Exodus 24: 12-18 / Psalm 2 / II Peter 1: 16–21 / Matthew 17: 1–9
This is the written version of the homily given at Flohr’s Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA) in McKnightstown, Pennsylvania on Sunday, February 15, 2026 by Fr. Gene Tucker, Interim Pastor
“REVELATION AND
SUSTENANCE”
(Homily texts: II Peter 1: 16–21 & Matthew 17: 1-9)
This morning, let’s talk about things
that inspire us, or perhaps, serve as a revelation, things that sustain us as
we go forward in life.
This past week, I’ve spent a good deal
of time looking through boxes of old photos, in search of photos from the very
early years of one of the tourist railroads I am involved in, the Walkersville
Southern Railroad, located near Frederick, Maryland. (As I am fond of saying,
“Pray for my wife, please…her husband loves trains!”)
My search was a trip down memory lane,
back to the early 1990s, when a small group of railroad enthusiasts began the
process of establishing the railroad. Back then, we were able to gain the use
of a stretch of track that had been out-of-service for about twenty years.
Consequently, it was overgrown, and had to be cleared of vines, vegetation and
trees. In addition, this new entity had no locomotives, and no cars.
The photos I was able to retrieve were
testimony to the determination of those early participants. It was also an
inspiration to think of what has become of those early efforts, for today, the
railroad is a thriving entity.
Those members who’ve become part of the
railroad’s staff in the years that have followed have been inspired by the
successes that followed those initial efforts. The determination of those early
members in the effort to establish the railroad serves to inspire a new
generation of crew members, sustaining them in their own efforts to build upon
the foundations that were laid years ago.
In like manner, Peter, James and John were
witnesses to an event that was meant to widen their perspectives, and to
strengthen them for the journey that lie ahead: That journey is the Lord’s
journey to Jerusalem, to betrayal, suffering, death and resurrection. The event
that sustained these three disciples was the Lord’s transfiguration on a
mountain, though – at the time – they probably didn’t realize its meaning and
importance.
Up until this point in the disciples’
journey with the Lord, they’ve been witnesses to various miracles, like the
feeding of large crowds of people, the healing of those with various diseases,
and so forth. They’ve witnessed His growing popularity, His compassion for all
sorts of people, and His teaching.
But now, as the Lord’s appearance is
altered, displaying the unmistakable light of God, and God’s voice, declaring
that Jesus is God’s beloved Son, Peter, James and John have a vision of Jesus
as being God’s anointed One, the Messiah, the Christ[1]. It
is a vision of the Lord’s eternal being, His one-ness with God. It is a vision
of God’s great, big picture and intent in the sending of Jesus to take up our
humanity.
Moses and Elijah appear with the Lord,
signifying that Jesus is the bringer of a new law, a law which succeeds the Law
of Moses. Moreover, Elijah’s appearance signifies that the Messiah has come.[2]
No longer will these three who
witnessed Jesus’ transfiguration be able to think of Him as merely a superhuman
person, one who is possessed of deep thoughts and profound teachings, one who
possesses, somehow, the power to heal and to perform miracles. In the wake of
the transfiguration, a new understanding, a wider perspective, has been given.
Many years later, St. Peter recalls
this event in his Second Letter. In time, and especially after the Lord’s
resurrection, the events that took place on the mountain made sense. Perhaps
Peter looked back over the years, and saw evidence that the Lord’s true
identity had sustained and inspired him to take up the reins of leadership in
the early Church confronting with determination and power the challenges that
came along.
Revelation and inspiration result in
changed lives. That was certainly true of the lives of the Lord’s early
disciples, those who would be sent out as Apostles to carry the Good News of
God in Christ.
Can we, as the Lord’s disciples today,
look back at a time when the Lord has sustained us in some way? Did the Lord
sustain us in difficult and trying times? Did the Lord bring us through loss and
despair? Were we healed in some way that medical science can’t explain?
All of these might be markers of God’s
abiding presence in our lives.
For God’s desire is for us to come to
the knowledge that Jesus is Lord of all, far beyond being a memorable figure in
history. God’s desire is for us to come to the knowledge, in our
heart-of-hearts, that inviting the Lord into our innermost being is God’s
deepest and most intense desire.
For then, we will be sustained in
whatever lies ahead, for, as St. Paul states so well, “Nothing can separate us
from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 38–39)
AMEN.
[1] The title “Messiah” comes to us from the
Hebrew, where it means “anointed”. “Christ” means the same thing, coming from
the Greek.
[2] In the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, it was widely believed that the Messiah’s coming would be heralded by the return of the Old Testament prophet Elijah. This belief was founded on Malachi 4: 5–6.
