Men Whose Eyes Have Seen the King - Part 2 — T. Austin-Sparks

Peter’s Eyewitness of Christ’s Majesty

We read again Peter's words regarding the transfiguration of the Lord Jesus from his second letter, chapter 1, verse 16. For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the power and presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

For he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. This voice we ourselves heard come out of heaven when we were with him in the holy mount.

We have the word of prophecy made more sure, for unto ye do well that ye take heed as unto a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawn and the day star arise in your hearts. I would like to link with that his words in his first letter, in the first chapter at concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you, searching what time or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that should follow them, to whom it was revealed that not unto themselves but unto you did they minister these things which have now been announced unto you, through them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven, which things angels desire to look into.

The Transfiguration as Christ’s Coming in Power and Presence

I think that there is very little need for me to retrace the course that we followed earlier, because what we have yet to say so largely embraced what we have said, concluded our earlier meditation at the point of the issue of the transfiguration.

We saw that the word used here by Peter and in other places, is a word which links the transfiguration with the coming again of the Lord Jesus, rightly translated power and presence. The presence, as you see, is applied to the transfiguration, the presence of the Lord Jesus in majesty, in power, in glory.

That same word is used and in the same way concerning his coming again. It is called his presencing, his being present, and we know that that presencing will indeed be in power, majesty and glory. If these are the accompaniments of the presence of the Lord Jesus, as they are clearly seen to be, again and again we shall indicate some of these occasions as we go on.

If these be the accompaniments of his presence, then the issue, not only in transfiguration and what it means, and in the advent at the end, but surely in every occasion of his presence, the presencing of the Lord Jesus carries with it the situation, the conditions, the place where he is present.

It indicates, even if we enlarge later, the amount of transfiguration there in his presence fell on their faces with great fear. The Lord Jesus had to approach and lay his hand on them and say, arise, be not afraid.

The Holy Fear Produced by Seeing the Lord’s Majesty

The presence of the Lord Jesus lay waste to all our true wisdom and virtuosity. Peter and another evangelist recording it tells us, Peter said, Lord it is good for us to be here, let us make three tabernacles.

The evangelist says, not knowing what he said, here he is in his own impulsiveness again, obtruding himself into this situation, taking the speech into his lips and the situation into his hands, wanting to organize this and to perpetuate it and to make something of it and I make three tabernacles, I.

Peter, not knowing what he said, perhaps with the best intentions, nevertheless heaven had to rebuke him, put him in his place and this was a devastating experience for those men in themselves. From one standpoint it is a glorious thing to see his majesty, from another standpoint it is always a fearful thing, that is for the flesh, for the natural life, cannot walk into this and take hold of it, to make something of it for our pleasure and satisfaction, as an impact in it, that is the point, it registers.

We pray as we are going to and seek as we are going to seek a new vision of the exalted Lord, we must be prepared to be brought very low, to have all our own natural energies wasted to realize that that majesty demands nothing other than that we shall be on our faces and that is a good place to be when it is before him.

Stephen’s Vision of the Glorified Lord

It was a tremendous thing when Stephen saw this Lord in majesty and glory, it carried him through the awful ordeal of martyrdom, being broken, shattered and slain with all the hatred, the malice that was being poured upon him by those who gnashed their teeth and ran upon him.

It was a glorious emergence for Stephen to see the Lord in glory as he did, but it was a tremendously devastating thing for at least one man there, more than that we could say that it was devastating for that nation, for in what they were doing they were only setting their double seal to what they had done to the very man in the glory.

Again its impact, what I am trying to say is not that such and such things characterize a visitation or a vision, but we can never really, really see the Lord and be in the presence of the Lord without knowing it and something happening, it being tremendously effective.

John’s Vision and the Transforming Impact of Glory

So all the pastors saw the Lord glorified and no one will argue as to there being an impact on that occasion. John saw him when he was in Patmos, he saw this Lord glorifying hell to the ground, see its like that.

