3.2.25 2 Corinthians 3:7–18 (EHV)
7 If the ministry that brought death (which was engraved in letters on stone) came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look directly at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face (though it was fading), 8 how will the ministry of the spirit not be much more glorious? 9 For if the ministry that brought condemnation has glory, the ministry that brought righteousness has even more glory. 10 In fact, in this case, what was glorious is no longer very glorious, because of the greater glory of that which surpasses it. 11 Indeed, if what is fading away was glorious, how much more glorious is that which is permanent!
12 Therefore, since we have this kind of hope, we act with great boldness. 13 We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face, so that the Israelites could not continue to look at the end of the radiance, as it was fading away. 14 In spite of this, their minds were hardened. Yes, up to the present day, the same veil remains when the Old Testament is read. It has not been removed because it is taken away only in Christ. 15 Instead, to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts. 16 But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 But all of us who reflect the Lord’s glory with an unveiled face are being transformed into his own image, from one degree of glory to another. This too is from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
Let’s Make a Deal! Some of you in the upper ages might remember the old game show which offered different prizes behind different curtains. Sometimes they were clunkers like an old goat. Other times they were new cars and trips overseas. It was rather fun and entertaining to see what was waiting for them behind each curtain.
In the Old Testament, there was only one veil, and the people of Israel knew what was behind that veil. It was the Ark of the Covenant, over which the LORD dwelt in a special and holy way. The high priest could only enter once a year on the Day of Atonement, and even then animals had to be slaughtered, blood had to be sprinkled, and smoke from the altar of incense had to cloud up the room first in order to cloud up the glory of God. Then Jesus came with a different veil put over Himself, a veil of humility and human flesh to hide His glory and majesty. When Jesus died, the curtain of the temple was torn in two! The veil was gone. The whole Aaronic priesthood and sacrificial system was no longer needed. Hundreds of years of promises and shadows were now fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
The Great Reveal
Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians compares the glory of Jesus and the gospel with the glory of Moses and the Law. When Moses went up to God on Mt. Sinai to receive the commandments, it was a glorious thing. When he came down, his face was shining bright just from being in God’s presence. It shone like a lightbulb. At first, people were scared of him, and that was kind of what God wanted. He was reflecting the holiness of God. But then when Moses called them close, it seemed that they were enamored with him. So what did Moses do? Paul tells us that he, “put a veil over his face, so that the Israelites could not continue to look at the end of the radiance, as it was fading away.”
This is a picture of what happened to the Israelites in their relationship with the Law. That which was meant to humble them and bring them to their knees at the holiness of God, well they ended up being too enamored with it. So Moses put a veil over his face to hide his beauty. Imagine a young man being enamored at the beauty of a young woman. But little does he realize what her standards are going to be. She’s going to demand that he be in perfect shape, make six figures, and dote on her every move. But he’s so enamored with her that he does all he can to make her happy, tries to convince himself that she will make him happy. He’s going to be miserably in love.
That’s what continued to happen through the history of the Old Testament and in Jesus’ time. His fellow Jews were enamored with the law, and they convinced themselves that the law was all they needed. They made laws on top of their laws so that they could feel good about themselves. If I wear the right clothes, have regulations for how many steps I can walk, then I can feel good about myself. I can be a really good Jew. As a result, they didn’t feel they really needed God’s grace and mercy, as long as they had the law to keep. Paul wrote, their minds were hardened. . . . to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts. Again, if a veil lies over your heart, it seems to mean that their emotions are covered up by the law. They were so in love with their rules that they couldn’t and wouldn’t find a need for the love of Christ.
We have to deal with that too, right? “Don’t worry about me, pastor. I say my prayers. I read my Bible. I give my offerings.” I’m doing something, doing what I feel is needed to be a Christian. I do what I feel is necessary to feel good about myself. It used to be the standard was to go to church every Sunday. Now maybe it’s once a month. Maybe once a quarter. Or maybe a few of you have stuck to your higher standards that you were brought up with. Maybe you still dress up for church. Maybe you say your nightly prayers. But what is at the source of it all? What is the reason for it? I’ve got a workout routine for about 40 minutes a day, six days a week. Why do I do it? I’m trying to take better care of myself. I don’t always like doing it. But I’ve gotten into such a routine that if I don’t do it, I feel guilty. I do it to relieve my guilt, plain and simple. And that can happen with religion too. It has nothing really to do with feelings and emotions. I just do it because that’s what Christians are supposed to do.
You see it in today’s Gospel. See Peter, James, and John up on the Mount of transfiguration. They are so enamored with the beauty of Jesus standing there talking with Moses and Elijah that they want to stay on the mountain forever. They don’t want to ever come down. But if they don’t come down, Jesus doesn’t die on the cross. They and we are still in our sins. We are all damned if He doesn’t come down.
It’s kind of deceptive because there’s something lovely and beautiful about God’s law. When a man and woman stay faithful to one another, until death do us part. When they are patient and kind with one another. When they raise children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. But how often do we actually live like that on a daily basis? How many husbands and wives are truly kind to one another? How many kids live selfless lives? How many ugly thoughts and words happen behind closed doors? God hears them. He gives us the Law not only for our guidance in living, but more importantly because He wants us to repent and turn to Jesus. He doesn’t want us to settle for our own standards. And what are the consequences of trying to live by the law? Sin. Guilt. Death. Condemnation. Hell.
When my kids were growing up we bought a newer Chrysler Town and Country to haul the kids around in. It was only a year or two old, and the paint had no rust. Well, the kids decided on their own that they wanted to wash the car. That was great! But unfortunately they decided to use bricks as their sponges. That didn’t work too well. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. That’s what happens with the law.
