John Gunter: One of my buddies this week sent me a little meme, a little picture that just said, you know that, now the year 2,000 is as far away as the year 2050. Welcome to that reality. Some of you weren't born then. Logan reminded me this morning. He said, dad, do you know that, some colleges cost $90,000 I said, yes, sir.
He said, you know how close Evan is to that. Thank you very much for that. But time keeps on marching, doesn't it? There used to be a country song about that, time marches on. We won't jump into nineties country this morning, but, it just seems like it gets faster and faster.
The older you get, it just keeps going. And so when you think about that, I I think about that not only personally, I ask you, I think last year or the year before, if you do New Year's resolutions and, like, nobody raised their hands, so we won't talk about that. But I want to talk about what does that look like for our church as we march on, are are we doing so with a purpose? Are we just kind of finding our way? What are we doing as a church?
Because our our our reason for meeting is not just to come and feel better about ourselves. We we meet so that we come and we grow closer to God and we grow closer to each other. I really, appreciate Valentine's prayer this morning about, you know, God owns everything. He doesn't need anything, but we're able to give and and to show gratitude in a in certain ways. Right?
So there are lots of ways that we come together and, we do different things to hopefully, again, grow closer to each other. When people, when early Christians met, they met for the purpose of, again, encouraging one another, that we could walk together within something. I can't imagine because I've grown up in America. I can't imagine growing up in a place that is hostile towards Christianity. And so what are we going to do with the freedom that we have been given?
Everybody enjoy your freedom? Yeah. We can sit and we can talk about how all the bad things we think are wrong in our society, but we have been given a gift. And so how are we going to use it? We're gonna start this morning, directing our thoughts with a a scripture from Mark, chapter 9 in verse starting in verse 2.
It says, And after 6 days, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up to a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became radiant intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah and Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. And Peter said to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make 3 tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.
For he did not know what to say, for they were terrified. And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, this is my beloved son, listen to him. And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them, but Jesus only. And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead might mean.
The transfiguration is kind of a weird story, isn't it? All of a sudden, in the midst of Mark, you have this scenario where you've got, all of a sudden, Jesus and Elijah and Moses just hanging out and talking. I don't know how you would deal with that in your brain. If you looked up and one of your family members was talking to people that you knew had been dead for a while, I don't know how your brain kind of rectifies that. But you have to, in the Gospel of Mark, realize what has just happened at the end of chapter 8.
When Jesus has asked, alright, well, who do people say that I am? And you remember the response, well, some people think John the Baptist, some people think Elijah or one of the prophets, and then he's able to ask Peter, alright. Well, who do you say that I am? Well, and Peter says, well, you're the Christ, which is a fantastic answer. I believe the first time, one of the insiders, one of the people close to Jesus, actually recognizes that he is the Christ.
But we understand that right after that, oh, Peter doesn't have a full understanding of what Christ means because as Jesus tells him, hey, I'm gonna be, you know, treated badly. I'm gonna be killed, and Peter takes him aside and rebukes him. He says, no, you're not. Jesus says, get behind me, Satan. So in that moment, what you realize is, okay.
Well, Peter says he's the Christ, but he hasn't comprehended exactly what that means. That Jesus is not just planning him to be lord, he is lord of all. There's no reason to rebuke him. And so right after this, we get the transfiguration as Mark, tells us. And what I want you to notice, there are a couple of things we learned from this.
And number 1 is, in the transfiguration, what we get is a clarification on who Jesus is. Remember, the response was, well, maybe you're Elijah or John the Baptist or one of the prophets. And all of a sudden, within the transfiguration, again, Peter, James, and John, the insiders who have been with Jesus in special times, when he raised Jairus' daughter, especially. But all of a sudden, alright, if they're grasping or grappling with who is Jesus, is he John the Baptist? Is he a prophet like Moses or is he Elijah?
Well, all of a sudden, Elijah and Moses are standing there. He's not them. He is with them. He is like them in his prophetic work, but he is obviously not them. And so they get clarity on, no, he is definitely definitely not one of these other people.
Number 2, God testifies. All of a sudden you hear another voice, and again, I go to James Earl Jones, I don't know what God's voice sounds like to you guys, but I go James Earl Jones, But this is my son. What other time does god show up and do that? Jesus baptism. So the beginning of Jesus' work in ministry and right here at the end, god testifies, this is my son.
They are getting complete clarity on who Jesus is, and maybe more importantly, after this episode, who he's not. He's not one of these other people. He is truly the son of god. And B, what we see from this is the Kingdom of God breaking into the world through this transfiguration. Now, what you'll notice within Scripture is a lot of things, a lot of interactions with God happens on mountains, and that's where they are now.
We're not exactly sure which mountain it was on, but all of a sudden, there's this understanding that the world is almost like a a snow globe of sorts, Where if you get high enough, you kind of break into, you know, another place. And what you see in this is we are on a mountain and we have gone up and God has come down, and you see the meeting of the kingdom of God. We are now together. God is here. Not only God, but all of a sudden, you have Moses and Elijah.