And whatever might be the consequences and effects, we would all say lets have it rather than this impotent, helpless, weak, ineffective thing in which we so often find ourselves. The issue of the transfiguration, that is of the glorified Lord seen, seen is always a tremendous thing in its effect.

The Transfiguration as Historical Fact and Prophetic Fulfillment

Now here in his letter, Peter is affirming the fact, he is affirming the fact of the transfiguration, he is setting it over against what he calls cunningly devised fables, cleverly concocted reports, over against anything merely fictitious, imaginary.

He says this was a fact, we were with him, we saw this has been abundantly confirmed, we have a more sure word of prophecy, probably referring to what he said in his first letter that we have read, prophets all pointed on to that, to that suffering and glory which met on the mount of the transfiguration.

As Moses and Elijah spoke to him about the exodus, the cross, about to be accomplished at Jerusalem, there the suffering and the glory met on that mountain. Peter says the prophets were all pointing to that and seeking and searching diligently to know the time, what manner of time would be, when they prophesied the suffering, the glory, he said they, the prophets, searched diligently and then he crowns it all by saying which things angels are desirous of looking into, we've got it, we've got it all in fulfillment.

We were there on the mount, I've seen it working out ever since, we are living in the light and the power of that combination of suffering and glory, glory and suffering. It's confirmed, prophets, the word of prophecy is confirmed both in the event and in our history ever since the event, it's made more sure, probably Peter meant more than that but he meant that, that's not the whole interpretation but it is a part, but there it is, what I'm trying to underline is this, that Peter himself is affirming here, the thing had happened when Peter adds his word about more sure, you notice he carries it beyond the event, that historic event, that occasion on the mount, there's something added to this, something added to the, if we may call it incident, mighty incident, something more, it's been made more sure in our case, what is it?

An Objective Event Becoming an Inward Reality

Well just this, just this which is so true in the other cases, it was not only something before Peter and James and John, it was something that happened to him and afterward came into him. There was the event, the happening, in time, at a certain place, but something with it happened in Peter, this letter of his many years afterward and you notice in the context, the immediate context, he's speaking of his departure, knowing that I must shortly put off this my tabernacle even as the Lord has shown me, I will seek that you have these things after my departure, he's at the end of his life, the end of his ministry, but something happened that has carried him through, something has remained, not as a memory of an objective experience, but something happened in him.

Dear friends, this is more than a doctrine, more than a theory, more than even something in the holy scriptures, to see the Lord does something in us. Oh I would like to spend all the rest of my time on that, because you know we can get the truth about anything and everything, all the truth that is available about the Lord Jesus himself, his life, his birth, his life, his works, his words, his death, his resurrection, all that there is.

We can have all the truth about the church, the church, and what a lot there is available, have it all, know it all, nothing fresh to know about it. And any other thing you like to mention in the scriptures, we can know it all, and yet the fact can remain that nothing has happened in us.

As a result, what has all your knowledge of the church meant as a happening in you? To do something, put you in a new place, with an entirely new conception, revolutionizing your whole life, so that one whole order of things just falls away as empty and another heavenly order comes in.

That's how it ought to be, true, spiritual, apprehensive, and apprehension, ought not to be just something in front of us, it ought to be something in us, it was with Peter. And we can trace this in his life, we shall indicate other things.

Paul’s Vision of Christ on the Damascus Road

Take again his great contemporary, Paul, here is this fact that on the Damascus road, Jesus appeared unto him in glory, brightness above the brightness of the sun. It's a tremendous objective something, that was before him, it struck him as from the outside, but as you know, years afterward when he was speaking of it, he said it pleased God to reveal his son in me.

Not only to him, it was something in him. And the apostle Paul's whole life and ministry based upon and sprang out of that double event, to and in, the majesty of the Lord Jesus. The majesty of the Lord Jesus became an inward thing with him, and therefore a tremendously effective thing.

The answer to the critics who say that Saul of Tarsus was in a frenzy, and therefore was overtaken by a terrible hysteria, he began to see things and believed that they were real. That's the explanation, the psychological explanation of the conversion of Paul.

