The Preview of the Kingdom

You see them online, You see them on TV, And you see them at the theatre right before the film starts. What are they? Movie trailers.

Movie trailers have been around a long time: In fact, they first originated in 1913, by a man named Nils Granlund, who was the advertising manager for the Marcus Loew theater chain, who produced a short promotional film by editing footage together. And purpose for this was to use it to generate excitement and interest for the full-length film.

However, to properly do so meant he had to be very selective in what he would and would not show, since he was essentially trimming an hours long footage down into mere minutes. Which is no easy thing to do. Because if you showed too little, no one would care or understand what made your movie so special And, if you showed too much, you’d give away the plot And if you did either of those, you would fail to generate interest and excitement for the movie.

And so the person producing the trailer had to stop and really think about what they wanted to show and not show. They had to not only decide what clips would BEST represent the movie’s themes and plot, but they had to put them together in a compelling and artistic way, The goal was to draw people’s interest so they would come out and enjoy the movie they had spent so much time making. They wanted them to not miss out! And the movie trailer was way of encouraging them not to.

With this mind, in Matthew chapter 17 we find a trailer, or a preview of the greatest coming attraction of them all, And that’s no over-statement For not only is the preview beyond amazing, but so is what it is previewing. And what it is previewing? It is previewing the glory of Christ’s Kingdom.

See, over and over Jesus has been telling and showing His disciples that He is the King of God’s glorious Kingdom! But, they still don’t really get it... Not really. Sure, there’s been improvements like we saw last week with Peter confessing that Jesus is the Christ, But then two-seconds later He’s back to not getting it. And so after Jesus tells them that the Messiah must die, Peter rebukes Jesus, in which Jesus publically rebukes Peter by calling him Satan since his focus is on the things of man, not God.

And then Jesus goes on to tell them that not only will He die, but so too must they be willing to do if they are going to be His disciples.

For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Matthew 16:25-26 ESV

Well this doesn’t sound very good, does it? What kind of a kingdom has a king who dies? Not a very successful one! What kind of a kingdom has servant’s who are constantly being snuffed out? Not a very powerful one! Or so at least the disciples thought. Which is why in chapter 16, verse 27, Jesus tells them:

For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

Matthew 16:27 ESV

OK, now wait minute. So the kingdom’s king will be killed Many of the kingdom’s servants will suffer the same fate And now you’re telling us that the Kingdom’s King will come with with God’s glory and an army of angels to conquer, rule, and reign? How does that work? How does that make any sense?

And yet, if the disciples had seen and known what Jesus had seen and knew, they wouldn’t have questioned any of it, would they? No they wouldn’t. And so understanding the fickle and weak nature of their faith Jesus then gives them a preview of the coming kingdom and its glory that He just told them of. Remember the verse I just read: “The Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father” And then in verse 27, Jesus says something else that’s remarkable, He says:

Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Matthew 16:28 ESV

And six days later (or about 8 if you read Luke’s account) that comes true as Jesus takes some of them who were standing there - Peter, James, and John, up to a high mountain where they are given a preview of that coming kingdom glory.

“But wait a minute… how does the mount of transfiguration fulfill that?” “Seeing the Son of Man coming in His kingdom...” “Sure, He showed His kingly glory, but how does that fit with what verse 28 says, about Jesus : “coming in His kingdom...”

OK fine - that’s a good question, we’ll address it then. But we don’t have time to address it fully, so you’ll just have to go with the short version for now. And the short version is this: While our English Bible’s often say “coming in His Kingdom,” another perfectly viable way to translate that is, “Kingly Splendor.” And certainly Jesus’s transfiguration counts as seeing the Son of man coming in His “Kingly Splendor.”

So no, this verse isn’t talking about the arrival of the physical kingdom, It’s not about KINGDOM NOW theology whatsoever, and this terrible man-made chapter break doesn’t help any with that. It’s simply talking about a preview of Christ’s kingly glory, which served as a powerful preview for the disciples for what lay behind death’s shadow. And they needed that preview because in chapter 16 Jesus had just finished telling them that not only was He going to die, but so must they be will to! and so this powerful preview helped changed their bleak outlook. And we know that it accomplished just that because if you read old Peter’s re-telling of this preview in 2 Peter chapter 2, you can see that it drastically changed their outlook upon the kingdom.

