Welcome (2 Corinthians 4:3-6)

And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Preparation: Bind us together

Call to Worship (Psalm 50:1-6)

The mighty one, God the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. Our God comes and does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, and a mighty tempest all around him.

He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people: "Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!"

The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge.

Hymn: Blessed be the Lord God Almighty

Prayer

God of love, 

Your overflowing love fills us to the full. In your love we are nourished and flourish as people who share love freely and unconditionally. In your grace, come to us now as we worship you.

Long ago, you sent your Son as the very love that called the world to yourself in order to save the world. Today, through the Holy Spirit you continue to call the world to yourself to receive your Son as the source of life for all. On this day through the event of transfiguration you reinstill in us the love that leads to salvation for mankind once again.

We come, humbled by your infinite grace, embraced by eternal compassion and enfolded in your mercy. Receive this worship, we pray. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Scripture: Mark 9:2-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!" Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

Sermon: Remembering Transfiguration for Today

Let’s look at life today somewhat differently. For Americans it is the Super Bowl Sunday. Many Canadians will be watching the Kansas City Chiefs battling the San Francisco 49ers also. For the rest of the world, the most important sporting event is the World Cup Football where people kicking the balls with skills will be lifted up as heroes. Why, if you watch the people’s reactions to their team winning and losing, you wonder where all these passions come from. There are reasons as to why we call these people fanatics or fans for short.

The whole concept of the sport tournaments are built on an idea that one team or person will win in the end. The winner will be the lone surviving person or team. The rest lick the wounds of defeat planning for the next time. It does not matter how many times teams or individual athletes lose. There always is the hope that next time the outcome will be different. Next time our team or athlete will win and avenge the shame of defeat. This never ending hope gets not only people, but entire nations, rooting for their national teams and athletes. Everyone is not deterred that there will only be one winner at all these tournaments. 

There is something very interesting about the fact that those who have never won may work hard to get to the top. They see the outpouring of exuberant joy and happiness the winners and their supporters express. They want to taste for the first time what it feels like to be on the top of the world. In the meanwhile those who have won once or more live with the remembrance of glory each time desiring to bask in the glory of winning one more time. Having experienced the joys, they want to relive that triumphant happiness. Of course, all these sentiments and euphoria are short-lived and momentary. Once the games are over, everyone returns to normal humdrum life doing what we have always done before, hoping for these splendid moments.

Our lives are indeed like pearls on a string–those precious unforgettably blissful moments collected together to propel us in hope. In between these moments are times, situations and experiences that crush life into misery. In spite of these very low moments, those jubilantly ecstatic high points in our lives make our suffering worthwhile. These few brilliant glimpses into the best of what life can be help each and everyone of us to struggle with impossible challenges we face.

In Christian faith, for a lack of better words, we describe these fantastical moments as eternal moments. That is, these are the moments that are unveiled to us to reveal to us what eternal life is in its full glory. Yes, life should be, not simply could be, fully joyful in its entirety in ways that meanings of our lives are shared with all those around us and our lives become blessings to all who live as well as witness it. These are truly the God given moments when we encounter what we are to be when all our potentials are realized. Unlike in sports, these moments are not reserved solely for winners. Rather these occasions are for all people to appreciate.

In today’s passage, Peter, James and John encounter one of these precious moments of the eternal breaking into an ordinary human time. Reading the transfiguration passage, it is quite clear that what Jesus was doing was nothing extraordinary for Jesus. He was communing with the heavenly beings in ways that he normally would interact in the heavenly realm. There is no fuss from Jesus. He was conversing with Elijah and Moses as if he was in regular daily conversations with them. Yes, it appears to us readers that he, Moses and Elijah were part of an unending conversation.

For his disciples, however, having never seen Jesus this way, the moment was not only a surprise, but also a godly moment. They saw for the first time in their lives something that was hidden from them. They were given a sliver of eternal life, where the long dead people of the past in human history were alive as eternal beings, participating in the heavenly conversation with God who was incarnate as a human being. The transfiguration was nothing more than God’s salvation history breaking into human history ever so briefly.

For Peter, James and John this was terrifying as much as it was an exhilarating moment for them. They could not figure out what was happening around them. Jesus changed. Jesus did not change in ways they could no longer recognize him. No. Jesus transfigured. The very external appearance of Jesus displayed his heavenly existence. With him were two most important prophets of Israel, Elijah and Moses. Any Israelite would understand the importance of these two prophets and what it means to see them as the living beings in God’s reign (or eternal life) regardless of the time they had been dead in this life.

In this very incredibly revealing incident, mere mortals like Peter, James and John were given an opportunity to experience the going-ons in God’s eternal realm. What grace this was for these three disciples. No wonder Peter proposed to build dwelling places for Elijah, Moses and Jesus. We may translate it as dwelling places today, but in that time, the dwelling place of heavenly beings would be the temples where the divine beings would reside. It was in this view, King David was extremely careful in heeding God’s instruction because building God’s dwelling place would have led people to worship God. Indeed, when King David felt a strong desire to build God’s dwelling place, God prohibited him from doing so.

