It Is Good To Be Here! : Matthew 17:2-8 : What Jesus Did! : HEARTLIGHT®

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It Is Good To Be Here! - Matthew 17:2-8

While these followers watched him, Jesus was changed. His face became bright like the sun. And his clothes became white as light. Then two men were there, talking with Jesus. The men were Moses and Elijah. Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you want, I will put three tents here--one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." While Peter was talking, a bright cloud came over them. A voice came from the cloud. The voice said, "This (Jesus) is my Son and I love him. I am very pleased with him. Obey him!" The followers with Jesus heard this voice. They were very afraid, so they fell to the ground. But Jesus came to the followers and touched them. Jesus said, "Stand up. Don't be afraid." The followers looked up, and they saw Jesus was now alone. (ERV) Full Text

Key Thought

"Listen to him!" With Moses and Elijah present, it's hard to believe that someone greater than they are, someone who is a better teacher than they are, is there among them. But Elijah and Moses pale in importance when compared to Jesus. So as Jesus' disciples move in to worship these great Old Testament figures, they disappear and the disciples are left with Jesus to lead and guide them in the ways of God. When God gets the disciples' attention, he helps them realize they are on holy ground and there is no one besides Jesus himself who can reveal God's truth. They must listen to him!
So must we!

Today's Prayer

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Holy God, teach me to not run after every rumored good teacher, but to keep my eyes focused on Jesus, his glory, and his truth. Help me use him as the standard by which I measure my teachers' truth. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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Today's Verses in Context

Six days later, Jesus took Peter, James, and John the brother of James and went up on a high mountain. They were all alone there. While these followers watched him, Jesus was changed. His face became bright like the sun. And his clothes became white as light. Then two men were there, talking with Jesus. The men were Moses and Elijah. Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you want, I will put three tents here--one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." While Peter was talking, a bright cloud came over them. A voice came from the cloud. The voice said, "This (Jesus) is my Son and I love him. I am very pleased with him. Obey him!" The followers with Jesus heard this voice. They were very afraid, so they fell to the ground. But Jesus came to the followers and touched them. Jesus said, "Stand up. Don't be afraid." The followers looked up, and they saw Jesus was now alone. Jesus and the followers were walking down the mountain. Jesus commanded the followers, "Don't tell any person about the things you saw on the mountain. Wait until the Son of Man has been raised from death. Then you can tell people about what you saw." The followers asked Jesus, "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first {before the Christ comes}?" Jesus answered, "They are right to say that Elijah is coming. And it is true that Elijah will make all things the way they should be. But I tell you, Elijah has already come. People did not know who he was. People did to him all the {bad} things they wanted to do. It is the same with the Son of Man. Those same people will make the Son of Man suffer." Then the followers understood that Jesus meant that John the Baptizer was really Elijah.

— Matthew 17:1-13 (ERV)

Comments on "It Is Good To Be Here!":

The Lord your God will send to you a prophet. This prophet will come from among your own people. He will be like me. You must listen to this prophet.
Deuteronomy 18:15 (ERV)

At that time Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan River. Jesus came to John and wanted John to baptize him. But John tried to say that he was not good enough to baptize Jesus. John said, "Why do you come to me to be baptized? I should be baptized by you!" Jesus answered, "Let it be this way for now. We should do all things that are right." So John agreed to baptize Jesus. Jesus was baptized and he came up out of the water. The sky opened, and he saw God's Spirit coming down on him like a dove. And a voice spoke from heaven. The voice said, "This (Jesus) is my Son and I love him. I am very pleased with him."
Matthew 3:13-17 (ERV)

The Lord will wash away the blood from the women of Zion. The Lord will wash all the blood out of Jerusalem. God will use the spirit of justice {and judge fairly}. And he will use the spirit of burning, {and make everything pure}. {At that time, God will prove that he is with his people.} During the day, God will make a cloud of smoke. And during the night, God will make a bright flaming fire. These proofs will be in the sky over every building and over every meeting of the people on the mountain of Zion. There will be a covering over every person for protection. This covering will be a place of safety. The covering will protect the people from the heat of the sun. The covering will be a safe place to hide from all kinds of floods and rain.
Isaiah 4:4-6 (ERV)

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