The Transfiguration and Conflicts of Jesus
Mark keeps asking: who is Jesus? On a mountain his glory is revealed at the Transfiguration; in Galilee a run of conflicts shows the authority he claims. Learn both, and what they mean for Christian belief.
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Who is Jesus? ✨
Mark's Gospel keeps asking one question: **who is Jesus?** Two very different episodes help answer it. On a mountain, three disciples see his glory revealed at the **Transfiguration**. In Galilee, a series of **conflicts** with the religious leaders shows the authority he claims - and stirs up deadly opposition. (All quotations here are from the public-domain King James Version.)
The words you need 📖
Four terms run through both episodes.
Match each part of the Transfiguration to its meaning 🔗
- Moses appears
- Elijah appears
- The dazzling white clothes
- The voice from the cloud
- Represents the Law given to Israel
- Represents the Prophets
- Shows Jesus' divine glory
- God confirming Jesus as his Son
Up the mountain ⛰️
Which three disciples did Jesus take up the high mountain at the Transfiguration?
- Peter, James and John
- Matthew, Mark and Luke
- Judas, Thomas and Andrew
- All twelve disciples
The voice from the cloud ☁️
At the heart of the Transfiguration a cloud overshadows them and a voice speaks. In the King James Version the words are: **"This is my beloved Son: hear him."** (Mark 9:7) For Christians this is God himself confirming that Jesus is his divine Son, and commanding the disciples to listen to him. It echoes the voice at Jesus' baptism earlier in Mark.
What the Transfiguration reveals ✅
Select the TWO things the Transfiguration reveals about Jesus.
- His divine glory
- That he is God's Son
- That he was only an ordinary teacher
- That he was Elijah brought back to life
Two ways of revealing Jesus ⚖️
The Transfiguration and the conflicts answer "who is Jesus?" from opposite directions - one by glory, one by opposition.
Match each conflict to the issue it raised 🌾
- Forgiving the paralysed man's sins
- Eating with tax collectors
- Picking grain on the Sabbath
- Healing the withered hand on the Sabbath
- Claiming an authority the scribes said belonged only to God
- Mixing with people the leaders called sinners
- Breaking the leaders' rules about resting on the Sabbath
- Doing good on the Sabbath, which made the Pharisees plot against him
Why blasphemy? 🙏
When Jesus told the paralysed man his sins were forgiven, why did the scribes accuse him of blasphemy?
- Because they believed only God can forgive sins
- Because the man was not really ill
- Because forgiving sins broke Roman law
- Because Jesus refused to heal him
Order the Transfiguration 🪜
An interactive activity.
The story in words 🧩
In the _____, a voice from the cloud confirms Jesus is God's Son. Later, when Jesus forgives the paralysed man's sins, the scribes call it _____ because they think only God can do this. He also clashes with the _____ over healing on the _____. Together these events reveal Jesus' _____.
What does it show? 🎬
An interactive activity.
Your turn: explain the Transfiguration ✍️
An interactive activity.
The grade-9 habit 🌟
Always link the **event** to its **significance**. The Transfiguration is not just a strange scene - the dazzling glory and the voice from the cloud reveal Jesus as the divine **Son of God**, with Moses and Elijah showing that the **Law and the Prophets** point to him. The conflicts are not just arguments - by **forgiving sins** and calling himself **Lord of the Sabbath**, Jesus claims an authority the leaders believed belonged to God alone. That claim is exactly why the opposition grows.