LESSON 13

I used to dread Lesson 13 in the LST workbook. I would just try to get through it as fast as I could and hope that my readers would just kind of overlook it and move on.
As I read over those two sentences, I realize, that doesn't sound very good. That's not the attitude of someone who likes to read the Gospels and talk about Jesus. But when I tell you what scriptures this lesson covers, maybe you will understand and forgive me. Lesson 13 is Luke 19:28-36, in English we refer to this occurrence in Jesus' life as "The Transfiguration". This is when Jesus and Peter, John and James go up on a mountain to pray and Moses and Elijah came to visit. Now let's be honest, this piece of scripture can be hard to understand in an "easy to read" translation of the Bible in your own language. Why are two "ghosts or angels" meeting up to chat with Jesus? Why is Peter wanting to put up tents (yes, our LST version says "tents", which makes the discussion even harder) for these three guys? Why does God interrupt Peter when he is talking? Is he angry at Peter? What does it mean, "Peter did not know what he was saying"?
Well, reading the same passages of scripture over and over for 10 months provides many blessings. Mainly, the blessing of new insights that the Holy Spirit will provide as you continue to re-read those passages. It is true that the Bible is the "Living Word". I know it is alive, because I continue to encounter that "Life" in my heart and I see that "Life" in the hearts of many of my readers.

Of the truths I have learned about this particular passage, two stay on my mind and cause me a great feeling of AWE. First is the realization that I don't need to know the answer to all the "Why?" questions to know that God had a definite purpose in this event. He wanted everyone to know and understand that Jesus is his son and he wants all people to obey only Jesus. (It was important for the Jews to let go of their obedience to Moses' and Elijah's teachings, and that couldn't have been an easy message for them to take in, they had been doing that for generations.) The second truth comes to me from the end of the lesson. The scriptures say, "And for a long time after that they told no one about what they had seen." A great question to ask my LST readers is, "Why didn't they talk about this to other people?" This question makes for good, easy conversation but it also gives me an opportunity to share my faith, because many months ago the Holy Spirit taught me a truth through this question. My answer is that although we don't know exactly why they didn't tell anyone, I think that maybe they were overwhelmed by the presence of God. In other places in the Bible when people encounter God they are overcome by strong emotions and reactions, fear being one. These guys have just heard the voice of God, I'm sure that was stunning. Maybe they just needed to process that encounter internally for a while. Although I have never heard the audible voice of God, when I encounter Him in my heart, I am overwhelmed, I don't know how to process it and I usually can't share the experience with anyone, at least for a while. Telling this makes me think of the song "I Can Only Imagine". I don't know how I will respond to the presence of God, will I stand and sing and shout for joy or will I fall to my knees unable to speak?

I can truthfully say, I no longer dread Lesson 13. I love the chills I get as I share this with my readers. I love the unanswered questions, they are evidence of faith. And best of all, I love the fact that many readers say, "I'm going to go home and read this in Spanish to try and understand it better." That is the power of the "Living Word"!

Here is a link to Youtube, if you want to listen to Mercy Me singing "I Can Only Imagine".