” (see Rom 11:34; Isa 40:13; Jer 23:18).
There is no substitute for Jesus and no need to try to supplement Jesus with anyone or anything else.
The heavenly visitors were gone and the three disciples saw “Jesus only.” But that’s all they needed to see! Moses and Elijah could do nothing for them—but Jesus could.
There is no substitute for Jesus and no need to try to supplement Jesus with anyone or anything else. It’s not Jesus plus Moses, because we are not saved by keeping the law (Gal 2:16–21). It’s not Jesus plus Elijah, for though he ministered to Israel, he cannot minister to us. It’s not Jesus plus anything, because our religious works do not save us but only give evidence that we are saved. There is no salvation without receiving Jesus by faith.
“Jesus only”
All of this teaches us to look to Jesus only—“listen to him!” (Luke 9:35, emphasis added).
“Jesus only” is not only the message of salvation, but of Christian living. Unless we make “Jesus only” the center of our lives, we can never enjoy the fullness of the Holy Spirit, for the Spirit was given to glorify Jesus (John 16:13–14). The Holy Spirit inspired people to write the Scriptures and to present Jesus Christ in what they wrote. William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury (1942–1944), said it so well: “Our message is Jesus Christ; we dare not give less and we cannot give more.”
“Jesus only” is what gives power to our evangelism. In our witnessing, we must use the Scriptures to present Christ and the cross, knowing that the gospel of Christ is “the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom 1:16).
“Jesus only” is essential for effective prayer. To pray in the name of Jesus is to ask what he would ask so that he might be glorified, not so that we might be pacified. I have lived long enough to be thankful for unanswered prayer. We must pray for God’s will to be done so that Jesus will be honored in all things (1 John 5:14–15), and the best way to determine God’s will is to search the Scriptures and be taught by the Holy Spirit. Prayer becomes an adventure in faith as we grow in our communion with Jesus only.
This article is adapted from Warren W. Wiersbe, Milestones of the Master: Crucial Events in the Life of Jesus and Why They Matter So Much (Lexham Press, 2015).
Resources on the transfiguration of Christ
Our Radiant Redeemer: Lent Devotions on the Transfiguration of Jesus
Regular price: $7.99
The Transfiguration of Christ: An Exegetical and Theological Reading
Regular price: $26.99
Light on the Mountain: Greek Patristic and Byzantine Homilies on the Transfiguration of the Lord (Popular Patristics Series)
Regular price: $17.99
The Transfiguration of Jesus: Narrative Meaning and Function of Mark 9:2–8, Matt 17:1–8 and Luke 9:28–36
Regular price: $16.99
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