The other week I was sitting in the Detroit airport with a handful of restless teenagers. We had to arrive earlier than normal because part of our group was flying out 2 hours earlier than our flight. It did not take long for the teens to start acting a little squirrely. They started walking backwards on the moving sidewalk, they took turns walking down an upward moving escalator. They rode the electric sky tram from one end of the terminal and back again. The longer they waited the more squirrely they got, and I was afraid TSA was going to intervene. So, in a desperate effort to distract them, one of the moms suggested we play a couple of rounds of “would you rather”.
If you are not familiar with how the “would you rather” game works, the group is presented with two choices, and they have to pick which thing they would rather do. For example, would you rather stay fit and trim but everything you eat smells like rotten eggs and tastes like sour milk or would you rather be out of shape and chubby but everything you eat smells like a cinnamon roll and taste like bacon? I think it is obvious what the right choice is with that one… I mean one of the options included bacon. Let’s try a more challenging one. (I got this one from Tre.) Would you rather be a king 1,000 years ago or would you rather be a commoner today? Kings 1,000 years ago had power, palaces, and piles of money. Being a king seems like an obvious choice. However, commoners today have indoor plumbing, cell phones, and antibiotics. It is kind of interesting to think about. I bet if we broke out into discussion groups there would be some amusing opinions being shared.
That is what a good “would you rather” question does, it causes people to think and makes for an interesting discussion. I was thinking about this game as I read our lessons for today and I think I have a good “would you rather” question for you.
In our Old Testament lesson the prophet Moses is standing atop mount Sinai where the glory of the LORD had settled. In Exodus 24:17 we are told, “To the Israelites the glory of the LORD looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.” In our gospel lesson the Apostle Peter is standing atop a high mountain where Jesus is transfigured before him. In Matthew 17:2 we read, “…His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light.” These two lessons are setting us up for an epic round of “would you rather”. However, before the question is asked, the Holy Spirit has thrown a wrinkle into our game by introducing a third option. In our second lesson the Holy Spirit alludes to a man sharing God’s word with people, so I don’t think I am out of line when I say in our second lesson a WELS pastor is standing in a pulpit preaching a sermon. In 2 Peter 1:19 The Holy Spirit describes my sermon as “a light shining in a dark place.” (not a consuming fire or shining sun but I’ll take it!). O.K., so, the question is, would you rather stand atop mount Sinai with the prophet Moses, or would you rather stand atop the mountain of transfiguration with the apostle Peter, or would you rather be sitting in the Messiah Sanctuary with pastor Lewis? I think the choice is obvious but for argument’s sake let’s talk it through.
You could make a strong argument for standing atop mount Sinai with Moses. It would be fun to hang out with the guy who drove Egypt’s Pharoah to his knees and parted the waters of the Red Sea. I am sure Moses has some amazing stories to tell. But on mount Sinai it wouldn’t be Moses we would be listening to; it would be God. On mount Sinai God presented Moses with laws for holy living, He directed him to observe certain festivals, and He gave him instructions concerning their worship services. Most prominent, however, of all the laws, directions, and instructions God gave to Moses were the Ten Commandments. These words were written on two stone tablets. In Exodus 32:16 we are told “The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.”
It would have been awesome to see the finger of God engrave the Ten Commandments in stone, and I would not blame any of you for saying standing atop mount Sinai with Moses is what you would rather do. But before you make your choice a strong case can also be made for standing atop the mountain of transfiguration with the apostle Peter. Peter’s time atop the mount of transfiguration was nowhere near that long. (Moses stayed atop mount Sinai 40 days.) Peter spent a few hours atop the mountain of transfiguration, however, that mountain top was considerably more crowded. Joining Peter on the mountain were two other notable disciples, James and John, the famous sons of thunder. Those three prominent men of the New Testament were joined by two prominent men of the Old Testament Moses (the great law giver) and Elijah (the great prophet). The headliner of the group was of course Jesus, the Son of God who became also the son of man in order to save humanity from sin. In Luke 9:31 we are told Jesus, Moses, and Elijah were having a conversation about Jesus’ “departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” They were talking about Jesus’ upcoming betrayal, abandonment, beating, crucifixion, and death.
