Can You Hear Me Now?

Huh? What?

Mark 9:2-8  ² Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,  ³ and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them.  ⁴ And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.  ⁵ Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  ⁶ He did not know what to say, for they were terrified.  ⁷ Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!"  ⁸Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, but only Jesus.

Someone once said that the sincerest form of flattery is listening. I know from my days in the sales training and consulting business that introverted salespeople actually make the best salespeople. Why? Because they are the better listeners. Poor salespeople talk too much but, good salespeople listen. Women normally make better salespeople as well because women are better listeners then men.

Six days after Peter’s confession of Jesus as the Christ, Peter, John, and James find themselves on a high mountain top with Jesus. Something terrifying happens. Suddenly Jesus clothes become glowing white, shining, and shimmering. Moses and Elijah appear with Jesus. Then as sudden as it began it ends with them being engulfed in the cloud of God’s glory as God says, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” Then its over. Only Jesus, Peter, John and James are left on the mountain top.

 

This supernatural event wasn’t for Jesus. It wasn’t for Moses and Elijah either. It was for Peter, James, John and us, the disciples.  This takes place 6 days after Peter’s confession; the confession where Peter got the title right but the meaning wrong.  Six days after Peter argued with Jesus about the meaning of His messiahship, God vindicates Jesus message and messiahship.

The Greek word translated as listen in verse 7 means both listen and hear. You know we can hear without listening. Hearing is simply the act of perceiving sound by the ear. If you are not hearing-impaired, hearing simply happens. Listening, however, is something you consciously choose to do. Listening requires concentration so that your brain processes meaning from words and sentences. Listening leads to learning.In The Gospel of Mark it seems that the disciples hear but they do not listen.  

Are we listening?