On the 1st Sunday of  Lent we follow Jesus Christ from his baptism in the Jordan into the desert where he is tempted by Satan for forty days. Jesus, the New Adam, conquers Satan and leads us back to a promised Paradise.

On the 2nd Sunday of Lent we follow him up the mountain where he reveals the glory that awaits us. Lent is a time of revelation, the prayer that begins this season says. Jesus reveals his glory to us as well as to the disciples who accompanied him then.

Grant, almighty God, through the yearly observances of holy Lent, that we may grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ and by worthy conduct pursue their effects. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. (Collect, 1st Sunday of Lent)

Now is a time to  “grow in understanding”of the Paschal Mystery. We know so little of the mystery we celebrate. The riches are “hidden in Christ” and not immediately obvious. We must pursue them humbly, dig for the treasures hidden in the field, find Jesus Christ in the desert world we live in.

This is not just an intellectual effort either. By “worthy conduct”, good deeds, patient love for others, we uncover the “riches hidden in Christ”.

All our efforts mean little, though, unless the Almighty God grant it, “Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.”

O God, who have commanded us to listen to your beloved Son, be pleased, we pray, to nourish us inwardly by your word, that, with spiritual sight made pure, we may rejoice to behold your glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect, 2nd Sunday of Lent)

The Transfiguration of Jesus is a strongly visual mystery. Jesus is revealed in  glory on the mountain. Yet, we are told to “listen” to God’s beloved Son. His words we hear within will give us the spiritual eyes we need to behold his glory. 

What about our eyes that long to see? The stories of Abraham who is told to search the starry skies and look at the land he has been given tell us the treasures of the natural world can nourish our  desire to see more, namely, the glory revealed in Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Now we listen, then we shall see.