Lifting the Veil

Introduction

And you remember your most recent aha moment. Not familiar with an aha moment is that’s when the light bulb went off and you figured out something that you didn’t know before. For those of you who are pessimists, an aha moment is also known as a duh moment. I should have known that. For me, it was when someone else pointed out that the Amazon logo, we all know what Amazon is, that the Amazon logo, which is simply the word Amazon with the swoosh arrow underneath it. That arrow is pointing from A to Z in Amazon. Which means that you can get everything on Amazon. Everything from A to Z. And I went, duh. I had never seen that before. The scriptures talk about aha moments, or duh moments, depending upon how you look at it, about things that people see that were not seen before.

Chapter 3 of the book of 2 Corinthians. You might want to put a bookmark there, uh, or your finger or a pencil, something there. We’ll be going to other passages of Scripture, but this will be our text for this morning. 2 Corinthians chapter 3, verse 7, all the way through chapter 4, verse 6, the Apostle Paul, or more properly, the Holy Spirit, through the Apostle Paul speaks of an aha moment or a duh moment, in which he uses more biblical language than that. He talks about the lifting of the veil, of being able to see something that wasn’t seen before. And let’s talk about our relationship in that aha moment. Where do we stand or where should we stand in regard to that aha moment? It’s a lengthy reading, but it’ll do us well to read this before we get into the text this morning.

And so start with me. In 2 Corinthians chapter 3, verse 7. But if the ministry of death, the Apostle Paul says, that is referencing the Old Testament, the Old Covenant, if the ministry of death written and engraved on stones was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious. Therefore, since we have such hope we use great boldness of speech, unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away.

But their minds were blinded. For until this day, the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless, when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, we all with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we’ve renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of truth, commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

But even, even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ, Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. There’s an expression that comes from Scripture.

The light that we have seen, he says, is the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And he said to others, others in times past and unfortunately others in the present, that that light is veiled. They do not or cannot see it. And so let’s talk about our aha moment. Let’s talk about lifting that veil and seeing what we ought to see in the knowledge of Jesus Christ in our lives. Well, let’s talk about what really Paul is talking about. What’s the imagery of the veil here? We won’t take the time, but in your private study, you could go to Exodus chapter 34. That’s the story that Paul is referencing here. It’s the kind of the aftermath of Moses going up into Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments.

We remember that story. Moses had to do that twice. Remember, Moses broke the first set after seeing the rebellious actions of the people. And he goes back up into the mountain, gets a second copy of those Ten Commandments. And it says that when he came down out of that mountain, his face shone brightly. So much so that it intimidated and scared the people. And so Moses put a veil over his face to hide that imagery, that shining that was there. And Paul uses that imagery of the veil that was intended to hide the glory that Moses had in his face. That was the glory that he received from being in the presence of God. He uses that imagery to say that was the case of those under that old covenant.

1. The Superseding Glory of the New Covenant

That they were veiled. They didn’t see what God wanted them to see. It was a mystery to them. And then he goes on, even sadder because we could kind of maybe excuse those people. Well, they couldn’t see because it hadn’t all been revealed. We wouldn’t have been any smarter than them. We wouldn’t have seen it either. But he goes on to say, but there are some today to whom it is still veiled. That they still haven’t had their aha moment. They do not see the glory. They do not see the light, which is the knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so the first thing that the apostle is doing is he is showing the superseding glory of the new covenant in comparison to the old covenant.

And so we’ve got a chart here of what the Apostle Paul is doing in contrasting the old covenant to the new covenant. In verse 3, he contrasts the tablets of the old covenant to the tablets of the new covenant. The tablets of the old covenant, there in Exodus 34 in that context, were tablets of stone. But we have the new covenant written on the tablets of flesh, that is our heart. The emphasis, now there was emphasis in the old covenant on the heart, but a greater emphasis upon engaging the heart of the individual in the new covenant. Then in verse 6, he talks about the contrast between the letter and spirit, much like that previous contrast between stone and flesh, that it’s not just words on a page.

It’s not just some law written down that is to be transformative in our spirit that is to change who we are. Then in verses 7 and 8, he talks about that old covenant being a ministry of death. That’s all a law can be. All a law can do is condemn because we’re going to violate that law. But this new covenant, verses 3 through 7, is a ministry of the Spirit, a ministry of life, because it has within it, yes, it has laws, laws that can be violated and bring condemnation, but its superiority is seen because it has a provision for forgiveness. And so it’s a ministry of the Spirit. The old was a ministry of condemnation, verse 9. The new is a ministry of righteousness, that through that forgiveness we can have a new order, a cleanliness so that we can be found right in the sight of God.

Now, verses 9, 10, and 11, he says that old covenant had glory. It had glory, but the new covenant exceeds much more in glory. Only by contrast.

