Some people have a 'presence' that causes others to take notice when they are around. Physical beauty captivates us. Personal charisma makes us pay attention. Celebrity, our uniquely American phenomenon of being 'famous for being famous' rather than for some remarkable accomplishment, gets some the best table in the restaurant. (Paris Hilton stands out as an example of empty celebrity.) Wealth displayed ostentatiously will get noticed every time! We take note of that stretch limo when it glides past us on the Interstate and we wonder who is behind the tinted windows, don't we? Beauty, wealth, and fame have a certain splendor but they last for a short moment in time, then are gone as others takes the spotlight.
There is a 'glory' that we all can know, a splendor in life that is not reserved for a small coterie that the rest of us envy! This 'presence' is one that makes our lives truly beautiful, meaningful, and yes - worthy of being emulated. It is the radiance of the Spirit of God in us!
Several years ago, Bev and I hosted a woman from China in our home. (She must remain anonymous in a public forum like this.) Her life is dedicated to Christ and given to serving His purposes in her land. Her devotion to Him had caused the state to imprison her on more than one occasion, but she is not cynical or embittered. She doesn't carry out around a sense of defeat or resignation. She has an infectious joy, an obvious love for God, and a compelling Presence of the Spirit that developed as a result of her love affair with Jesus! Despite being poor by most measures, rather plain in appearance, without title, and even quiet in demeanor; she captivates people's heart wherever she goes.
Believer, are you 'reflecting the Lord's glory,' radiant with His Presence?
The Bible speaks of the temporary glory that made Moses remarkable among the Israelites. His time on Mt. Sinai in the Presence of God gave his face a supernatural glow, literally! In Exodus 34:29 we read, "When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD." The holy glow on his face frightened the people so he put on a veil! Eventually, the glow faded.
The New Testament teaches that Spirit-filled people can have a holy glow that is unfading, a glory that comes from knowing God that lasts, which increases over time. Using Moses' glory experience as a lesson, Paul writes-
"Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face to face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone.
And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us!
Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him." (2 Cor. 3:13-18 The Message)
Have you replaced the glory of a Spirit-filled life with the dullness of religion?
Have you allowed the glorious life of intimacy with God that causes us to be radiant to become a life of drudgery, duty, and rigid rule-keeping?
Get alone with the Lord today and stay there soaking up His Presence. Moses spent 40 days with God! Can you spend 4 minutes? There is a glory that we can reflect into the darkened world. But we cannot know that glory unless we have gazed on Him, face to face.
_________________
"O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!"
"Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
look full in His wonderful face;
and the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
in the Light of His glory and grace." © Public Domain CCLI License No. 810055
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