This morning I popped the front door open at 6am to get a feel for the temperature outside. There in the sky was a beautiful full moon. I took a few minutes to stare. It was incredible.
When I came in, I sat with what’s become a trusted morning companion this year, James Montgomery Boice’s Come To The Waters daily devotional. Boice takes you through the Scriptures from beginning to end. This morning’s entry had me read 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. Boice’s commentary ended with an illustration I had never heard or thought of before. It is worth sharing in the hope that you will find it personally beneficial, and in turn, worth sharing as you teach and lead others. . .
“The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. And when the sun goes down, the moon comes up. During the night we see the moon and not the sun, and the moon seems to glow in the heavens. But the moon does not glow with its own light. It is seen only by the light of the sun. Here we have an illustration of the Christian’s relationship to his Lord. There was a time when our master, the true light, was himself on earth; but ever since his ascension into heaven, we see his light only as it is reflected in the lives of those who acknowledge him as Savior and Lord. But Christians do not always reflect this light with maximum brilliance. Whenever they keep their faces turned toward Jesus, they are ‘full moon’ Christians, and Christ is seen in them. Whenever they turn their faces away, they are ‘new moon’ Christians, and they become indistinguishable from the dark world in which they dwell. There are times when Christians are at the quarter, and it is difficult to tell whether it is a waxing or a waning quarter. But whether they are the full, at the quarter, or at eclipse, they are still servants of a Master who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and whose glory it is their responsibility to reflect to those about them.”