Metamorpho: Transfigured Before Them

In one paragraph

Pastor Ray walked the congregation through the account of the Transfiguration in Matthew, placing it six months before the cross and connecting it to the broader arc of the gospel story. The central idea was that the same Greek word used for what happened to Jesus on that mountain, metamorpho, appears in Romans 12 and 2 Corinthians 3 to describe what God is doing in believers. Transformation is...

Read together

1. Matthew 16:16 Peter's confession, 'Thou art the Christ, Son of the living God'
2. Matthew 16:18 Jesus saying 'upon this rock I will build my church'
3. Matthew 16:21-23 Jesus foretells his death and resurrection; Peter rebukes him and Jesus says 'Get behind me, Satan'
4. Matthew 16:24-26 Jesus calls disciples to self-denial, taking up the cross, and warns about forfeiting one's soul
5. Matthew 16:27-28 Son of man coming in glory; some standing there will not taste death before seeing the Son of man in his kingdom
6. Matthew 17:1-9 The transfiguration of Jesus before Peter, James and John; Moses and Elijah appear; voice from the cloud
7. Matthew 3:16-17 Voice from heaven at Jesus' baptism saying 'This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased'
8. Deuteronomy 18:15 Moses foretells a prophet like himself whom the people shall listen to
9. Matthew 17:10-13 Disciples ask about Elijah coming first; Jesus says Elijah already came and they did not recognize him
10. Matthew 21:23-27 Chief priests question Jesus' authority; Jesus counters with a question about John's baptism
11. Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind
12. 2 Corinthians 3:18 We all with unveiled faces looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord are being transformed into the same image
13. Ephesians 3:14-19 Paul's prayer that believers be strengthened, that Christ dwell in their hearts, and that they be filled to all the fullness of God
14. Ephesians 3:20-21 Benediction: God able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think

Talk about it

1. Ray talked about God showing him a little more of himself at a time, from childhood through college and marriage. Can you think of a moment when God showed you something true about yourself that you had been blind to before?
2. Ray described Peter jumping in with 'Lord, it is good that we are here, I will make three tabernacles,' and connected it to our tendency to focus on doing rather than being. Where in your own life do you find yourself reaching for something to do for God rather than waiting on Him?
3. When Jesus was transfigured, the voice from the cloud said 'This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.' What does it actually look like, day to day, to listen to Jesus rather than to the voices that push us toward what is politically or personally expedient?
4. Romans 12 says 'do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind,' and Ray pointed out that the verb is passive. What is the difference between trying to transform yourself and humbling yourself so that God can transform you, and how have you experienced that difference?
5. Ray closed with the image from 2 Corinthians 3 of looking in a mirror and seeing the glory of the Lord, because Christ dwells in us. What would change about how you face the coming week if you took that seriously?