Mark NINE

Sermon of the Week #200730 July 29, 2007

Jesus took Peter, James and John into a high mountain apart by themselves to pray. Now at that time while in prayer Jesus was transfigured before them. His face did shine as the sun, the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His garment became white as the light, bright and dazzling. It must have been an awesome sight. However they had seen a more astounding sight before. It was what they had seen before He was transfigured. Before the transfiguration they had seen the Lord of glory walking around encased in the body of a human being, so the virgin birth was the greater miracle of the two. It was just a matter of letting His deity shine through the rags of His mortal flesh. So now Jesus appears to the apostles arrayed in glory, and with him, Moses and Elijah even though they had been gone for hundreds of years; here they appear before the Lord in glory with Jesus on the mountain. This is an example of how the Christian shall appear in glory when the Lord returns in glory. Jesus said in Mathew 13 “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father.”     

THE VOICE OF PETER

Now listen to the voices from the Holy Mount. The first voice is the voice of Simon Peter. "Lord it is good for us to be here. I will make three tabernacles one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." This is an indication of how the Christian will feel when they die? At the moment you are surrounded by the glory of the Lord's presence you will not want to return. Like Peter we will say, "Lord it is good for us to be here."

Peter was on a spiritual high. Some times we feel the same. But for now we cannot stay on the mountaintop. They had heard God the Father say, "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear ye Him." But there was another father at the bottom of the hill with an only begotten son. A son who had a dumb spirit. He fell into the fire, and then into the water, he was dashed down and ground his teeth and foamed at the mouth. He needed help, so we cannot stay on the mountaintop when people are throwing fits in the valley.

As Christians we cannot afford to stay on the mountaintops of our own spiritual satisfaction when we live in a world where people are throwing fits, having spasms, and headed for hell.

Think of the national fit and spasm that the USA had when prayer was voted out of the school. Our beloved land was frothing at the mouth. People are being shot in the classroom. Others are being bushwhacked in Church services. Is there any reason to think that these things could not happen in your school or your Church in your area? The mission field is not necessarily in a far away jungle. There is a Jungle in suburbia where some of you live. Right here in America when you leave the Church service you are entering a mission field. We cannot stay on the mountaintop when they are throwing fits in the valley. Voices from the Holy Mount. Now listen to the voices of Moses and Elijah.

MOSES AND ELIJAH

The appearance of Moses and Elijah is suggestive of the Second Coming of Jesus. The appearance of Moses who died reminds us that the dead in Christ shall rise first. The appearance of Elijah who did not die reminds us that we which are alive unto His coming shall together with them be caught in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Now listen to the voices of Moses and Elijah. What did they say? What do people talk about when they come down from outer space? In science fiction when the flying saucer lands and the little green men with spindle legs and bugged out eyes approach an earthling what do they say? They say, "Take me to your leader." Moses and Elijah did not say take me to your leader, because they knew Jesus was their leader. What did they say to their leader?

If they had been like us they would have asked such inane questions as, "Lord who is going to win the Super Bowl this year or World Series?" as though the Lord would care one way or the other. No such questions were on the docket. They talked about the most important thing that ever happened on this planet. They spake of His decease that He would accomplish at Jerusalem. If people had any sense at all the talk shows on television and radio would be riveted on such topics as repentance, acceptance of Christ and what can we do to get the gospel out, to a world that is going to hell as fast as if they were on a greased toboggan slide. They spake of His decease that He would accomplish at Jerusalem. Jesus would accomplish it. Right after their decent from the mountain Jesus indicates how He is the architect of the crucifixion. It was His idea. Eight days before this Jesus had told of His decease and resurrection and Peter rebuked Him. Now Moses and Elijah discuss it with him on the Mount of Transfiguration. Then after He comes down from the holy Mount He tells again that He would be delivered into the hands of men and they shall kill Him, and when He is killed after three days He will rise again.

Jesus was the architect of the crucifixion and He would work through the unholy hands of men to get it done, but He is the One who devised, formulated, planned, invented, concocted, and thought out in His own mind, heart, and brain the decease that He would accomplish at Jerusalem. It was all His idea. They spake of His decease that He would accomplish. Voices from the Holy Mount. Now listen to the voice of God.

THE VOICE OF GOD

The voice of God had a message. "This is My beloved Son in whom I an well pleased hear ye Him." The amazing thing about the message of God is that He did not say anything that He had not said before. He said, "This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased," at the baptism of Jesus. He said, "Hear ye Him," through Moses when He said, "A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you to whom ye shall hearken in all things, whatsoever He shall speak unto you.”

If it were announced today that the Almighty was going to speak in an audible voice at nine o'clock tomorrow morning, all the network news would tune in to hear what God has to say. At the end of the program all the scholars would be poised and ready. They would dissect what God said, and then tell us that He did not say what we thought He said, but that He really meant something else.

Actually if God did speak from Heaven in an audible voice, the first thing that would happen would be every Christ rejecter would run for cover. Just as Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden when they heard the voice of God after their sin. When Peter, James, and John heard the voice of God on the mountain they fell on their faces and were sore afraid. A great cry of dismay will arise from all the Christ rejecters when they hear Him shout as He descends.

