Koonung Heights Uniting Church
Service of Worship at Home
Transfiguration – 2 March 2025 – 10am or whenever possible
You may like to light a candle during your time of worship.
Feel free to text the Peace to other members of the congregation.
During the service we will share communion so you may wish to have the elements ready.
Glory to the King of kings; majesty, power and strength to the Lord of lords.
Holy one, all creation crowns you King of kings,
holy one, King of kings, Lord of lords, Holy one!
Glory to the King of kings; majesty, power and strength to the Lord of lords.
Jesus, Lord, with eyes unveiled we will see your throne,
Jesus, Prince of Peace, Son of God, Immanuel!
Glory to the King of kings; majesty, power and strength to the Lord of lords.
Acknowledgement of Country:
As we gather, I acknowledge the
Wurundjeri WoiWurrung People of the Kulin nation,
Traditional Custodians of these unceded lands.
I pay my respects to their elders, past and present,
and to all future generations.
As First and Second Peoples walking together,
may we commit ourselves to be people of the covenant,
listening, truth telling and seeking justice for all.
Call to Worship:
Up on a hill far away
Peter, John and James went with Jesus.
Not expecting anything to happen.
But a moment of transfiguration.
Heaven and earth kissing
and God spoke to them.
When we come to worship, what do we expect?
Do we expect to encounter God?
Are we expecting to be transformed in our lives?
Come ready to listen,
come ready to encounter,
come ready to worship, our God together.
We Sing: “Immortal, invisible, God only wise” – (TiS 143)
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, your great name we praise.
You give life to all, Lord, to both great and small,
in all life now living, the true life of all:
we blossom and flourish as leaves on a tree,
then wither: but ever unchanged you will be.
All praise we would render: reveal to our sight
what hides you is only the splendour of light;
and so let your glory, Almighty, impart,
through Christ in the story, your Christ to the heart.
Prayer of Praise and Confession:
God of glory,
wherever your people gather, you are there
transfiguring every moment,
providing fresh revelation,
sustaining us for the journey.
God of grace,
wherever we gather to worship you, you are there
moving our hearts,
changing our understanding,
encouraging growth in us,
no matter our age or stage of life.
Holy God,
you call us to lay down everything
and reach for your cross,
that we may find abundant life.
You call us to draw near,
yet we fail to hear your voice.
We sleepwalk through life,
ignoring the needs of people all around us
and worrying about our own desires.
Forgive us:
when we shut out the call to climb into your presence;
and when we make excuses to put off that journey.
Empty our hands this day,
that we may be ready
to receive the fullness of your love
and to face the future,
trusting you have more in mind.
Amen
Words of Assurance:
We worship a forgiving God,
whose mercy is never ending,
whose heart abounds in steadfast love.
Because of the love of Jesus Christ,
nothing can separate us
from the love of God.
The Peace:
In the face of a stranger, in the greeting of a friend,
we see Jesus Christ.
In the love of Christ, welcome those around you today
with words of peace.
The peace of Christ be with you … and also with you.
Time for All:
Today we will hear the story of Jesus climbing a mountain with his friends. When they are there something amazing happens and they see things differently. You do get a different perspective when you are up higher, but you don’t always have to climb to see things differently. When our family visited Uluru it was actually by not climbing that Tony saw things differently than he had when he had visited and climbed the rock as a younger man. Engaging with the First Nations guides who were working on country, we saw things that we would not have experienced otherwise.
Last week we watched a video from Uniting World, and we were invited to see how climate change is impacting some of our Pacific neighbours in ways that we do not deal with on a day to day basis. People who cannot grow the food they need to feed their families was just one example.
As part of our Lenten journey this year we are invited to participate in ’40 for the future’, a series of programs that run for 40 days and invite us to change our behaviour slightly, to see things a little differently, and to make a difference.
There are 4 different programs you can choose from – FOOD 40, TRANSPORT 40, ENERGY 40 and THRIFTY 40. FOOD 40 invites us to skip beef and lamb and cut our food emissions in half. TRANSPORT 40 invites us to leave our cars at home, ENERGY 40 invites us to give up heating and cooling and THRIFTY 40 encourages us to not purchase anything new. Why not take up one of these challenges and feel good about making a positive difference to yourself and the planet. You might even choose to donate any money you save to the valuable work of Uniting World.
Let us pray
Dear God,
We thank you for all that you have given us.
Help us look at things differently and do what we can to care for our world and for one another.
Amen.
We Sing: “Touch the earth lightly” – (TiS 668)
Touch the earth lightly, use the earth gently,
nourish the life of the world in our care:
gift of great wonder, ours to surrender,
trust for the children tomorrow will bear.
We who endanger, who create hunger,
agents of death for all creatures that live,
we who would foster clouds of disaster,
God of our planet, forestall and forgive!
Let there be greening, birth from the burning,
water that blesses and air that is sweet,
health in God’s garden, hope in God’s children,
regeneration that peace will complete.
God of all living, God of all loving,
God of the seedling, the snow and the sun,
teach us, deflect us, Christ reconnect us,
using us gently and making us one.