And so for us, while we aren’t yet able to see what they saw, they did write it down for us, And they wrote it down for us so that we too might get a small kingdom preview that can lead to our own change. and that change comes by seeing 3 things:

To be changed by the kingdom’s preview, we must see:

1. The beauty of glory
2. The weight of glory
3. The hope of glory

“2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.” Or in Mark’s account, He says: “His clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach.” And the reason for this “dazzling light”, is because it was the shekinah glory that was “concealed in flesh the Godhead see”, as we sang a moment ago.

See, originally humanity was created to dwell and flourish in the presence of the Shekinah Glory of God. Which is why Genesis tell us how our first parents, Adam and Eve, walked and talked with God in the garden. But then, when they rebelled against God and sinned, they were cast out of garden away from the glory of God. And ever since they humanity has been walking in darkness unable to live in the radiant glory of God.

But, with that consequence also came a promise, A promise that God wouldn’t leave us exiled forever from His glorious presence, but that He would one day send someone who would bring us back into it.

And so time came and went, and eventually God showed a glimpse of His glory to a man named Abram, whom God renamed to Abraham and though they had no children and his wife was too old too have any, God promised to miraculously make a great nation out of His descendants. And He did just that.

But then many years later, those descendents were still living in exile from God’s glory, In fact, they were living in bondage under Pharoah. And so God came to Moses on the mount, and revealed just a bit of His glory through burning bush, in which God told Moses to tell Pharoah to, “Let His people go!” And 10 miraculous plagues later Pharoah did just that as God led the Israelites to the land that He had promised to their forefather Abraham. And He led them with a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night. And within that cloud resided the glory of God!

Then God led His people to mount Sinai where He enveloped the mountain in a thick cloud, where was lightening and thunder, followed by a loud trumpet blast which caused all the people to tremble before the mighty glory of Yahweh God. Then Moses brought the people to the foot of the mountain to meet God, and they dared not touch even the base of the mountain lest God’s glory strike them dead And before them the entire mountain in smoke because the Lord God descended upon it with FIRE, and the whole mountain trembled greatly as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then, after Moses spoke out the Lord, the Lord responded to him in the voice of mighty thunder, calling Moses to come up to the top the mountain where He gave the people His holy law. And then upon the mountain, Moses asked to see God’s face, but was denied, since the full display of God’s glory would destroy him.

Then after receiving the law and agreeing to covenant, God instructed the people to make a tabernacle - or a holy tent - where He would reside, And in the center of that large tent was a smaller tent called “The Holy of Holies,” in which the glory cloud dwelt, veiled from the eyes of the people in order to shield them from God’s glory and keep them safe.

And in Exodus we read of this terrifying account, which says:

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

Exodus 40:34-38 ESV

And years later, a similar thing happened when the Lord led King Solomon to build a permanent tabernacle for Him - a holy temple, where His glory would reside. But then when the people failed time and time again to honor and obey God’s covenant law, the glory of the Lord departed the temple leaving them to face the consequences of their sin and rebellion.

And yet, despite all of this, the promise that God made back in the garden held true, For after showing some of His glory to Mary and Joseph To the shepherds who watched their flocks by night And to the magi who followed the glory star by night, There, “lo in the shadows of Bethlehem, God, Most High, in a manger laid” “The King who came with no crown or throne” “Helpless, he lay, the invisible, Maker of Mary, now Mary’s Son!”

And then years later, the beauty and glory of God was unveiled for but a moment upon the mount of transfiguration in the person of Jesus Christ, who’s glory was both beautiful and weighty before sin-fallen eyes.

To be changed by the kingdom’s preview, we must see:

1. The beauty of glory

After Jesus’s Metamorphoo (and I’m guessing you don’t need me to even explain what that Greek word means), there appears before them two other figures talking with Jesus, who are Moses and Elijah. Now imagine that for moment. These two men were heroes of the faith, men who lived hundreds of years before the disciples, and there they are, walking and talking with Jesus in the midst of His glory...

Now do you see why this kingdom preview was so powerful? Remember the context - Jesus had just told His disciples six days prior that He was going to die, and so too must they be ready to do as well. And here standing before them are men who lived hundreds of year before as if it was no big thing! And with this preview in mind, what kind of confidence should this give us in the face of death’s shadow? How about A LOT!

And then comes Peter with the thing Peter always seems to do. Peter begins talking before he thinks. And some of us can relate to that, I know I can, And like Peter, it usually get’s me into trouble Which is exactly what happens for Peter.

