Matthew 17, The Transfiguration

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And today we talk about the transfiguration. Now, this is an event that is super important and maybe gets
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Not as much attention as it deserves But I'll tell you why I think
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It's so important. Number one, as we talked about last week in Matthew 16 28
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This is a reference to a transfiguration. I believe that strongly went over it a little bit last week
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It is the first sign, the first foreshadowing of the Son of Man coming in his kingdom
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Even before the resurrection, even before the ascension All three of the synoptics,
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Matthew, Mark, and Luke, mention this and they all mention it immediately after Jesus said those that sentence
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Some of you will not taste death until you see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom Which means it's probably referring to the transfiguration because that's the next logical thing in all three of those
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Gospels now If those three weren't enough Peter himself who is one of the three disciples
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Allowed to be present at the transfiguration talks about it in 2nd Peter. We're gonna look at that in just a minute
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So let's just read it after six days Jesus took with him Peter James and John his brother and led them on a high mountain by themselves and he was transfigured metamorphose
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Before them and his face shone like the Sun and his clothes became white as light and Behold there appeared to them
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Moses and Elijah talking with him and Peter said Lord It is good that we are here. If you wish
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I'll make three tents here one for you one for Moses one for Elijah He was still speaking when behold a bright cloud overshadowed them and a voice from the cloud said this is my beloved son with Whom I'm well pleased listen to him.
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Now. We've only heard the voice of the father a few times once at the baptism When the disciples heard this they fell on their faces and were terrified
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But Jesus came and touched them saying rise have no fear when they lifted their eyes. They saw no one but Jesus alone when they were coming down the mountain
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Jesus commanded until no one in the vision until the Son of Man is raised from the dead and The disciples asked him why the end of his scribes say that Elijah must first come
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He said Elijah does come and he will restore all things But I tell you that Elijah's already come you don't recognize him
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But did to him whatever they pleased So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer their hands then the disciples understood he was speaking them of John the
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Baptist. Okay so this is a super important event because it takes place in all three of the synoptics and It refers to the
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Son of Man coming in his kingdom the Jesus coming in his kingdom If you notice Jesus's appearance his face shone like the
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Sun his clothes became white as light It sounds quite a bit like how he's going to return in Revelation 19 at the second coming
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Thus, this is a foreshadowing of what Jesus looks like in his Spiritual divine essence and not clothed in the flesh if you will at least not fully
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So what I want to do Is I want to actually look at Peters Commentary Divinely inspired commentary of this event in 2nd
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Peter chapter 1 which has to be in my opinion One of the most important chapters of the
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Bible, but in 2nd Peter chapter 1, let's look at what he says just first 16 through 21.
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This is 30 so years after the event took place and this is Peters commentary on it
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For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming the power and coming of our
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Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty For when he received honor and glory from God the
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Father and the voice was born by him To him by majestic glory. This is my beloved son with whom
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I'm well -pleased We ourselves heard this very voice born from heaven and we were with him on the holy mountain
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And we had the prophetic word more fully confirmed to which you do well to pay attention As a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts
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Knowing first of all that no prophecy of scripture comes from one's own interpretation For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of men, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the
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Holy Spirit Now Just I want to point out a few things here
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Peter can pick from a litany of things. He saw Jesus do When he was with him on earth
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In fact, John says that he saw Jesus suits do so many things that if every one of them were written down the world could not
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Contain the books that would have to be written Peter saw
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Jesus do so many wonderful things but according to Peter the thing where Jesus Made known
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His majesty where he was an eyewitness of it was his transfiguration Not as ascension not even his resurrection, but is it but his
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Transfiguration when he was transformed for a moment. They didn't see him covered in veiled flesh, but they saw him
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At least in part of his deity This is my beloved son with whom
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I'm well pleased. So they heard you the father speak from heaven So they have the father speaking to the son
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God the Son is transfigured where they can see his deity and God the Father is speaking to him and Then Peter says this we have this prophetic word more fully confirmed
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To which you would do well to pay attention, but he says this
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The the the already completed prophetic word is the Holy Scriptures the eyewitness testimony will become the
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New Testament Peter could have chosen any of anyone to explain Jesus what Jesus's return would be like he could have chosen the resurrection the
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Ascension Pentecost But he chose this event in transfiguration as an example What Jesus will be like when he returns to earth to collect his kingdom and his people and destroy his enemies
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The significance of Moses and Elijah being there symbolized the law and the prophets ie the whole
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Old Testament and Is fulfilled in the finished work of Jesus Christ thus? Why the death burial resurrection and Ascension is what the three of them discussed if you read the parallel accounts
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I believe it's Luke mentions that Elijah and Moses were speaking about his death to come Peter did not know what he was saying and was afraid
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It It's incredible When he wants to build
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Tabernacles for all three of them or at least tents for all three of them The voice for him says this is my son and who
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I'm well, please listen to him Moses and Elijah disappear and only Jesus their Jesus alone So Moses is the law he represents the law.
