Saturday, February 28, 2009
Mark 9:9-10 Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.
READY TO TELL
Don't tell anyone? It's especially difficult for young children to keep quiet, especially during the Christmas season. If they shop with their parents, they are likely to return home and blurt out the secret contents of the shopping bag. They sometimes have to be told: "Don't tell anyone. Button up your lips!"
When we read that Jesus told his disciples to keep quiet (at least for the time being) about what they saw on the Mount of Transfiguration, we may wonder why. Why did Jesus tell the demons He cast out to be quiet and not reveal that He was the Holy One of God? Why did He tell many of those He healed to keep quiet and tell no one? He encouraged them to give thanks to God by offering the required sacrifices of thanksgiving, but why keep quiet?
What can we say? It just wasn't the time for such things to be revealed and proclaimed.
After Jesus suffered and rose again from the dead, the silence would be broken forevermore. After the resurrection, Jesus further equipped his disciples to reveal to others that the One who had been crucified was not merely a great teacher or a great man, but God's Son. Thus that death was sufficient payment for every human sin, past, present and future. Then the things that were seen on the Mount of Transfiguration could be reported as further proof that He was the Son of God.
The time to keep quiet is long past. As Jesus disciples, you are called upon to reveal who Jesus really is -- God's Son. Let the Spirit of God do the heavy lifting and open human eyes and hearts to believe the message and to see how tremendous that sacrifice really was. Let Him teach them through the word that His death wasn't merely an example of human injustice, but ultimately of God's divine justice. He will also move them to open their mouths and proclaim what was once the secret of God's eternal counsel.
Let's think on this today, and take these words with us (1 Peter 3:15): "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."