Go ahead and try to build those shelters, Peter. See where that leads you and us - straight to hell. And the sad thing is that’s how we are all born, with that attitude of the stubborn four year old child that says, “I’ll do it myself!” We have our own little shelters that we try to build - to stay on top of the mountains of life. Memorialize our most glorious days with pictures and home movies. Put our trophies up on the shelf. Minimizing the law down to building a few tents and calling it good. As if there were no real need for repentance because we’re not really that bad. That’s not what the law is for. It was given to lead us to Jesus.
But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. There’s a popular meme of a guy walking down the street with one gal, but then he turns his head and starts looking at another gal walking down the road. She’s more beautiful than the gal he’s with, and the gal he is with isn’t happy with him for looking at the other gal. The Holy Spirit points us to Jesus dying on the cross. It looks like an ugly scene, but the Holy Spirit says, “No! That’s beautiful! He’s hanging there for you! He’s dying for your sins. He’s suffering God’s wrath. He’s doing what the Father told Him to do to pay for your salvation.” Moses isn’t jealous of this. This is what Moses wanted too, for us to look to the Messiah for salvation. Only HE brings righteousness. What Jesus does isn’t a temporary thing of glory, it’s permanent. It’s not based on how we perform, but on what Jesus did.
So if I were to go back to the relationship idea, of the guy who tries to get in a relationship with a beautiful but demanding gal. She’s never happy. All she wants him to do is stay at home and serve her day and night. Finally, the guy gives up. He’s not good enough for her. Beautiful as she is, she’s never going to be happy. But then when he feels like an absolute failure, he sees a beautiful gal who is generous, giving, and forgiving. She’s way beyond his league, and he knows it. But she smiles at him. She wants him. He’s just come out of a terrible relationship, but she makes him feel like a man again. She makes him feel loved. She makes him come out of his shell and be so much more. She takes him into the world and shows him things that he never had seen before. That first relationship with the first gal was needed for him to appreciate all the more the second gal. And that’s what Jesus is meant to be for us. Unlike Moses, He’s loving, kind, compassionate, gracious, and forgiving. He isn’t always pointing the finger and telling us everything we are doing wrong. It’s not that He wants us to live that much differently than Moses did, but He motivates us in a different way, with His love and forgiveness. He makes us WANT to be better people.
And this is where the text takes a turn, and brings us to a most unbelievable place. Through faith in Jesus, Pauls says that, “All of us who reflect the Lord’s glory with an unveiled face are being transformed into his own image, from one degree of glory to another. This too is from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” People are always trying to live behind a veil, in a sense. We pretend to be someone we know we aren’t. Even in our religious practices we can pretend to be someone we’re not. It’s like people who have sinful problems, but the last thing they want to do is tell the pastor so they can repent and find forgiveness and guidance. They prefer the veil. The sad thing is that God knows how you live, but He has paid for all of your sins. We don’t have to pretend to be someone we aren’t. He wants us to be honest with Him. He wants us to repent so we can find forgiveness in Him. When we do, that’s what gives us true freedom. That’s what unveils our faces to the world.
Think of the contrast of Cain, who was angry over his offering not being accepted by God. His face was downcast. There was an anger about him, a darkness inside, full of rage and jealousy. You could see it in his face. It usually isn’t too hard to tell just by looking at someone’s face what kind of life they’ve lived and what their disposition is. There was a pastor who told the story of a man who came into his office for confession, and when the pastor conveyed God’s forgiveness to him, you could visibly see a difference in the man after he left.
Think of a child who’s being picked on at school. She’s made fun of because of her weight. But then when she goes to grandma’s house and sees her smile, grandma smiles at her and tells her to give her the biggest hug. It makes her forget all her problems and just beam with joy in grandma’s arms. So Paul says that we, yes we, can be like the moon to Jesus’ sun in the dark of night. We can reflect Jesus’ glory just as Moses’ reflected God’s glory on top of Mt. Sinai.
Now, this doesn’t mean that we dance around singing zippity doo dah all day, not in a sinful and broken world. Sometimes it will be a sad joy, hidden below in the depths of sorrow. Think of Job in the depths of his misery, still confessing his faith in the resurrection. At other times it will be a happy joy, singing joyfully at Easter time, celebrating the birth of a child or a grandchild. And sometimes that joy will not show in your life at all, when your sinful nature and the sinful world gets the best of you. Yet even through that, you will know that God still loves you and Jesus still died for you. The joy is just waiting to come out at the proper time, when the dear God wills. Whenever and however the Spirit works, what an awesome thing to think that we can be part of this transfiguration even here and now. If Moses’ face shown in the glory of God at the giving of the law, how much more might our faces shine in the glory of Jesus’ grace and mercy.
If you’ve never seen “Let’s Make a Deal,” maybe you’ve at least seen a show called Fixer Upper. They would make one big picture of the old house, with a slice down the middle that could be rolled away at a big reveal. As the picture parted, the new house was revealed after it had been renovated. The people would eagerly rejoice as they old was parted for the new.
Think of what hope we have at the final reveal, when Jesus comes in the clouds. He will be so happy to see us. Think of the soldier coming home from war, the reaction of the family when they see him standing there. What joy will be ours at the big reveal. Transfiguration gives us a mini-reveal of what that day will be like, with Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. We need to remember this vision as we head into Lent, because things are going to get dark in the church year. But don’t forget the end. The Big Reveal. Let your lights shine with the joy and hope you have in Jesus. Give people a glimpse of the transfiguration in your face as well. Amen.
