THE NATURE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE All of this glory – the transforming glory that we behold – is gathered together in the person of Christ, who is the appointed vehicle from whom this glory emanates. This is most precisely stated in the next chapter. A single verse will suffice to buttress the point here. "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 Cor 4:6). -- Tomorrow:
"But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away. Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 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 Cor 3:15-18, KJV)
Devotion 23 of 33
It is the appointed objective of every hearer of the Gospel to consider this glory, ponder it, and dwell upon it. This focus is placed upon the Person proclaimed in that Gospel – the Lord Jesus Christ. No benefit comes to us independently of Him. God, in fact, has nothing to give us that is not given through His Son. All of God's will is fulfilled through and in Him. Access to God is gained through Him. Jesus is the expositor of God Himself, as confirmed in Scripture.
1. JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER. "All things are delivered unto Me of My Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him" (Matt 11:27). The very next verse confirms those to whom Jesus wills to reveal the Father: ""Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and LEARN FROM ME, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Mat 11:30, NKJV).
2. JESUS DECLARES THE FATHER. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, HE HATH DECLARED HIM" (John 1:18). That is, Jesus has made the Father known (NIV), or "explained Him" (NASB) or "made clear what God is" (BBE).
3. THE FATHER IS SEEN IN JESUS. "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father" (John 14:9). The Lord Jesus Christ – particularly the glorified Christ – precisely defines and expounds the Father. God is known to the precise degree that His Son is comprehended – the Son who is declared in the Gospel.
4. JESUS MANIFESTS GOD'S NAME, OR PERSON. "I have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou gavest Me out of the world" (John 17:6). The NIV reads, "I have revealed You." That revelation is essential to the obtainment of eternal life.
5. JESUS DECLARES GOD'S NAME, OR PERSON. "And I have declared unto them Thy name, AND WILL DECLARE IT: that the love wherewith Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them" (John 17:26). This is an extensive revelation that not only results in moral and spiritual change, but in a personal fellowship with both the Father and the Son (1 John 1:3). There is neither change nor participation in the good work of the Lord apart from this fellowship.
6. JESUS GIVES US AN UNDERSTANDING OF GOD. "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life" (1 John 5:20). God cannot be known by mere study. Our minds are exposed to the truth in our reading of the Word of God. Change, however, takes place in the heart – the essential part of our person – and that can only be facilitated by the Lord Jesus. He is, after all, "the Beginning and the Ending" (Rev 1:8) – and that applies the "new creation" as well as everything else pertaining to life and godliness.
Unlike the glory that radiated from the face of Moses, the glory of the Gospel, seen in the face of Christ, must be beheld – steadfastly beheld. This is because the New Covenant is a covenant of holy familiarity. It is a covenant where men become acquainted with the Almighty (Job 22:21). That acquaintance is accomplished through exposure, not mere academics. That is, the substance of the Gospel must become the focal point of our attention and thoughts.
This means that the Gospel is not intended to be the vehicle of initial salvation alone – when we are turned from darkness to light for the first time. Jesus did not tell His disciples to preach the Gospel to sinners, but to "every creature" (Mark 16:15). Paul was "ready" to preach the Gospel to believers in Rome (Rom 1:15). He "declared" that Gospel to the believing Corinthians (1 Cor 15:1; 2 Cor 11:7). Those who have no further need to hear the Gospel are no longer being changed into the image of Jesus.
The "glory of the Lord" is seen in the Gospel, and therefore that Gospel can never be reduced to a secondary consideration. It must ever be set before us as an object for profound and extended consideration. It should be plain to all, if the means whereby change is accomplished is removed, the required change becomes impossible.
That, of course, is one of the functions of the Lord's Table (1 Cor 10:21; 11:23-28). It is a time when our thoughts are gathered and focused on Jesus – beholding the glory of the Lord!
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for localizing the fulness of Your glory in "the Man Christ Jesus."