A wife looks one last time into the casket of the man to whom she was married for 50 years. Tears streak down her cheek as the funeral director closes the coffin. Across town, the father and mother of a 5-year-old sit by a hospital bed as their daughter lingers near death. The leukemia seems stronger than their little girl. On the other side of the hospital, a doctor speaks with quiet compassion to the family of an accident victim. "We did everything we could," he tells them, "we just couldn't save him."

I won't ask if death has affected you. Death eventually affects everyone. I will ask, "How has death affected you?" Is it possible that a doctor has already told you that you don't have long to live? Is life in its waning days for someone that you love dearly? Do you struggle to get through each day even now, because someone you care about has already gone to his grave? Do you fear for someone who is in Iraq or Afghanistan? Or maybe you're a police officer, a firefighter, or you have another job that puts you in danger every single day. Or maybe you're like me – someone who doesn't seem to be in any kind of immediate danger of dying, but who, like most of the people in this world, is afraid of death; afraid of the pain; afraid of what will happen to the children you leave behind; afraid of all the unknowns that come with the end of life.

Jesus understood the pain that is caused by death. He knew that death would cause tremendous pain for his disciples. Soon he would be heading into Jerusalem to suffer and die for the sins of the world. The disciples would witness extremely disturbing events. They would see him betrayed and arrested. They would hear of his ridiculously unfair trials before the Sanhedrin and Pilate. They would look upon their beaten and bloodied rabbi and friend as he died a criminal’s death on a Roman cross. Then they would hear that his corpse was placed in a friend’s tomb. Jesus was dead.

Jesus knew he was about to be crucified as he led three of his closest disciples up onto a mountain. And Jesus knew how deeply his death was going to affect those men. He knew how hard it was going to be for them to cope. Jesus knew how difficult life was going to get for them, while he was hanging on the cross. In order to help them survive everything that was about to happen to him within the next week, Jesus gives them a glimpse of heaven up on a mountain as he is transfigured before them.

Peter, James and John followed Jesus up a mountain. That wasn’t unusual. For three years, Peter, James and John followed Jesus just about wherever he went. If he said, we're going on a boat, they followed. To Jerusalem, they followed. To Samaria, they followed. To a mountain, they also followed. Following was what disciples did.

You never knew when you followed Jesus what was going to happen next. One day, Jesus would talk to a storm. That's not the surprise. The surprise is that the storm listened (Mark 4:37ff). Another day, Jesus walked on the water (Matthew 14:25). Then there was the day he brought a dead person back to life (Luke 17:11), or the time he touched a leper (Matthew 8:2) – those are things normal people don't do. Following Jesus was almost always a surprise.

But as many times as the disciples had been surprised in the past, nothing prepared them for what they experienced the day they followed the Savior up a mountain. What happened on the Mount of Transfiguration is outstanding even as far as Bible history goes. On the summit, they were given a glimpse of heaven. They were as close to experiencing heaven on earth as humans can possibly get. They were in the glory of God. Up on that mountain, Jesus was transfigured before them.

Transfiguration means "to be transformed". The Greek word for transfigure is "metemorpho" – or what we call metamorphosis – such as caterpillar changing into a butterfly. It is a complete change in which the essence remains the same but the glory and beauty hidden within shows through. The Gospel writers tell us that Jesus was completely changed, transfigured, before his disciples that day. Matthew, Mark, and John tell us that "his clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them … as bright as a flash of lightning … and his face shone like the sun." It was a radiance that came from within Jesus.

When God came to live on earth as a man on that first Christmas he did not stop being the true God, rather he simply set aside and did not reveal his heavenly glory. Jesus contained that glory within himself. Yet on the top of that mountain, Jesus allowed his full glory to shine though. On the summit, Jesus’ humanity no longer hid his divinity. Jesus revealed his full glory, just as he does in heaven. I guess you could say that heaven had come to earth in all its glory.

As you look at Jesus as he was that day on the mountain in shining glory, you get a glimpse of yourself. Here you get an opportunity to see what you are going to look like in eternity. God tells us in Philippians 3, "He will transform our lowly body so that [it] will be like his glorious body" – like the glorified body of Jesus. So in the transfiguration of Jesus you get a glimpse of the transformation that’s going to take place in you, when God takes you to heaven. This is a great help to us now, especially when our joints are aching with arthritis, or we find ourselves without the energy we once had, because one day we will have a transformed body, that will be like Christ’s body, holy and blameless and without ache.

On that mountain, suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared and started talking with Jesus. Moses led the Children of Israel on a great exodus from Egypt through the Red Sea to the Promised Land. He died before he entered the Promised Land of Canaan, but God hid his grave so it was never found. Elijah departed this world in a great exodus as he was carried home to heaven in a fiery chariot. Moses and Elijah stood on the Mount of Transfiguration speaking about Jesus' departure because they were preparing Jesus for his glorious departure from this world. But before that great departure through his resurrection and ascension, he first had to go through the suffering and the crucifixion.