The answer, the answer is his life of endurance, love, and his death for his testimony. Don't go that way, like that, on a dream, on an imagination, on a hysteria. Don't you say that a very small proportion of what Paul had to meet during the thirty years of his ministry would knock hysteria out of most men.

Something happened inside, a vision did something in him, as well as was something to him. And so we could go on with the other people like John, who saw the Lord in his glory. But that's enough, the thing happened to him, but it happened in him.

It was an event too, but it was also an abiding process, for right on through their lives, this was the thing which was growing, it was growing, this wonderful greatness of the Lord Jesus. They didn't get it all at once, even in the wonderful event, but through their lives, it was growing.

It was the one mighty thing that was happening. Jesus, in all the greatness of his glory, was dominating their whole horizon, the whole course. Now that brings us to the principle of all this, which opens up a very large field, which we can move, or could move for a very long time.

True Spiritual Inward Vision of a Person

The principle is the principle of true spiritual inward vision. Not visionariness, inward vision which is specific, which is definite. Visionariness can be very abstract. What we mean by vision is very concrete, it's very specific.

It is a person, nothing unreal, imaginary, might, power, it's a person. It's very mighty, the Lord. Don't hesitate, just go on with words. Tell your friends they can, after all, be but words. This whole matter, God's people, we said earlier needs something very mighty to carry us through to the end.

Inward Vision as the Basis for Endurance

A situation, various experiences, scatter and try. Things are becoming very grim, are they not? I don't want to make anybody feel bad, if you don't feel bad about things. Most of us are aware that we are in spiritual conflict.

The Christian life is not getting easier. If I say a wrong thing, which I think many of you understand, it is becoming exceedingly difficult to just hold on and keep on, especially to be triumphant. How it was when Peter wrote his letter.

We want more than words, more than visionariness to get us through. You know, dear friends, our Christian life ought to be based upon something like this, our having seen the Lord, if that is true. Either operation and activity of the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven.

We must have an inward vision of the Exalted Lord. For all endurance and for all service that is essential. Life that has to go on without that is just a drag. It is an existence. Service without that inward vision has nothing in it to lift us for everything.

It is indispensable. Life and work and endurance, we have this inward vision of the Lord in majesty and glory, kept fresh, kept clear, constantly revived. With such a vision, all the essentials of effectiveness are bound up.

Vision Gives Believers a Governing Sense of Purpose

Now look, first of all, what we need, what all Christians need, what the church as a whole needs, and what every part of it needs, is a mighty governing sense of purpose. Don't we? Something for which to live and something for which to work and something for which to endure and to honor.

Real master purpose in our existence and in everything to do with it. Well if you look into this matter, you will find that in the New Testament, these men and the church were brought into this master purpose.

We are so familiar with the very word that it has lost its music. In our ears, the eternal public called according to his public. They were governed by this objective, this goal thing toward which they were being moved, drawn, constrained, urged, which again and again, when they were cast down, when it seemed that everything was hopeless, revived in them and revived them, brought them up again.

Not a mentality, not a theory, not an idea, but what Paul calls the power that worketh in us. According to the power that worketh in us. The word worketh there, as you know, is energizes. Power that energizes in us.

Look again and you will see it had to do with that great, great end which God had fixed concerning his son, the Lord Jesus, in universal majesty and glory and fullness. They had seen of that in him it had become the great purpose which bound their lives to something.

Life is not empty, meaningless, from great end. We see what it is. It's concerning the Lord Jesus. We must have that sense of purpose or we shall not get very far. Not only was it a purpose, but this inward spiritual vision gave the incentive to life.

Vision Gives Incentive Amid Weariness and Disappointment

A purpose, but this inward spiritual vision gave the incentive to life. Wearing down, disappointment and over many things disillusionment and heartbreak. It's not difficult, not difficult to lose incentive.

To ask is it worth it? Is it all justified? For not need incentive. And again look, it was this apprehension of Christ as having gone that way, weariness and devastation and triumph and being glorified and being there in the glory which gave them the incentive.