Bible Reading: Psalm 99
– Praise to God for His Holiness
1 The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth quake!
2 The Lord is great in Zion;
he is exalted over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name.
Holy is he!
4 Mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity;
you have executed justice
and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool.
Holy is he!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called on his name.
They cried to the Lord, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
they kept his decrees and the statutes that he gave them.
8 O Lord our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9 Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy.
Bible Reading: Luke 9:28-36
– The Transfiguration
28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking about his exodus, which he was about to fulfill in Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep, but as they awoke they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us set up three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah,” not realising what he was saying. 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.
Reflection:
The transfiguration of Jesus is one of the stories that the lectionary invites us to hear every year. Unlike some of the other annual stories, this one has always been an enigma: it’s mysterious and difficult to understand. It’s one of those stories that leaves us with more questions than answers. If you happened to come here today expecting all the answers, then I need to apologise up front, because I have a lot of questions about this story too. What actually happened? What is really going on in this strange encounter than seems to transcend the divine and human world simultaneously? Is it, in fact, just a story or is there something here that has meaning for us in today’s world?
This year we are invited to read Luke’s encounter of the transfiguration alongside Psalm 99, which brings a different lens to how we might think about the transfiguration. The Psalmist invites us to join in this hymn of praise to the God who is at the same time both holy and yet intimately involved with God’s people. This same holiness is then revealed in the person of Jesus, who travels with his companions to a place where the veil is thin; to a place where Peter, James and John are momentarily brought face to face with the divinity of Jesus, as he prepares them for the journey towards Jerusalem.
Psalm 99 is indeed a celebration of God’s role as King over all the earth. God is said to rule the heavens and the earth and so all the earth is called to hail Yahweh as God and to praise his holiness and grandeur. This is an audacious claim, and both a political and theological statement of hope even today, for if we can state that God is King, then the earthly powers that try and ‘rule us’ have no claim over us. Of course in many places in the world today there either is no king or queen, and even when they do still exist, they are often figureheads as the true governance of the land is carried out be a president or prime minister. In the ancient world, however, the king was not merely symbolic but the actual ruler of the kingdom. It was the king’s job to establish and defend the nation’s borders. It was the king’s job to administer justice to all and to insure equity among all people regardless of their station in life.
Psalm 99 claims God had done all of this for Israel, and was prepared to bring such justice to all the earth, ‘establishing equity [and] executing justice’ as well as forgiving the people when they got it wrong. This is a relational God who wants so much to restore humanity, that the Son of God needs to become fully human and come to dwell with us, offering us a way to restore that most precious relationship.
In Luke’s gospel the transfiguration narrative comes after Jesus’ proclamation of his betrayal, death and ultimate resurrection, and where Peter confesses Jesus to be the Christ, the Messiah. As Jesus’ explains that this will be the pathway for him, the disciples begin to see that while he is the Messiah, it might not be in the way that they understood. Jesus is not coming to overthrow the political powers as they might have imaged. Jesus will not meet violence with violence, but will walk a sacrificial path to the cross. As the disciples are trying to come to terms with all of this, Jesus travels up the mountain with Peter, James and John. While they are on the mountain, and Jesus is praying, they see him transformed and hear the voice of God, proclaiming that Jesus is God’s Son.
The disciples weren’t expecting to witness anything like this and when it happens they are quite overwhelmed. To be confronted with this transformative power of God is a huge thing, and their initial responses are clumsy. Peter asks a practical question ‘Should we set up tents?’ and yet when the moment has passed the disciples do not even speak of it. I can’t actually imagine that I would have responded any better, and my sense is that when we have transformative experiences of God we might often be clumsy in our responses. I wonder if sometimes we, too, become pragmatic in dealing with transformative experiences so that we can manage the divine? Do we make God into our own image, affording God our own sensibilities?
I wonder whether a better approach might be to practice and prepare for these experiences so that, unexpected as they are, when they happen we might just be able to rest in them and allow ourselves to be transformed. If we practice prayer, we might be ready to receive the inspiration that God sends us, and may even have the courage to reflect God’s glory as much as we can. And when we practice what reflecting the glory of God looks like, we might find that not only our lives are changed, but also the lives of people around us. Sure we won’t be perfect, but as the community of Christ, isn’t this what we are called to do?
The transfiguration reminds us that all of the holiness, splendour, and power celebrated in Psalm 99 really did reside in the man Jesus, and although it did not typically and literally shine and blaze forth as it did on the mountain that one day, it was nevertheless always there. Let us celebrate that as we prepare once more this Lent to follow Jesus to the cross.
Amen.
We Sing: “Colourful Creator” – (TiS 190)
Colourful Creator, God of mystery,
thank you for the artist teaching us to see
glimpses of the meaning of the commonplace,
visions of the holy in each human face.
Harmony of ages, God of listening ear,
thank you for composers tuning us to hear
echoes of the Gospel in the songs we sing,
sounds of love and longing from the deepest spring.
Author of our journey, God of near and far,
praise for tale and drama telling who we are,
stripping to the essence struggles of our day,
times of change and conflict when we choose our way.
