Matthew 17:1-20
I am really glad that you are here on this Labor Day Weekend! Because I know that you had many temptations to do otherwise. You could have chosen to stay home, relax, stoked up the BBQ and take a break from church. But as we talked about in our recent series on James, the temptations of life are a test. But hey, you passed the test this morning! We will be in prayer for our brothers and sisters who didn’t pass the test today.
What was originally set aside as a day to honor and give thanks to the laborers of our society has turned into a national holiday, second only to the 4th of July for BBQ, cook-outs, and family get-togethers. And perhaps, a long weekend off is what most of us need. Because work … work … work seems to be all that we do these days. We work to obtain our dreams. We work to pay the bills that our dreams are costing us. We work to fulfill our callings in life. We work to feel productive and to have a sense of meaning. Work … work … work … seems to be all we do nowadays.
And most of us are proud of how much we work. I listen to folks all the time bragging about how many hours they work, as if it’s a sign of success. The more hours we can put in, the more productive we feel … the happier we make our bosses … the greater we are valued by our companies … and the more successful we can become. But there’s a high price to be paid by those who buy into this work ethic. Americans today are giving more of their time and energy to their jobs, yet surveys tell us that:
· 80% are not happy in their jobs.
· The typical working father spends an average of less than 3 minutes a day in meaningful conversation with his children. And it is not much better for working mothers.
· The average working couple spends less than 3 hours a day together.
· Families rarely eat a meal together.
· Quality conversation between husbands and wives is usually less than 5 minutes a day.
And we wonder why families and marriages are falling apart in record numbers.
Today as we gather here on this Labor Day Sunday, it is my belief that God never intended for life to be lived this way. As we read the Bible, from the beginning of time and throughout history, God created life to be lived with “a certain rhythm” ... one of “work” and “rest”. I mean, even God rested on the seventh day. And we need times when we can get away from the stress of our work. We need time set apart for relaxation and renewal … time to re-connect with our families and to refresh our weary spirits.
But when the Bible talks about setting aside a “day of rest”, the Scriptures refer to that as a time of “Sabbath.” And we have often misunderstood the intent of what God is saying here. Sabbath time is to be more than just a day that we sleep in late and reward ourselves after a long week at work. The intent of “Sabbath” was to be a day that we stop focusing on ourselves and focus on God. The Sabbath is to be a time when we stop doing whatever it is that we have been doing, and focus on what God is doing. It’s a time that we set aside to evaluate our lives, in light of what God expects of us. Daily, or at least weekly, we are to take some time to look back at how we lived. And if we see that we have gotten off course or are in need of making some changes, we ask for God’s forgiveness and ask for his help to follow God’s will in the future.
Sabbath time is not to focus on our goals and objectives for life, but rather to focus on what God’s goals and objectives are for our lives. This is what God intended a day of Sabbath to be. And is there any doubt that we all need such moments in our lives?
Even Jesus needed such time apart with God. In our text for this morning, we find one of many examples of Jesus taking time out of his busy life to spend “Sabbath time” with God. We read how Jesus and his disciples had spent several days traveling from town to town, ministering to the needs of people. They were tired and worn out from their labors.
So, Jesus takes a break. And the scriptures say that he took with him Peter, James and John. You know, I’ve always wondered what it must have felt like to be one of the other disciples. Because, it seems that Jesus was always taking Peter, James and John with him for the good stuff. Can’t you just imagine the others saying among themselves, “There they go again … Pete, Jim, and John. It’s always them and never us.” They were apart of the inner circle that was closest to Jesus. And just like we need to be in relationship with one another, Jesus needed them to be with him.
You know, I often hear people say, “I don’t need the church to be a Christian.” They talk about how they worship God best alone in their boat fishing, or in the deer stand, or on the golf course, or working in their garden. (I know, I’ve gone to meddling now.) And sometimes, we need time alone with God. But the Christian life was never intended to be lived alone … in isolation. Jesus said, “Where two or more gather together in my name, there my presence will be made known among them.” When people come together for the purpose of seeking God and his will for their lives, Christ’s presence is experienced in a profound way.
Modeling this, Jesus takes his closest friends with him up to a mountain to pray. And notice that Jesus didn’t go up on the mountain with a hammock to lay back and rest. Pete, Jim and John didn’t bring along the BBQ pit and a six-pack to the party. Although a time of rest and relaxation would have been nice. A change of pace would have been great, because they had all been consumed ministering to the needs of the crowds surrounding them.
