The Gospel of Mark – Part 31

The Mystery of the Transfiguration – Mark 9:2-13

Mosaic Rockford – Dave Spooner – April 19th, 2020

Intro:

For those of you who are new with us and for those of you who are regulars, I am going to do a very brief review of where we have been in our series of Mark.  This book is 16 chapters long, and we are just over halfway through the series where we have been taking the book section by section.  This is message 31.  And you might say “31”!  How long is this series?  And my answer is “as long as it needs to be” because these things are important, and they are eternal and they deserve to be carefully examined, understood, and applied.This book is the very word of God and what is written in here matters.  This is why I want you to have your Bible open and weigh anything that is said against it. If what is being said matches up to the Word, receive it, believe it, hold on to it, and act upon it.  If anything that is said does not line up with the Word, don’t believe it and get rid of it.  And if you’re not sure, then investigate and research, and then act accordingly.The book of Mark opens up with this line:

Mark 1:1 ESV

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

This whole book is about the “good news” of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God. Mark tell us about Jesus, who He was, what He did, what He taught, what happened and why it matters.  As you page through the text, you see Jesus’s connection to the Old Testament, His baptism and commissioning into ministry, and His temptation in the wilderness.  We see Him gathering His disciples, teaching with authority, casting out demons, healing all kinds of diseases – including leprosy, paralysis, and blindness.  We even read about Him raising people from the dead.  He also calmed storms, multiplied food, and walked on water. Crowds swarmed to Him from everywhere, from inside the country and from outside the country.  People came to Him from remote places and the biggest cities. He was forced to find solitary places to pray and to be with and further teach and train His disciples. Everyone was talking about Him, from the peasants, to the politicians, to the priests, and they were all trying to figure Him out, who He was and what He was really about.  Some were curious, some were confused, some were convinced, and some wanted to kill him.  Everywhere He went, He caused a commotion.  Just like everyone during that time, you also will have to make up your mind as to who you think He is and then make a choice to either follow Him or not.In the last chapter (8), we saw Peter make the confession that he believed Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah.  Next Jesus clearly tells the disciples what is to come:

Mark 8:31 ESV

That the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.

After this, Peter rebukes Him, correcting Jesus on His plan and tempting Him to take an easier route.  Jesus would have none of it and strongly rebukes Peter.  Then Jesus tells them all that if anyone wants to follow Him:   

Mark 8:34-35 ESV

let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.

He then goes on to tell them that some of them will physically see the Kingdom of God when it comes in power.  This is where we pick up our text for today in Mark Chapter 9 verse 2.   This account is also recorded in Matt. 17:1-8 and Luke 9:28-36 and we will be drawing from these passages as well as they give us some more details as to what happened here.

The transfiguration

Mark 9:2-3 ESV

And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 3 and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth coul