Thou shalt shine forth

Job 11:17

And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning.

What makes a person shine? What causes luminescence to emanate forth from a human being? How does a man or woman become a spectacle of brightness? It only comes one way! It is only by reflection! We have no power to create light, we only answer to the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. We are, as the moon, reflectors of God’s wondrous light. But how will this happen? Let us take a brief but meaningful tour of this Biblical subject.

For we all know that Moses spent forty days and nights in Horeb, the Mount of God, and came back shining as the sun! They could not behold his face, for the brightness of it. He had to place a veil over his face, to conceal the glory of God. They could not behold it! The children of Israel requested that the Word be not spoken to them again, as the sight was fearful and dreadful! But how did Moses obtain the glory? By being with the Lord! By dwelling in His presence. And did not the same thing happen to Stephen, the great martyr of the early church? They beheld his face as it had been the face of an angel! They could not behold it! And then! And then! What about the greatest and dearest and best of all? Jesus Christ spent time in that great Mount of Transfiguration, and came forth glistening! White and shining! The apostles had to cover their faces. It is good for us to be here, they said! They wanted nothing else but to remain in the glistening, glittering, glorious light of His face!

And now, my friend, as we listen to the words of Zophar the Naamathite, we can learn how we may also shine! He may not have everything right, but he got a few things right. He explained this great topic to us. Stretch out thine hands toward the Lord! Lift up thy face to Him! He is the source of all light, the producer of all illumination. He is the Sun of Righteousness. If you spend time with Him, your countenance will shine. You will reflect His glory and splendor. Prepare thine heart! Put away iniquity. Look into the light of His face. And the help of His countenance will bring health to your countenance. See Psalm 42 and 43. It will remove all fear, and you will forget your misery, and remember it no more. There is nothing to help you more than this! Nothing to remove doubt and fear like this! Nothing to give you new joy like this! Nothing to make you love others like this! Nothing to revive your youthful spirit like this! Nothing to make your age clear as the noonday like this! There is nothing to make you shine as being in the presence of God! Look toward Him! Find grace and strength in Him. Let His light shine on you, that you may reflect it to others. Does He not say, “Let your light so shine before men”? Yes, it is only by reflecting His presence. That’s how we are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. This is how you will shine forth! This is how you will be as the morning!

“Dear Father, help us to shine this day from being in the wondrous joy of your presence. May we shine forth, not for our glory, but to reflect the divine glory to others. May we cease from sin, and become clear and pure in your sight. Cleanse us and make us clear before you, that we may shine clearly. We thank you for the great power of your presence and countenance. Transfer the light to our faces this day, that we may shine! In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.”