And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

God’s right hand is filled with righteousness (Psalm 48:10).  The very nature of our God is righteousness. That is who he is. When Isaiah looked into his expression he was struck by the Holiness of God and was made aware of his own impurity. When Moses spoke to God face-to-face with Yahweh his face radiated the glory of God and his holiness. People didn’t even want to look at him with an unveiled face.

When we encounter God and hunger and thirst for him the Holy Spirit convicts us of our unrighteousness and we long for a deeper and deeper encounter. This deeper longing inevitably will bring us to our knees in confession and repentance. For when we see the holy God we want to continue with him and the only way to be with him is to be free from sin.  His Grace comes and sets us free that we may remain in that place of his presence.

The longing to be like him causes God’s grace to move in our lives.  When we cry out for him he comes and transforms our natures.  If we justify ourselves and our sins then how can he come and change us.  As long as we justify our sins and our evil natures we stop the Holy Spirit from transforming us.

Our hearts then grow cold and hard.  The longer that we ignore his voice the more we become hard.  He continuously speaks to us about our need, but when we don’t listen we stop hearing him.

Many hearts grow cold because they failed to listen to God’s voice in their lives.  If you want to hear God’s voice and have his peace in your heart you need to lean into him again.  You need to repent for not listening and turn toward him and he will heal your life.  Only when we listen should we expect his blessing to come upon our countenance and life.

Perhaps this is your situation right now.  You have been hard in your heart for a long time.  You have wondered if God is even there anymore.  If you feel a conviction in this moment confess your sins and let God bring healing to your heart.  It is amazing what the Spirit of God can do to a repentant heart.