Jesus has just been transfigured before the disciples (Mark 9). I learned from one of my Dive Study buddies that the word transfigured means He’s been transformed from the inside out; not just physically, but His entire being has changed and is displayed before Peter, James, and John in its fully glorified state. He’s conversing with Moses and Elijah. Do you wonder what they’re talking about? I do.

This idea of being an inconvenience is the tone I hear in the leper in Mark chapter one. According to Mark, it’s early in Christ’s ministry. Jesus seems to be trying to keep a relatively low profile as He begins preaching and teaching in the synagogues. Before even the first chapter of the gospel is over, a man with leprosy has somehow seen Jesus’ capabilities, found him, recognizes His power and authority and declares the Truth that, if Jesus is willing, Jesus has the power to cleanse Him. There’s something about the way the leper asks the question that resonates with me. It’s like, “If you can spare one moment of your attention for me, that’s all it would take. I know I’m the least of your concerns and that this is a big ask. But if you are willing, you can make me clean.”

I learned what the Bible means in 1 Corinthians 13 when it says, “love protects.” The Greek word for love in this case is agape—the kind of love only God can give. And the Greek word for protects is stego and means “to cover over in silence.” As soon as I heard this definition, my mind immediately flashed to this story of Noah and his sons.

Did you know, we have an enemy who literally stands before God accusing us day and night, pointing out our shame? (Rev 12:10) Like Ham, he laughs about us: “Look, God…look what your ‘little righteous one’ did! Come check it out. Do you see her shame?” If you try to imagine what you’re being accused of as Satan stands before God, it probably wouldn’t take long to come up with some ideas. Maybe the way you yelled at your kids before school this morning? Maybe the way you treated your husband in a moment of hurry? Maybe the entire cookie sleeve you ate from the pantry five minutes ago? Maybe you feel it’s so much worse than any of those examples and it’s not even in the same universe…abuse? Adultery? Slander? It doesn’t matter. My point is, the voice you have in your head accusing you and insisting you should feel ashamed is real. But our agape loving God already responded to every. single. accusation—both big and small.

When Jesus comes this time, He is going to come with final and complete authority. He is coming as King of kings and Lord of lords, not as a baby in a manger as He did the first time. He’s not going to gradually grow a following. This time He’s coming on clouds of glory and we will all recognize Him as King. The entire world will see Him and know exactly who He is—God—both Love and Justice in the flesh. But here’s the amazing part…

I can’t help but shake my head and laugh at myself as I declare that God is so gracious, merciful, and faithful even in these seemingly insignificant things. It just seems so silly to use all of those words for Him in the context of something like coffee. But it wasn’t really about coffee at all. There was a deeper lesson to be learned about the character of God.

Peter, the first to declare Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, begins to see Jesus draw crowds by the thousands. At some point in the three years of following Jesus, Peter becomes aware that he is one of the twelve closest friends of the King of the Jews, the Man who has come to set all things straight, the One who will not just set up a kingdom here on earth, but will bring peace to all nations and will rule the entire world in peace and righteousness. Peter lives and works alongside Jesus for three years. He doesn’t just have a good thing going—it seems he has reached the pinnacle of his ministry. Imagine Peter’s horror watching Jesus hang on a cross and breathe his last breath.

What if it's our failures and our sinking in the midst of the miracle that provides the greatest opportunity for Jesus' deity to shine? What if, when our circumstances get super dark and terrifying, we ask Jesus to identify Himself by calling us out into it. Then, at his beckoning, we run to Him, out onto the raging waters so that He can bring us back to safety. Sure, we may end up wet, and cold, and even a little silly looking; but we’d also end up surrounded by a cloud of witnesses, worshiping the God Man who saved us and lifted us out of the water, shouting "Hosanna in the Highest”—I think it would all be worth it.

We are brave when we take risks and trust our Master… when we take a tiny little talent that we’ve not been given but rather entrusted with, and we bravely offer it to the world, unsure of whether it will bring anything of value to anyone at all, but sure that God can and will. It’s that first offering of the smallest gift God has deposited in us, hoping that God’s faithfulness to take our offerings and bless and multiply them is actually true. It’s the moment when we choose to put it out there, knowing that people could laugh at us… but then wonder, what if they don’t? Or when we take that first step, knowing we just might fall, but act on the vision of what happens if we actually fly.