The Mount of Transfiguration
"I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."
About eight days after Jesus said this he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor; talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure,
which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.
Luke 9:27-31
In Luke 9:30 there is a description of the Mount of Transfiguration: "Behold, two men talked with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem." In other words, this is the occasion in which God sent Moses and Elijah as messengers, informing Jesus about his crucifixion at Jerusalem. The crucifixion was decided upon at that particular moment.
Christmas in Heart
December 25, 1973
In difficult circumstances of persecution, to return the nation and religion to God, Jesus prayed on the mountaintop and fought against Satan throughout his three years of public life. Yet he saw no fruit. Consequently, he finally went up to the Mount of Transfiguration with the heart to awaken the ignorant people, even if he had to undertake his death. After realizing that no human effort would bring about the result, he came forward with an ardent heart to save the people, who had the ties of history and the age and who were linked to the heart of God. He was determined, even if he had to die as a sacrifice and shed his blood.
The place he visited with such a heart was not a great palace. It was neither the house of a disciple, who received him, nor the house of the people of the state, nor the house of a leader of the Jewish religion. It was a mountain, the Mount of Transfiguration...
When Jesus went to the Mount of Transfiguration, he discarded all previous resolutions and set out to give his body to the nation, determined to face death. If someone can imagine the figure and heart of Jesus as he climbed the mountain then, if someone can experience that sorrow as his own and behold Jesus with such a heart, he will be able to experience the sorrow of Jesus toward heaven, the nation, and his religion...
Since that figure and situation were full of pathos, God sent Elijah and Moses to discuss Jesus' death in Jerusalem with him. Jesus knew that heaven and his disciples would be stricken with grief upon his death. Worried about the people and their descendants, he grieved for the sake of the past, the present, and the future. Wanting to save the Jewish people even through his death, Jesus appeared before God with a prayerful heart similar to that of Elijah's when he cried out, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." (l Kings 19:14) Jesus' heart was truly mournful...
After he was notified of his coming death in Jerusalem, Jesus prepared for the day of death. He felt the day of death coming closer and closer, and the situation becoming increasingly chaotic. Seeing that one of his beloved disciples would betray him, Jesus seriously felt the need to conclude all his affairs on earth before going to the cross. Knowing that he had the responsibility as the Savior to follow the path to death, Jesus worried that even after his death the sorrows of the past, present, and future would not disappear, but would remain. His mind and body were immersed in such feelings.
The Sorrowful Heart Of Jesus As He Went To The Mountain
January 25, 1959
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