Mountain Tops & Valley Bottoms

Wow - I thought Thursday night was just awesome! Here is a reminder of what we talked about...

We were looking at Mark 9:1-13 (The Transfiguration). The main point of these verses is that they let us know more about the identity of Jesus. Also it's important to note that the in verse 8 all that the disciples saw was Jesus. The we looked at three questions that helped to make sense of the verses:

1. Why Moses and Elijah?

Moses was the deliverer. Elijah was prophesied to come before Jesus. The show that the Kingdom of God has drawn near. Also Moses represents the law, Elijah the prophets and the disciples the church. This represents all of history at this point in time.

2. What's the deal with verse 1?

There are a few theories. It could refer to the resurection of Christ. It could also refer to Pentecost. But... why would Jesus say "some of you"? Perhaps this verse was referring to the transfiguration that was just about to take place.

3. Why does Peter say what he does?

Verse 5??? What the heck is Peter talking about now??? Peter wants to stay on the mountain top. We can relate to Peter. His while being longs for the fullness of God. But Peter can't do that. "The mountain top experiences are important. But we are not made for the mountain top. You and I are made for the valley. The mountain top experiences are all made to equip us for life in the valley" (Hans Peter Royer). We were reminded on Thursday that things don't really grow to well on the mountain top, but there is a lot of potential for growth in the valley. There is a path up the mountain that we can travel to re-ignite out passion. Travelling through the valley is necessary to get to the next mountain top!