But Jesus was trying to teach them something very important. When we’re tired, when we’re worn out and burnt out, what we need most, is time with God. For God is the source of our strength in life. It is God who gives us our sense of purpose in life. It is God, who as the prophet Isaiah says, “will renew our strength, so that we can mount up with wings like eagles.” So, Jesus takes them with him up to a mountain to pray.
And there, the disciples are “filled with awe” as they witness Jesus being “transfigured” before them. Moses and Elijah … the great fathers of the faith, who have been dead for centuries, appear and Jesus talks with them. They witness the very voice of God saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”
Boy, you talk about a mountaintop experience of worship! The disciples are so filled with euphoria that they don’t want to leave! Peter says, “Lord, this is so wonderful, why don’t we just build houses up here and stay up here forever!” That’s often how we feel when we’ve experienced the presence of God in a powerful way. But, no sooner had Peter gotten these words out of his mouth, than Jesus begins to take them back down into “the valley”, where they are immediately confronted with crowds of people in need of ministry.
There are several things that I think we can glean from this wonderful story. But, I want to focus on one lesson taught to us here. As I pointed out earlier, before Jesus went up on that mountain to pray, he had been busy “laboring” in the valley. He had been busy teaching, healing, and ministering to the needs of the people. He had been working long, hard hours. And he realizes that in order to be able to carry on a faithful and focused ministry in the valley, he needed some time apart in prayer and communion with the source of his strength. He needed some time apart with God, to gain new energy and new direction. And then, after he has had this time of renewal, he goes back down into the valley and resumes his labors.
When we look at the life of Jesus, we see this “rhythm of life” modeled over and
Because life lived continually in “the valley” can destroy a person over time. The statistics today for burnout and stress related illnesses are staggering! Not to mention the negative effects that being consumed by our work has had on the family and our relationships. We get hurt, bruised, used and abused in the valleys of life. In the valley, we are driven to compete and succeed. We are driven to chase the illusive dream of security and fulfillment through our achievements. We are tempted to follow other values and other gods. We can become self-consumed, driven by the wrong goals and motives, and we can begin thinking that the world revolves around us.
That’s why we need Sabbath time on the mountain, just like Jesus did. To evaluate our lives in the presence of God; to realign our lives with God’s will and God’s purpose; to listen to the voice of God; and to renew our faith … so that we can live more effectively down in the valley. This is “the rhythm of life” God designed us for. That of, labor and prayer; involvement & withdrawal; mountains & valleys.
Because take note of what happened
when Jesus came down from the mountain.
Our text says that he was immediately confronted by a man with a son who
was an epileptic and needed healing. And
notice what the man says to Jesus. In
verse 15 he says, “Lord, have mercy on my
son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. I brought him to your disciples, but they
could not cure him.”
Now, I think it is significant to notice that the disciples, who could not heal the boy, were the disciples who did not go with Jesus to the mountain. They had not experienced the glory of the Transfiguration. They couldn’t heal the epileptic boy, because their faith had become too weak. You see, they hadn’t taken Sabbath time to renew their faith. And folks, the same is true for us. Our ministry for Christ suffers and we cease to be as effective as it can be when we don’t spend time renewing our faith in Sabbath time with God.
That’s why we need such times as this … a Day of Sabbath, away from our regular routines in life. Now, for some folks, “Sabbath time” doesn’t happen on Sundays. That’s why we need to schedule in times of prayer, study, and devotions into our days. That’s why we need to take time periodically for spiritual retreats and time apart for renewal. Because as Jesus has shown us, such is “the rhythm of life” that we were created for. To try to live any other way, is to set ourselves up to fail as his disciples.
It’s a simple truth: When is comes to serving Christ, we cannot give, what we have not taken the time to receive. We cannot minister effectively, when we’re empty.
And thank God, today is one of those Sabbath times that we come together to receive. We have left the busy valleys of our lives and we’ve traveled to the mountain to be with God, because we know, such is “the rhythm of life” that we need. And here together, we hear the voice of God saying to us, “This is my beloved Son, listen to him.” And Jesus says, “Come to me, all ye who labor and are heavy laiden, and I will give you rest. Spend some time with me, that your souls and bodies might be refreshed and renewed with a peace that passes all understanding.”
And as we come to the Lord’s Table today, we hear the words of forgiveness and the assurance of God’s grace. We take the Bread and Cup into our hands, and in this precious moment, we experience the presence of Christ in a more intimate way than at any other time.
May this time with Jesus today, be “a Transfiguration experience” for us, where our eyes are opened and our faith in Christ is renewed, so that we can leave this place ready for the service that God has for us to do in the valley. For such is “the rhythm of life”.