Through The Bible in a Year - June 26, 2026

"And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him." - Matthew 17:3

When was the last time we saw Moses before this moment?

He had led Israel through the wilderness for 40 years. But at the end, in a moment of exhaustion and anger, he struck a rock and claimed God's power as his own. God's verdict: "Because you claimed My status for yourself, you cannot take My people into the Promised Land. It would not be good for my people or for you to believe that you are their Messiah." So, the last image we have of Moses is a solitary figure walking away, disgraced, dying alone in the mountains—his burial place unknown to anyone.

When was the last time we saw Elijah?

He had just called down fire from heaven on Mount Carmel and defeated 450 prophets of Baal. A moment of supreme faith and power. And then Queen Jezebel threatened him, and he fled into the desert in terror—the greatest prophet in Israel's history, hiding under a bush, asking God to let him die. He was consumed by cowardice and despair immediately after God had granted the prophet’s greatest triumph.

And yet—almost 1,500 years after Moses' disgrace, and 900 years after Elijah's cowardice—both of them stand on a mountain in the Promised Land, affirming the glory of God's Son.

What is God saying by bringing these two men back?

"Their sin, weakness, and failings are not the final chapter."

Moses couldn't enter the Promised Land in life. But he stands in it now, in glory, beside the Redeemer he spent his ministry pointing toward.

Elijah ran from his calling in cowardice. But he stands now on a mountain top, fully restored, declaring the One all his prophecies foretold.

God is writing this large on the mountain rim of history so we can see it from the valley of our lives: if He can still use Moses, if He can still redeem Elijah, if their failure wasn't their final chapter—then your sin need not be the final chapter of your life either.

So, go ahead and ask your hard questions in light of what happened on that mountain top: "God, if you still had a plan for Moses, if you could still use Elijah—do You still have a plan for me? Can You still use me? Will You yet forgive me?"

The answer blazing from the mountain on which Moses and Elijah stood is – Yes!

Respond: What failure are you convinced disqualifies you from God's plan? What sin, what cowardice, what moment of pride or weakness feels like it has written your final chapter?

Remember Moses and Elijah. Both appeared on the mountain with Jesus. Despite their failures, Jesus received them and used them to make his glory known.

Your failure is not the final word. God's grace is.

This week, bring your specific failures to God—not to explain them away or justify them, but to confess them honestly and then receive what the Transfiguration declares: His grace is greater than your greatest failure. Your sin is not your final chapter. He can still use you. He still has a plan for you.

Prayer: Father, I have failed You in ways that feel final to me. Like Moses, I have claimed things for myself that belong to You. Like Elijah, I have run from my calling. I've wondered if You could still use me, still have a plan for me, still forgive me. But then I see Moses and Elijah on that mountain—restored, honored, and used for Your glory. My failure is not my final chapter. Your grace is greater. Do for me what You did for them. In Jesus' name, Amen.