Following my post on What was Jesus doing in the Old Testament? I received a helpful Facebook comment from Michael Davenport. Michael suggests why, at Christ’s baptism and transfiguration, God the Father breaks His usual pattern of only speaking to us through His Son, the Eternal Word:
Your reference to possible objections in terms of the voice of the Father heard at the baptism of Christ (and I would assume the Mount of Transfiguration) – is it possible that these instances were necessary because of the failure of men to see in this normal human before their eyes the Image of the invisible God?
In other words, in times past (the OT era), when Christ appeared (Theophany/Christophany), there was no doubting in the one beholding that this was indeed God made manifest. It would seem that, due to the humiliation of Christ at His coming and His laying aside of His glory (exhibited when the men came into the garden to seize Him), men, even His own disciples, were not quick to recognize the voice of God speaking to them.
Thus the need for the Father on the Mount of Transfiguration to tell the disciples, “Hear HIM!” It is also worth noting that in both of these instances, the Father did not engage in some lengthy conversation or teaching – He merely solidified the fact that Jesus is the eternal Word; the Image of the invisible God; the Communicator of God’s special revelation.
I like that!