SERMON 2/19/12 Epiphany 7B

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2 Corinthians 4:3-6
Mark 9:2-9

“Jesustook with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart,by themselves.” Mountaintop experiences are something with which, I am veryfamiliar having grown up in East Tennessee, in an area in the foothills of theSmokey Mountains.  Often, on familyvacations, weekend getaways, or camping trips, I enjoyed the glorious experienceof traversing those lofty mountain heights that overlooked the valleys below.  From those pristine vantage points, I alwaysseemed to see things in a new light.  Thetroubles of life found in the valley below seemed so small, so diminished, soinsignificant.  Up on the mountain, Iexperienced Holy Ground and it was there I felt nearest to God.  It was no surprise that when it came tochoosing a seminary at which, I would I work on my Masters of Divinity, that Iwould once again be called to a mountaintop for preparation as a priest.  The University of the South at Sewanee is locatedon a beautiful peak near the Appalachian mountains, approximately 2000 feetabove a valley filled with vast farms that produce corn, soybean, and cotton.  There on that mountain, God called us tostudy and prepare, but the work there went well beyond mere classes andchapel.  No, God invited us into a profoundsort of reflection.  We were challengedto go deeper, to explore our brokenness, our uncertainties, and our fears.  We were invited to get to know Jesus in newways and in so doing, we became acquainted with our authentic selves.  The mountaintop was where I came to accept fullyJesus as the authentic 100% Real Deal, God in flesh, Savior, Redeemer of mylife.  The mountaintop was where Iclearly saw Jesus and in him, I came to really know myself. 
AsJesus traveled the valleys of Galilee, he brought the message of hope, the goodnews of “freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, releaseof the oppressed, and a proclamation of the Lord's favor.”  (NIV Luke 4:18-19).  For some of the people who met Jesus, theyfound in him a great teacher, a healer, and a rabbi, but others hadexpectations of him that were not in line with his authentic self.  The people sought a savior yes, but not onewho was willing to lay down his life for his friends.  No, the people he often encountered wanted apowerful, revolutionary, “overturning the tables” kind of leader who would setthem free from Roman oppression.  Jesus remained true to hiscalling, despite the fact that the expectationsof others often became potential entanglements, which often tried to hinder himfrom living into his true self.
Fromthe low country of Galilee Jesus healed, taught, and preached, but thedisciples did not clearly understand who he was.  Many rejected his teaching, many of theapostles still did not get it even near the very end, and eventually because ofthis misunderstanding, Jesus would face ultimate rejection; crucifixion.  For many of Jesus’ followers, they wereunable to perceive his “100% Real Deal” authenticity from the vantage point ofhis low country ministry, so Jesus took a select group up the mountain.  This event “can best be understood as a ‘christophany,’a moment when we see ‘who Jesus Christ really is.’  What gets transfigured though, is not Jesus,but our perception of him.  through thetransfiguration, our vision changes; we see Jesus for real.”  (Long,Thomas G. "Reality Show." Christian Century 123.5 (2006): 16-22.ATLASerials, Religion Collection. Web. 16 Feb. 2012) In this moment of glory, the disciples witnessed an event that allowedthem to see Christ for who he really was, God: Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer inthe flesh; 100% the Real Deal.  His gloryshone through, “his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earthcould bleach them.” (NRSV Mark 9:3)  Thethree disciples knew in that moment that the Jesus they had seen in the valley,truly was God with them on the mountain. This would not be the last time his glory would shine through.  This would not be the last time that theauthentic, unshaken, unwavering, true, solid, and good nature of God would berevealed.  Soon, the heart of God wouldbe exposed through an act of unimaginable love; self-giving authentic love.
Authenticityfor Christ was costly and it is costly for us as well.  We all spend a great deal of our lives dealingwith the expectations placed on us by our bosses, customers, friends, family, orpeers.  These expectations placed on usby others, have the potential to hinder us from living into our true selves,the beloved of God.  Back in the day, I workedwith a business colleague that one day was asked by her Senior Vice Presidentto negotiate with one of her suppliers, a questionable markdown allowance for alarge inventory purchase.  I did not knowthe full details of the transaction, but it was obvious to me and my friend thatit was an unethical request.  It wasapparent too that my friend was struggling with a dilemma by which her authenticitywas being challenged.  Deep down, myfriend wrestled with an admirable desire to please her boss and to be asuccessful executive.  At the same time, inher soul, in that “Authentic, 100% Real Deal” place called her soul, she was aperson of deep integrity and honesty; she was a beloved one of God.  Living authentically is never easy andsometimes the cost to do so may be beyond our imagine.  For my friend, the cost to live authenticallywas the choice whether to keep her job or her risk losing her soul.  She chose to follow her soul, that place from wherethe Spirit calls us to live, and by the grace of God, she found wholeness.
Ifin this journey to be authentically “100% the Real Deal” we succumb to thewhispers and unrealistic labels and demands placed on us, then we will surely findourselves ultimately wearing a mask of a false self.  That mask covers up soul and the resultant internalconflict that surely will be the result, will keep us from being fully thatperson, whom God so richly and lovingly made us; that beautiful person whom wefind when we live out of our soul.  Weare created for ongoing growth and transformation and at our core; we will findour soul unshaken, unwavering, true, solid, and good.  Here we find the grace of God, and here wecan embrace the beauty of who we are; the beloved of God.  On that mountain John, James, and Peter sawJesus for who he really was, and for us who follow Jesus, we see in Christ aglimpse of who we really are as well. The voice from heaven said to Jesus, “This is my Son, the Beloved.” We disciplesof Jesus, hear in the echoes of these words from that mountaintop God’s portrayalof who we are, “You are my Son; You are my daughter, my beloved.”  It is when we live out of our authentic self,out of our God given soul, we come to see ourselves as God sees us; beloved,accepted, loved, unshaken, unwavering, true, solid, and good .When we live out of our vulnerable soul, when wewith our integrity are lead and guided by the Spirit, our masks are removed,the false covering of our soul is torn away. When we begin to trust our soul, even in the midst of life's tragedies,the Holy Spirit connects with us there.  Iam currently reading a book, “A Hidden Wholeness: The Journey Toward theUndivided Life” by Parker Palmer.  Inthis beautiful work, Palmer discusses how we might embrace the authentic lifeto which we are called; a life of wholeness. He asserts, “Wholeness does not mean perfection; it means brokenness asan integral part of life.”  He adds, “Knowingthis gives me hope that human wholeness- mine, yours, ours – need not be autopian dream, if we can use devastation as a seedbed for new life.”  My friend who chose to keep her soul despitethe cost of losing the job of her dreams, decided to follow Spirit and in sodoing, she was “100% The Real Deal.” Through her choices, she discovered a wholeness that became the seedbedfor the life she was to lead from that day forward.  When we live into the reality of our own brokenness,we come to know the freedom offered us in Christ.  When we embrace our own junk and bring itbefore God for healing, we live authentically. When we can take off our masks and our soul is seen unshaken, unwavering,true, solid, and good, we can be “100% The Real Deal” before  God and each other.  When we can face the fear of being vulnerablebefore the great Lover God, we will surely hear the Holy Spirit as she removesthe veil and declares whose we really are, “Your are my son, you are mydaughter, you are my beloved.”