{"id":3391,"date":"2013-02-10T15:12:25","date_gmt":"2013-02-10T20:12:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/?p=3391"},"modified":"2013-10-01T08:54:06","modified_gmt":"2013-10-01T13:54:06","slug":"a-prayerful-life-02-10-13-sermon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/2013\/02\/a-prayerful-life-02-10-13-sermon\/","title":{"rendered":"A Prayerful Life (02-10-13 Sermon)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Prayerful Life<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Luke 9:28-36<\/strong><\/p>\n

28<\/sup>Now about eight days<\/em>
\nafter these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up<\/em>
\non the mountain to pray.29<\/sup>And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed,<\/em>
\nand his clothes became dazzling white.30<\/sup>Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and<\/em>
\nElijah, talking to him.31<\/sup>They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which<\/em>
\nhe was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.32<\/sup>Now Peter and his companions were weighed<\/em>
\ndown with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the<\/em>
\ntwo men who stood with him.33<\/sup>Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, \u201cMaster, it<\/em>
\nis good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for<\/em>
\nMoses, and one for Elijah\u201d \u2014not knowing what he said.34<\/sup>While he was saying<\/em>
\nthis, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they<\/em>
\nentered the cloud.35<\/sup>Then from the cloud came a voice that said, \u201cThis is my Son, my<\/em>
\nChosen; listen to him!\u201d36<\/sup>When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept<\/em>
\nsilent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.<\/em><\/p>\n

There is an interesting and funny interpretation about the chapter we read today in
\nSouth Korea. We know that Jesus is a wise man. We can see his feature as a wise
\nman in the story we read today. Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John, and
\nwent up on the mountain to pray. While he was praying, the appearance of his
\nface changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men,
\nMoses and Elijah, talking to him. All of a sudden, Peter and his companions,
\nwho were weighed down with sleep, saw his glory and two men. Peter said to
\nJesus, \u201cMaster it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one
\nfor you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.\u201d
\nJesus might have a little moment to think about making three dwellings. As I said, he
\nwas so wise. He realized what will happen if they build three dwellings. Jesus
\nmight build three dwellings alone. You know why? Peter, John, and James are
\nfishermen. They don\u2019t know how to build a dwelling. But Jesus is a carpenter.
\nWho will build the dwellings? Jesus!! Look at the text, Jesus never answered Peter\u2019s
\nrequest. Jesus silently came down from the mountains.<\/p>\n

Today is Transfiguration Sunday. According to Luke 9, Jesus went up on the mountain
\nto pray. The image of the mountains runs through Scripture as a place where the
\nhuman experience touches the Divine and as a symbolic place where God is
\npresent and humans can catch a glimpse of ultimate truth. So, today, I would
\nlike to share with you an ultimate truth about Jesus\u2019 identification and a
\nprayer life seeking God\u2019s presence in our lives.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

First of all, this chapter presents a heavenly identification of Jesus and charges
\nChristian disciples to listen to him. The emphasis throughout the story is one
\ndazzling confirmation of Jesus\u2019 identity. We are first given the description of
\nhis transformed appearance. The change in the appearance of his face is
\nreminiscent of Moses\u2019 face becoming radiant upon experiencing the presence of
\nGod on the mount Sinai. But the description of the change in Jesus\u2019 clothes
\nbecomes dazzling white. Especially, Jesus\u2019 transformed appearance is not merely
\nbecause he is experiencing God\u2019s glory but rather because he is the very source
\nof divine glory. The mountain was filled with his glory.
\nMoreover, the most dramatic confirmation of Jesus\u2019 identity comes with the voice of God
\nsaying, \u201cThis is my Son, my chosen; listen to him.\u201d This text reveals Jesus\u2019
\nSonship and makes it clear that we are following Jesus not just as a human but
\nalso the Son of God.<\/p>\n

The other point that I would like to share with you is that Jesus went up on a
\nmountain to pray. One of the significant details of today\u2019s story is that
\ntransfiguration occurs in the context of prayer. Neither Matthew nor Mark
\nmentions that Jesus had gone up on the mountain specifically to pray, and
\nneither mentions that Jesus was praying when the transfiguration occurs. It is
\nclearly a point that Luke wants us to note. Prayer is a significant theme
\nthroughout the writings of Luke. Luke is the only Gospel author to tell us of
\nJesus praying on the mountain.<\/p>\n

A point that we may especially observe in the transfiguration account is that Jesus\u2019
\nprayer made it possible to encounter God. Prayer was not merely speaking words
\nto God but was a truly spiritual experience with God. We can see many examples
\nof this in the Bible. In Acts, the gathered early church experienced a dramatic
\ndivine response to their communal prayer (4:23-31). Paul and Silas are freed from
\nprison by God while praying (16:25-34). Paul experiences an encounter with the
\nrisen Christ while praying (22:17-21).
\nThis text challenges us to seek something higher in prayer than speaking mere words
\nin the hope that God might possibly listen to us. Prayer should be seeking the
\npowerful presence of God in our lives. We must also remember that in this scene
\ndramatic experiences of Christ\u2019s glory come while Jesus was praying.
\nOn the mountain, the disciples saw that Jesus begins to glow and shine brighter
\nwith God\u2019s glory. The experience of the three disciples seeing Jesus
\ntransfigured changed their way of looking at Jesus, and it also changed the way
\nthey saw God. It even transfigured their view of human kind. The disciples were
\ntotally changed.<\/p>\n

