You Become What You Look Upon: Part I
A Reflection
This is the first part of a two part series, you can find the second part the series by following the link here.
Let’s take a look at this verse and ingest it a little…
-And all of us, as with unveiled face,…
This is for each and every believer! When we believe and take hold of Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, the curtain is torn between us and God. We have free access to the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Nothing separates us. All boundaries have been broken. We are one body, being prepared and made ready for the return of Jesus. We are a bride waiting for her Bridegroom, and there is nothing hidden, nothing that is not known.
-…[because we] continue to behold [in the Word of God]… the glory of the Lord
Something results from us continually looking, peering at the Lord’s glory in the Word of God. How many times in the Bible does God tell us to behold something? Looking at, gazing at, thinking about, pondering, considering are all ways we can behold. So as we ask God to reveal His glory to us in His Word, we will begin to notice it and see it everywhere! Can any of us ever fully grasp God’s glory? I doubt it. I am sure that it is as far-reaching, boundless, and unfathomable beyond anything we could ever imagine. Here are some thoughts from Mike Bickle (from his book, After God’s Own Heart):
There are many dimensions to the life of God, and nobody would presume to know or understand them all, but we know from the Bible that the very core and essence of the glory of God are the fiery emotions in the Godhead. Thus, beholding God’s emotions is the pinnacle of beholding His glory.
All in all, I guess we could say that God’s glory is any attribute pertaining to His magnificent Being!
-…are constantly being transfigured into His very own image…
So let’s backtrack a little. As each one of us, with boldness and courage before God, continually look at God’s glory in His Word, we continually get changed into His very own image! Isn’t that incredible?! It’s not us trying to change ourselves or beating ourselves up. In order to become like God, we behold His glory in His Word! God does the work!
I like thinking of it as a sort of activation button (please bear with me if this is a little far-fetched!). You push the button and boom! Something lights up. In a similar way, as we gaze at God: His love, His holiness, His purity, His humility, His fire and passion for us, something gets awakened in our own hearts. So if we’re not feeling very loving or on fire for God, then we need to take time and gaze at how much God loves us and how His heart burns intensely for us. He passionately and freely loves us. He wants us to come to Him and be risen up to our rightful place of authority in His kingdom. Joyce Meyer likes to say, “You can’t give away what you don’t have.”
Everything can be found in God. That’s where we absolutely must get it from. Anything originating from ourselves is not in the measure of God’s fullness. We can feel love from people and love others in return, but when we turn to look at God’s full, rich, and perfect love for us, then we are filled through our being, deeply rooted and grounded in God’s love. It permeates us. The fibers of our being become engrained with His love. It’s nothing superficial or surface level that might fly away at the slightest notion because it is part of us.
One of the toughest parts of this is getting our eyes OFF of ourselves and onto the Lord. Instead of running around trying to do everything for ourselves, He wants us to simply focus on Him and allow Him to empower our hearts. He is the divine perfection of everything good, right, true, and just. It is a restful thing to continually gaze at God’s holiness, then simply allowing Him to work His holiness in us. Now this process might be painful and revealing, but the ending result of a greater dose of God’s holiness dwelling in us makes it worth it. And as the verse also says, “in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another…” it’s that never ending upward curve!
-…[for this comes] from the Lord [Who is] the Spirit.
Holy Spirit! I’ve been on a kick lately, wanting with all my heart to give the Holy Spirit more room, greater honor in my life. The work the Spirit does is incredibly fascinating! Holy Spirit was present at the beginning of time, spoke through the prophets, was a huge part of Jesus’ birth, ministry, and rising up, inspired the Scriptures, and now is freely given to us and lives in our hearts! It’s just nuts! This incredible power of God lives in us! The Spirit works the Word, the Truth, into the fibers of our being and transfigures us! Victory! Breakthrough!
Comforter. Counselor. Helper. Intercessor. Advocate. Strengthener. Standby. Rushes to our aid in our time of need. Thanks be to God!
This is just part one of a two part series. Tune in next week for Part two.
