Do you listen to Jesus?

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke all report on an event which has become known as the transfiguration of Jesus.  In it, Jesus takes Peter, James and John up to a high mountain where Jesus’ face begins to shine like the sun and his clothes become as white as light.  Moses and Elijah appear and begin talking with Jesus.  Then a cloud envelopes them and a voice from the cloud says, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.  Listen to him!” (Mt. 17:1-9)

What a remarkable occurrence!  God is speaking audibly and directly to the three disciples, confirming that Jesus is his son and that they should listen to him. 

We are blessed to have four different gospel writers handing down a treasure trove of Jesus’ words, teachings, and actions.  As a result, one way for us to listen to Jesus is to read what he has to say, digest the meaning of his parables and observe his actions for the example they give us in how we should conduct our lives.

But Jesus and his Holy Spirit can also speak to us as a quiet whisper to our hearts.  A few years ago, a close friend experienced a massive brain hemorrhage in the night and was taken to one of our local hospitals.  A brain scan indicated that he would likely not survive.  I went to the hospital in the morning and then again in the afternoon to support him, his wife and family.

While the prognosis was fairly certain, the timing was not.  After spending most of the day at the hospital, I decided to go home for dinner.  After dinner, I was tired and my first inclination was not to return to the hospital, but then the question started coming into my mind, “What if he dies tonight?”  The question started to nag at me.  It wouldn’t go away.  Then it dawned on me to ask, “Is that you Lord?  Do you want me to go back to the hospital?”  I grabbed my Bible and headed out the door.

When I arrived in his room, there were now more friends beside the family.  We gathered around my friend’s bed and began to pray, read psalms and other passages from the Bible.  We sang hymns that were familiar to him and his family.  Our mood went from being somber to a realization that we were assisting our good friend in his passage from this life to the next.  We began praising God for his life, and what he meant to his family and the rest of us. 

The monitor started to show an irregular heartbeat, and the intervals between breaths were growing longer.  After a few minutes the line on the monitor went flat.  My friend had passed on to the arms of Jesus.

I believe that nagging question I heard after dinner, “What if he dies tonight?” was from Jesus and his Holy Spirit, leading me back to the hospital.  What a privilege and blessing it was for me to be physically present as his soul and spirit left his body to be with God!  

I believe that Jesus wanted me to be with my friend and his family when he died.  If I had not listened to Jesus, I would have missed both the opportunity and the privilege.   

“This is my son.  Listen to him!”