Matthew 17:1-13
After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist.
We Come to Know About God Through the Savior Jesus
Even if people don’t attend church regularly or at all, they often think about Jesus when Christmas comes around. People need to seek God at some point in their lives, but they can only know about the omnipotent and omniscient God through Jesus, the savior God sent at the appointed time.
For example, in the passage above, Jesus enlightened his disciples about how God works when they were wondering why the scribes and teachers of the law were insisting that Elijah must come first, before the Messiah comes. Since the disciples regarded Jesus as the Messiah, the scribes and teachers of the law wanted to know where Elijah was, since Elijah needed to appear first. But, the disciples couldn’t respond because they didn’t know the answer. Jesus thus explained to them that the book of Malachi contains the prophecy of Elijah’s return. It said that Elijah would come first, and that’s why the Jewish people were waiting for Elijah. Jesus then declared that John the Baptist was the Elijah to come.
How was John the Baptist the Elijah they were expecting? Elijah was a representative of God and someone who had achieved victory by destroying the false prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mount Carmel, 900 years before Jesus’ coming. Similarly, John the Baptist was the witness God had sent to the New Testament time period. He came with the same heart and mission of Elijah and testified about the time period. Elijah appeared in spirit and carried out his mission through John the Baptist, but as Jesus mentioned, people “[did] to him everything they wished,” meaning they treated him however they wanted.
God Always Works Through People. The Spirit Must Use a Physical Body
Everyone should read the Bible carefully and realize. There are always situations in which the believers of God cannot perceive God’s history properly, even when the Messiah is right before them, as was the case with the Jews at Jesus’ time. As a result, instead of welcoming the savior, they persecuted and opposed Jesus.
The Jewish people claimed that God Himself would come with fire and sword, according to the words of the prophet Isaiah. They were convinced that God would come before their eyes in a way they could see. And since Israel had always been invaded by neighboring powers such as Assyria, Egypt, Philistine, and Babylon during its long history, the Jews were eagerly waiting for God—the Almighty Being who could save them.
But how did God come? He came through Jesus. However, people did not believe that God had come and was working through Jesus’ body. It was because God had come in spirit; the core of Jesus’ teaching was that the spirit must use a body on the Earth. For example, in order for your own soul and spirit to work in the world, you must utilize your own physical body to carry out that work. So, according to this principle, God uses His power and authority and takes action through a person He chooses on the Earth in each time period.
Properly Know and Realize
We can come to know about the New Testament through the Old Testament Word. And we can know properly about the current time period through Jesus’ teachings. Everything in the Bible is ultimately fulfilled. However, the question is whether you realize it or not.
The one coming from a former time period always comes in spirit, using the body of the person with the mission in the current time period. They come with the same heart and mission. Therefore, we should reflect on what God has done until now and know how God works and whom He uses. Know that the spirit takes action using a body and be empowered by this knowledge.