Now, I would like to know how they knew it was Moses and Elijah, because they didn't live during that time. Trading card, maybe had a Hi, my name is sticker on it. I don't know. Nice to meet you. But they knew.
Something was happening. But this is the end breaking of the kingdom of god. This is a foreshadowing of exactly what Jesus has come to do. Jesus didn't just come so everybody could be smarter. Jesus came to bring the kingdom of god to the world, And this is exactly what we should be doing.
That as we go as we go as salt and light into the world, we go as people bringing the kingdom of god. Those times when you know, well, I should act this way but I really don't want to, bring the Kingdom of God. That time this afternoon when somebody cuts you off on I-ten and you'd really like to wave at them with the wrong, you know, variation of fingers, bring the kingdom of God. You know what I'm talking about, don't you? You experience forces from our society all the time.
We should be pushing back with the kingdom of God, and that's what you see right here, is the kingdom of God and earth clashing together. And we understand that the kingdom of God is progressing or should be as we enter the world and as we affect the world, but we understand that eventually the Kingdom of God is going to take over the world. That at the end, when God kicks evil to the curb, we will experience the peace, we will experience everything that we wish society would be now, we experience greater than all of that. And as we go and as we plan and as we do all of the things we will do this week and this month and this year, we should be going helping the kingdom of god come into the world. Now, why is that important?
Well, the next story is a few verses. I don't think it's too long here. But I want you to notice kind of this, again, kingdom of God coming into the world and affecting people's lives. So, and they and when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them and scribes arguing with them. And immediately, all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him.
And he asked them, what are you arguing about with them? And someone from the crowd answered them, teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able. And he answered them, oh, faithless generation.
How long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me. Now let's stop right there for just a second. That might not be your picture of Jesus.
Jesus was fully human, and I think we see this right now. He's almost doing a a a palm slap on his head. What am I gonna do with you, oh faithless generation? Who's he talking to? Probably everybody.
We're we're not exactly sure. He doesn't say, hey, specifically you. But there's a lot going on here that they just don't have the faith they should have. Oh, faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?
Bring him to me. And they brought the boy to him, and when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. And Jesus asked his father, how long has this been happening to him? He said, from childhood. It has often cast him into fire and into water to destroy him, but if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.
Now, this sounds like epilepsy. Now, the Scripture is clear, and that sometimes these things are demonic, and sometimes they are health reasons. This is like epileptic seizures, epileptic things, but Jesus clearly says, this is a demon. This is what this is coming from. And so the question is, if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.
Jesus' response is, if you can. If you can. Remember, old faithless generation. He's trying something, but it's like his faith isn't quite there. Have you been there before?
I'd really like I really hope this happens, but I know in my soul and my spirit, my faith is not fully behind it. If you can, and Jesus said, all things are possible for one who believes. Do you believe that, church? Do you believe it? Because I I think both in our personal lives and in our church, we put our own mental roadblocks to this can't happen.
And the only reason this can't happen is because you don't have the faith for it to happen. Do you believe God can make anything happen? Do you? All things are possible for one who believes, But often we put in the mental roadblocks that could never happen, that could never work out, I'll never be able to pay you that $90,000 for him to go to school, right? You better get a scholarship, son.
All things are possible for those who believe. When Valentin shared that story this morning, I've I've shared with you before, there have been times in my life where I have had situations where somebody needed something, needed to give more, I was convicted to to offer more than I thought I could give, and it was almost like, I don't wanna put myself on a a pedestal because I don't I don't think I should be. It was almost like, well, I don't know how it's gonna work out. I I would like to tell you that I said, God's gonna provide, right, Valentin? But God's got me.
But often, it was with fear. I don't know how I'm gonna get through this, but every time god blessed me in some way where I was given an opportunity to earn more money or to make up even more than what I had given, and every time I am reminded that all things are possible not because of me but because of God. I am just a believer but do you believe? James will say, hey, you need to pray, but you need to pray with the right motives. You need to pray fully believing that things can happen.
That's right now, that thing you're struggling with in your marriage, in your job, in our church, and what you want to accomplish, and people you want to bring to Christ. Christ. All things are possible. Immediately, the father of the child cried out and said, I believe help my unbelief. Man, I I I identify with that.
I believe I have some belief. That that's the way I think I've I've done that in the past. I believe it can work out. I don't know how. But please help me to fully believe in a way that I can just trust.
You ever been around someone who just felt you felt like they've got full trust in god? God's gonna catch them and it and it's like, well, how do I get there? I believe, but help me in my unbelief. Help me to feel fully that, god, you are in control and you can take care of this and you have me. Help me in my unbelief, and I love what what Jesus did.