It imparted an incentive to life. A motive further in this vision there is that effect of cohesion. A vision is a very cohesive thing. That is drawing people together, holding them together, making them a together people going on together.

One Vision Creates Cohesion and Unity

They have one vision. Great illustration of this is Nehemiah and the people of his time. They have one vision. Look at all the variety of people and variety of gifts and qualifications. Every kind of artisan profession mentioned.

Every sphere of life. They are one people. A solid whole. Simply because they have got one vision. One vision. That wall and rebuilding of the city dominated everyone's heart and everyone's mind and brought them together in a wonderful unity.

Way of having unity. No other way but really to see the Lord Jesus and have him in view as overall, above all, as on the throne. Bring us together. What we all need. It is just there as we have seen. Peter introduces the transfiguration.

Speaks about the trial of your faith. Trial of your faith being much more precious than manifold temptations. The power of enduring and going through. Now you can see this from the opposite and contrary standpoint.

The Consequences of Losing the Vision of the Lord

See the effects of loss of one vision. Of a vision. The Lord's people lose the vision of the Lord. The Lord himself. How many other visions they may have. Soon as they lose the vision of the Lord himself as Lord over all.

What happens? They lose their sense of purpose. Their objective in their existence. Isn't that true? Then they have to have substitutes for that vision. To keep them going. They make other things their objective.

These things wear out. The loss of vision always results in a loss of an incentive. Incentive for life. Coordination. Lose vision. The result is always disintegration. Division. Separation. Confusion.

Confusion. And the loss of stability. It is like that dear friends. We do not speak this as theory or technique. It is very true. Some of us do know. That is why we speak like this and are speaking like this just now.

We do know that when a people. When a people have rarely been gripped by the vision of the throne. The majesty of the Lord Jesus. The authority of Christ. There is a wonderful wonderful sense of purpose comes on that people.

And a wonderful incentive. And a wonderful unity they are of one people. It is the throne that has done it. And their apprehension of that throne. But when things take the place of the Lord. If you like to mention falling apart begins.

Sooner or later the disintegration sets in. The confusion. The loss of heart. All I am saying is this dear friends. Of the Lord Jesus in the place of authority. Government. And majesty. Is the answer to every need of ours personally and collectively.

The Transfiguration Confirms the Christian Faith

It was of old. It is. Do you notice how this transfiguration was the confirmation and compliment of all the teaching. If you look again in Matthew. The transfiguration in Matthew 17. Chapter divisions rob us of so much.

Spoil so much for us. We have to have them I suppose. For some purpose or other. For reference I do suggest to you that you make very little of chapter divisions as we have. The writers never did that.

Just go right on. Now in chapter 16 of Matthew. Everybody knows Matthew 16 and what it contains. What have we? Well we have the four major things of the Christian faith and the Christian life. First of all.

Christ as the Messiah and the Son of the Living God

The person of the Lord Jesus. Into the parts of Caesarea. Philippi. Jesus. Who do men say that the Son of Man is? They said some say John the Baptist. Some Elijah. Others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

Said unto them. Who say ye that I am? Simon Peter answered and said thou art the Christ. Son of the living God. Jesus answered and said unto him. Blessed art thou Simon bar Jonah. For flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee.

But my Father which is in heaven. Thou I think that there it might be said Peter didn't know what he was talking about again. It was a tremendous utterance. Thou art the Messiah. Thou art the Messiah.

Both Christ and Messiah mean the anointed one of the living God. The basic fact of Christianity. The person of the Lord Jesus. You know for a man like Peter a Jew and saturated in the Old Testament and Jewish history to say that meant far more than that.

With that word Messiah. Great conception in Israel. First you have in the first part of the prophecies of Isaiah and the son of David. You remember Isaiah's prophecies. That was the first conception of the coming Messiah.

