As we live a life of holiness, the divine nature in which we participate[1] shines through us. Yes, buckle up! The transfiguration of Jesus is not just a historical event that He lived, but a reality that we participate in as well! Jesus made it clear that, as His disciples, we are made to shine: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountaintop cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”[2] The Lord also made it clear where the light comes from, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”[3]
The Light of the Divine
The divine nature in which we share through the gift of the Holy Spirit illumines our lives with the divinity of God! The manifestation of the divine nature that Jesus showed forth on Mount Tabor is an image for us to keep in mind when Jesus tells us, “you are the light of the world!” Yes, that light may look different in us, but it still shines out and is (and take the Lord Jesus at His word on this) “the light of the world.”
No matter how sunny it is, or how beautiful are the LED lights that illuminate the parking lot of Church at night, the light of God’s divine nature pouring through disciples who manifest the fruits of the Holy Spirit provides the light that souls need to find their way to God. For lack of a better expression, it is a bit like flying critters at night that are drawn to the light of a streetlamp. The desires of people deep in their being lead them to pursue what they think will bring them the fullness of life and happiness. We know that this fullness is found in God alone; so when we shine forth the Glory of God, we’re bound to draw people to Him!
God’s Glory
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word most used for glory is kabowd. In the Greek New Testament, the word most used for glory is doxa; and they are both nouns. In being Holy, we manifest God’s glory. But that can only happen when we’re more concerned about giving God glory! The idea of giving God glory is about giving Him the praise, honor, reverence and worship that is truly due to Him, simply because He is God. This action is the most important kind of prayer.
Calling it “praise,” the Catechism puts it like this, “Praise is the form of prayer which recognizes most immediately that God is God. It lauds God for his own sake and gives him glory, quite beyond what he does, but simply because HE IS. It shares in the blessed happiness of the pure of heart who love God in faith before seeing him in glory. By praise, the Spirit is joined to our spirits to bear witness that we are children of God.”[4]
There is a difference between “giving God glory” and “the glory of God.” “The glory of God,” understood as kawbod and doxa, is also about a manifestation of the presence of God. There is nothing more glorious and awe-inspiring than God’s presence. And while we do not yet see God in his pure divinity, manifestations of the presence of God do reveal his glory here and now in a way that shines his light in this world! Let me share a powerful example.
God’s Presence In the World
I was at an Encounter Ministries healing service in Janesville, Wisconsin in February of 2020. At the end of a wonderful Holy Spirit-filled evening, a good bit of the congregation had dispersed and there were still about 70 people around the Church praying, receiving prayer and praising. I was blessed to meet and have the opportunity to pray with a man who had been completely deaf in his left ear for over a year because of a medical condition. There were a handful of people around and so I invited them all to form a circle around this man and to pray for him.
As we began to pray, I felt an inspiration from the Lord to look up. As I did, I looked over and saw the face of a teenage boy who had joined us for prayer. As I looked at the boy’s face, I felt the Lord say to me, “I’m going to heal him (the man) and he (the teen) is never going to be the same.” Excitement flooded my heart. We began to pray and the man released wonderful words into the atmosphere when he declared, “it’s working!” We prayed and the Lord Jesus opened his deaf ear!
When this sort of thing happens, there’s flat-out awe and wonder as an amazing manifestation of the presence of God has just happened. The times that I’ve been blessed to be present for a profound miracle leave me in a state of darn-near “sober intoxication delirium” where I can’t stop praising God even though the shock of what occurred almost kind of numbs you out a bit. It’s like an eerie, “everything stops” kind of moment. It’s glorious and I pray that I (and all of you who desire this too) may experience so many miracles as we serve the Lord; so many miracles that one of our favorite hobbies until the day we leave this earth will be to meditate on the miracles with Jesus, recount the magnificent things we dreamed of seeing and that he showed us because he loves us and loves to manifest his presence.
The young man, by the way, was deeply touched and inspired by the miracle he witnessed with his own eyes. When a miracle like that happens, three things are great to do: 1) praise God! 2) have the person give testimony, and 3) give every person who witnessed it or heard immediate testimony of it the opportunity to give their life to Jesus — either anew, or in some cases, for the first time. If they accept Christ, then let them take in the experience for a bit, but invite them as well to learn about the Church and even enter RCIA.
The Christian as Manifesting God’s Presence
The glory of God is manifested when a joyful disciple of Jesus, full of the love of God and bearing the fruits of the Holy Spirit, manifests God’s presence. Whether it’s a direct or relational evangelization situation, be sure that as you love the person and share the Gospel with them, that God’s light is shining through you! It’s our duty to be faithful and to seek to invite people to respond to God, but it is the Lord who brings them home. It’s a co-mission that we are blessed to participate in and it is full of the glory of God! And as souls are blessed to taste and see the goodness of the Lord, to discover the love for which they were made, they are set on the path towards eternal salvation, which is discipleship.
Just think … every person you have ever seen and will ever see for the rest of your life was made by God, is loved by God, and is invited by God to share His life for now and all of eternity. Jesus is the gate into this life-giving relationship that leads to eternal life.[5] We who have entered upon that path are the light of the world, shining the divine light of God’s presence to the world as we follow the inseparable call to holiness and mission. In God’s presence, infinite love awaits souls that were created for that very purpose. In God’s presence, salvation is at hand — beginning the moment people say yes and enter into life in Christ, and then, please God, journeying joyfully step-by-step through life with Jesus who says to his disciples, “I call you friends.”[6]
[1] 2 Peter 1:4.
[2] Matthew 5:14-16.
[3] John 8:12.
[5] John 10:9.
[6] John 15:15.