Today’s scripture: 2 Cor 3:7-18 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (David Zier):
What is it about the veiled faces in this passage, and why is it so significant? The reference to Moses and the old Covenant in this passage is in regard to what would happen to Moses after talking with God. His face would shine. But he would veil his face so that others could not see when the shine would retract. This gives a sense of something temporary, but also transformative, but only for a moment. No one could see when the glory left Moses’ face, because it was veiled.
In this passage, Paul is telling us that, when we turn to Christ, the veil is removed. Thomas Merton, a Catholic Trappist Monk of the Abbey of Gethsemani, Kentucky, who was a poet and social activist, comments: “The Spirit is given to me, the veil is removed from my heart, that I reflect “with open face” the glory of Christ. It would be easy to remain with one’s heart veiled, and it is not by any wisdom of my own, but by God’s gift, that it is unveiled.”
God’s glory and love are not temporary. They are everlasting. Paul is telling us to live in freedom and approach that with unveiled faces.
Christ wants us to be direct with him. Building a relationship with Christ is about having a dialogue with Christ and learning to be a follower of Jesus. We can only do that with the unveiled face of Christ in our midst. To build that relationship, I need to authentically pray, turning toward God with an unveiled mind, heart, and soul. As I pray, God wants to lift the veil over my face.
Some of us think we are unworthy. We walk around with veils over our faces. We don’t want God to see us, or perhaps we think we are too unworthy to be seen. Nothing could be further from the truth. Read once again what Paul says at the end of this passage:
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.
Thought for the day: Am I walking around with a veiled face, not experiencing the fullness of an authentic relationship with Christ?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.