“Fine Tuning Our Faith” – Mark 9:2-9 – February 22, 2009
Remember when you had rabbit ears on your television set? You had to re-position the antenna to tune into your favorite channel. Some people would put aluminum foil on their antenna to enhance the reception. Other folks installed a tower along side their house or placed an antenna on their roof. A few years ago I had a wedding on the day of the Ohio State – Michigan game. Prior to the wedding I hooked up an antenna to a TV set on the second floor. Since St. Paul’s Church sits so high on a hill, I was able to get WHIO TV out of Dayton fairly well. Without cable it is a real challenge to get good reception. Of course, that will soon change since the old analog system is going to be replaced with digital.
Why are we going to all this trouble? The answer is simple. We will have clear reception for any channel we want to watch. There will be no more fuzzy stations or interference. If you don’t have cable you will need a converter box in order to receive the signal. It is going to cost millions of dollars to make this transition and the FCC has delayed the process since many people are not yet prepared. But, isn’t it amazing what we are willing to do, just to fine tune our television reception?
When it comes to our faith, there are also things we can do to fine tune the way we hear God. Here in Mark we find Jesus and his disciples climbing a mountain to get a clear understanding of who he was. While they were there Jesus was transfigured, in other words, he his appearance was glorious or divine. The disciples had never seen him that way before. Also, they heard God’s voice as God said, “listen to him.”
At the top of the mountain the disciples were in a position to focus clearly on who Jesus was. They were also able to hear the voice of God since they were totally free of any distractions. Since they had made the climb and retreated from business as usual in their daily lives, they could truly tune in to the presence of God.
I believe that in our society there are too many distractions. Without some quiet, undisturbed, alone time with God, we are unable to fine tune our faith. I almost had a collision on I-75 the other day because some guy was talking on his cell phone. He wasn’t focused on the road in front of him. He kept weaving and changing his speed. His lack of focus was putting other drivers in harms’ way. When you add emails, text messaging, phone calls, television, radio, junk mail and millions of advertisements, no wonder we are distracted. No wonder people are not tuned in to God, they are simple too distracted.
It’s no accident that Jesus appeared with Moses and Elijah. These two men were giants of the faith. Each of them, however, had to depend on God for help in a crisis. At one point Elijah was feeling overwhelmed and alone. God told him to stand on a mountain and there he experienced great winds, fire and even an earthquake. But, none of those got his attention. It was total silence that enabled him to hear instructions from God. (I Kings 19:11-16)
There were times when Moses was alone too. At one point the Israelites were complaining about not having enough water to drink. The people quarreled with Moses and threatened to kill him. In a panic, Moses cried out to God for help. God instructed Moses to take some of the elders and go to the rock of Horeb and that He would be there. There Moses was instructed to strike the rock and as he did, water came out. (Exodus 17:1-7)
Both Elijah and Moses were dependent on God in a crisis. They called upon God and God intervened. When Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus it was a reminder to the disciples that Just as God had been with the leaders of the faith in the past, God would be with them in Jesus.
Our faith is fine tuned when we know that we can turn to God for help in troubled times. I said a few weeks ago that I did not believe we are in a recession. Some folks took issue with that statement. If in fact we are in a recession and living in troubled times it doesn’t appear that folks are turning to God for help. Instead we look to government for help or our immediate families. We seem to be a nation that is no longer dependent upon God to be with us in a time of crisis.
Peter was so overtaken by the glory of Jesus he wanted to hang on to the moment. By building three dwellings he would have made the presence of Jesus, Elijah and Moses permanent. Jesus wasn’t sure how to respond to the fear of the disciples. It was precisely at that moment that God spoke and said, “This is my son, the beloved, listen to him!”
In other words, it wasn’t necessary for Peter to hold on to that moment of glory. God was aware of his fears, and God assured him in a time of despair. We humans have a tendency to build monuments to remember special people or events. That’s why we take hundreds of photos at weddings. Recently our niece and nephew had a baby. At one point a lady came to see them about purchasing pictures. Our niece was surprised at how expensive the pictures were. But, her husband said, “It doesn’t matter, I want pictures to capture the moment.”
The real work however lies in their future. When our niece leaves the hospital and returns home the work of raising a son will begin. At one point she said, “I’m not sure I am ready for being a mom.” At that point my wife gave her some reassurance that she would not be alone. God is not just God of the past, God is also God of the future.
The mountain top experience lasted only a short time for the disciples. Shortly thereafter they came down from the mountain and they encountered a man whose son could not speak or hear. So Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and commanded it to come out of the boy. In a very short time Jesus returned to the ministry of healing and restoring people to wholeness. The real work of ministry takes place in the valleys. It’s a wonderful thing to have a glimpse of the eternal but our faith is enhanced when we go about helping others to listen.
Do you want to have a mountain top experience? Perhaps a cruise to the Caribbean or a cabin in the mountains might give you a few moments of glory. Lest we forget, Jesus’ mountain top experience was preceded by a mission of compassion, healings and restoring people to wholeness. And, following his descent he continued to do more of the same. We fine tune our faith when we elevate the needs of others over our need to savor some special moment.
Sadhu Sundar Singh and a companion were traveling through a pass high in the Himalayan Mountains when they came across a body lying in the snow. They checked for vital signs and discovered the man was still alive. Sundar Singh prepared to stop and help the unfortunate traveler, but his companion objected, saying, “We shall lose our lives if we burden ourselves with him.” Sundar Singh, however, could not think of leaving a man to die in the snow without an attempt to rescue him. His companion quickly bade him farewell and walked on.
Sundar Singh lifted the poor traveler on his back. With great exertion on his part, which was even more difficult because of the high altitude, he carried the man and continued on his journey. As he walked, the heat cast off by his body began to warm the partially frozen man. He revived, and soon they were both walking side by side. Before long they came upon yet another traveler’s body, lying in the snow. Upon closer inspection, they discovered him to be dead, frozen by the cold. The man was Sundar Singh’s original traveling companion.
Sundar Singh had a real mountain top experience, one that would last him a lifetime.
Dr. Keith Wagner