We tend to be influenced by the people we spend the most time with. Paul explains it this way: ‘All of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit’ (v.18 NRSV). And J.B. Phillips’ translation of the Bible puts it this way: ‘Christians…reflect like mirrors.’ And the King James Bible translators say it like this: ‘Beholding as in a glass.’ So which translation is right? All three! The ancient Greek word Katoptris can be translated as ‘mirror’ or ‘glass’, but the idea is the same: the more we spend time in God’s presence, the more we’ll reflect His likeness and carry His presence with us. What does ‘beholding’ your face in a mirror mean? It’s more than just a quick glance; ‘behold’ means to study, stare at, and contemplate. The Bible tells us after Moses spent forty days on a mountain in God’s presence, the people of Israel couldn’t bear to look at his face because it was suffused with the glory of God (see Exodus 34:29). What Moses beheld was what Moses became! The Bible says that ‘whatever you do, do all to the glory of God’ (1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV). Whatever we do, we should be reflectors of God! Jesus said, ‘Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven’ (Matthew 5:16 NIV). In other words, people should be able to look at us and get a glimpse of the God who lives within us.
