And Jesus was saying to them, “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God when it has come with power.” And six days later Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John, and brought them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them. Mark 9:1-2 NASB
I confess these verses confused me as a new believer. At that time, I read the Bible as disjointed stories, like stitching together thousands of Sunday school lessons.
In that light, the story of Jesus shining in His glory on a mountain top seemed random to me. And the fact that certain disciples would not taste death until they saw the Kingdom of God seemed just plain wrong. All the disciples were martyred in the first century. Therefore, they are all dead and gone. I thought, it has been over two thousand years, and we have yet to see the Kingdom of God “come with power.”
One day I noticed that every time the transfiguration is mentioned, it is immediately preceded by Jesus proclaiming they would not die until they saw the Kingdom of God. Finally, I realized that witnessing Jesus in His glorious state was their window into the Kingdom.
This discovery was like a veil lifted from my eyes. I started to see patterns in scripture everywhere I looked. Now I am constantly alert for metaphors and contrasts and other literary devices. Even after 20 years of reading and rereading the Word, I am thrilled to find a new connection in scripture.
Now when I read about the transfiguration, I see this pattern:
1. Confession of faith.
2. Cost of discipleship.
3. Mountain top / Cloud of His presence.
4. Power!
The pattern is in all the synoptic gospels. In the narrative, Peter confessed to Jesus, “You are the Christ.” (Mark 8:29 NASB) Then Jesus declared, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Mark 8:34 NASB) Only then did Jesus call them to the mountain by themselves.
The cloud on the mountain represents the very presence of God. We know this from Exodus 19:9 where God spoke to Moses from the cloud. And from Exodus 40:38 where the “cloud of the Lord” rested on the Tabernacle.
Jesus called His disciples to come with Him up the mountain by themselves to be in God’s presence. This was their glimpse of the Kingdom of God. After this, Jesus displayed the Kingdom of God in power when He healed the demon-possessed boy that no one else could heal (Mark 9:26).
Beloved, this pattern surrounding the transfiguration is for every believer throughout the centuries. It’s for both you and me!
First, we need to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But we can’t just get our ticket to heaven and wait for the bus. We must take up our cross and follow Him. Again, we can’t stop at surrender. At His invitation, we must follow Jesus up the mountain into the cloud of God’s presence. As we bask in His glory and His beauty, we get a glimpse of the Kingdom of God. Only then can we demonstrate His Kingdom with power!
This time, as I read through this transfiguration pattern again, God highlighted the phrase “by themselves.” I believe He is emphasizing the intimate nature of this mountain top experience. God meets with each of us personally. Jesus made a way for us feel God’s presence, to hear His voice, to experience His all-encompassing love.
If you feel stuck in the duty of “pick up your cross and follow Him,” then I encourage you to accept His invitation to climb the mountain with Jesus. Come into the cloud of His presence and feast on His glory and His beauty. Experience the joy of your salvation. Be refreshed in the purity of His love.
I would love to stay there in the cloud of His presence. Wouldn’t you? One day, we will have that privilege; we will spend eternity basking in the love of our Heavenly Bridegroom. Until then, we need to come down the mountain and demonstrate the power of the Kingdom of God to all who will receive it.