BEHOLDING HIS GLORY
"For
God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our
hearts, to give the light of
the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2
Corinthians 4:6)
Jesus Christ is the A to Z, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, the Author and Finisher of our faith, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He said that no man can come to the heavenly Father, but by Him. He is the light of the world, and God has commanded that His light should shine into the darkness of this world, and into the darkness of our hearts. With this light comes the knowledge of the glory of God. That is, we can see and know the glory of God simply by believing and receiving His Son Jesus Christ.
There are many who think that God likes to hide Himself from man, and that it is difficult to know what it is that He requires of us humans. This could not be further from the truth. The fact is, God delights in His fellowship with man, and it is His deepest desire to speak with man and reveal His will to him. When God first created man, He communed continually with him, and man knew his Creator and beheld His glory. It was Adam's sin that changed all of that. After the fall, Adam felt compelled to hide from his Maker because of his shame and guilt. So, you see, it is not God Who separates Himself from man, but quite the opposite.
Man's fallen state has brought a separation between him and his heavenly Father, and what was true in the beginning is just as true today. As the prophet Isaiah said, "Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear." Man now reacts to God more out of fear instead of seeking to restore the love relationship that God desires to have with him. He may try to soothe his guilt by good works and charities, or by endeavoring to stick to a moral code of ethics. He may even seek to find peace in church membership, or by adhering to some religion. None of these things bring the peace of mind that man seeks, nor bring him any closer to His Creator. Peace with God can only come by one way, and that is by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." (John 8:36)
In the Old Testament, when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai after being in the presence of God, and receiving the Ten Commandments, his face shone with the glory of God. "And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai—and the two tables of testimony were in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mountain—that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone through his talking with Him [God]. And Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come near him." (Exodus 34:29-30 Darby) In order for the people to look at him, Moses had to put a veil over his face. When he talked with God, he removed the veil; but when he talked with the people, he put the veil over his face again. What a tragedy that the children of Israel could hear the law, but they could not behold God's glory. Similarly, in the temple of God there was a veil placed between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies where God's glory abode, and the Israelites were unable to enter behind the veil. Only the high priest was allowed to enter that sacred space, and then, only once a year.
Unless we come to God through His Son Jesus Christ, then Christianity remains just a bunch of laws, rules, and rituals which are difficult to understand and impossible to keep. There remains a veil between us and God that may reveal His acts, but hide His ways, His purpose, and His glory. In the Old Testament we read about God's wrath toward sin and disobedience because of the death and destruction that these things brought on the world and on man; but in the New Testament we read about the Son of God Whom the Father sent to save the world, and not to condemn. In Christ, the veil is swept aside, and we behold the glory of God as we look on Jesus' face. "...which vail is done away in Christ." "Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away." (2 Corinthians 3:14b, 16) In the Lord, we find the power and the will to do His will, and comprehend His plan. As we grow in the knowledge of God, we are transformed into His nature by His Holy Spirit working inside of us. We serve Him because we love Him, and know that He loves us. There is nothing so incredible as to have the veil removed and to really see and know the love that the Father has for His children. We may now enter into the very holy of holies and behold God's glorious beauty!
"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Jesus Christ is the A to Z, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, the Author and Finisher of our faith, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He said that no man can come to the heavenly Father, but by Him. He is the light of the world, and God has commanded that His light should shine into the darkness of this world, and into the darkness of our hearts. With this light comes the knowledge of the glory of God. That is, we can see and know the glory of God simply by believing and receiving His Son Jesus Christ.
There are many who think that God likes to hide Himself from man, and that it is difficult to know what it is that He requires of us humans. This could not be further from the truth. The fact is, God delights in His fellowship with man, and it is His deepest desire to speak with man and reveal His will to him. When God first created man, He communed continually with him, and man knew his Creator and beheld His glory. It was Adam's sin that changed all of that. After the fall, Adam felt compelled to hide from his Maker because of his shame and guilt. So, you see, it is not God Who separates Himself from man, but quite the opposite.
Man's fallen state has brought a separation between him and his heavenly Father, and what was true in the beginning is just as true today. As the prophet Isaiah said, "Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear." Man now reacts to God more out of fear instead of seeking to restore the love relationship that God desires to have with him. He may try to soothe his guilt by good works and charities, or by endeavoring to stick to a moral code of ethics. He may even seek to find peace in church membership, or by adhering to some religion. None of these things bring the peace of mind that man seeks, nor bring him any closer to His Creator. Peace with God can only come by one way, and that is by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." (John 8:36)
In the Old Testament, when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai after being in the presence of God, and receiving the Ten Commandments, his face shone with the glory of God. "And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai—and the two tables of testimony were in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mountain—that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone through his talking with Him [God]. And Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come near him." (Exodus 34:29-30 Darby) In order for the people to look at him, Moses had to put a veil over his face. When he talked with God, he removed the veil; but when he talked with the people, he put the veil over his face again. What a tragedy that the children of Israel could hear the law, but they could not behold God's glory. Similarly, in the temple of God there was a veil placed between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies where God's glory abode, and the Israelites were unable to enter behind the veil. Only the high priest was allowed to enter that sacred space, and then, only once a year.
Unless we come to God through His Son Jesus Christ, then Christianity remains just a bunch of laws, rules, and rituals which are difficult to understand and impossible to keep. There remains a veil between us and God that may reveal His acts, but hide His ways, His purpose, and His glory. In the Old Testament we read about God's wrath toward sin and disobedience because of the death and destruction that these things brought on the world and on man; but in the New Testament we read about the Son of God Whom the Father sent to save the world, and not to condemn. In Christ, the veil is swept aside, and we behold the glory of God as we look on Jesus' face. "...which vail is done away in Christ." "Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away." (2 Corinthians 3:14b, 16) In the Lord, we find the power and the will to do His will, and comprehend His plan. As we grow in the knowledge of God, we are transformed into His nature by His Holy Spirit working inside of us. We serve Him because we love Him, and know that He loves us. There is nothing so incredible as to have the veil removed and to really see and know the love that the Father has for His children. We may now enter into the very holy of holies and behold God's glorious beauty!
"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:18)
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