As I already told you, the image of the mountains runs through Scripture as a
\nplace where the human experience touches the Divine and as a symbolic place
\nwhere God is present and humans can catch a glimpse of ultimate truth. So many
\npeople, especially in South Korea, go up on mountains to pray. I am not sure if
\nsome of you had chances to pray on a mountain. For me, I have had those
\nexperiences on a mountain and I would like to share one of my mountain
\nexperiences with you.
\nIt was the first week of January, 1990 when I went to a retreat center for a week.
\nThe center was built on a mountain and many people, so many people, came to
\npray on the mountain. There was no place to sleep so they slept in the main
\nhall of the center. The main hall was large but not large enough for everyone
\nto lie down on the floor. They slept squatting on the floor. Can you imagine? I
\nalso came to the center with my mother to pray on the mountain. Winter in Korea
\nis colder than here. The night was dark and there was no moon. I went up on a mountain
\nabout 1 AM. to pray. I was only 12 years old. I was too young to understand the
\nDivine presence on a mountain. Anyhow, I went up and there were so many people
\non the mountain. Each of them kneeled in front of a tree. So, I searched for a
\ntree and found a baby tree. I knelt down and began to pray. However, it was too
\ncold to pray. I couldn\u2019t pray to God. I was there almost 2 hours. I don\u2019t think
\nI prayed for the whole two hours. I don\u2019t remember what I prayed for. The only
\nthing that I remember is this thought, \u201cIf I stay here, I will freeze to death.\u201d
\nAnd I remember I felt numb on my feet and hands. So, I went down the mountain at
\nabout 3 AM. and rushed to the main hall. There was no place for me to get in. I
\nwas a child and small but I couldn\u2019t find any place to sit on a floor. I
\ncontinued searching for a place for about 30 minutes. All of a sudden, a middle
\nage woman who was sitting on the floor called me and made a small space for me
\nto sit. Finally, I sat on the floor. And you know what happened? It was the
\nmoment that I felt most comfortable in my life. I was sitting on the floor to
\nsleep. Think of this. Sitting on a floor to sleep? Definitely, it is the
\nopposite of being comfortable. Right? However, for me, it was most comfortable
\nand naturally I said to God, \u201cThank you very much!\u201d Even though I didn\u2019t meet
\nGod on the mountain, I met God squatting on the floor to sleep. The prayer on
\nthe mountain had led me to feel so comfortable in an uncomfortable position and
\nmade me give thanks to God. I think this is such an experience of
\ntransfiguration. It was one of the best experiences I felt God\u2019s grace.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A prayer helps us, our thought, emotion, and life to be changed. A prayer helps
\nus search for God\u2019s presence in our lives. A prayer is a way to communicate
\nwith God. A prayer helps us keep our faith in God. Every Sunday, we come to
\nworship and pray to God. However, Sunday worship is not enough. We must also pray
\nto God as much as possible.<\/p>\n

Often in our lives, we find ourselves struggling to see something or someone in the
\ndim murkiness and then a light shines, and we say, \u201cOh, now I can see clearly!\u201d
\nThat kind of moment happened to Peter, James, and John on the mountain with
\nJesus. They thought they knew who Jesus was, but after this experience, they
\nsaw him in a new light. Jesus\u2019 transfiguration after his prayer changed his
\ndisciples.
\nA prayer makes it possible for us to experience transfiguration. I am not saying
\nour physical transfiguration but the transfiguration of our emotion, feeling,
\nand idea and ways of lives. That is, a prayerful life gives us a new light to see who Jesus is and to feel God’s presence in our daily lives.
\nSo let us pray to God every day with holy expectation that we will be changed. We
\nmay not have a moment on a mount of transfiguration with Moses, Elijah and
\nJesus. But on our own little mountain, at home, at work, or in our automobile,
\nwe can be with our Lord. And in that moment, we will find ourselves as blessed with
\nGod\u2019s glory.<\/p>\n

Let us pray,<\/p>\n

Merciful God, we give thanks to You for your words and for your presence with us. Lead
\nus to pray every day with our whole hearts and give us the faith that you
\nlisten to our voice we offer to you. Then, lead us to experience
\nthe transfiguration of our lives. We believe that you will bless our daily
\nlives with your love and grace. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Prayerful Life Luke 9:28-36 28Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray.29And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.30Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him.31They […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-worship-and-teaching"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3391"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3391\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4015,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3391\/revisions\/4015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chilmarkchurch.org\/service\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}