Who am I? Answer Confirmed!
Luke 9:18-36 – November 28, 2021
Luke 9:18-20. Recall in verses 7-9 even Herod the tetrarch was perplexed and was asking, Who, then, is this I hear such things about? And that was before 5,000 men plus women and children were fed.
Where did such ideas come from? Going back to Deuteronomy 18:15-18, Moses tells Israel God will raise up a prophet like me and you must listen to him.
Also, we are not told in Luke were this took place but in Matthew 16:13 we learn it is in Caesarea Philippi, about 25 miles north of Galilee at the foot of Mt Hermon (120 miles north of Jerusalem), and that it was originally called Paneas in honor of the Greek god Pan. There is a cave there where a spring fed the Jordan River. Many believed the cave was an entry to hell or the underworld. Pagans in Jesus’ day believed fertility gods lived in the underworld and came out each spring. It was there He told Peter in Matthew 16:18, on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. BTW – this is the first mention of the word church in the NT (NIV).
Luke 9:21. Why did Jesus issue such a command to His disciples? Because they and anyone they told would not understand what He would have to go through as the Messiah. Thus, in the next verse Jesus provides an explanation that they simply cannot comprehend.
Luke 9:22. Jesus foretells His future suffering, death, and resurrection on the third day. This is His first prediction of His death and resurrection. He is not going to be some sort of ruler overthrowing the Romans as they and others likely expect from their understanding of the prophesied Messiah.
Luke 9:23-27. We don’t have anything like the cross today as it was used in the first century. The cross-bearer had committed a severe crime and needed to be put to death. Criminals bore their own crosses as they traveled to their death. This is not what it meant for a Christian. Instead it meant a Christian, a follower of Christ had to be prepared to face rejection and in some cases death as we remained accountable to God for the path we walk. At its core, it means as Christians we have died to the world, separated from it values and lifestyles.
Verse 27 has three popular explanations. 1) Jesus’ transfiguration – covered in the next nine verses. 2) The day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit falls on the disciples of Jesus. 3) The fall of Jerusalem and destruction of the Jewish state. I believe it is covered in the following verses about Jesus’ transfiguration.
Luke 9:28-36. In the accounts in Matthew and Mark we are told it is after 6 days. Matthew 17:2 tells us His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light while Mark 9:3 says, His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them.
Look at verse 31, most bible versions say Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus about His departure, but I prefer the word exodus. They are really talking about Jesus’ departure from this world, but if we use the word exodus we can easily imagine just as Moses led the Jews out of Egypt to the promised land, Jesus is leading us to an even greater and more wonderful promised land – heaven!
God interrupted Peter and in a cloud, said This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him. Listen to him! This is right out of Deuteronomy 18:15-18, where Moses tells Israel God will raise up a prophet like me and you must listen to him. God says the same thing. Listen to him.
Peter did not speak of this that we know of until in his letter 2 Peter 1:16-18. John may have been alluding to this when he wrote in John 1:4-5, 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
What are we to make of all of this? From the writings of Matthew Mark and Luke we are given a glimpse of what it will be like to have new eternal bodies like those of Moses and Elijah. How are we to get them? We need to become a disciple of Jesus by denying ourselves, taking up our cross daily and follow Him. We need to hear His words and put them into action and change our lives.
Let us not become like those God described to Ezekiel in 33:31-32, 31 My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to hear your words, but they do not put them into practice. Their mouths speak of love, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. 32 Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.
END.