And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, “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.” 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. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. | Matthew 17:1–8
We have learned that Jesus came from heaven. He lived in heaven long, long before He came down to earth as a baby.
Heaven is a place of glory. Heaven is all bright and pure and happy. Jesus, God’s Son, was all glorious in heaven. When He came to earth, He left all His glory behind. He looked just like other men. Nobody could see that He was the Son of God.
But one day Jesus showed His glory, the glory of heaven, to three of His disciples.
On that day Jesus said to Peter and James and John, “Come with Me.” And He took them up a high mountain.
Up on the mountain, Jesus knelt down to pray. The disciples did too.
Then something strange happened. Jesus’ face began to shine, bright as the sun. His clothes began to shine, like pure white snow. When the disciples opened their eyes, they could hardly look at Him.
And then, all at once, two people were with Jesus. They were all shining bright, too. They were Moses and Elijah. They had come from heaven, to talk with Jesus.
Peter, James, and John just watched. They had never seen such wonderful brightness before. It was heavenly brightness and glory.
At last Peter said to Jesus, “Master! Shall we make three little houses to live in, so we can all stay here?”
But just then a bright cloud came over them. And a voice said, “This is my beloved Son. Hear him!”
That was the voice of God! The disciples were terribly frightened. They fell right down on their faces. They did not dare look again. Then Jesus came and touched them. He said, “Don’t be afraid.”
The three disciples looked around. The cloud was gone. Moses and Elijah were gone. And the shining glory of Jesus was gone.
“Now let us go back down the mountain,” Jesus said.
Afterward, the three disciples told the others about the glory of Jesus that they had seen on the mountain. And the story is written in the Bible. The three disciples never forgot that heavenly glory.
When Jesus comes back to earth, at the end of the world, everybody shall see Him in His wonderful glory.
Something to talk about
- What did Jesus leave behind in heaven when He came to earth?
- How did He show the three disciples His glory?
- When will we see Jesus’ glory?
- Will we be afraid, when we see Him in His glory?
Memory Verse
For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father. | Matthew 16.27a