Don't Blame Peter!

 TRANSFIGURATION SUNDAY

Readings: Psalm 50:1-6, 2 Kings 2:1-12, 2 Corinthians 4:3-6, Mark 9:2-9
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, February 14th, 2021

'Then Peter said to Jesus, 'Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' He did not know what to say, for they were terrified.' (Mark 9:5-6)

Peter was a straight ‘A’ student in the class of; “Embarrassing things I wished I’d never done.” He was the one who suggested Jesus should get out of the boat and let him, the fisherman, take care of the fishing business, only to be told “Cast your net on the other side” and take in the biggest haul of fish he had ever witnessed in his life.

He was the one who, when they came to arrest Jesus, took a swipe at the one of the guards and injured his ear, only to be told by Jesus, “Put your sword away'.” He witnessed Jesus healing the man and then ran away. He was the one who after Jesus had been crucified, three times, denied he was or ever had been a disciple.

In our reading today we are told, that in the face of an amazing happening on a mountain top, Peter says the wrong thing. Peter wants to stay on the mountain. He wants to build 3 little tents up there, one for Moses, one for Elijah and one for Jesus. But… wait…. don’t blame Peter.

I can imagine Peter thinking, “This is great! Everybody can come up the mountain and have a personal counseling session with the prophet of their choice! Maybe we could charge an entrance fee. Andrew could set up a concession stand. We could advertise. T-Shirts. Bumper Stickers. Get them to write stuff down and sell autographed copies of ‘The wisdom of the Three prophets. Let’s stay on the mountain!”

Peter’s dreams, whatever they may have been, were short lived and quickly silenced. We read in  Mark 7:7 “A cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to Him!”

Once the voice had spoken and the cloud disappeared, they were alone again. No clouds. No voices. No Moses. No Elijah. Just some awe struck (and confused) disciples standing on a lonely mountain with Jesus. No need for tents now. No need to stay on the mountain any longer. I want to draw three things from out of Peter’s experience.

•    Firstly, that there is a time for talk and a time for silence.
•    Secondly, that there is a time for being up on the mountain and a time to come down from the mountain.
•    Thirdly, never allow your failure to determine your future.

There is a time for talk and a time for silence.

Do not blame Peter. We all do it. We have all done things, said things, reacted to things, got involved with things, that were not only ‘inappropriate’ or ‘embarrassing’ but were ‘just plain wrong.’  We all have moments when we are tortured by thoughts of  “I’m such an idiot!” We speak out when we should shut up and sometimes shut up when we should speak out.

There are many things in our Christian faith that are described as a “mystery.”  The doctrine of the Trinity. The nature of the future in relation to prophecy. The celebration of communion. For centuries, the church has been divided over mysteries. People have tried to contain the mysteries of faith with their words, and their theories and their assumptions.

If ever I claim to be able to tell you everything you need to know about God – do this church a favor and get another preacher!  Do you think that any person, any church, any denomination, any system of belief, can fully capture in its words, the mystery, the majesty, the magnificence, the very presence of almighty God?

All the words of the Bible, all the confessions of the Churches, all the hymns and the prayers and the creeds, they are words. Oh! How we would love to capture God in our words. How we would love to contain God to something we know. How we would love to put up little tents and say, “Hey, that is it, just go in there and talk it over. We’ll sort it out.”

God is Spirit. God is love. God is Mystery.
God is greater than we can conceive,
(Let alone contain)

Do you know what makes a mystery a mystery? The fact that it is a mystery!  Something that goes outside and beyond our normal experience. Like a Transfiguration. Moses, Elijah, and Jesus bathed in light on a mountaintop. It is something that defies explanation. Before God it is an exceptionally good thing to sit in silent awe and wonder and contemplate life's mystery, rather than explain it.

Some of us are not particularly good at silence. We like the radio on or leave the TV going even if we are not watching it. We need a soundtrack playing behind our lives. When things happen that we cannot explain we want to block them out by answering questions that nobody is really asking.

When we have nothing to distract us it can make us aware of noise going on inside our own lives. Unanswered questions. Deeply rooted fears. Experiences we have never quite got over. Things we just do not want to deal with. Shut them out. Say something. Play something.