Isaiah’s Suffering Servant and Daniel’s Everlasting King

Anointed one. Who should take over the throne of David. The second half of Isaiah. The Messiah is the suffering servant of Jehovah. Redeemer. Isaiah 53 stands right at the heart of that conception of the Messiah.

The redemption. How is it going to work out? In the third conception of the coming Messiah. Which you have in the book of Daniel. It is very wonderful if you like to look at it. Daniel chapter 7. Verse 9 I beheld till thrones were placed.

One that was the ancient of days did sit. His raiment was white as snow. Like unto wood. His throne was fiery flames. And the wheels their fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. Thousands, thousands ministered unto him.

Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The judgment was set. The books were opened. Verse 13. I saw in the night visions and behold there came with the clouds of heaven. One like unto a son of man.

And he came even to the ancient of days. And they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion and glory and a kingdom. That all the peoples nations and the languages should serve him.

His dominion is an everlasting dominion. Which shall not pass away. And his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. That was their coming Messiah. King, Savior, forever and ever. And Peter said thou art the Messiah of the living God.

All that, all that was present in the declaration. Hence Jesus flesh and blood didn't reveal that to you. My Father knows the meaning of the Christhood. And it's all that. My dear friends I have mentioned that, included that.

Only with a view trying revive this conception of the greatness of our Lord Jesus. That's all. To help toward the vision. I would. That as we speak of it, read of it, you should see. Your Lord Jesus is no little defeated Lord.

Defeated at the hands of the great enemy. Only as we have such a conception and apprehension of his person. Shall we get through in triumph. That's the first thing. The second thing is the church. The person.

The Church as the Embodiment of the Exalted Lord

And the person always does lead to the church in divine sequence. I say unto thee thou art Peter. Upon this rock I will build my church. The gates of Hades shall not prevail against me. For that very reason it's his church.

Church of this one. This one to whom the kingdom is given. And the throne before whom all nations. Church is the embodiment of the vision of the exalted Lord. That will make it a great church. A powerful church if that is true.

If this one. If this one of the transfiguration mount. If this one of Stephen's vision of Paul's vision. If this one by the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven is embodied in the church. What a church. What a church.

Is that the church with which we are familiar? Have we realized that that is what is meant by the very term church? Embodiment of himself as Lord over all. Intimation is the church. The third of course as you see in the 16th chapter is the cross.

The Cross Transformed by the Glory of Christ

From that time Jesus began to show unto his disciples he must go up to Jerusalem. Son of man be delivered to the hands of wicked men. In the Christian his wonderful cross. I like that thought. That idea when he has spoken of him by his cross.

No doubt that that's right. What looked humanly so much to the contrary. Defeat and failure. Loss and despair and weakness and helplessness and all that. Has proved in history to be the most potent force in this universe.

The soul before his conversion looked upon the cross as the very sign of ignominy. Something despicable. Afterwards he said God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the shame to the glory transfiguration transfigures the cross.

In other words a vision of the glorified Lord transfigured our sufferings. Altogether transformed our afflictions. We see what that cross meant really in the mind. The fourth thing is the coming of the Lord.

Christ’s Coming Again in the Glory of the Father

Here it is again 16th chapter. Son of man shall come in the glory of his father with his angels. Then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. Son of man shall come in the glory of his father.

That's the fourth great thing in our faith. Constitutes us Christians. The coming again of the Lord. My point is this. That the transfiguration was the crown and confirmation and compliment of all those four things.

Crown of the person. Peter had said thou art the Christ. Well the mount of transfiguration bore good evidence to that fact as he saw him transfigured. The Lord had said to him I will build my church. The mount of transfiguration gave good hope for that church if he, that one, was going to build it.

If the Lord was speaking about the cross, the mount of transfiguration would give an altogether new and different interpretation to the cross. If he has spoken of his coming again in the glory of the father, the mount of transfiguration explains that, demonstrates that.

To see the Lord in that way, glorified, is the confirmation of our whole faith. The establishment of our whole position and the assurance of our final triumph with him give us a new vision of himself, his power, his majesty and his presence.