“Listen to Me.” That’s what Jesus says. We must run everything through the filters of what He has told us.

⁹ Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser,
Teach a righteous man and he will increase his learning.

Yesterday, we saw where Jesus was giving a whole new perspective on how to interpret the Scriptures. He was saying that from then on, people were to read the Scriptures through the filters He would show them about His Father. There is one more passage that clearly indicates this truth. It is Luke 9:28-36,

The Transfiguration

²⁸ Some eight days after these sayings, He took along Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. ²⁹ And while He was praying, the appearance of His face became different, and His clothing became white and gleaming. ³⁰ And behold, two men were talking with Him; and they were Moses and Elijah, ³¹ who, appearing in glory, were speaking of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ³² Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep; but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. ³³ And as these were leaving Him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three tabernacles: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not realizing what he was saying. ³⁴ While he was saying this, a cloud formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ Then a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!” ³⁶ And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.

This story wasn’t a parable, but an account. It really happened. There are several things to note in this passage:

• One is the recognizability of Moses and Elijah. Peter had no trouble discerning who they were. We are given a window into what the kingdom of heaven is like!
• When Peter offered to make three tabernacles (tents), one for each of them, he was putting them all on the same level of authority. He naturally assumed that Jesus would be working within the bounds of the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (Elijah). WRONG! Jesus came to fulfill it and to finish them. Their work was done, which was to show people that there is nothing they could do to save themselves and to point to His Coming. Jesus came to save the world.
• The cloud is God the Spirit. It’s the same cloud that covered Mount Sinai, led the Israelites in the desert, and filled Solomon’s temple.
• There are three times that God spoke audibly concerning His Son, Jesus: Matthew 3:17 (the Spirit came down in the form of a dove), Luke 9:35 (the Spirit came down in a cloud), and John 12:28 (God’s voice sounded like thunder). God said, “Listen to My Son.”
• When the cloud lifted, only Jesus was standing there, thus indicating that He is the One to whom they were to listen from then on. The authority baton was passed.
• Jesus had already made it evident that the New Covenant was coming. In Luke 5:33-35, He changed the rules about fasting and praying by calling Himself the bridegroom and His disciples His attendants. He then went on to compare the Old Covenant to old cloth and old wine skins and the New Covenant to new cloth and new wine skins (Luke 5:36-39), which was a warning against trying to mix the two covenants. Jesus was bringing in the New Covenant, the covenant of His blood (Luke 22:20).

To recap, there are three major clues for us to discover that Jesus is Lord of the word (to use His own phraseology, i.e. Lord of the Sabbath-Luke 6:5). These clues are: “But I say…” “The seed is the word of God (Me).” “This is My Son. Listen to Him.” Subsequently, we are to now view Scripture through the lens of Jesus. You may be asking, “Exactly what in the Old Testament did Jesus change?” For that answer, go to Matthew 5 and/or Luke 6 and see what Jesus changed. There are other things, as well, like the tradition of fasting and praying, and the way Sabbaths were viewed, for examples. He was also big on seeing God as the loving heavenly Father and not an angry punisher (that’s a big one!).

God is our loving and merciful Father; Jesus is our gracious and truthful Savior. We can confidently give our lives to them. They are trustworthy and true. They love us!

Abba, thank You for loving me! I trust You implicitly. I may not get everything right, but I trust You to help me make things right and to set my sights on next time. You are a patient and kind Teacher and Companion. I love walking with You. Amen.