7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.

11 And they asked him, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”

12 Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? 13 But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.” Mark 9:7-13

With the exception of walking and talking with the Messiah Himself daily, Peter, James, and John had just experienced something no one living or dead had ever experienced before. It’s big big news. But they were cautioned to keep silent what they had just seen. The reason seems obvious: they could easily grow big heads and think they were important. Certainly all that could happen after He had risen from the dead, but the scene would have faded a bit in their minds.

There’s no indication they said anything but you just know they were beaming when they descended from the mountain top.

What do you do with secrets?

Or perhaps I should ask, how long does it take for you to blurt out a secret?

Depends is probably the common answer. It depends on what the secret is about, who you’re not supposed to tell, and how much damage the secret would cause if the secret got out.

Should it be that way? Is your word, as they say, bond? Shouldn’t your “yes be yes” and your “no be no”?

A thought. And a caution. People tells us secrets for good reason. They should be able to trust us as well.