WHAT NO HUMAN EYES COULD SEE.
Jesus went up to Mt.Tabor and took with Him, Peter, James and John, to be ‘the’ witnesses for His Transfiguration. Many have given the various versions as to why the Master always chose these three Apostles; even in the Garden of Gethsemane. We could say that Peter had to be the future representative of the Master, John had to write his version of the Gospel from a theological point of view, no wonder the symbol of the eagle that represents John. His thoughts soared so high, and he was the only Evangelist to call the miracles, ‘signs’. And in fact they were.
James had to be one of the very first to give witness to Jesus through his martyrdom. As a matter of fact the word ‘martyr’ means ‘witness’. But there is a more important aspect to consider in this text of the ‘Transfiguration’. Biblical scholars today tell us that actually Jesus did not ‘transfigure’ Himself, He did not change. Jesus was ‘seen’ by His three followers, as He always was, as He always looked. BUT, their human eyes could not have seen Him as He really, actually looked.
Imagine the impact Jesus would have made on the crowds and on the Apostles themselves … including Judas Iscariot …who used to follow Him and listen to His word. He certainly would have been accepted, right away; seeing Him in that aura of light; they would have been amazed, just like Peter was. They would have concluded, and rightly so, that the Rabbi from Nazareth, Jesus, was divine. Would Judas have betrayed Him? Some food for thought!
But, Jesus did not want to impress the crowds. In fact those were the temptations of the devil, of the Tempter in the desert. He wanted Jesus to take short-cuts, to avoid His embracing the cross. But certainly, Jesus wanted to give proof of His love. Jesus could have fed the crowds every single day; He could have cured all the sick, every day; He could have helped the fishermen to catch big draughts of fish.
He did give signs of His divinity, so who wanted to believe in Him, had every opportunity of doing so, and could have followed Him. He wanted them, and us, to trust in Him, to believe in Him without any proof. Though there was proof enough of His good intentions, of His love towards the poor, the sick, the unwanted, His interest in those who before His coming were considered unworthy to gain entry into heaven. In other words we need to have complete Faith in Him.
We all remember that famous meeting of the resurrected Christ, and Thomas.
The doubting Apostle wanted to see and touch, and we recall what Christ told him: “Blessed are those who have not seen, yet believed.” Now the three Apostles have seen and were filled with ‘awe’, which gives us a glimpse of what Paul had written later on: “No eyes have seen and no ear had heard.”
Jesus wanted to strengthen the faith of His Apostles by letting them ‘glimpse’ at the future glory which awaits all those who follow Christ and His Teachings. Peter, the (official) spokesman was so carried away by what he had experienced that he wanted to build three tents; for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. It is worth noting that Peter did not think about himself or his two friends, because of the fact that he suggested building only three tents.
As yet, Peter had not realized that there can be no Glory without Passion, no crown of gold before wearing the crown of thorns.
Jesus went up to Mt.Tabor and took with Him, Peter, James and John, to be ‘the’ witnesses for His Transfiguration. Many have given the various versions as to why the Master always chose these three Apostles; even in the Garden of Gethsemane. We could say that Peter had to be the future representative of the Master, John had to write his version of the Gospel from a theological point of view, no wonder the symbol of the eagle that represents John. His thoughts soared so high, and he was the only Evangelist to call the miracles, ‘signs’. And in fact they were.
James had to be one of the very first to give witness to Jesus through his martyrdom. As a matter of fact the word ‘martyr’ means ‘witness’. But there is a more important aspect to consider in this text of the ‘Transfiguration’. Biblical scholars today tell us that actually Jesus did not ‘transfigure’ Himself, He did not change. Jesus was ‘seen’ by His three followers, as He always was, as He always looked. BUT, their human eyes could not have seen Him as He really, actually looked.
Imagine the impact Jesus would have made on the crowds and on the Apostles themselves … including Judas Iscariot …who used to follow Him and listen to His word. He certainly would have been accepted, right away; seeing Him in that aura of light; they would have been amazed, just like Peter was. They would have concluded, and rightly so, that the Rabbi from Nazareth, Jesus, was divine. Would Judas have betrayed Him? Some food for thought!
But, Jesus did not want to impress the crowds. In fact those were the temptations of the devil, of the Tempter in the desert. He wanted Jesus to take short-cuts, to avoid His embracing the cross. But certainly, Jesus wanted to give proof of His love. Jesus could have fed the crowds every single day; He could have cured all the sick, every day; He could have helped the fishermen to catch big draughts of fish.
He did give signs of His divinity, so who wanted to believe in Him, had every opportunity of doing so, and could have followed Him. He wanted them, and us, to trust in Him, to believe in Him without any proof. Though there was proof enough of His good intentions, of His love towards the poor, the sick, the unwanted, His interest in those who before His coming were considered unworthy to gain entry into heaven. In other words we need to have complete Faith in Him.
We all remember that famous meeting of the resurrected Christ, and Thomas.
The doubting Apostle wanted to see and touch, and we recall what Christ told him: “Blessed are those who have not seen, yet believed.” Now the three Apostles have seen and were filled with ‘awe’, which gives us a glimpse of what Paul had written later on: “No eyes have seen and no ear had heard.”
Jesus wanted to strengthen the faith of His Apostles by letting them ‘glimpse’ at the future glory which awaits all those who follow Christ and His Teachings. Peter, the (official) spokesman was so carried away by what he had experienced that he wanted to build three tents; for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. It is worth noting that Peter did not think about himself or his two friends, because of the fact that he suggested building only three tents.
As yet, Peter had not realized that there can be no Glory without Passion, no crown of gold before wearing the crown of thorns.
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