“Encounters with God that Reshape Us” 2013

Genesis 28:10-17 Luke 9:28-36

Genesis 28:10-17

Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And the Lord stood beside him and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring. Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

Luke 9:28-36

Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” —not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

During a Bible study on the book of Genesis one time,

when we got to the stories about Jacob,

one of the participants got very upset;

that a sneaky and conniving lowlife like Jacob

was even mentioned in Holy Scripture.

“How could a story about Jacob

possibly be beneficial to anyone’s faith?”, she insisted.

When his brother was hungry,

he wouldn’t even share a bowl of stew with him

until he agreed to trade away his birthright,

his rightful share of the family inheritance.

In the Genesis passage we read today, Jacob was on the run.

Jacob was alone, afraid and fleeing for his life from Esau.

In perhaps the first case in history of identity theft,

he had exploited his aging father’s blindness

and deceived Isaac into falsely giving him

the paternal blessing intended for Esau.

That was finally too much for Esau, who decided to kill him,

and so his sneaky deceptions finally caught up with Jacob,

and he had lost it all, family, home and his future.

All alone and estranged in the wilderness he stops for the night,

and falls into the exhausted darkness of a troubled sleep…

… of having to face the truth and the consequences

of his dishonest scheming and lack of character.

But then, there at Bethel,

while running away, Jacob has an encounter with the Lord.

There God offers a vision of unexpected blessings and hope.

Not the harsh judgment Jacob deserves, but incredible grace,

the promise that God will be with him and bless him always.

vs. 13~15

And the LORD stood beside him and said, "I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; …

Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

God was binding himself to this dubious and devious character,

extending to him all the promises made earlier to Abraham.

Jacob has lived shamelessly, yet God promises to love & bless him.

Even without having to be worthy, deserving or earning it …

… God makes an unbelievably gracious promise,

“I love you and I will take care of you”…

… and this encounter with God’s gracious care and mercy

will begin a process of reshaping Jacob and his life.

Certainly we reject Jacob’s deplorable lack of integrity & ethics

but what an amazing and wonderful picture of our God,

who loves even Jacob,

even before Jacob has started to reform…

… before that grace had even begun to reshape his life.

This story about Jacob’s encounter with God

tells us much about the mercy, compassion and grace of God,

who continuously invites us and always welcomes us

ever deeper into a more authentic relationship.

Jacob was changed, not because he learned some new facts,

but began to recognize God’s gracious presence in his life…

… for when we truly encounter God, our lives begin to heal.

The other text we read, is about the transfiguration of Jesus.

It is also a story about an unexpected encounter with God.

In Luke’s gospel, Jesus and his disciples had endured

an exhausting and unrelenting schedule in Galilee

of healing, teaching, preaching and feeding the hungry.

They were now on their way to Jerusalem

where Jesus has told them, that he would suffer and die--

- and the disciples have no idea what all that meant.

Then Jesus invited three of them up a mountain to pray.

vs. 28~32

Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

This scene raises more questions for us than it answers –

but for our purpose today, the true glory of Jesus is revealed,

Moses and Elijah establish his continuity to the Old T.,

and that the events in Jerusalem will happen

all according to the plan and purpose of God…

… and at this point, on the mountaintop,

the disciples have no sense of what any of this really means.

Peter, as spokesman for the group,

confused and frightened by what they are seeing,

is unsure of how to respond, or what to do next. vs. 32

Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah’—not knowing what he said.

Apparently, Peter wants to freeze and preserve the moment,

but mercifully,

God slows him down, and redirects. vs. 34-35

While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!"

"Listen. Don't do. Don't plan. Don't arrange. Just listen!"

"Peter, stop doing, so that you can listen and think” …

for sometimes, it’s not so much of what God wants us to do

as it is of what God wants us to receive,

and who God wants us to be, and to become.

Sometimes that is the point of an encounter with God.

It’s not the event, but what it means and what it reveals,

but it would be sometime before Peter

and the disciples would be able to figure that out.

vs. 36

When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

This encounter with God has left them speechless,

and so they came down the mountain in silence… smart move…

… and probably it wasn’t until well after the resurrection

that the events of the transfiguration began to make sense,

that the truth and the glory of Jesus, the Son of God,

had been revealed to them on that mountain.

The point was for the transfiguration to prepare the disciples,

for the horrific events coming up in Jerusalem,

and to strengthen them to endure for the journey ahead,

equipping them to fulfill the Church’s mission.

These two Bible stories about encounters with God got me thinking

about some my own experiences along my journey of faith…

… places and times, events of God’s transforming

grace and presence that helped shape my life.

Life events that grounded me in the Christian faith,

sometimes events that shocked and jolted me awake,

and others as signs of God’s grace and compassion.

* So where along your spiritual journey of faith have you

encountered God, had moments of insight and inspiration?

* What were the events of your growing deeper in your faith,

through which you more clearly saw and recognized

the truth and glory, the grace and will of God for you?

One childhood memory has kept coming to mind this week.

It was when I was about 9, and went with my family

to a Billy Graham Crusade held in Boston Garden.

Though it was a long time ago, but I still remember vividly

the power of his preaching about God’s love for us,

and the amazing sense of God’s grace and invitation

as I watched so many people respond to his call.

It was an amazing experience, an encounter with God

that has stayed with me for nearly 50 years …

and helped lay a path & foundation for my walk of faith.

This week we begin Lent, our season of preparation for Easter,

so that we are ready for the victory & promise of resurrection.

The Bible texts we looked at, stories about an encounter with God,

suggested to me a possible Lenten project for this season,

one in which we might consider our own encounters with God

and explore our own faith-shaping experiences.

I encourage you to take this on as a personal spiritual project.

First, write out your own faith-autobiography,

and describe the events along your journey;

how did you get started, and when did

Jesus become more than just a name to you?

What gave been the important events, turns along your trek?

You may want to work on your biography over several days,

adding more detail as things continue to occur to you.

Second, from your faith-autobiography,

prepare a brief timeline of your journey with God.

And finally, each day during Lent,

select a single event from your timeline,

and reflect more deeply on that encounter with God…

…asking yourself, how was that particular event

formative or helpful in developing your faith?

What did it say or what does it reveal to you about your God,

about God’s nature, God’s love, God’s will and purpose?

What did it reveal or teach you

about who you are as a beloved and chosen child of God?,

and what sort of response would match that grace?

The point is, what can we learn

by reflecting on and listening to our own life encounters…

… as guided by the Holy Spirit,

through the witness and testimony of Scripture,

as we think about and reflect more deeply

on our own faith encounters with God?

This year during Lent, what can we learn by listening?

As we sang earlier,

Through many dangers, toils and snares... we have already come.

T'was Grace that brought us safe thus far... and Grace will lead us home.