Gaining Divine Sight
AM Psalm 16, 17 • PM Psalm 22
Ecclus. 1:1-10,18-27 • Acts 28:1-16 • Luke 9:28-36
Ecclesiasticus, otherwise known as ‘Sirach,’ was written by a Jewish man living in Egypt during a time when it was popular to look at Judaism in light of Greek philosophy. In today’s reading, the author talks about wisdom in a way that is so simple, yet so profound, that it has influenced many of the greatest Christian minds up until the modern period, and as of late seems to be making a comeback. “All wisdom is from the Lord, and with him it remains.” Here we can see a combination of what Plato, one of the most famous Greek philosophers, said about all real and true knowledge being held somewhere beyond what is seen, and the Jewish sense that all things come from God because he is the creator; bringing these ideas together, we can begin to see that true wisdom—a higher form of knowing—rests in God. “There is but one who is wise…the Lord.” How can we access this wisdom, if only God is wise?
In the Gospel reading, Jesus takes three disciples to a mountain top and is transfigured, becoming dazzling white. Moses and Elijah also appear beside him. There are many things that happen in this moment, but I believe one way to think of it is as an apocalypse, or a peeling back of what is seen to reveal what is real. Jesus brings the three disciples up the mountain and showed them much more than they were capable of seeing. As a result, Peter even blurts something out about making dwelling places, but the text tells us that he didn’t even know what he was saying. He was brought to something beyond his comprehension. When God the Father says to the disciples, “This is my Son… Listen to him!” it begins to connect with the Ecclesiasticus reading.
Ecclesiasticus says, “If you desire wisdom, keep the commandments, and the Lord will lavish her upon you.” Jesus is the Logos—or highest wisdom. The disciples were taken up on that mountain so that they might be shown a higher wisdom than they could have ever been able to see. The Father tells them to listen to Jesus, or maybe in other words, keep his commandments. By living the lives that Jesus has in store for us, we might often be brought to places and situations that confound us in every way, that test the limits of our wisdom and sight. It is in those places, where we encounter more than we can handle, that we discover we are in Jesus Christ, and by faith we can see things for how they really are. Faithfulness, or keeping God’s commandments, isn’t about some kind of moralism, it is about receiving divine sight, about having God’s wisdom lavished upon us so that we can see things for how they really are.
Written by Curtis Moneymaker
...who loves going on walks in the cool Autumn air.