But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
—Matthew 6:17-18
When they saw the boldness of Peter and John…they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
—Acts 4:13
And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai…that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him…til Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face.
—Exodus 34:29-30, 33
The transition from fellowship with God to interaction with our fellowmen is difficult. If we have met God, we long to maintain His presence. Yet when we go out to the breakfast table, the presence of our families and material things take over, we begin to lose what we gained in our quiet time. Let us strive to learn how our conversations with people may be, instead of a hindrance, a help to the life of continual fellowship with God.
The story of Moses with the veil on his face teaches us that close and continued fellowship with God will in due time leave its mark and manifest itself to those around us. Just as Moses did not know that his face shone, we will be unaware of the light of God shining from us.
This same lesson was taught by our Lord when He said we should not draw attention to ourselves when fasting, “that thou appear not unto men to fast.” Expect God to make others know that His grace and light are upon you.
The story of Peter and John confirms the same truth: they had been with Jesus not only while He was on earth, but as He entered into the heavenlies. They simply acted out what the Spirit taught them. Even their enemies could see by their boldness “that they had been with Jesus.”