“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.” (II Corinthians 3:18)

In yet another passage, the apostle Paul teaches us something new about the importance of FOCUS in the Christian life. This passage needs to be understood in its context. The apostle had been alluding to an Old Testament story of Moses on the Mount with the Lord found in Exodus 34. God called Moses (and only Moses) into His very presence on the top of the Mount (Exodus 34:2-3). There Moses talked with God face to face. There Moses had the awesome privilege of intimate fellowship and communion with the Lord. When Moses came down from that place of communion with God, “the skin of his face shone” such that Aaron and the people were afraid to come near to him (vs.29-30). Next we are told that Moses put a veil on his face as he talked with the people, but took it off when he talked to the Lord in the Mount (vs.33-35).

In II Corinthians 3:14, Paul noted that there was a veil on the hearts of Jewish people in his day as they read the Old Testament Scriptures. The veil blinds them to glory of the Lord as revealed in the truth in the Word. In Paul’s analogy, this corresponds to the fact that in Moses’ day, a veil existed between the glory of God and the people. They could not see His glory. In Paul’s day there was a veil over the hearts of Jewish people (vs.15)! The people under the Old Covenant could not come into God’s presence and could not behold His glory.

 But Moses DID come into God’s presence unveiled, and the result was that his face shone. Moses experienced a bit of the glory of the Lord because he (and he alone under the Old Covenant) was permitted to enter into the presence of God unveiled, it had a transforming effect on him.

Entering into God’s presence unveiled would later be the privilege of EVERY one related to God through the blood of the New Covenant. Today, we can stand before God unveiled. In I Corinthians 3:18, the expression “with open face” means with an unveiled face. What an awesome privilege, unsurpassed in ages past! Only Moses was able to go into God’s presence unveiled under the Old Covenant Law, and only for a short time. It is the glorious privilege of EVERY believer of this age to be able to come into God’s presence and DWELL there because of the blood of the New Covenant (Heb. 10:19-22).

As we read God’s Word (II Cor. 3:18), we are told to BEHOLD the glory of the Lord. This Book is all about God. It is the word of (about) Christ (Col.3:16). It’s all about Him. Jesus said, search the Scriptures, for they testify of ME (John 5:39)! Sure, we can also see our old sinful self on the pages of Scripture. But here we are told to BEHOLD (focus on) the glory of God with an open (unveiled) face. We behold His glory as we read the Word and learn about the God of glory, as we learn who He is, and as we learn of His glorious nature and His mighty works. As we read the Word, we are (in a sense) unveiled before His radiant glory. There is nothing between us and our Savior! Sin has been removed. Guilt and shame are gone. Our consciences have been purged and cleansed by the blood of the New Covenant. We can therefore come into His very presence with boldness! We can enter right into the Holy of Holies with God for intimate communion (Hebrew 10:19). Spending time with Christ in His Word is perhaps the greatest ways in which we can BEHOLD Him and His glory, LOOK unto Jesus, and set our affections on Him above.

When the believer focuses on that heavenly glory, something supernatural happens. The glory of Christ has an effect on the one who stands before Him unveiled. God invited Moses up the mount to see Him and talk with Him and behold His glory. What an awesome privilege that was for Moses. We have something far better! We can come to Christ and behold His glory any time we want! Every one of us has that privilege as believers in the dispensation of the grace of God. Standing in God’s presence had an effect on Moses: his face began to shine. How could standing in God’s presence NOT have an effect?

But Moses could only stay there for a short while, and that glory soon began to fade. Paul tells us that as we FOCUS on Christ and His glory, we too are TRANSFORMED into the same image, into the image of Christ. In other words, the runner who focuses on Christ not only is motivated to keep on running, and not only is he nourished and empowered to run with endurance, but he is also changed into the image of that on which he is focused. When we focus on Christ and our position in Him, it has an effect on us. We will begin to radiate the presence of the indwelling life of Christ IN US (Colossians 1:27). How could spending time in the presence of God NOT affect us?

