John 3:16 captures what lies at the heart of who we are as God’s mob: we are about God loving the world; we are about the world having a problem (it is called sin and it is the attitude and action that we all have that says ‘I am God and God is not’); and, we are about God’s love dealing with our problem through a bloke called Jesus (God’s one and only boy). We are a mob gathered around these truths. Welcome!
The life of God’s people can often seem a roller-coaster. After the highs of the Transfiguration for three disciples, we walk down the mountain to the lows of the nine below, whose faith is wavering. This is not a new state of affairs – just read the Exodus accounts!
And just as God is, time and time again, Jesus expresses a holy exasperation. He also utters an explanation: ‘Because of your little faith!’ (vs.20). Again, the present tense jumps out – and we are encouraged to confront the same explanation. What Jesus do we trust in? Do we trust in Jesus?
The Jesus to trust in is the Almighty-God-in-the-flesh who is rejected, dies, is buried and rises from the dead. That King is worth knowing and trusting. Do we?
Jesus has come to bring the outsiders in. Jesus has finally been recognised as ‘the Christ, the Son of the Living God’ (16:16). Jesus reveals what this means – rejection, suffering, death, resurrection (16:21-22).
The disciples do not quite grasp this. Jesus takes three – the necessary witnesses – up a mountain. There, He is revealed in His glory – they get a glimpse of who He truly is! And so much of their history is present – Moses, the cloud, six days, God speaking, God’s people constituted. There is Moses himself, and Elijah!
The glory of Jesus goes hand-in-hand with the death of Jesus. This is what God had willed and planned. This is what John prepared for. So, what do you do with such a Saviour of the world? You listen to him!
