In Matthew's Steps: Finding Signs

The First Steps: Read: Matthew 17

Focus Verse: "...I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but they did to him whatever they pleased." (17:12)

Meditation: The One Behind It All

A few years ago, Halloween, my kids and I dressed up as we usually do. I took out of our Halloween bins a mask, the face of an alien. Our kids were younger then and hadn't actually seen their daddy in a mask like that. Quietly I came up behind my kids and just tapped them on the shoulder.

They jumped! High in the air! I tried to talk to them, but my daughter kept pointing up at the face. Finally, I took the mask off and showed them my face. "It's me. It's just me!" I said.

They stared for a moment, back and forth, from the mask to my face before they smiled and laughed.

"You're silly, Daddy!" they exclaimed.

The unveiling is precisely what is happening in this, the seventeenth chapter of Matthew.

At the start of this chapter, Jesus is miraculously revealed as God's Son in his transfiguration. "...his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white." Moses and Elijah come and join the party and the three of them are seen chatting together. And then the voice that is repeated in three of the four Gospels. "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased."

What a marvelous unveiling! What a look at the God who is behind it all. Jesus takes off the mask and reveals who he is. And it is glorious!

Unfortunately only Peter, James, and John get to see this take place. And even they are "...overcome with fear." It's only when Jesus puts the mask back on and touches their shoulder saying: "Get up and do not be afraid." That they calm down.

Still do they know Jesus as Lord? Do they recognize they're in the presence of God's Son? Not hardly! In fact, Jesus says, they failed to recognize the Elijah of their day when he came to warn them. What's to say they're going to recognize Jesus for who he is? No amount of miraculous signs and wonders is going to accomplish this. As if to prove that, in this chapter alone, Jesus does two more signs and wonders to show them who he is. A boy with an incurable demon is cured! The temple tax is paid by a coin in the belly of a fish. But still these signs still don't convince them. Something larger is needed. The life of the Son of Man. Maybe if they see the Son of Man die and rise from the dead. Maybe that will show the world that God loves them. Maybe faith will flourish then...

I've often wondered what it would be like to live back during Jesus' earthly life. To walk with him. To listen to him. To see and experience his miracles first-hand. Would I have understood? What I have seen Jesus for who he was? I think not. For the signs of who Jesus is are present more today than they were then.

True... demons might not be expelled from epileptics so dramatically. Coins might not be found in fish. Elijah and Moses haven't made appearances at church. But signs and wonders of God are all around us, pointing us to Christ and to his love for us.

For starters, adorning most Christian churches is a sign. The sign of the cross. Have you ever wondered why there are so many of them all around? Why people wear them on their necks and churches display them about? They are God's love made real. A cross is a sign of God's love in Christ. Gazing up at it, we see the wonder of God's presence with us and evidence of God's love for us. As sure as any of the miracles Jesus performed we have this as a sign of God's love among us.

We also have with us the least, the little, the lost, the poor. We have those who Christ loved and cherished. They too are signs of God's presence. Christ tells us later in Matthew that "whatever we do to the least of these you do for me." Signs of God's presence can be seen in the faces of the poorest among us. As we minister to them. As we take care of them. We are in the presence of God Almighty. Our care and concern become the love of God made real in their lives.

Signs of God are all around us. We need only open our eyes and look. What signs and wonders has God shown you in your life? How are you sure of His presence here in this place? Amen.

Questions to Ponder...
1) Imagine being a disciple during Jesus life. What would you have liked seeing? What would you have missed? How would your upbringing have influenced your view of Jesus?
2) What signs and wonders is God doing right now in your life? Take a moment and list a few ordinary miracles that are happening now.
3) Would it comfort you to know that Jesus is with you, masked and hidden at times, in everything you do? What might that faith do to your life?

A Prayer to Pray...
Heavenly Father, at the mountain of transfiguration you reveal your Son to be the Beloved, and yet we see his path take him to the cross. Help us follow after your Son wherever He is. Give us eyes to see your Spirit at work in the world around us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.