02/11/2024 ~ Transfiguration Sunday ~ Last Sunday before the Season of Lent; 2 Kings 2:1-12; Psalm 50:1-6; 2 Corinthians 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9 ~ VIDEO OF FULL SERVICE: https://vimeo.com/showcase/7960701/video/912946761

My Name Is Peter

“…Jesus was transfigured before their eyes. The clothes Jesus wore became dazzling, such as no one on earth could bleach them.” — Mark 9:2b-3 [pause as the pastor changes to a white robe.]

My name is Peter. (Pause.) I saw my friend die today. I do not know what to think. I do not know what to say. I am frightened. That’s because I saw my friend die today. (Pause.)

No. That’s not right. I watched as my friend was executed today. No, that’s not right, either. I saw my friend murdered today.

And it was brutal–– what they did to him. In fact, I could not watch to the end. I ran away. I hid. I was fearful, ashamed, sad, angry. I wanted to lash out, to hit someone, anyone. I did not know how to react. I did not… know what to do.

And I do not know what this means… that he was executed, murdered… by the state, by the government, by Rome. He was… my friend. (Pause.)

His name was Yeshuah, Ioesus in Greek. The name means ‘God saves.’ That is what I thought every time I saw him–– ‘God saves.’ That is what I thought I saw in him–– ‘God saves.’

What I thought I was seeing in Yeshuah was that God’s dominion could be and was present, real. What I thought I was seeing in Yeshuah was that God is with us, God is present to us and that God is in the here. And God is in the now!

And I knew, I was confident, that the things which had been written about, those things which are foretold, things which say the time of God’s dominion is here— those things, that time had arrived.

Did Yeshuah not fulfill the very things about which the prophets speak? Did those who are blind see? It happened! Did it not? Did those who are lame walk? It happened! Did it not? What had been prophesied about the Dominion of God happened!

It happened here, in this time, among us! It was real! (Softly.) It happened in Yeshuah! And now this, this— murdered by the state. (Pause.)

He was kinder and more giving than any one I’ve ever met. He was filled with wisdom. He knew the writings we hold sacred in an intimate way.

He did not just know what they said. Anyone can memorize and recite the sacred writings, even gentiles. But he knew what the writings meant. Yes, he knew what was written. But the Rabbi knew not just the letter of the law but the spirit of the law. The Rabbi knew the Spirit of Yahweh, the Spirit of God. (Pause.)

I remember that day we, my brother Andrew and I, had been trying to catch fish, casting our nets. We were not far out on the water when we noticed someone was on the shore. It was Yeshuah.

The Rabbi called out to us, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” I was not sure what that meant— ‘fish for people.’

What I do realized is suddenly I knew what the reality of God was, knew God’s will for my life. That’s when I abandoned the nets. That’s when we abandoned the nets. We followed. (Slight pause.)

There were twelve of us who were very close to him. But there were more than just the twelve. And this group was like no other group I had ever been a part of before.

It did not seem to matter to Yeshuah if those in the group, those who followed, were in many ways different. He treated each of us as individuals and yet seemed to be able to connect with all of us simultaneously, met each of us where we were at and yet met all of us together, as one.

I did not know how he did that. We were young, old, children, adults, men, women, rich, poor, wise, foolish, tax collectors, physicians, farmers— none of us were alike. Yet what seemed to matter to the Rabbi was not our differences but our willingness to know God, to participate in the work of God, to be in relationship with God.

The Rabbi told us that the most important thing we could do was to love God and love our neighbors. We asked who our neighbors were. That’s when we heard our neighbors included everybody— Jews, Samaritans, Gentiles, men, women— everybody.

He told us if we had two cloaks give one away, turn the other cheek, told us to avoid judging others. I have never heard any teacher, any rabbi say these things before.

He said all these things, but he didn’t just say them. He did them. He lived life not just by words, but by choices, by actions. He lived a life centered on God.

He told us to not worry and to trust totally in God. And Yeshuah did that. Yeshuah trusted God totally, called God abba, daddy. (Pause.)

We traveled throughout all of Galilee with him, right by his side. And he taught, befriended the poor, healed the sick.

Then he sent us, the twelve, out, told us to preach, to teach about the good news of the Dominion of God and to cast out demons and cure lepers. And this I still do not believe. We preached, taught, cast out demons and cured those who were leporus! We did it! All of us. (Pause.) It was awesome!

And then… and then there was that day on the mountain. Yeshuah took us up the hill. There were four of us, myself, James, John, Yeshuah. The day was hot, but it was very clear. The sky was as blue as I had ever seen it.

We reached the top and just sat, stared out at the countryside, all of us together. It was beautiful. Then we prayed. But we were tired. The climb was hard. We slept.

Suddenly we were all awake at the same time. Perhaps we had sensed something had happened.

We all experienced it but I’m not sure how to describe it. The face of Yeshuah was as bright as the sun. His clothes were dazzling.

And both Moses and Elijah were standing there with Yeshuah. I don’t even know how I knew they were Moses and Elijah. I just knew.

I said something stupid like, ‘…how wonderful it is for us to be here.’ I was so tongue tied, I didn’t know what else to say.

Then there was a cloud, a voice. We all saw the cloud. We all heard the voice.

The voice rang out loud and clear and strong: “This is my Beloved, my Own… listen!” I fell to the ground, covered my eyes. I did not know what to do. I was very, very frightened. (Pause.)

Suddenly Yeshuah touched me. I had felt that touch before, a touch only the Rabbi seemed to have— warm, friendly, sensitive. I felt that touch on my back.

Yeshuah could touch you with his hand, with his voice, with his eyes. I always seemed to know when he was looking at me. Yeshuah touched me. I looked up.

He was alone. I stood. We all stood. We did not tell anyone about this. We simply did not know what to say. (Pause.)

I do not know what to make of this. I do not understand it. My name is Peter. I saw my friend die today. I watched as my friend was murdered today. I do not know what to think. I… am… frightened. (Sit with one hand held over the face.)

{Note: This is followed by a piano playing Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?}

02/27/2024
Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Last week I suggested what we need to see in Scripture is our emotional connection with God. Something I say at Bible Study is for me the people and the situations in Scripture are real. As such I try to understand the emotions of the lives therein portrayed. So today I tried to say something about the tumultuous emotional reality of Scripture and maybe even the tumultuous emotional reality of our own lives.”

BENEDICTION: God heals and restores. God grants to us the grace and the talent to witness to the love God has for us. So let us live in the light God offers. And, therefore, let us be ready as we go into the world, for we are baptized in the power of the Spirit. And may the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, transform us and keep our minds and hearts in the companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.