Many think that we need a Hi-tech gospel for a Hi-tech age. When we started on the radio almost forty years ago there was a small Church that started to help us on this broadcast. In the process of about thirty years they increased in size to several hundred members. One day they dropped their support and a nearby preacher went and asked them why they stopped supporting this broadcast. He was told, “Now Ed is a good preacher and what he preached was good thirty years ago. But today we need something different.” Efforts are made today to use marketing techniques to build the Church. It is true you can market the Church like soap, but there is no way to soft soap people into repentance. You cannot soft soap conviction. You cannot soft soap people in to being obedient to the gospel terms of pardon.

If the Lord would speak again today He would not tell us anything that He has not already told us. Peter says in his second epistle 1:3 “Seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” Voices from the Holy Mount. Next we listen to the voice of the father of the child at the foot of the mountain.

VOICE OF THE BOY’S FATHER

When they came down from the mountain another father who had an only begotten son was waiting for Him. He told Jesus that his son was his only child. He was abused by a demon who threw him down, tore him much; cast him into fire and then into water. He said he had brought his son to the nine Apostles at the foot of the mountain to cast him out and they were not able.

The Apostles had no good reason for failing. Jesus had already given them power to heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons told them to go out and do it and they did. Now here nine of the Apostles have failed to cast out one demon out of one little boy. Whatever the reason for their failure, it was not a good reason. The world today is in trouble. If the troubled people of your community came to your congregation looking for answers would they also go away and complain, “Lord I came to your church to help me in my problems, and they couldn't do it.” If the Church is not making an impression on the troubles of your area, it is not because you don't have the resources. You have the Great Commission of Jesus. You have access to the Holy Spirit; you have the Bible with all the answers for any problem that is caused by sin. Our inability to cope with the world's sin problem may be because the Lord cannot do much with a Church that doesn't give a hoot. The Church is filled with people who have been immersed, but who never repented. Hence their baptism is null and void. What can the Lord do to heal the sin? Sickness of the world with a Church that is no different in life style than the world? What can the Lord do with a Church whose conscience is made numb because they are fed with inspirational entertainment week after week? I heard one man say, “I am getting tired of going to Church services and getting inspired every week.” The inspiration wears off before the week is over and he said he has to go back the following week for another shot of inspiration. The Lord cannot do much with a Church that only wants a service that makes them feel good about themselves. It is true that the Church needs to comfort the afflicted, but the Church also needs to afflict the comfortable. The prophet Amos said, “Woe unto them that are at ease in Zion!”

When Jesus asked the father how long this affliction had been going on the father said, “From a child.” The Devil had been working on this child before he reached the age where he was accountable. Children are not in need of salvation. They live in a saved state while in their innocence. There is no need to baptize an infant for the simple reason that faith and repentance is required for a Biblical baptism. You cannot believe for someone else any more than you can breathe for someone else.

However the Devil is still making plans in advance to capture the innocent child. He works on the destruction of the innocents through the home. It is the dream of every family to buy a house, the bigger the better. Four bedrooms, four car garage, three baths, a corner lot, or large acreage, wide screen television, computers at least for the purpose of playing games. All of this bespeaks of the love of parents for the children. But to have such a home as this and neglect the House of God is the height of child abuse. Then the Devil is allowed to work on the innocent child through education. Parents show their love for the child in making plans for advanced education. The child must have access to a College education. Financial plans are made in advance. But at the same time plans are not made for teaching the growing child the teachings of the word of God, this is also the cruelest form of child abuse. Voices from the Holy Mount. Now the next voice we hear the voice of Jesus.

THE VOICE OF JESUS

Jesus had something to say at the bottom of the Mount. The Apostles asked Him why they failed to cast out the demon. Jesus told them because of your little faith. If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed ye shall say to this mountain remove hence to yonder place and it shall remove and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we serve a mountain moving God. It may be that most of your prayers like mine are molehill prayers. But one day many years ago we prayed a mountain moving prayer. The prayer resulted in this radio broadcast. After the prayer we made a mistake that Paul says he did not make. We conferred with flesh and blood. We asked key people for advice that had knowledge in this area and to a man they all advised against it. One godly Church leader told me I could never do it, because I had two strikes against me. Strike one he said was that you have no money. Strike two is, that nobody knows you. The consensus was you would never be able to do it. Flesh and blood was wrong. There was somebody who did know us. There was someone who could supply all our needs according to His riches in glory. By God's grace we took that third strike. Actually by means of the internet this program can be heard worldwide and 24/7. The prayer was answered because we have a mountain moving God. Ladies and Gentlemen, Listen to the voices from the Holy Mount, and in the name of Jesus, speak to that mountain that stands in your way: “Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

When the vision was over, the three Apostles lifted up their eyes, and saw no man save Jesus only. Many today had they been there would have lifted up their eyes and would have seen absolutely nothing at all. These are the folk who can hear the greatest gospel sermon, they hear about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. They hear about the terms of pardon on the day of Pentecost: "Repent ye and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Then they lift up their eyes and see nothing at all, except the score of yesterday's ballgame. So it is written, so let it be done.