Do not blame Peter. He was just trying to deal with a situation where he felt totally out of his depth. Ecclesiastes 3:7 tells us there is “a time to be silent and a time to speak.” Wisdom is found when we discern the difference. That day on the mountain Peter got it wrong. Sometimes we will do the same. But if we make room in our lives for silent wonder then we are less likely to respond in inappropriate ways.

A second thing we see in this passage: There is a time for being up on the mountain and a time to come down from the mountain.

We all have our spiritual highs. Memories. Moments. Places. Experiences. Retreats. Conferences. Concerts. Mission Trips. Epiphanies. Milestones. Insights. Call them what you may. Be thankful when they come your way. Accept them. Cherish them. But do not calcify them. Do not petrify them. Do not make idols of them.

That is what Peter wanted to do. It was easy to have faith when the glory and radiance of that mountain moment was shining all around. “Hey, let us capture it and stay up here forever.” Do not blame Peter. We all do it.

We have some experience away from our normal circumstances. We make great promises and come away having high ideals. But then the reality of the everyday crashes in on us. And our high intentions are left up on the mountain top. It is hard coming down from the mountain.  It is not so easy to get back into the routine.

Experiences on the mountain are not given for us to stay up there but are for us to take down into the valley with us. They may well be moments that have shaped us, but their genuineness will be measured by the influence they continue have upon us.

As a pastor I know this. I have been to this conference or that seminar where I have been presented with the “10 steps to the perfect church” approach. So often the presenters are speaking about things that have truly happened in their own situations. You rejoice with them. You hope to gain some insight. You feel your confidence boosted and say, “Yes, that’s exactly what we need to do!”

It is when you get back and you start dealing with the reality of your own situation that you start to realize that they were not coming from where you are. Thankfully, we have a God who knows exactly where we are. One who offers forgiveness for the times when we like, Peter, have our mouths in motion whilst our brains are at rest.  A God who is just as present in the valleys as upon the mountain tops.

A couple of insights from that Transfiguration experience.
•    There is a time for talk and a time for silence.
•    There is a time for being up on the mountain and a time to come down from the mountain.

The Transfiguration was a moment in time when the declaration of who Jesus was thundered once more from the heavens; "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to Him!" (Mark 9:7)

It is for us to make room to listen for Jesus Christ during our busy lives. If we do not create that space it is not going to happen. If we do not make the effort, we risk reacting to situations in ways that might not be the best.

Peter was on the mountaintop. He thought he had arrived. He thought “This is it.” He had found the “One size fits all” solution. The reality is that yesterday’s high is no help in getting us through today's low! No matter how wonderful Sunday worship may be, if it does not help us get through Monday morning then we are missing something.

Disciples are to meet with Christ on the mountain and walk with Him in the valley.  God does grant us moments of insight and encouragement. And praise God for them! But recognize, that the hard part, is allowing those insights to transform our daily routines.  

Which brings me to a third and final observation. The good news is … it can be done. Peter learned from his mistakes. Never allow your failure to determine your future.

Never allow your failure to determine your future. Peter became a great leader within the church. He did not allow his misconceptions to define his life. He did not dwell on his low points. He did not give in to despair, because sometimes, along with all humanity, he messed up. Neither should we allow our personal failures to determine our futures.  Either as individuals or as faith communities.

Peter embraced God's mystery, in such a way as it gave his life greater clarity.  He did not allow those things he struggled to explain, prevent him declaring those things that were as clear as day.  He lived them out in the valley of his everyday battles and experiences.  

On the mountain God declared "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to Him!" Jesus was not about to give up on Peter. Peter could have walked away from his mountaintop blunder feeling bitter and disillusioned. But he knew, that with God, there is always grace. Through God’s Holy Spirit there is always the possibility of renewal. We all make mistakes. We are all sinners who fall short of the glory of God. The test of our faith is how we embrace our future.

Let us pray that we can walk through the valley confident that we serve a God who can guide our every step, who can take our embarrassing failures and turn them to strengths and whose greatest desire is that we know ourselves God's children, free, forgiven, and capable of amazing things.

To God be all glory. Amen!

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.