TRANSFIGURATION

How often do we recognise the face of Jesus in our daily lives? How often does Jesus need to make himself blatantly obvious to us, before we recognise the glory and magnificence of who God is?

The Transfiguration of Jesus was a special moment, in fact the only moment where Jesus reveals His true glorious and divine self was to the three chosen disciples. Can you imagine what a wonderful experience it must have been for Peter, James and John to see Jesus transfigured. They got a preview of the glory of Jesus, and His glory in Heaven. It was also a preview of the glory we all hope to share in Heaven one day. While the three disciples were aware that something extraordinary was happening before their eyes, they failed to capture the full extent of what was going on. This is clear in Peter’s statement “let us make three tents”. Like Peter, we can sometimes be locked in our own particular situation and lose sight of the fact that we are part of a much bigger picture.

Jesus chose to reveal Himself at a time when He and His chosen disciples were alone and away from the busyness of society. He chose a quiet time of prayer to reveal His true self in all His Glory. Like the disciples, we need to set time apart, to be with our Lord and allow Him to reveal Himself to us.

The Transfiguration not only gives us a passing glimpse of Jesus in all His glory, but it is a taste of what is to come. Although we may never experience something as powerful as the three disciples did, every day, in countless ways, God’s dazzling presence can break into our lives. Each of our own Christ-like acts, and our moments of turning to God, are moments of “Transfiguration”. We may also experience transfiguration in moments of interaction with others, where people reach out to us with unexpected words or gestures of kindness. Jesus reveals His glory to us through these moments. Let us ask God to give us the eyes to see Him and recognise His glorious face in our lives.

Deacon Michael Khoury