Seeing and sharing his glory

Matthew 17 : 1 - 9

...his face shone...."listen to him"...
The three disciples were granted a gracious consolation, of 'seeing' Jesus' glory. They were filled with great awe and wonder - almost unable to take it all in, and Peter, of course, being the forthright spokesperson, wanted the moment to last. Why go down from the mountain if we can experience such wonderful consolations? Indeed, we sometimes wish our times of refreshing in prayer could last and we could as it were, 'walk on clouds' all the time.

After this magnificent vision, the Father told the disciples who had witnessed Jesus' transfiguration: This is my beloved Son....."listen to him". Seeing Jesus' glory includes the invitation to 'share his glory. So far, this sounds like something we might quite enjoy, if it means camping on the mountaintop indefinitely.

But the Father asks us to "listen", to be aware of what Jesus says to us, to understand what he says and to align ourselves to him. He gives them a hint by telling them first of all to "have no fear" and then - he alludes to his death and subsequent resurrection. We wonder how much of it all the disciples took in - they were probably glad to witness the glory but may not have understood that glory comes with a price, that of self giving love. That is the journey Jesus' life will take and that is the pattern that we are invited to listen and follow......

Our journey on earth will follow the pattern of the Lord's journey if we learn to notice and embrace both joy and pain in our lives. Times of joy give us a taste of the resurrection, while painful times remind us that Jesus who walked the road to Calvary is alongside us. We will see his glory and share his glory when our lives are patterned on his.