They stood with Jesus and spoke with him knowing that Jesus' exodus would be the greatest of all. By his death and departure from this life, our sins were taken away and our punishment for breaking God's Law was paid. Jesus delivered us from the slavery of sin, death, and hell and has launched us heavenward because he rose from the grave, ascended into heaven, and is preparing a place for us in his Father's mansion.

Jesus went up on the mount of Transfiguration because he knew his disciples needed to see that glimpse of heaven. He went up on that mountain because he knew that we needed to see that glimpse of heaven. We need to go up on that mountain because eventually we have to come down from the mountain of glory. We have to live in the plain of sin and temptation. We will eventually have to travel through the dark valley of the shadow of death. As we live in this plain and travel through this dark valley, we can remember what it was like to be up on that mountain. To see what those disciples saw. After the sin and darkness, there will be glory. After the suffering and pain, there will be joy and bliss. When we have to deal with difficult people like Moses did, we remember that we will receive our reward and glory like Moses did. When we are given difficult ministries to carry out in our church, community or family, like Elijah did, we remember that we will be taken home to heaven by God’s chariot of angels.

Heaven tends to have a powerful impact on people. It inspires us to great things. Moses saw the glory of God on Mount Sinai as he received the Ten Commandments. He went on to lead his people for forty difficult years of wandering in the desert. Elijah thought he was the only believer left and Queen Jezebel had a price on his head. God appeared in his heavenly glory as he passed in front of him on Mt. Horeb. Elijah was encouraged and his faith was strengthened to carry on his difficult ministry. On the road to Damascus, Saul witnessed the glory of Jesus as a bright light from heaven. The glory of God inspired Saul to become the apostle Paul, the greatest missionary who ever lived. Peter, James and John were timid disciples who ran and hid when Jesus was arrested and crucified. Yet when they witnessed the glory of Jesus after his resurrection, it changed their lives. They were willing to face imprisonment, beatings and even death for their Lord.

That same is true for every one of you. When you are faced with death, we remember this glimpse of heaven on the Mount of Glory and agree with Peter, "It is good for us to be here! Don’t let it end! We need this inspiration."

When your Christian grandmother is in the nursing home, heaven inspires you to say, "It is good to be here. Soon she will be in her new home in the mansions of heaven." When your believing spouse is suffering as he dying from cancer, heaven inspires you to say, "It is good to be here. Soon he will be with the Lord where there is no more suffering, pain or tears." When a child in your family is born prematurely, is baptized immediately, and is quickly taken by death, you can say, "It is good to be here. I barely knew her, but I miss her already. But soon I will be with her for all eternity." That is the comfort of heaven. That is the comfort the disciples the disciples needed before they followed Jesus down the mountain to his death. That is the comfort we need as we follow Jesus through this plain of sin in which we live until we follow him through the valley of the shadow of death. Always remembering the glimpse of heaven we received on this Mount of Glory. Lord, it is good to be here.

One evening at the supper table little 6-year-old Jimmy Rodgers announced, "I know what heaven will be like!" "Oh", said his Father, "Tell me". "Well," Jimmy said, "When we get to heaven there is going to be a big angel who will read from a big book the names of all the people who will be there. He will come to the Rodgers family and say, 'Daddy Rodgers?' and Daddy will say, 'Here!' Then the angel will call out, 'Mommy Rodgers?' and Mommy will say 'Here!' Then Jimmy paused took a deep breath and continued. And finally the angel will read my name, Jimmy Rodgers, and because I'm so little and I don't want him to miss me, I'll jump up and shout real loud, 'HERE!' to make sure he knows I'm there.

Just a few days after Jimmy had said this he was struck by a car as he got off his school bus. Unconscious, he was rushed to the hospital where the doctors did everything they could to save him, but they knew there was little hope for his recovery. He was placed, still unconscious, into critical condition. That night his mother and father waited by his bedside and prayed. Then late in the night the boy stirred and as his parents came closer just one word was utter from his lips, 'HERE'!

And then he was gone. Jimmy died that night, and at the moment he uttered that word we can imagine that a big angel carried his soul to eternal life in heaven.

Do you know what heaven is going to be like? Do you want to be among those who will say "HERE!" as your name is read from the book of Life? The book of Revelation describes heaven as "the dwelling of God with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." (Revelation 21:3-4) We know that heaven is a perfect place, but because it is perfect we can't begin to imagine what it will be like. But one thing is certain, we don’t want to miss out on it! We want to say with all the saints, "I'm HERE!" Amen.