doxa – glory: splendour, brightness, magnificence, excellence, preeminence, dignity, grace, majesty, the kingly majesty which belongs to him as supreme ruler, majesty in the sense of the absolute perfection of the deity, the absolutely perfect inward or personal excellency of Christ, a most glorious condition, most exalted state,!
Can ANY description by a man illuminate the glory of Christ Jesus?
On a mountaintop [photo above] three Apostles witnessed the glory of Christ Jesus like no other witnesses in the history of all mankind.
Luke 9:28-36
Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray.
Do not overlook (as I have before) that Jesus was taking His friends to a place to pray with Him to the Living God. Gethsemane was not the only place or time Jesus prayed with His Disciples.
Peter, James and John, who were nearest of Jesus’ Disciples on nearly every occasion in the three years of His earthly ministry, witnessed an amazing Presence which assured them (like no other) the the True identity and Image of the Son of God: the Messiah.
29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.
30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
Imagine the awe of witnessing a conversation of your nearest and dearest friend with two of the most glorious servants of God in all history; two men who also had not set foot on this creation for many centuries past.
Moses had saved God’s chosen people and given us God’s Law. Elijah had shown the Power of the Living God over lifeless idols, lifeless flesh and an often lifeless disobedient people chosen by the Living God.
Yet like in Gethsemane, Jesus prayed with the Father for hours beyond the endurance of the weaker flesh of Peter and John to endure without sleep. (I must also confess this great weakness to endure long in prayer.)
32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him.
33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said.
What would be your reaction be to such glory of holiness on this mountain?
What would be your reaction to this vision of glory?
Worship! Peter, James and John wanted to immediately create a place of worship; a place like the Tabernacle of Moses or the Temple of Solomon where the Very Presence of the Living God had come down to be witnessed by man.
Yet the awe of their glory of the Presence of God became even more filled with the overflowing glory of God the Father in the Presence of Christ Jesus.
34 As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.
35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”
GLORY! to GOD in the HIGHEST!
PRAISE to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit!
36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.
…
How they must have worshiped Jesus! How impactful this superlative moment of glory in the lives of mortal men; yet the three mortal witnesses: Peter, James and John, undoubtedly received a command from Jesus to withhold their witness for a time, that His glory might be accomplished in Jerusalem on the Cross and from victory over sin and death in the Resurrection.
And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.
Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”