And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

In the New International Version of the Bible, (quoted above), there is a footnote next to the word ‘’contemplate’’ saying ‘or reflect’. As we have seen, the NLT combines both ideas.

I always tend to think about Christians reflecting the glory of God before a watching world, and that is surely the case. But Tom Wright makes the point that first of all we see His reflection in the church – in one other. He writes: ‘When the sun rises in the morning, depending on what time of year it is, it often strikes the windows of one of my neighbours before it strikes mine. And his window reflects it right into my house. I look at my neighbour’s house and see the brightness of the sun.’

It is our joy and privilege to have ‘front seats’ at God’s work in each other’s lives. How it gladdens our hearts to witness the changes the Holy Spirit makes in fellow-believers: to see the growth, the gradual transformation; to watch fruit growing and dead leaves falling.

I remember a song from years ago that says, ‘O I love you with the love of the Lord, I can see in you the glory of my King, and I love you with the love of the Lord.‘