There is an old saying that says that there is a reason that God gave us two ears and one mouth. We were intended to listen more than we speak, but we tend to do exactly the opposite. We tend, instead, to speak with the one mouth that we were given much more than we listen with the two ears that we have.
This was apparently also true of Peter as Jesus was revealing his true identity to the disciples, transfiguring into his spiritual self and speaking with Moses and Elijah about the time that he would depart from the earth, starting from what would happen in Jerusalem.
Instead of watching and listening, Peter began to speak. But he was so overwhelmed by what he was seeing, he was speaking nonsense. Despite being also transfigured and having appeared from heaven, thus needing no physical shelter, Peter proposes shelters for all three: Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Here is how it went:
Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Matthew 17:4-5
Jesus doesn’t even have to say anything. Instead, a voice from the cloud, the voice of God Himself, speaks to all of them and declares for a second time that this Jesus is His son.
Jesus is divine. He is God, and he is here in human form. And what is more, God loves him and is pleased with him.
What I love, though, is that it says that his voice came out of the cloud while he was still speaking. God interrupts Peter, in effect saying:
Stop talking. Listen to Jesus.
I think it is a lesson for each of us. We all, also, have two ears and one mouth. It is a lesson that we also should listen much more than we should speak. Stop speaking, listen to Jesus.
But let me take that one step further. As believers in Christ, we are given the Holy Spirit to live within us. We have the living God living inside of us and we dare to speak faster than we listen. Our Creator lives within us. The One who made us dwells inside of us and He wants to speak to us. To lead us. To guide us.
And yet we speak.
Let’s remember what the Father said to Peter and the disciples:
This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!