Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother 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 fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with
Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, "Rabbi, it is good that we are
here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for
Elijah." He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified. Then a cloud
came, casting a shadow over them; from the cloud came a voice, "This is my
beloved Son. Listen to him." Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw
anyone but Jesus alone with them. (Mark 9: 2-10)
As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not
to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen
from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising
from the dead meant.
Introductory Prayer: Lord,
I believe in your wondrous shining glory, although this is hidden from my eyes.
I hope in the peace and everlasting joy of the world to come, for this world is
a valley of tears. I love you, even though I am not always able to discern the
love in your intentions when you permit me to suffer. You are my God and my
all.
Petition: Lord, detach my
heart from the world, and allow me to live for love of you.
1. The Great Exodus: Jesus
was conversing with Moses and Elijah about his exodus: the liberation of
mankind from the slavery to sin. He was not speaking about the miracles he
would perform, the comforts or beauty of this world, or the ambitions he might
hold. He was not concerned with the opportunities he might have to use his
talents, to achieve great things, to win esteem from others, to make a name for
himself, or to rest and relax. Jesus was not speaking about any of these
things. His only desire was his exodus – his suffering and death and departure
from this world to glorify his Father, fulfilling his will by saving mankind.
2. The Promised Land: Our
hearts can love and be attached to many things: ambitions, desires, hopes,
esteem, comfort, getting things done, using our talents, self-fulfillment. Our
Lord chose to subordinate all these possibilities to the love of his Father.
This is what it means to follow Christ and be “detached” from the world: to be
ready to give up any of these goods for love of Christ, should he require us to
do so. We must be so in love with Christ that we esteem him more than all of
these other loves. This is the true Promised Land and true liberation from the
slavery of egoism. The fruits of dying to self in this way are joy, peace, love
and eternal li3. Rising from a Seed: “Unless a grain of wheat falls to
the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat” (John 12:24). All of our
loves have to be purified, dying like seeds in the ground, because all of our
loves have a strong elements of self-centeredness embedded in them. It is this
self-centeredness that must be uprooted and die. If we analyze what we love we
will see that this is true. A wife who loves her husband may experience a
self-centered aspect of her love that causes her to seek to control him. A
father who loves his son might punish him out of his anger instead of for the
son’s greater good. The self-centered element of our love impoverishes and
tarnishes it, causing us, in reality, to love much less than we are capable of
loving.
Conversation with Christ: Lord,
free my heart from every selfish aspect of my love. Help me make that generous
step of “dying to self” in this way. Help me to understand that this will
always lead to true freedom and joy in my heart and to a greater capacity of
true self-giving.
Resolution: I will make a generous decision to overcome some area of selfishness in
a relationship today.
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