The Sunday of the Transfiguration (NT)

Acts 20:17-38

¹⁷ Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him. ¹⁸ And when they came to him, he said to them:

“You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, ¹⁹ serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; ²⁰ how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, ²¹ testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. ²² And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, ²³ except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. ²⁴ But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. ²⁵ And now, behold, I know that none of you among whom I have gone about proclaiming the kingdom will see my face again. ²⁶ Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, ²⁷ for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. ²⁸ Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. ²⁹ I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; ³⁰ and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. ³¹ Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears. ³² And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. ³³ I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. ³⁴ You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. ³⁵ In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶ And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. ³⁷ And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him, ³⁸ being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship.

This is St Paul's transfiguration event. No, he is not transfigured. He does not become dazzling white. St Paul rather is saying goodbye. He is giving his final face to face greeting to these people. He is assuring them that he has not withheld any information. He has proclaimed the full counsel of God. He has taught it to anyone who would listen. He now goes to suffer and to be imprisoned, and eventually die.

St Paul does not give any passion predictions. He does not say he will be beheaded by the sword in Rome, nor does he want to bring glory to his own suffering. He wants the people to know that they will suffer as he has suffered. He takes this time to prepare the people of Ephesus for what is about to come. There will be wolves and those who will distort and pervert the Gospel.

These people are still around today. People that want to join false teaching with right teaching. People who want to join Christ with idolatry and false worship. People who combine the table of demons and the table of The Lord. This is nothing new! 

Christ was actually transformed before their eyes. They saw Christ change and reveal the full glory of God. That is simply because Jesus is God. St Paul is not God. St Paul does point us to Jesus and the eternal sacrifice Christ made for the forgiveness of our sin. Christ has died for our release. Christ did not die so we would never suffer, but so that we would have hope in times of Suffering. So we like St Paul can press on toward the goal, knowing the victory has already been won.