It would be fascinating to listen to the insights Moses and Elijah shared with Jesus about His upcoming crucifixion, and once again I would not blame any of you for saying standing atop the mountain of transfiguration with Peter is what you would rather do. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised, knowing what your third option is, if all of you haven’t already made your choice of what you would rather do but indulge me for just a few moments and I will try to make a case as to why sitting in the Messiah sanctuary with a WELS pastor is a strong choice.
It is striking to me that in our second lesson, where the apostle Peter describes his time atop the mountain of transfiguration, he doesn’t say that much about what he saw. He doesn’t tell us what it was like to stand in the presence of a great prophet. He doesn’t go into detail about what it was like to look upon a face that shone like the sun or clothes that became as white as light. He doesn’t tell us what it felt like to be enveloped in cloud of God’s glory. After Peter came down the mountain, the thing that made the greatest impression on Peter is not the fantastic things he saw but the profound thing he heard. In verse 18 Peter excitedly writes, “18 We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.” I think that is significant because we also hear that voice. It speaks to us not from a mountain top but from the pages of scripture. In verses 20-21 Peter writes, “20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. 21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” The voice that speaks to us from scripture is the voice of God. Which is why Peter calls the voice us the voice “completely reliable” and he tells us we will “do well to pay attention to it”.
This voice made such an impact on Peter and makes such an impact on us because the voice speaks to us about love. Peter heard the voice of the heavenly Father describe Jesus as “17… my Son, whom I love.” When those words were spoken on the mountain of transfiguration, I don’t think they made as big an impact on Peter as they did after he had seen the Father’s beloved Son nailed to a tree. After Peter saw God’s beloved Son crucified dead and buried, after he saw Him risen from the dead and ascend into heaven, after the Holy Spirit filled Peter with understanding Peter understood the love of God better than most. Peter understood the heavenly Father did not sacrifice some stray dog He found in the streets, the heavenly Father sacrificed His Son, whom He loves. Why? Because He also loves you. Because He did not want you to be condemned for all those commandments you have broken and because He did not want you to die the death of the damned. The heavenly Father sent His beloved Son to keep the commandments given atop mount Sinai and die on the cross discussed atop the mountain of transfiguration because the heavenly Father loves you.
Peter stood atop the mountain of transfiguration; He saw Jesus’ face shine like the sun and His clothes become white as light, but think about it, the thing that made the greatest impression on Peter was the word of God, the same word of God we get to listen to every week here in the Messiah sanctuary. So, with that in mind, the question is would you rather stand atop mount Sinai with the prophet Moses and hear about God’s commandments, or would you rather stand atop the mountain of transfiguration with the apostle Peter and hear about Christ’s cross, or would you rather be sitting in the Messiah Sanctuary with a WELS pastor and hear about God’s love?
I understand if some of you would still rather stand atop mount Sinai with the prophet Moses or stand atop the mountain of transfiguration with the apostle Peter. First, no WELS pastor is anywhere near as fascinating as the prophet Moses or the apostle Peter. Further, I will concede our sanctuary is not as awe inspiring as a mountaintop consumed by the glory of the LORD. Finally, you are seated beside some fine Christians, but they aren’t as famous as a pair of Old Testament prophets or New Testament Apostles. In the Messiah sanctuary you will not see the finger of God engrave commandments in stone and you will not be able to ease drop on Moses and Elijah as they discuss the crucifixion with Jesus, but here in the Messiah sanctuary the word of God will always be opened to you, and you will hear about the love the heavenly Father has for you. Which I believe makes sitting here at Messiah a great choice.
Apparently, you think so too. I mean after all you are here, you have chosen to sit in the Messiah sanctuary with this WELS pastor. Don’t worry, I won’t let it go to my head, especially since, out of the three options, in the “would you rather” game sitting in the Messiah sanctuary with a WELS pastor is the only option that is actually available to you. Regardless, I am happy you are here and I hope and I pray you will come sit with me again next week so I can tell you more about God’s love for you. Amen.