God of truth and beauty, Poet of the Word,
may we be creators by the Spirit stirred,
open to your presence in our joy and strife,
vessels of the holy coursing through our life.
Prayer for Others (prepared by Margaret Lord):
Loving God, we give thanks for mountain top experiences, when we have felt you to be so close. We pray that we might let those moments transfigure and renew us, so that as we return from the mountain to the plain, we are able to better show your love, mercy, and inclusion to others and to the earth itself.
We pray that in the hubbub of daily life, we might always be aware that you are still intrinsically with us, and that we can be regularly renewed in our commitment to live as citizens of your kingdom, working for its flourishing, however we can.
We think now of some of the many places and situations in the world where there is much work to be done in that regard.
We pray for all who are seeking a place of welcome and safety this day:
For those who are unsafe because of violence meted out against them because of their religion, sexual orientation, ethnic origin or political viewpoint.
For those who feel trapped in their homes, due to the intimidation, bullying or violence of another, and find that home is a place of fear and not safety.
May they experience your presence, and may we be renewed as welcoming people and communities of safety.
We pray for all who are seeking peace this day:
For those caught in the terror of war, wherever there is conflict.
For those caught in the resulting humanitarian crises, facing starvation, separated from families, often with no home to return to, those who become refugees.
For those who continue to work for reconciliation and justice, who provide aid and support.
May all these people experience your presence, and may we renewed to be peace-filled people, building communities of justice.
We pray for all who need to feel the gentle touch of compassion this day:
For those worn down by illness or anxiety, or with caring for loved ones.
For those struggling with the pressures of the cost of living crisis, the demands of work, school or family life.
For those who mourn the loss of loved ones.
May they experience your presence, and may we be renewed to be people of compassion and communities of hope.
We pray for all leaders – in our church locally and nationally, in our wider communities, in our country and in the world:
For those stressed by their responsibilities.
For the overconfident who need to learn humility.
May they all experience your presence as they work for the good of their people, and may we be renewed as positive and active participants in community life.
In a moment of silence, we pray for those we each carry personally in our hearts.
May they all experience your presence and may we be renewed to more effectively express
our love and care for them.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Communion:
The Peace
The peace of the Lord be with you
and also with you.
Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
It is right that we give you thanks and praise
at all times and in all places
for you have created and sustained us.
We praise you that through your eternal Word
you brought the universe into being and you made each one of us in your own image.
You have given us this earth to care for and delight in.
You love us and have bound yourself to us.
Above all thank you for Jesus, the living Word, the bread of life,
born as one of us, living our common life and walking the path to death,
yet through his actions reconciling us to you and to one another.
Therefore we gladly join our voices to the song of the Church on earth and in heaven,
singing:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of love and light,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
On the night of Jesus betrayal and arrest, as he shared a meal with his friends,
Jesus took bread; gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to his followers, saying:
“Share this bread among you; this is my body which will be broken for justice.
Do this to remember me.”
When supper was over, he took the cup, gave thanks and gave it to his disciples, saying:
“Share this wine among you; this is my blood which will be shed for liberation.
Do this to remember me.”
Invocation
Creating, Redeeming, Sustaining God, let your Spirit come upon your people gathered here.
Spirit of compassion, bless us and this bread and wine.
May this meal be food and drink for our journey –
renewing, sustaining and making us whole.
When we eat and drink may we experience again
the presence of the risen Jesus in our midst.
Amen.
Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name;
Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.
Distribution
The bread we take is a sharing in the body of Christ.
The wine we take is a sharing in the blood of Christ.
These are the gifts of God for the people of God.
The bread of life – the cup of hope.
May this meal nourish and refresh you, strengthen and renew you,
and may it remind you that you are loved.
Amen.
(Eat and drink)
Prayer
Send us from here to reveal your love in the world.
Inspire us to use our words to point others to the Word.
Inspire in us the resolve and the courage, the compassion and passion
to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with you. Amen.
We Sing: “Be thou my vision” – (TiS 547)
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
naught be all else to me, save that thou art
thou my best thought, by day or by night,
waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word;
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord;
thou my great Father, thy child let me be,
thou in me dwelling and I one with thee.
Be thou my armour, my sword for the fight,
be thou my dignity, though my delight;
thou my souls’ s shelter and thou my high tower;
raise thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.
Riches I scorn and the world’s empty praise,
thou my inheritance now and always:
thou and thou only the first in my heart;
high King of heaven, my treasure thou art.
High King of heaven, after victory won,
may I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be my vision, O ruler of all.
Blessing:
God of mountaintop mystery,
lead us on our way.
God of daily duties,
lead us on our way.
God of all times and place
earthly and eternal
lead us from this place
and stay with us on our way.
And the blessing of the God the Father,
God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
the One who Mother’s us all,
be with you always.
Amen.
Thanks to all those who have assisted in preparation for this liturgy with encouragement, prayers and conversation. I have also utilised the following resources:
By the Well, Fig Tree Worship Resources and Spill the Beans (Issue 41).