Life and Leadership Unveiled

UV 1494/10000 Unveiled Face of Leadership

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 v 18

The face of Jesus is the unveiled or revealed face of God, He being full of grace and truth. All others could not see the glorious face of God. Moses had to wear a veil after talking face to face with God but even he did not see God with his mortal eyes. This is the reason Jesus said, “No man has seen the Father except the Son of God.” Jesus revealed the Father’s image to us and as we reflect on His glory, we begin to reflect that glory in our lives in small and big ways. We begin to see God with all the mysteries surrounding Him unveiled. We understand His character, the limitlessness of His grace, power and mercy. The sacrifice of love at Calvary made the love of God evident. The knowledge of the glory of God’s love brings the light of heaven into our hearts. We are called out by our names from spiritual darkness or ignorance and misery into His marvellous light – the light of His presence, His Word and His grace and power. Little by little, degree by degree we are transformed by the Holy Spirit over our lifetime into His very image. The Word of God is the chisel the Spirit uses to etch our edges and shape our inner being.

Under the Old Testament covenant, the eyes of people was veiled not to perceive the full extent of spiritual truths needed to comprehend the image of God. Our vision of God was clouded but now the fog is cleared and the light of God’s truth and love shines through our every pore. God is honoured when His image is restored in us. He is pleased when He sees the qualities of gentleness, humility and patience of Jesus reflected in our lives. The Word is the seed that the Spirit plants in our hearts and minds. As the seed casts down roots into our lives and shoots forth a stem and branches out to produce the fruit of the Spirit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self control.
The weeds of lust, pride and sin that the enemy of our souls has planted in our DNA and our nature are removed or uprooted by the Holy Spirit. In place of these negatives, the Holy Spirit resurrects the DNA or divine nature of God in us. The face of the Lord begins to shine on us as the Sun of Righteousness. Conforming to the image of Jesus is the process of transformation. The secret lies in the discipline of “beholding” or seeing Jesus in every way and with every sense, constantly, continually, unceasingly. We move from being acceptable in our thoughts, words and actions to being good, from good we move towards perfection as we perceive Jesus by the power of the Spirit and imitate Him in all our ways so that we are like siblings that have striking resemblance to the first born Son of God. People can now see the radiance not just on our faces but in all our words and actions.

Prateep V Philip