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That's the first five books of the Bible Elijah represents the prophets So the law and the prophets is a common denotation of the
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Old Testament. So the whole Old Testament is fulfilled in Jesus Now the disciples asked a great question
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Malachi speaks of John the Baptist returning before the Messiah does So this
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I was like, hey, we really do believe you are the Messiah But we haven't seen Elijah and Jesus says you have in John the
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Baptist who was the spirit of Elijah now It is possible by the way that Elijah will also return before the
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Messiah second coming You can go back and watch the video on Revelation chapter 11.
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I think it is on the two witnesses But at any rate what's happening in this transfiguration is this
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Peter James and John see Jesus in his deity not clothed in human flesh
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Which Jesus describes as somewhat of what he will look like when he returns The father speaks to the son so that the disciples can hear that Jesus is his own unique person
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But is also God Yahweh himself Peter uses that event 30 years later to describe how we know that Jesus fulfills the
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Old Testament They were eyewitnesses of his majesty Moses and Elijah were there
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By the way little side note since there was no Facebook profile picture of Moses and Elijah The fact that Peter James and John were able to recognize they were
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Moses and Elijah though. They had never seen them Gives us an insight to how we're spiritually gonna be able to recognize our loved ones in heaven at any rate back in Matthew After this transfiguration they go down the mountain and Jesus tells them to not tell the others until after he's raised
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After he's resurrected remember they're about to go to Jerusalem and Jesus wants to die at his appointed time not early
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So he doesn't need a mob Jesus has already declared himself to be God and the
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Messiah But he won't declare it again in Jerusalem until the time is near Now Then Jesus Goes about and He heals a demon -possessed boy.
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Let's read this When they came down to the crowd a man came up to him kneeling before him and said
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Lord Have mercy on my son for he has seizures and suffers terribly for he often falls into the fire and into the water
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I brought him to disciples and they couldn't heal him and Jesus answered Oh faithless and twisted generation
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How long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you bring him to me? Jesus rebuked the demon and it came out of him.
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The boy was healed instantly When the disciples came to Jesus privately and said why couldn't we cast him out? He said because of your little faith
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For truly I say to you if you had faith like a grain of mustard seed you would say this mountain moved from here and it Would move and nothing would be impossible for you
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As they were gathering in Galilee Jesus said to them remember This is the area where most of Jesus ministry has been in the north
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The son of man is about to be living to the hands of man They will kill him and he will be raised on the third day and they were greatly distressed.
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So this is even more detail This is now the second time Jesus has foretold his death burial and resurrection
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Remember Jesus predicted his own death burial and resurrection He said
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I'm gonna die and three days later. I will rise again. Only God can do that Nobody else can predict their own resurrection
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Now later he's gonna say which men are gonna kill him But for now, he says the son of man is gonna be delivered to the hands of man
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They will kill him and he will be raised on the third day. Please church. Do not forget Jesus predicted his own resurrection
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They were distressed about it now as this chapter ends They come to Capernaum the collectors of the two drachma tax went up to Peter and said does your teacher not pay the tax and He said yes, and he came to house and spoke to Jesus first saying what do you think
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Simon? When Jesus spoke to him first read his mind From whom do kings of your take toll or tax from their sons or from others?
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And he said from us he said then the sons are free However, not to give offense to them go into the sea cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up And when you open its mouth, you'll find a shekel take that and give it to them for me and yourself
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In other words, Jesus saying I don't really owe that tax. I'm a son of the king So we're here but to not give offense go pay the tax
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All right. That's chapter 17. I know we went through that pretty quick. I've got a wedding today
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I've got to do But I get to do I should say but at any rate The transfiguration is the key event in this passage and Peter says that event is where Jesus showed his glory
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What we have with this metamorphosis what we have with this Transfiguration what we have with this is
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Let's see if I can find it Yeah, here's the word for transfigured
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Metamorphosis He was transfigured before them he was changed forms metamorph
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Changed forms, I believe The veil of his human flesh was removed so that they could see his deity pretty amazing stuff
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All right, guys. I love y 'all very much as always like share subscribe You can find all of our stuff on the
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Witton app You can donate to our ministries on the Witton app on the give tab at any rate