As we run the race, Christ who dwells within us is being FORMED in us (Gal. 4:19). We are being changed: less like our old self, and more like the Master. LOOKING unto Jesus motivates us to keep on running in the same path He trod before us, making us willing to suffer as He did, to sacrifice as He did, and to give our all as He did. And as we LOOK and RUN, we are conformed into His death and His LIFE is manifested through us as well (Phil. 3:10; Col. 1:27; II Cor. 4:10-11).

And note that the transformation is gradual: from glory to glory (II Cor. 3:18). It is never achieved perfectly; we will never “attain” completely in this life (Phil.3:12-14). The condition of our earthly life will never perfectly match our glorious heavenly position. But we keep on looking and keep on running, and we will keep on progressing: little by little, from glory to glory, day by day. And as we do, a supernatural transformation occurs… and it is the work of the Holy Spirit. We are changed into the same image BY the Spirit of the Lord. God does all the work of transforming us. It is GOD who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Phil.2:13).

So what is the ONE thing that we are to do? LOOK to the Savior… a look of faith… BEHOLD His glory. And as we look, we are transformed. Our job is a simple look of faith and God does a miracle: He transforms a sinner into the image of Christ. We are saved by looking. (Look and live!) We are also sanctified by looking (Look and be transformed!) Anybody can look. Anybody can be saved, if they chose to. Anybody can be sanctified if they choose to. There is no sin so powerful and with such a grip on the soul that the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit is not able to bring deliverance and victory. The believer who simply looks to Christ in faith (and keeps on looking!) will experience deliverance, and will discover that Christ is being formed in him, and he will RADIATE for Christ. This victory is ours by faith, moment by moment. As we look, we are transformed. As we look, God works in us. If we cease looking to the Lord, we are walking by natural sight instead of faith. We will not have the strength to live a victorious, resurrected life and to keep on running. (Remember that Peter began to sink when he took his eyes off the Lord.) As the branch abides in the vine moment by moment, and as the runner continually looks to Jesus, the Holy Spirit enables that believer to walk (even run!) in newness of life! It is a glorious, inward, supernatural work, and it all begins with a simple look of faith. Faith is the victory.

“The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” (Matt. 6:22) Jesus also spoke of the importance of a single FOCUS. The single eye speaks of single–minded focus on the ONE THING that is necessary. The eye that seeks to focus on two things (earth and heaven) will have blurred vision… and a crooked, inconsistent walk. But the single eye, focused on Christ (focused on one treasure and one Master) will discover to his delight that his whole body will be full of light! Growth occurs in the light. He will radiate with the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face in Jesus Christ. He will radiate with the excellency of the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Remember that this world is not our friend (James 4:4); the things of this world are not of our Father (I John 2:15-16); and that Satan is the god of this world (II Cor. 4:4). The whole world system is designed to encourage us to quit running the race. The things of the world are designed by the god of this world to distract us and cause us to treasure them and to focus on them rather than on the Lord. (“I see the sights that dazzle; the tempting sounds I hear…”) Don’t allow anything in this earthly life (riches or poverty; testing or tribulation; exceptional health or sickness; lofty mountain peaks or low valleys; triumphs or tragedies; success or failure; times of great joy or fits of depression; times of gain or times of great loss) to cause you to lose focus on your Heavenly High Priest. Focus is everything.

Perhaps someone reading these pages has already allowed the cares and burdens of life weigh you down distract you from your heavenly focus. Perhaps you have been drawn off course (II Tim. 2:5). Perhaps you have simply become discouraged by repeated failure and have thrown in the towel (Gal. 6:9; II Thess. 3:13). If that is the case, then NOW is the time to stop, refocus, put those running shoes back on, and get back into the race (I John 1:9). As the author of Hebrews challenges us, “Let us run with patience (endurance) the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:1b-2a). Or to use the words of Winston Churchill, “Never, never, never quit.”