Last week we started a discussion focusing on the small, but Biblically significant word, ‘Glory’. It’s a familiar word with various adaptations commonly used in reference to everything from human performance to scenic wonders, to fireworks, and even political speeches, but as we pointed out in our previous post. God uses it in a way that means so much more. He applied it to those times when He wanted to leave no doubt that He was personally present and give His people a relatively small, visible indication of the magnitude of the power and authority that reside in Him. To say it simply, God was giving His people a brief glimpse of who He really is.

Getting to the Real Question ~
Imagining those incredible episodes and the impact they had is fascinating, right? But God didn’t intend those exhibitions of His presence to be entombed in historical isolation. Those displays held lessons about who God is and what effect He intended that to have on the lives of His people not only then, but that would also be relevant in every succeeding generation . . . and that includes our own here in 21st Century America. So, in our effort to answer that compelling question, and to get to the main point we want to make, we’re continuing our journey to follow the progression of God’s expositions of His glory. 

The first of God’s Covenant-related, visible manifestations of Himself was His descent upon the Tabernacle He directed Moses to build in the Sinai desert. Hundreds of years later, God’s glory left those tents and “mobile homes” that had represented His dwelling place and took up residence in the elaborate Temple that Solomon built. 

But as dramatic as that change of venue was, the next temple He chose to fill with His glory left us more speechless and in awe than any of those prior examples. This time, the glory of God didn’t appear in the form of blinding light and fiery smoke. Beyond that, the temple that God chose this time had no golden artifacts, no candles, no incense burners, no embroidered curtains, and no attending servants in priestly robes – and this temple could not be built with human hands.

God’s Ultimate Temple Design ~
Unlike those former events, this time the glory of God descended quietly. There was no accompanying fanfare, and there were no trumpets, no choirs, and no elaborate rituals. This time the holy of holies waiting to welcome the glory of God was quietly at home in the virgin womb of a teenage Jewish girl in Nazareth. Nine months later, angels showed up to announce the arrival of the grandest manifestation of God’s glory the world would ever see. In Jesus, the glory of God had come to earth in the form of living, breathing human flesh. And in Him, God demonstrated to the world the kind of temple He always wanted, one that could live and move among His people . . . one that would invite an intimate, personal relationship with every one of them. John, as you’ll recall from last week’s post, declared that demonstration perfectly . . .

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the ‘glory’ as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14 NKJV)

But then came that awful, bloody day at Golgotha when Jesus breathed His last, and even the sun hid its face. It seemed as though the glory of God had been extinguished forever. But three days later, rays from that same sun lit up an empty tomb to show the world that the human embodiment of the glory of God had ‘gotten up’ – and, yes, He had gone back to work! And just a short time later, the Living Glory showed up yet again to reveal the very kind of work He came back to do. 

The Glory Descends Again ~
As Jesus’ followers gathered on the Day of Pentecost to pray, God’s glory appeared mightily and, once again, took center stage. With a roaring sound and one more fiery display, the Glory of God descended on a group of ordinary people like you and me and indwelled every one of them – and yet another temple was consecrated as the residence He willingly chose for Himself from that point forward. Paul proclaimed that reality with profound clarity, saying . . .

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16 NKJV)

It was becoming obvious that God wanted something more than brief, periodic, religious events to remind His people that He was among them. He wanted a more widespread, unrestrained, continuous, personal demonstration of His presence in the world – and once again, He chose Paul as His spokesman . . .

In his second letter to the Corinthian Church, Paul made a couple of comments that offer a glimpse of the spiritual methodology at work in God’s plan for manifesting His glory. And oddly enough, as we touched on last week, human faces played a role. The fact that Paul alluded to both Jesus’ face and our own in illustrating how the transmission of His glory would work, seems to call for some additional consideration. But first, let’s look again at Paul’s comments, beginning with this one . . .

Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Corinthians 3:17–18 NKJV)

And later, he wrote:

For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone 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 NKJV)

Seeing Spiritually, not Visibly ~
First, Paul declares that the Spirit of God enables believers to see, in a spiritual way, Jesus’ face. That vision, while being very real, is, of course, not like seeing a visual image of Jesus’ actual face. God’s objective is not to reveal  details of what Jesus looks like physically, but to fill us with absolute assurance that He is the living, physical embodiment and ultimate visible manifestation of the Glory of God. But … Paul’s not done yet.

He also says that as we stand face to face, as it were, with Jesus and see the Glory of God revealed in Him, something incredible happens. Paul says that we are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory. That is to say that everything our “face” represents – our entire identity, all that we think we are or claim to be – is absorbed and replaced with His.

Interrupted ~
Well, I’m not sure that I can imagine quite what my next selfie should look like after a one-on-one like that. But as I contemplated all that, my thoughts went to our faces and the incredible attention we give them. I thought about what changes might be required to attempt to effectively represent Jesus’ face in the world I live in. But as I contemplated those things, it seemed as though the Lord interrupted to tell me that my focus on faces was missing the point. Then a passage from Nehemiah popped up out of nowhere and redirected my thinking. It was a simple question that Nehemiah recorded like this:

Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” (Nehemiah 2:2 NKJV)

The king was looking at Nehemiah’s face, but what he saw was something deeper, something intangible. What a revelation that was. It was like the Lord saying to me, “The world doesn’t need to see an image of my face. What the world desperately needs to see is the content of my heart.”  Suddenly it was crystal clear. Human faces are amazing servo-mechanisms. They can automatically recognize, interpret, and project those invisible, intangible, and potentially powerful things going on in our hearts. 

So, let’s face it (sorry – couldn’t quite help saying that) . . . It’s not so complex after all. The transformational exchange Jesus wants to have with us, and the “glory” He wants to impart, are actually directed toward our hearts, not our faces. If His glory dwells there, our faces will get the message – and so will all who see them. 

“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the pull quotes below.  Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter . . .

• • God didn’t intend exhibitions of His presence to be entombed in historical isolation. They held lessons about who God is and what effect He intended that to have on the lives of His people that would also be relevant in every succeeding generation. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • The next temple that God chose to fill with His glory had no golden artifacts, no candles, no incense burners, no embroidered curtains, and no attending servants in priestly robes – and this temple could not be built with human hands. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet) 
  • With a roaring sound and one more fiery display, the glory of God descended on a group of ordinary people like you and me and indwelled each of them and yet another temple was consecrated as the residence He willingly chose for Himself from that point forward. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • Paul says we are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory. That is to say that everything our “face” represents – our entire identity, all that we think we are or claim to be – is absorbed and replaced with His. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
  • The transformational exchange Jesus wants to have with us, and the glory He wants to impart is actually directed toward our hearts, not our faces. If His glory dwells there, our faces ‘and’ our hearts will get the message – and so will all who see them. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)

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