TOMORROW'S SERMON TODAY!

This is the flip side to the sermon quotes Jeanette has been giving. Here you see the raw material that goes with me into the pulpit. You will notice no periods at the end of each idea. This is done to remind me that the Holy Spirit must finish every statement and stamp it with truth. Often times the best quotes Jeanette jotted down came not from my paper, but from the Holy Spirit during the preaching itself.

THE MAN MADE THE CLOTHES
(Even his clothes had His character!)
Matthew 17:1-13/Mark 9:2-13/Luke 9:28-36

There is a date marker here – after 6 days, again signifying the real world happening of this event

The three were singled out, not for merit, but for what Jesus wanted them to learn and then do

Who were they?

Peter was the first great preacher

James was the one so far out ahead of the rest that he was the first to see Jesus again after the ascension

John was the one who rounded out the century and saw heaven

This was no prestige trip, but a working one

They went to pray

Prayer has its part even in what God has already planned and ordained

It was while He was praying (Luke 9:29) that Jesus was changed before them

How can we expect a change when we don’t pray?

This was not so much a change as a stripping away of earthly figure to show spiritual reality

The change extended to what Jesus was wearing

He was so much what He was that the clothes he wore took on His hidden character at this time

Elijah and Moses appear with Jesus, representing possibly the Prophets and the Law, but also possibly some of the most significant saints of the past

They may have been there for themselves as well as for what they represented

Elijah and Moses were monumental larger than life figures, both in their historicity and in their spirituality

Peter wants to put Jesus on the same level with these two

The building of the tabernacles may indicate Peter’s desire to stop everything else and just stay here with them

There is always an attempt to want to retreat from the real world in a moment of ecstasy

The ecstatic is really designed to equip us for the real world by showing us the truth behind the reality rather than tempting us to opt out

Jesus didn’t want to distract them

He wanted to show them a reason for going on

Peter didn’t really know what to say

God stepped in and settled the matter by pronouncing His approval only on Jesus

The others prophesied or pointed out Jesus, but Jesus alone fulfilled the task of the savior

We are still to listen only to Jesus as a final authority

Fear resulted, but was dispelled by the touch of Jesus

Jesus was the only one there at the end, the only one left standing

This is something they didn’t discuss until after the resurrection at the command of Jesus

These events led into a discussion of farther reaching things, beginning with the work and significance of Elijah

They couldn’t quite get what resurrection from the dead meant

They didn’t perceive the absolute necessity for the cross

Jesus explained that the restoration work of Elijah included the suffering of the Son of Man

They did with John (Elijah) what they wanted, but that didn’t mean they got what they wanted

The same would be true of Jesus