Through faith, God’s promises are forever

Today I will use St. Peter’s second letter as the basis for this column (2 Peter 1:16-19). It is good for us to see Jesus in all of his glory as we prepare to leave that mountain and see him go to another mountain, Mt. Calvary, to pay for the price of the sins of all people.

Have you ever heard the phrase “attitude adjustment?” Sometimes an attitude adjustment is just what the doctor ordered to change a negative perspective on things. I’ve got another phrase for you to consider — “altitude adjustment.” Did you know that even more so an altitude adjustment can change a negative perspective on things?

There are lots of days when I’d welcome a similar perspective on life. How quickly our troubles can rise up like intimidating skyscrapers, casting dreary shadows over our hearts and minds. How those daily struggles can smack us in the face like those below-zero wind chills. What should we do? Should we stay where we are, overwhelmed by it all? Or should we wander about aimlessly trying to get our bearings? No! Let’s gain some altitude and with it a fresh perspective on life. Let’s go with Apostle Peter up the Mount of Transfiguration and see him as Peter did. Today, let’s see the glory of our transfigured Lord!

So what can Peter tell us today that will give us the altitude adjustment we so desperately need? Peter has the perfect message.

“For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.

“We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”

Friends, get on the express elevator and go to the top of that mountain with Peter. There gain a fresh perspective on life! See the glory of your transfigured Lord and know with absolute certainty that God’s word is true. You see, through Peter’s eyewitness account of Jesus’ entire life we have the word of the prophets made more certain. This book is no message in a bottle God carelessly tossed into the sea of humanity hoping somehow it reaches somebody. This book is not a set of hieroglyphics encoded by God in secretive mystery needing scholars to unlock its meaning. No, in these written scriptures that God’s guiding hand has inspired and preserved, his voice resounds through the halls of time, clearly reaching the ears and the hearts of the sinners he loves.

There are not all kinds of different ways to get right with God. There is only one — his name is Jesus! On the Mount of Transfiguration, God proclaims him to be his beloved son and in the next breath announces how pleased he is to have Jesus share his love for sinners, love that would soon send Jesus to another mountain, Calvary, where Jesus would reclaim all sinners for himself by paying for their sins in hell. With that saving mission accomplished the father would once again show his good pleasure toward the son by raising him from the dead and seating him on heaven’s glorious throne where he has the whole world in his hands.

This is the truth of God’s word that gives us a new perspective on life, because this truth lifts us high above our sin and states that no matter what we’ve done, no matter how many times we’ve done it, God’s forgiveness is ours, not because we deserve it, but because Jesus earned it for us. He’s our substitute, and since he is, when the Father says he is pleased with Jesus it means he’s also pleased with us who believe in him as our savior. Like Jesus, we are now all God’s beloved sons and daughters through faith in him.

You realize what else this means, don’t you? As you stare at Christ’s glory today here in the pages of Scripture, you’re looking at your future. So take a good look and see the glory of our transfigured Lord as evidence that God’s promises to you are forever.

God’s word will keep the light of faith shining in our hearts until that day dawns when Jesus our bright Morning Star returns in all his glory to take us home with all those who have fallen asleep in him. On that day, we too will be eyewitnesses of his majesty. It will be our turn to hear God’s voice as he welcomes us into those mansions above prepared by Jesus.

In the meantime, don’t let the sound of God’s voice grow faint in your life. Whenever sin and the cares of this world cast their dark shadows on your heart, be sure to gain some altitude. Journey through the Scriptures back to the mountain and see the glory of your transfigured Lord as proof that God’s Word is forever true and as evidence that God’s promises to you are forever sure for Jesus’ sake.

Robb Robbert is pastor of King of Kings Lutheran Church in Wasilla. Contact him at kokw@mtaonline.net.

Opinions expressed on the Faith page are the author’s and are not necessarily those of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, its staff or its parent company, Wick Communications Co. To submit a column or other news for the Faith page, send email to news@frontiersman.com, or call 352-2250.