Peter, James and John were the descendants of Israel through and through. They knew that building dwelling places would have meant the highest honour being offered to these three heavenly beings. This offer was based not only on the ecstatic outpouring of awe but also the fear before God. This fear is the honour that the faithful people accorded to God. We often hear this in the Old Testament a an echoe “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” In this fear that is part of the faithful response to God’s presence, Peter proposed to build three dwelling places.

This ever so brief intersection of heaven and earth revealed to Peter, James and John the very essence of what eternal life is. It is the summit of all lives: to be in God’s presence eternally. There is no greater joy than being part of eternity for Christians. No wonder Paul talked about how he longed to be with Christ. This was the time equalling to occasions when prophets like Isaiah, Ezekiel, Amos and Daniel witnessed God’s glory. These are the ultimate moments for all those who were given the grace to glimpse the very existence of heaven. Yes, this event would be like Christians finally arriving at their destination.

Like those fans of sports, we long to experience this ecstasy, euphoria, whatever we call it to enjoy the life fulfilling moment over and over. We  yearn for this. Transfiguration Sunday is when we remember how glorious it was for Peter, James and John to experience what was to come in Christ Jesus for all Christians. We seek the same glory and joy for each of us. Yet, in our case, we prepare our hearts and minds to walk with Christ all the way to Golgotha, his death on the cross and resurrection on the third day. Transfiguration is the summit we are headed for, the moment of eternity that will encompass us and give us the foretaste of eternal life under God’s reign.

Prayer

God of glory, God of love,              

You are our God in this world full of troubles. You lead us. You are by us. You are with us. You guard us with your steadfast love. In your presence, we come and offer all our concerns in our hearts. Hear our prayer.

We pray for the people who fear for their lives as their loved ones are hurt and killed in war torn areas. In Ukraine, Yemen, Gaza and many other places, those who are powerless, weak and meek are facing death minute by minute, day by day because the people in power refuse to come to agreements to build peace. We pray for those civilians who are caught in these terrible carnage. We entrust all those lives who are caught in these wars into your hands.

We pray for the people who are searching for your guidance in poverty and in hunger. Each day we hear that more and more people around the world are added to those who no longer have homes, no longer are able to eat sufficiently and no longer are able to care for their loved ones because they are poor. So many of them are living vicariously begging for food and being taken advantage of by those who have evil intentions. As the God who lifts up the lowly and fills the hungry, guard and protect them. Make us bring your compassion to them through sharing of your blessings.

We pray for the people who lost their way due to unforeseen circumstances. Many are mired in addiction as they try to escape from their troubles. Many are caught in the vicious cycle of mental illnesses. Many are doing their best, but after some progress, they fall back into the snares of depressions and anxieties. No matter how hard they try, a momentary lapse plunges them into the abyss of hopelessness. Be with them. Walk with them. Restrain us from being judgemental, vengeful and angry against them. Give us courage to be their brothers and sisters who bring nothing but your love and support. 

We pray for your children who seek a life of peace, yet are only finding disappointments. Their future is precarious because they depend on the powerful gatekeepers in our world. Their efforts and determination are sometimes not sufficient to keep them in hope and good cheer. We pray that you will fill these officers with gentleness and wisdom to see how you have been guiding all your children through thick and thin. May your hand hold your children strongly as they wait patiently for their future to be open to them here in your vineyard.

We pray for those who are travelling or away from home. Be with each of them. Give them health and guidance. Bring them home safely.

We pray for those among us who are ill. Diseases have taken hold of many of your people who belong to this congregation. As their bodies wreathe in discomfort and pain, hold them steady in your hand. Give them healing. Be with doctors, nurses and caregivers as they bring your healing to those who are struggling.

We pray for our neighbours who are facing difficulties. Some are homeless. Others are lacking food. Many are finding they live life on edge due to financial hardship. As we share with them your blessings, empower us to share abundantly and freely. Give us boldness to share peace that Christ supplies to us. 

So many of us have our own prayers. Because we do not have sufficient understanding of the needs of each person, we lift up everyone’s prayer through the prayer your Son taught us. Hear all of our prayers that reside in the depths of our hearts when we say together, “Our Father…”

Offering/Offering Prayer

Announcements

All You Can Eat Pancake Supper

Please remember that one of our preparations for Lent is to join together on Tuesday, February 13 between 4 pm to 6 pm All You Can Eat Pancake Supper. The fee is $5. Come and join us.

Ash Wednesday Worship

On Wednesday, February 14 at 10 am, we will have our Ash Wednesday Worship Service to begin our Lent (40 Days of Walking with Christ). If you are able, please join us. We will also provide an online worship and send out the link.

Prayer Time

Every Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 pm, we get together to pray. Please come and join us.

Lent Devotions

Every Wednesday during Lent, we will be holding Lent Devotions at 10:30 am. If you are able to attend, please come and join us for this fellowship.

Hymn: And Can it be

Benediction