After seeing these 3 figures stand before them, Peter comes up with a brilliant idea. Or not so brilliant, as Luke tells us that Peter said what he said without really thinking or realizing it... And what does Peter say? Look at verse 4: Matthew 17:4 (ESV) “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

Now, there’s a few ways to understand what Peter might be suggesting here, but one of them is fascinating. It’s still wrong, but it’s still fascinating.

If you look up that word for tent in the Greek, do you know what word it is? “Tabernacle.” And either Peter was just spewing out gibberish here in shock and awe, Or, he was seeing the Shekinah Glory of Christ on display before him, and He thinks it might be good to get a wrap on it in the form of a make-shift tabernacle. Now, I don’t know for sure if that’s what Peter was thinking exactly, Because it might have just as easily had something to do with the feat of tabernacles where the Jewish people would build tents or shelters and live in them for seven days. But either way, Peter is bewildered here by what He sees, and it doesn’t get any better for him quite yet, as while Peter is coming up with all of these brilliant ideas, He gets interrupted by God the Father, who tells him to sit down and be quiet, because instead of talking he should be listening to Jesus! Which is exactly what the Father says in verse 5, which reads:

He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified.

Matthew 17:5-6 ESV

The word there for terrified is Phobio - which is where we get our English word phobia - which speaks not just of fear, but of TERROR! And make no mistake, they were TERRIFIED! Which is why they fell on their faces. And let me remind you that this is exactly the right and normative response of every sin-fallen human who stands before the glory of God. AND, it’s why most of the time when an angel shows up with a message from God, it has to say, “FEAR NOT” because even REFLECTIVE glory is TERRIFYING! And yet here before them shines the glory of God, not reflectively, but innately from Jesus Christ!

All throughout the Bible, even glimpses of God’s glory is a terrifying thing. And it’s quite remarkable, because on one hand we whither and die apart from living in God’s glorious presence, but on the other, we can’t live in it anymore than you or I could stare directly at the sun and not burn our eyes out! And all throughout the Bible we see this. We see this with the prophet Isaiah, who after seeing a glimpse of God’s glory cries out: “Woe unto me! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people with unclean lips! For my Eyes have seen the KING! The Lord of Hosts!” With Job, after God shows up in the whirlwind, that little bit of glory is enough for Job to say: “I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes!” In Daniel 8, Daniel writes: “So he came near where I stood. And when he came, I was frightened and fell on my face.” And the same thing happens to Ezekiel more than once, and to the apostle John in the book of Revelation.

And why? Because to taste the presence of God’s glory is a weighty thing for sinners!

This is why when the disciples were caught in the storm, and they saw Jesus walking upon the water and were afraid that it was a ghost, they became MORE fearful when Jesus said: “EGO EMI!” - which is the divine name of, “I AM” And the same thing happened in the garden when the mob came to arrest Jesus: Jesus called out asking them who they seek, and after telling Him they are seeking Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus said: “EGO EMI!” - or “I am” - it causes them to draw back and fall to the ground!

And remarkably, the great “I AM”... The same One who’s glory was shown upon Mount Sinai in the glory cloud so many years before, And in the tabernacle and in the temple, The pre-existing one who saw Satan fall like lightening from heaven The Word of God made flesh, who made His dwelling among us as John chapter 1 describes, Is here before them showing them the glory He always had for all eternity!

And in the midst of this display of His glory, the voice of the Father booms out from heaven: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him." And if that sounds familiar, it is - because it’s nearly identical to what the Father said at the start of Jesus’s ministry during His baptism. And so it’s what He says again here as Jesus is nearing the end of His ministry. With one addition though, which is: “LISTEN TO HIM!” Which is most likely a reference to God’s promise back in Deuteronomy

“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers - it is to him you shall listen -

Deuteronomy 18:15 ESV

The same promise is given again in chapter 19, but the point is clear, Jesus is God’s special servant! His Messiah! To Whom all of the prophets point! And it is to HIM we are to listen! For as Hebrews says: Hebrews 1:3 (ESV) He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

And yet remarkably, the disciples were eyewitnesses to His majesty! To His perfection and beauty of His weighty glory! And IT DIDN’T KILL THEM! And it didn’t kill them because in Jesus Christ we find the HOPE of God’s glory which allows us to once again dwell in God’s glorious presence!

