Love Truth Blog

“This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” (Matt. 17:5) The transfiguration of Jesus Christ presents a monumental event in time-space where in the inner circle of the twelve disciples, Peter, James and John, witnessed a spectacular vision of their Master’s unveiled glory. It occurred six days after Peter’s confession of Jesus as Messiah and the Son of God (Matt .16:13-20), along with Jesus’ revelation of His mission, that the Son of Man must suffer, die upon the cross, and three days later rise again (Matt. 16:21-28). Jesus, Peter, James, and John were on a mountain to when the transfiguration occurred (Matt. 17:1-2). God had simply lifted the veil of invisibility allowing the three to behold the glory of the One, the true nature of the Son of God, face shining as the sun with garments glowing white. There also appeared with the transfigured Lord, the ancient prophets—Moses and Elijah. The former was the one whom received the Law of God upon Mount Sinai, ...

“From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day” (Matt. 16:21). Central to all the teachings of Jesus concerns His crucifixion, death, and resurrection. He is the Christ the Son of God, and He was inaugurating the kingdom of heaven, which the disciples could understand; however, the very cornerstone which all that would be built is His passion. This was the very mission that God the Father sent the Son to accomplish. After His resurrection, He even said to two of His followers: “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory? (Luke 24:25). This very message is counterintuitive to all that the world might say a messiah or divine incarnation ought to build kingdoms. The way ancient kingdoms were...

“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matt. 16:13). Here Matthew records Jesus is using the title “Son of Man” in reference to Himself. Luke and Mark simply use the first person pronoun “I” (cf. Mk. 8:27; Luke 9:18). Jesus also rephrases the question a couple verses later: “Who do you say that I am?” The very title of “Son of Man” hearkens back to Daniel, who foresaw the rise and fall of four beastly kingdoms—Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece—and the establishment of the everlasting kingdom of the Son of Man. He wrote, I kept looking in the night visions And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days. And was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed (Dan. 7:13-14). Those familiar with the ba...

Jesus said, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (Matt. 16:5). On one occasion after landing on the shore the Sea of Galilee, the disciples realized they had forgotten to pack bread for the trip. Jesus then seizes the opportunity to warn them about “the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matt. 16:5-6). The leaven is an sinful yeast, the doctrinal errors espoused by the religious leaders. The disciples did not understand and were perplexed about having forgotten the bread (Matt. 16:5). But it was not about the bread. It was about always remembering God’s provisions. The Lord reminds them of two great miracles they all experiences in the form of two questions: “Do you not yet understand or remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets full you picked up? Or the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many large baskets full you picked up?” (Matt. 16:9-10). The answer, of course, is twelve for the feeding of the five-th...

“The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet” (Psalm 110:1). Psalm 110 is a song David wrote while meditating upon the role of the priest-king. As a priest-king, he ruled over Israel upon the throne, but even acting as a mediator between the people and Yahweh, as in the case when the ark was brought back to Jerusalem and he offered animal sacrifices to the Lord (2 Samuel 16:12-17). However, he also looked forward to the ultimate priest-king. David was a type and shadow of things to come. Jesus Christ is the substance, the fulfillment of all types and shadows, a “priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (Psa. 110:4). He is the mediator between God and His people. He gives His own body as the final sacrifice allowing sinful people to enter into a right relationship with a holy and righteous God (Heb. 7-10). Moreover, the idea of Jesus being at the right hand of the Father is less about a physical location, and re...