And when Jesus saw that the crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit saying to it, you mute and deaf spirit, I command you come out of him and never enter him again. And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, he's dead. And back to kind of the, what was going on with the kid, the way they noticed that it was demonic, you noticed that he said, hey. It's even trying to throw him in water to drown him. He's trying to throw him into fire.
He's trying to kill him. This is some evil happening, not that he's just collapsing. He's trying to kill him. And so all of a sudden, he had these convulsions, and this kid is like a corpse. And most of them said, he's dead, and Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.
Praise god. To us reading this morning, maybe you don't identify with that, but if it was your kid or one of your family members, you'd say praise god, wouldn't you? That he's been cleansed from this. Said, and when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, why could we not cast it out? It's a great question because they've been given the power to do all kinds of things.
Right? Why why can we not cast it out, Jesus? What was the issue with us? And he said to them, this kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer. Sometimes, we feel like we are so in control.
We forget who's in control. Sometimes, we desire the power over our lives that we forget who actually has power. Even the disciples who had been given power, who had experienced casting out demons, healing people, doing all of these things, all of a sudden are faced with a situation where what they knew to do wasn't working. I am a fixer. I try to do things, and then oftentimes, I forget.
I have a lack of faith. I haven't given this to God yet. I love people who pray first every time. Evan is really good. Every time we eat, we may be 3 bites in.
We hadn't prayed. And he is a reminder to us, let's pray. That should be a part of every single thing we do, church. That this doesn't this specific situation doesn't get out. This demon cannot be cast out without prayer.
And so I ask you this morning, in 2025, what does your prayer life look like? Now, we get a lot of different scriptures on prayer that we should pray without ceasing, And that feels almost too big, doesn't it? Because I think we think in in formalities and and maybe what we experience here that I'm gonna stand up and I'm gonna say a prayer over us, and it's gotta be this long, and we have to ask for these certain things. But But I think what we ought to do is just have that relationship with God that is just an ongoing conversation. How many of you have lost people that you you love and would love to have a conversation with right now?
Yeah. How special would that conversation be if you could have it right now? We should have that kind of relationship with God that we are he is available all the time to have those things, to hear our deepest, darkest secrets. He knows them anyway, doesn't he? One of my favorite preachers, he was preaching through Psalms and talking about the lament Psalms, where the psalmist is really angry at God.
Have you ever been there? And he said, well, look, you know, this is in our Bibles, this is the songbook that they used, people being mad at God, and he said, you can be mad at God, and somebody said, well, if I was mad at God, I sure wouldn't tell him. What's your view of God? What is your view of God? God is our father, available, open for all those deep conversations that you're afraid to have with anyone else.
That we could pray as a church, we could pray as individuals to open our eyes that, god, I believe, help me in my unbelief. Did you pray that this morning? Let's do so together. Would you pray with me? God, our father, lord, we we come to you this morning.
God, as we open up a new year, as we look forward to things we'd like to accomplish, as we look forward to, Lord, getting past different things in our lives, whether it be financial or something to do with our health. God, every everything in our lives seeks to destroy our faith. Lord, our own freedom and power and desire seeks to, put us in control instead of honoring you. God, we wanna pray this morning as a church, Lord, that there may be things in our mind that that we can't do or we don't think are possible. God, we wanna lift it up everything, our all all of our desires and just give them to you, and and, God, just pray that, lord, if it be your will, lord, that we desire what you want to do in this place.
And, lord, we may not see the way forward, we may not understand how things could come about, but, god, we wanna just lift these things up to you, lord, that we pray exactly what was prayed here, lord, that we believe, but help our unbelief. Lord, we wanna see things that we don't even think are possible. Lord, we want to give you the glory and the honor when, we see those things play out in our lives. God, lift us up, put us on our feet, help us to encourage one another, and and Lord draw encouragement from one another as we go about this life. God I pray for, the marriages that are here.
Lord I pray that you strengthen each one of them. I pray that our families are are strong and, Lord, where we have failings, Lord, that we are, we are intent. We are doing things with intent to to help and Lord to draw all of ourselves, to you. God I pray for those who, are single in this place. I pray for, everyone who, Lord just just looks to draw power from you, to draw encouragement from one another, and and God that we all, no matter our situation or station in life, Lord, we go from this place.
And Lord, we pray that we impact the community in the way that we we know we should and and Lord, that we want that. Help our desires. Lord, help us to always desire you. And, God, we pray for 2025. Lord, this will be a a period of abundance in our church that many people will be brought to you.
God, help us in that. Help our unbelief. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. The story of the transfiguration clarifies who Jesus is.
It clarifies who's he who he is not. But the conversation will continue to be in our own lives. Who is Lord? Who are you allowing to be Lord of your life? And I hope that for our church that we have chosen to step aside and let God work and see what he can do.
If you have any needs this morning, we'd love to pray with you. If you'd like to begin that walk with him and be baptized into the name of Jesus, we'd love to see that, begin this morning. But look at 2025. Continue to pray, continue to have hope, and continue to believe. Would you come as we stand and serve?