Holy Radiance

Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. _{Exodus 34:29}

This verse just makes me say, ‘wow!’ Can you even imagine it? My heart tells me that it would be the most incredible thing to experience and yet Moses didn’t even know that this amazing phenomenon had happened. The glory of God had soaked into his very being and then radiated out from him because he had been wholly in the Lord’s presence. This same type of occurrence is only noted a few times throughout scripture, in a different circumstance each time:

Jesus – “And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.” Luke 9:29

Moses, Elijah – “And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure.” Luke 9:30

Stephen – “And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.” Acts 6:15

Is this what our natural state would have been, being made in the image of God? Did Adam’s countenance glow when he walked with God in the beginning? The glory of God should be a part of us, but sin effectively turned out that light. In Christ, the light is being turned back on and we, ‘beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another’ (2Cor3:18).

How beautiful is would be to have the glory of God shine out from within; to be so immersed in the Lord’s presence that we literally shine with his pure light.