Connecting the Dots
Mark 9:1-13
Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” –Mark 9:7
I mentioned in a previous devotion how much I enjoy puzzles. One of my favorite kinds of puzzles is the “Connect the Dots” puzzle. We see these most often on children’s menus, with maybe 20-30 small dots to connect. But there are also “adult” connect-dot-puzzles with up to a thousand dots on a single page. Doing one of these puzzles was the first time I needed reading glasses to be able to read all the numbers!
What I love about connect-the-dot puzzles (especially the adult ones) is that you can’t tell just from the dots what the image will become. You just have to keep following the numbers and gradually discover whatever image they reveal.
The dots I want to connect in Mark’s Gospel are much fewer in number. Five, in fact. That’s how many times Jesus was identified or addressed as God’s Son (the fewest by far of any of the four gospels). On two occasions, Jesus was identified as God’s Son by unclean spirits, who begged Jesus to leave them be. Other than those two times, Jesus is identified as God’s Son at the beginning (at his baptism), at the end (at his crucifixion), and here in the exact middle point (at the Transfiguration). These are the three points in Jesus’ story that Mark most wants us to connect.
When Jesus was baptized, the heavens opened, and a voice declared: “You are my Son, my beloved, with you I am well pleased.” This was the moment of Jesus’ anointing (represented by the dove)—God was declaring him as the Messiah.
The Transfiguration event came six days after Peter identified him as the Messiah, and again God repeated his declaration of Jesus’ identity. Except instead of speaking directly to Jesus (“You are my beloved son”), this time God declared his identity to the disciples (“This is my beloved son”).
The Transfiguration points ahead to the final moment in Jesus’ life, when the centurion who witnesses his death will declare: “Surely this man is God’s Son!” Jesus warned the disciples not to tell anyone what they saw until after he’d been raised from the dead. Which means the Transfiguration points us not only to Jesus’ death, but to his resurrection. The disciples caught a glimpse of Jesus’ true glory—a glory that would only be fully revealed following his victory over death.
For the longest time, I was puzzled by the story of the Transfiguration. I couldn’t figure out what the “point” of the story was. Was the moment of Transfiguration for Jesus’ benefit? A way of strengthening his spirit as he journeyed towards Jerusalem? Or was the Transfiguration intended to benefit the disciples—to give them something to hold onto during the dark days between Jesus’ death and resurrection?
The reality is that sometimes God gives us experiences that are intended to strengthen and edify us, but we don’t always understand or appreciate them in the moment. Sometimes we can only fully understand the significance of these moments much later in our journey, when we look back and see what God was trying to teach us all along. This, to me, is good news, to know that God gives us in advance what He knows we’ll need along our journey.
Which brings me back to my analogy of “connect-the-dot” puzzles. We may not always know how the dots in our lives connect, but we definitely can’t know in advance what future they’ll reveal. Our job is to keep faithfully following, connecting one step in faith to the next, trusting that God’s good design will reveal in time something more beautiful than we could ever imagine.
Dear God, as we begin this season of Lent, help me to walk humbly with You. Thank You for the ways in which You reveal Yourself to me; thank You for the daily bread You have given. Thank You for providing in advance for the challenges that lie ahead in my journey. Amen.
**Note: Our Ash Wednesday service will take place tonight at 7:00 pm in the Chapel (inside Door 12). We hope you will join us for a special evening of “Worship in the Round.”