Was doing, but in the new covenant, and more specifically in Jesus Christ, the veil has been taken away. And so let’s talk about that. The first point from all of this is just the glory of the new covenant, a reoccurring theme throughout the New Testament epistles are the new covenant is better than the old covenant. Now that’s a very oversimplified version of what Paul is saying here, a very oversimplified version of the theme of the book of Hebrews, but that’s a recurring theme. The old covenant is better, it has greater glory. But then he also wants to emphasize that this veil that made that old covenant lesser has now been taken away in Christ. And so let’s talk about the two senses in which that has happened.

2. The Mystery Was Revealed in Christ

Hold your finger there again in 2 Corinthians chapters 3 and 4, and go to 1 Peter chapter 1. We’ve noticed this passage before, but certainly in this context, it bears looking at again. 1 Peter chapter 1. Here’s one sense in which that old covenant was veiled. 1 Peter chapter 1, talking about the salvation of our souls in verse 9. He says, of this salvation, that’s 1 Peter 1, verse 10, of this salvation, the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to them, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when he testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that not to themselves, but to us, they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who’ve preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things which angels desire to look into.

And so what Peter is saying, those old testament prophets had a veil. They were prophesying of things, but they didn’t know what they were talking about. They had that veil. It was veiled to them. They could not understand what was going on. And so that’s a sense in which it was unveiled in Christ Jesus. Paul would say, look in the book of 1 Corinthians. Another reason that it was veiled is because man’s wisdom could not arrive at that position. 1 Corinthians chapter 1 and verse 18. And so it makes the gospel plan seem foolishness to man. 1 Corinthians 1, verse 18, you may know this passage, for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are saved, it’s the power of God.

And so it’s veiled because they couldn’t understand what is God doing. What’s he up to? What does he mean when he says this to Abraham? What did he mean when he said that to Moses? And what was Isaiah talking about? Those in the old covenant had no idea. It was veiled.

They couldn’t figure it out on their own. And so this happened. Look in Ephesians chapter 3. The mystery was revealed in Christ and in the church. In Ephesians chapter 3. Paul says, beginning in verse 1, Ephesians 3, verse 1, for this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ, Jesus for you Gentiles, if indeed you’ve heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you. Now let’s just pause there and make this observation. When we hear about God’s grace, our mind immediately goes to the grace of salvation. But in this context, Paul’s talking about a different type of grace or a different dispensation of grace. He’s not talking about the grace when God saved Paul from his sins. He’s talking about the grace when God gave Paul a ministry to preach the gospel.

That was the gift that he’s talking about. How that, verse 3, how that by revelation he made known to me the mystery. That’s the gift he’s talking about, that God gave me the gift of revelation. That he made known to me the mystery, as I’ve briefly written to you, by which when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ. So let’s tie some things together here. The idea of the old covenant, it was veiled. They did not know what was coming, they didn’t know what God was doing. It was covered, it was veiled because man’s wisdom could not conceive of what God was doing or what he would do. But now the mystery has been revealed. Paul says, God revealed the mystery to me, and through the process of inspiration, I have revealed it to you, so that you might know that mystery as well.

To the intent, skip down to verse 10, to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known.

When you read that verse, especially after having read 2 Corinthians 3 and 4, think of the veil being pulled up. It’s now been made known. It’s not a mystery anymore. Now it’s still going to be called a mystery, because a mystery having been revealed is still termed as a mystery. But now it’s been made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places according to the eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. Very quickly, let’s break down verse 10 there.

That’s not a verse saying the church is supposed to go out into the world and tell people about the wisdom of God. Now, that’s something we should be doing. There are other verses that tell us that we need to be going out and telling people about God. But when he says that the manifold wisdom of God is made known by the church, he’s not saying that in some active way that we go out and tell people about the wisdom of God. This is in a passive way that when you see the church, the culmination of God’s eternal purpose, that the veil is lifted and the wisdom of God is made known. That you have your aha moment. You go, oh. That’s what God was doing. That’s what he meant when he said, through your seed, all nations of the earth will be blessed.

3. Removing the Veil of Darkness and Hopelessness

That’s what he meant when he said, whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And so we have that aha moment. The veil has been lifted. Christ came, as he would say in the Gospel of Matthew and other places, Christ came to fulfill the law. He came to lift that veil, to reveal the mystery, to show us what God was doing and what he was planning. And so Christ came to remove the veil of ignorance. But he came to remove other veils as well. He came to reveal, remove the veil of the darkness of sin. He came to remove the veil of the darkness of being lost. Go with me there in John chapter 8. You know, we use that word quite frequently, don’t we, in religious circles, the idea of being lost.

And sometimes we just use it as a synonym of the opposite of being saved, the opposite of being a Christian. And that’s an appropriate way to use the term. But it has a deeper meaning to that. Of being lost. And so before we read the verse that I want us to read there in John’s Gospel, verse chapter 8, I want you to think about being lost. It’s a little harder now with the invention of GPS and cell phones, but but can you remember were you ever lost? I mean, lost, lost. I know I’ve been there. I can remember as a kid, now the young people have a difficult time maybe relating to this. This was before video games. This was before cable TV. We had three channels.

