II Corinthians 4:6 “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
The “God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness”; is the same “God” Who “said, Let there be light: and there was light” (Genesis 1:3); this very same God “hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God”. That is, he “hath” directly illuminated our “hearts” with the blessed “knowledge” of Himself. This glorious “knowledge” compels the enlightened Children of God to worship, serve, and follow Him; giving them a most attractive kind, humble, and gentle spirit. When “God” “commanded the light to shine out of darkness”, it illuminated the world. When Moses had been with the Lord and seen “the glory of God”, “behold, the skin of his face shone” with the “glory of God” (Exodus 34:30) for all to see. Similarly, when the Lord our “God” shines “in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”, He immediately gives us such worshipful “knowledge of” “God” that we clearly understand that “Jesus” is “Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). When our God graciously shines this blessed “knowledge” within us, it burns through our course human nature and reflects outward with such brilliance that others may see it and ask us for “a reason of the hope that is in” us (I Peter 3:15)! The phrase “in the face of Jesus Christ” means that the “knowledge” of “Jesus Christ” is gloriously revealed in such a way that His people, from all walks of life, are moved to “take up” their “cross, and follow” Him (Mark 8:34). Even “unlearned and ignorant men” shine forth the brilliant evidence that they have “been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13)! When our Lord shined His glorious “light” upon the Apostle Paul (Acts 9:3), He forever changed him, removing his dark hatred for our Lord “Jesus Christ”, immediately giving him the knowledge of Who “Jesus Christ” is and making him a dedicated follower and servant of the Lord for the rest of his life. Therefore, “we have this treasure in earthen vessels” (II Corinthians 4:7), let us cherish it above all things!