The Last Sunday of Epiphany, The Transfiguration of our Lord
Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Hebrews 3:1-6, Luke 9:28-36
Today is February 14th. On the Church calendar today is Transfiguration Sunday. On another church calendar, today is the day to commemorate St. Valentine. St. Valentine was a priest who died as a martyr by the Roman Emperor Aurelian in AD 270. And according to the Chinese lunar calendar, today is New Yearfs Day, the beginning of the Year of the Tiger. Which feast should we celebrate?
Probably the majority of people would choose St. Valentinefs Day. That is because they like chocolate and flowers and romantic gifts. It is a day to celebrate love, that is to say, romantic love. The church is not against romantic love; after all, Jesus did attend the wedding at Cana and even provided delicious wine for the feast. If the church has something to say about this, it would be to remind people of the Sixth Commandment, to be pure and chaste and decent. God created humans male and female, and so that is a gift of God to rejoice in!
Of course, if we really want to remember St. Valentine, we have to remember that he died as a martyr. Because he confessed his faith in Jesus Christ, the Emperor of Rome had him killed. If you think about the strength of his love and faithfulness toward Jesus Christ, it is an example for our love toward Christ and for our love for one another. Would you die for the one you love? Or to use the sentiments of this day, could you live without the one you love? Would your life be worth living without love and without the person you love? God showed how much he loved us, not by sending flowers or chocolates, but by sending his Son Jesus Christ. Jesus showed that love by dying on the cross so that the ones he loved could live. He died that we might live. That is what gives our lives worth and dignity. That is how we know what true love is. And so, we can grow in that love as we love others. The flowers and candy are signs of our love; they are signs of our willingness to sacrifice for those we love. That is what a gift is, a sacrifice.
On the Church calendar today is Transfiguration Sunday. At his transfiguration on the mountain, the form of Jesus was changed and the disciples saw him in his heavenly glory. There on the mountain, Jesus spoke with Elijah and Moses about the plan of salvation. They spoke about what would happen in Jerusalem when Jesus would be arrested, whipped, and crucified. Contrasted to his glory on the Mountain of Transfiguration, on Mt. Calvary Jesus would suffer great humiliation and pain. Today is the last Sunday before Lent. Lent starts this week on Ash Wednesday. Lent is when we look at the sacrifice of Jesus, who gave us the gift of eternal life by dying on the cross and rising on the third day. When Jesus was crucified, it was a horrible suffering and death. It was a great contrast to the glory of the transfiguration and resurrection.
I think it is important for us to observe Transfiguration Sunday. First because it gives us hope. When we think about the sufferings of Jesus too much, we might forget that he really is God. When we think about our own sufferings too much, we might forget the love of God and how he promised that we would be taken from this world of sin and pain and taken to the glory of heaven. This Sunday gives us a glimpse into our own heavenly future.
@@@Secondly, it is important for us to observe Transfiguration Sunday because the conversation between the Old Testament prophets and Jesus reminds us that God really does have a plan for our salvation. As we live our lives, we can forget that God loves us and has a plan for us. When we look at our lives, we get worried. When we look at our work we get discouraged. When we look at other people we wonder if they really love us or not, and we wonder how much we love them ? we wonder how much we would really sacrifice for them, sacrifice our time and money and energy and even our very lives. God has a plan for our salvation. God is working in our lives today and tomorrow and yes, he was even working yesterday in our lives, too. Even in the middle of our hardships of the past, God has been with us. The glory of Jesus has been in our lives. The glory of the resurrection, and the glory of his sacrifice on the cross. The cross shows that Jesus can come into the sufferings of our lives. He can heal. He can guide. He can give us a resurrection. He can give us a transfiguration, a transformation, a regeneration. There is repentance, there is forgiveness, and there is sanctification. That is how we observe Transfiguration Sunday.
That is a good way to observe St. Valentinefs Day, also. We renew our love for the people we love.
And the Chinese New Year? We remember that God loves everyone in the world and wants all to be saved. We remember that although we mark time in years and months and hours, God is eternal. His love is eternal.
Amen.@@
Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church