Historic First Lutheran Church of Pasadena

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

About a month ago, during that period of time when I was experiencing chronic pain, I had two days ordered by my doctor to stay home. I wasn’t supposed to sit. That caused pain. I wasn’t supposed to stand. That caused pain. I wasn’t supposed to move around. That caused pain. So for two days, I laid around on my belly. I slept a lot and I watched a lot of television.

One of those days I watched a special on the National Geographic Channel about Islam, particularly Islam’s treatment of women and the controversy concerning the hijab, the scarf or veil that many believe that the Quran compels women to wear outside the home. Many traditional followers of Islam believe a woman uncovered by the hijab is trying to seduce men so they mandate that the hijab be worn everywhere except the home where only the husband is allowed to enjoy the beauty of his wife. Many more modern followers of Islam – men and women alike – view the hijab as repressive, an outdated tradition and a limiting of women’s freedoms. It really was a fantastically well-done program and it was comforting for me to know that Lutherans are not the only religious group to have such diverse opinions while discussing the same passages.

Today’s sermon is not about the hijab, but it is about veils and their purposes – intentional and unintentional.

On the Mount of Transfiguration [Luke 9:28-26], we’re told that Jesus’ glory shone forth in unveiled splendor. In the course of praying, communicating with His Heavenly Father, Jesus’ face changed. His clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Moses and Elijah appeared alongside Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration and they also were seen in glorious splendor.

To Peter, James and John, the witnesses of the Transfiguration of Jesus, that moment must have triggered a memory in their own religious training, the account handed down from generation to generation of how Moses looked when he came down Mount Sinai after receiving the Ten Commandments from the Lord. After spending time with the Lord God Almighty on holy ground, Moses’ appearance was so stunningly shocking that he frightened people. No one would come near Moses, so a solution was developed. Moses had to put a veil over his face when he was in the presence of everyone but the Lord to lessen the shine and the shock factor. When he’d enter again into the presence of the Lord, he’d take off the veil, but in the presence of the people the veil covered his face.

I’d like to think that week after week those of us who come to Historic First Lutheran for Sunday School and Bible Class, for Sunday Worship and Prayer Force One encounter the very presence of the Living God, just as did Moses on Mount Sinai, just as did Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. That is God’s promise – that wherever even two or three gather in His Name, there He is in their midst and they are standing on holy ground [Matthew 18:20]. That means when we walk out those back doors, people driving on Los Robles should be blinded by the flashes of glory and splendor leaving the presence of God, at least figuratively, if not literally.

That, after all, I believe, is God’s intention for how worship and life goes. It was the reason Moses was ordered to hike up Mount Sinai, spend some time with God, then ordered to march back on down the mountain and spend some time with the people. He couldn’t just stay on top of the mountain with God. It was the reason Peter, James and John were not allowed to build those three shelters on the Mount of Transfiguration. Jesus knew that it was not God’s plan for them to just pause at the moment and not allow that glory of God to be seen by others.

So it is with us. We are not to veil our appearance as we leave this place, as we leave the presence of the Living God, fed and nourished by His own Body and Blood. God does not employ secret agents. He doesn’t need people to mask their appearance so that no one knows who they are, so that no one sees their beauty and splendor. No – just the opposite – God wants His glory to be seen in us and through us.

Not only does God not need secret agents, but this world doesn’t need secret agents. I am not telling you anything you don’t already know, but there are many hurting people in our world – whether or not they admit it. They are people we know – family members and friends. They are also people we don’t know – the stranger on the street. And, often, you and I are included among those hurting people. Those hurting people are each looking for something. They’re looking for something – anything – that gives them relief from the trials and troubles of this world. They’re looking for something – anything – that will help them make sense of this world. They’re looking for something – anything – that gives meaning and purpose to life. They’re looking for something – anything – that gives their lives value.

I hope right now you’re screaming in your own head, “But God, revealed in Jesus, does all that!” That’s the point I am trying to make and that’s exactly what God has had in mind since the beginning of this world.

God, revealed in Jesus, says, “Come unto Me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest” [Matthew 11:28].

God, revealed in Jesus, says, “For I know the plans that I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future” [Jeremiah 29:11].

God, revealed in Jesus, says, “Come! Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men” [Matthew 4:19]

God, revealed in Jesus, says, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” [John 15:13] and He has made us His friends by suffering, dying and rising again for the entire world, for hurting people like you and like me.

People today need to see the glory of God. They need to know that there is a God. They need to know that there is a loving God. They need to know that God dwells among us. Chances are likely, they’re not going to come wandering into the church any more than the people of Israel hiked up Mount Sinai or any more than the other nine disciples hiked up the Mount of Transfiguration. There is an inherent fear in people seeking out God. But people are open to connecting with someone who is connected to the Living God, someone who can be an ambassador, someone who can reveal to them in little ways a little at a time the splendid glory and mercy and love of God.

So, my friends, soak up the glory of God again today! Let the message of His great love for you in Jesus Christ inspire you and set you on fire so that His glory may be seen my others.

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Pastor Christopher Schaar
Historic First Lutheran Church of Pasadena