To be changed by the kingdom’s preview, we must see:

With the disciples stricken in fear, we read in verse 7 what comforts them, and it’s the touch of their master. And when they open their eyes and look about, they see Jesus standing there with them veiled in flesh once more. Who then leads them down the mountain telling them to not speak of what they saw until after the Son of Man is raised from the dead. Which get’s the disciples thinking again. And out of that thinking they ask Jesus a question in verse 10, and their question is basically: “Since you’re the Messiah, why do the Scribes say that Elijah will come first?” And they ask that question because, if you think back a few chapters in Matthew, Jesus addressed just that by quoting the book of Malachi which says:

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

Malachi 4:5-6 ESV

So what’s all this about? Here is Elijah, but Jesus came first… what’s the deal then? Well, I just don’t have the time to answer this fully, so you’ll have to go back and listen to the sermon on this from Matthew chapter 11. But the short version is that Jesus is telling them, “Yes, the scribes got it right - Elijah does come, which precedes the restoration of all things.” BUT, they go the timing wrong. For Elijah has already come and they did not recognize him, but instead killed him, just as they are going to do to me. But make no mistake, these go hand-in-hand! For the restoration of all things requires death and resurrection of the Son of Man! Which is the only thing that can bring us hope of living in the light of God’s glory!

Now in Matthew’s account, we aren’t told what Jesus discusses with Moses and Elijah, but in Luke’s we are, And he tells us that they discussed “Jesus’s departure.” And do you want to guess what that word is that is used for “departure?” It’s “Exodus!”

My oh my - there is just SO much symbolism and foreshadowing here we don't have time to fully unpack. What did Moses represent? The law And what did Elijah present? The prophets - or the greatest of the prophets. And when the Father speaks from heaven, Who does He say to listen to? Moses, Elijah, and Jesus? No. It’s Jesus! For Jesus is the one in Matthew 5 who comes to not to ABOLISH THE LAW - but FULFILL IT!

Another thing: After the transfiguration is finished, who’s left there before the disciples? Is it Moses, Elijah, and Jesus? No, it’s just Jesus

And what a picture that is! Do you see what Scripture is telling us over and over again? All of this - every last bit of it - points us to Christ! For Jesus is the new and better Moses Jesus is the new and better Elijah! For in Jesus all of the promises of God are YES!

Think about this with me for just a moment. Let’s focus on just Moses for just a moment.

How is Jesus the new and better Moses? Moses led God’s people out of physical bondage into the promised land, however, Jesus leads us out of spiritual bondage into the promised land of God’s eternal Kingdom. Moses went up to the mountain, after six days, bringing with him his 3 disciples - Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu to worship God and make sacrifice; however, after 6 days Jesus brought His 3 disciples - Peter, James, and John - up to the mount to worship and then became the ultimate and final sacrifice for our sins. And He did this in order to lead us into the greatest EXODUS of all out of sin’s bondage into presence of a holy and glorious God! And He did so by being willing to go from the mount of transfiguration to the mount of crucifixion! And because He did, we can not only live in God’s glorious presence, but we can share in it!

When Moses came down from mount Sinai, the Scriptures tell us that His face radiated the glory of God! In fact, it did so much that it terrified the people, leading Moses to put a veil over His face. And yet, what perfect picture this is for the glory that is coming to us who have trusted in Christ as our Savior!

On the mount of transfiguration, we see a preview of the Eternal King’s kingly glory, but we also see a preview of what lies in store for us! Not a glory that we RADIATE like Christ did, but a GLORY that we REFLECT, and will reflect for all eternity!

In the book of Daniel, we read about this glory that is coming, and it begins by describing the glory of Christ in chapter 7

“As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.

Daniel 7:9-10 ESV

But, it doesn’t end there does it, for in chapter 12 it tell us about the glory that is coming to us one day so very soon!

“But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”

Church, this is what lies in store for the children of God! For all of those who have repented of their sins and turned to the only Savior, which is Christ the Lord! The Ancient of days! The glorious one! The Son of God! The Christ! The living one who died and lives forevermore! And the One Whom we will worship and praise for eternity!

So the question is: Is He your Christ? Is He your Savior? If so, take hope! If not, know that if you refuse to make Christ your hope, He will become your dread, and when He returns it will be not as your Savior, but as your Judge.

However, for those who have made Him their joy, then we take hope in the face of whatever comes our way, because behind the shadow of death lies joy unspeakable joy, for what waits for us is the glory of the risen king! Which is beautiful, weighty, and brings more hope that we could ever dare imagine!

Do you know that hope? Are you living for that hope? If so, rejoice! For as Paul writes in Philippians chapter 3:

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

Philippians 3:20-4:1 ESV

The preview has been given, The kingdom’s full release date is set and coming! Are you ready for the glory it brings?

This is the manuscript the sermon was preached from, so the recording may differ in places.