2 Corinthians 3:18 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… I. WE MUST EXPLAIN THE OBJECT OF VISION. "The glory of the Lord." Every discovery which the Lord has made of Himself to His rational creatures is for the manifestation of His own glory. The works of creation were intended to show forth His glory. In process of time the Divine Being gave a more complete revelation of His glory, by the ministry of Moses, to a nation whom He had ordained to be the repository of His truth. II. THE REFLECTIVE MEDIUM. A glass or mirror. Divine revelation is a mirror in which we perceive, and from which is reflected, the glory of the Lord. The ministration of the Spirit exceeds in glory the ministration of death and condemnation, inasmuch as — 1. Its discoveries are more satisfactory. 2. The miracles by which they were attested were more benevolent. 3. The grace of the latter is more abundant than that of the former. By grace here we mean the bestowment of spiritual life and salvation to the souls of sinful men. If we look at the general character of the Israelitish nation, from the time of Moses to the coming of Christ, we shall perceive but little manifestation of genuine piety towards God. But how abundant was the grace when Christ appeared, "in the fulness of time," "to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself!" Then Jews and Gentiles received the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit in so copious a manner as to fulfil the beautiful predictions of the prophet: "Until the Spirit be poured on us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest." III. THE DISTINCTNESS OF ITS PERCEPTION. "With open" or "unveiled face." IV. THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF THIS VISION. "Changed from glory to glory." Thus faith in Divine revelation is a holy perception of the mind, by which the glory of God in Christ is discovered, and this discovery has a powerful reaction upon the soul, and as the object is more distinctly perceived, the progressive sanctification of good men is advanced till they possess the perfect image of their Lord. V. THE DIVINE AGENT BY WHICH THIS IS EFFECTED. "The Spirit of the Lord," or "the Lord the Spirit." 1. Here the personality and divinity of the Holy Spirit are asserted. 2. None but a Divine Being could accomplish His work. The Spirit of God creates the soul of every converted man anew.In improvement of the subject we have been considering I shall make only two observations. 1. How great is your privilege, and how awful your responsibility i 2. The Christian has to leave reflective mirrors for the full vision of the Saviour's glory. (W. Jones.) Parallel Verses KJV: 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. |
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