Luke 9:27

But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God in this place is called the present Church; and because some of the disciples were to live in the …

That is, the glory in which the righteous shall be. Now He said this of His transfiguration, which was the type of the glory to come; as if He said, There are some standing here, Peter, James, and John, who shall not reach death before they have seen at the time of My transfiguration what will be the glory of those who confess Me.

Here are divers circumstances added and explained, which are very material. We are here told that Christ had this honour put upon him when he was praying: He went up into a mountain to pray, as he frequently did (

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

But I tell you of a truth,....

The reference, beyond doubt, is to the firm establishment and victorious progress, in the lifetime of some then present, of that new Kingdom of Christ, which was destined to work the greatest of all changes on this earth, and be the grand pledge of His final coming in glory.

These words of our Lord Jesus Christ contain three great lessons for all Christians. They apply to all ranks and classes, without exception. They are intended for every age and time, and for every branch of the visible church. We learn, for one thing — the absolute necessity of daily self-denial . Every day we ought to crucify the flesh, to overcome the world, and to resist the devil. We ought to keep our bodies under control, and bring them into subjection. We ought to be on our guard, like soldiers in an enemy's country.

These words of our Lord Jesus Christ contain three great lessons for all Christians. They apply to all ranks and classes, without exception. They are intended for every age and time, and for every branch of the visible church. We learn, for one thing — the absolute necessity of daily self-denial . Every day we ought to crucify the flesh, to overcome the world, and to resist the devil. We ought to keep our bodies under control, and bring them into subjection. We ought to be on our guard, like soldiers in an enemy's country. We ought to fight a daily battle — and war a daily warfare. The command of our Master is clear and plain, "If any man will come after Me — let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." Now what do we know of all this? Surely this is a question which ought to be asked. A little formal church-going, and a decent attendance at a place of worship — can never be the Christianity of which Christ speaks in this place. Where is our self-denial? Where is our daily carrying of the cross? Where is our following of Christ? Without a religion of this kind — we shall never be saved. A crucified Savior — will never be content to have a self-pleasing, self-indulging, worldly-minded people. No self-denial — no real grace! No cross — no crown! "Those who are Christ's," says Paul, "have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts." (Galatians 5:24.) "Whoever will save his life," says the Lord Jesus, "shall lose it; but whoever will lose his life for My sake, shall save it." We learn, for another thing, from our Lord's words in this passage — the unspeakable value of the soul. A question is asked, which admits of only one answer, "For what does it profit a man — if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?" The possession of the whole world, and all that it contains, would never make a man happy.