And in a certain time of day, those channels quit showing anything of any value for a child at least. And your parents, usually the mom, would issue an order, get out of the house.

That was an order. Leave.

We went through everybody’s woods, everybody’s barns, everybody’s creeks, valleys and hills and mountains, and wandering around. Well, sometimes the other guys weren’t there and they couldn’t go, and sometimes I’d go on those adventures by myself, and more than once I went on those adventures and got lost in the woods. And it’s starting getting a little bit closer to dark. And I had no sense of direction. Which way was home? Getting a little bit worried.

And in your irrational mind, at that moment you’re lost. You think you’ll never see your parents again. Maybe more importantly, you’ll never eat again. You’re going to have to spend the night out here in the woods with these wild animals. Whatever else might be in the woods tonight when you can’t see. That’s a very unsettling feeling.

That the Holy Spirit chooses to describe those outside of a relationship with Christ. So you see, it’s far more than just saying it’s the opposite of being saved, it’s the opposite of being a Christian. Yeah, it’s that, but there’s an imagery associated with that. Now read John 8 and verse 12. Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, I’m the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of light. If you’re in Christ, that feeling is gone. That feeling of wandering around in life. Lost. No sense of direction. What am I doing? Where am I going? What’s the point? That light is revealed. And you’re no longer lost. Christ lifts that veil as well. He lifts the veil of the darkness of hopelessness.

That now there is hope. There is the light of hope that no matter what life throws at me, no matter what might be happening right now, there is hope. And in Christ Jesus, that light is there. And the veil is taken away in Christ. And the Holy Spirit says that light shines in our hearts. And so back to our text in 2 Corinthians chapter 3. Remember, he described this light, which he called the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. He describes that as a light that should shine in our hearts and it should increase in our hearts. We’re no longer veiled. We’re no longer veiled like those under the old covenant who, let’t see the glory of Jesus Christ. They couldn’t see what God was doing and what the plan was.

But there are others who didn’t have an excuse. Look there at 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed in the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. That Paul would say that even today, with the full revelation of Jesus Christ, there are still those to whom there is a veil. They don’t see it.

They don’t still don’t see what God was and is doing. And maybe even worse than that, they don’t see the light that would guide them out of the darkness of being lost. And they don’t see the light that would give them hope in the midst of a hopeless world. But that light has shone in our hearts.

That the veil has been lifted.

4. Being Transformed Into That Image

And he says, and we’re being transformed into that image.

Then not only do I see that glory, but that glory is being transformed into my image. And that image that I see in that mirror is slowly, slowly, gradually changing my image. So I become more and more like him. Now obviously the final revelation of that light will be in heaven, when we will see him as he is, and we will be like him. But he says that that transformation is taking place here and now. That begins, look in 2 Corinthians chapter 5. It begins when we become a new creation. 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 17. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. Thanks to the transformative power, the redemptive power of the blood of Christ, our slate can be washed clean.

All things have become new. I am now ready to be changed. I couldn’t be changed with that sin in my life. I couldn’t be changed with that condemnation and guilt. But now that that’s been removed, been washed away, I’m ready to be transformed. And then this can happen. Look over in the book of Ephesians, chapter 4. Look at three verses there. In Ephesians chapter 4, he says, this.

Ephesians 4, verse 22 says that you put off concerning your former conduct the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lust. We begin this transformation by having those sins washed away and by putting off that old man, recognizing that that was the veiled life. I was not seeing the lie. I was lost in every sense of the word. And so I’m letting go of that old man. I’m ready to be transformed. Make me something new, God. Make me into something better. And then verse 23 of Ephesians 4, we are renewed in the spirit of our mind. As our minds begin absorbing and living in the word of God, I’m being transformed. And by the way, this is the only way transformation can take place.

I’m being transformed from the inside out by the renewing of my mind.

Conclusion

This new man, finally, because he’s had that aha moment, he finally relinquishes his own stubborn will and says, Let’s do it your way, God. Make me mold me, shape me, transform me into something worthy of your image. The question is, am I still wearing a veil? Or has the veil been lifted? Sadly, it’s possible to read and study the Bible, to even submit to the act of baptism and attend services and still have that veil over our faces. To never really see the glory of God in that mirror. And to never allow that light to shine in our hearts, to never begin that transformation process, we begin truly to be like him. If my ethics and my morals have not changed and transformed, I’ve never seen the light.

I’ve never relinquished my stubborn will.

I still am looking at him through a veil. If I harbor grudges and ill will, and I’ve not been transformed into the spirit of love that God and Jesus Christ say are foundational for our relationship, then I’m still lost. And I still have that veil. And I have not seen the light.

And we finally have that aha moment. For it’s then and only then that the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ and shine in our heart. And that’s what God wants for you and I.

Would you submit your life to Him? Relinquish that stubborn will and say, God, transform me into what you would have me to be. Can we help you as you render obedience to the gospel this morning? Let it be known as together we stand and sing.