I have entitled our sermon/Bible study for this evening, “Worshipping Face to Face. I once preached a sermon entitled “Worshipping Face Down,” in which I discussed how people in the Bible often fell face down in worship in response to the glorious presence of both God the Father and the Son. In that message, I stated that the key thing we should remember is that “face-to-face equals face down” – that we must see the Lord “face-to-face” before we will ever be overwhelmed to the point that we will fall face down before Him in worship. So, what does the expression “face-to-face” mean?
In Genesis 32:30 Jacob said, “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” Exodus 33:11 states, “So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.” In Ezekiel 20:35-36 the Lord said, “I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will plead My case with you face to face. Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt.” Here, we read that the Lord spoke with these particular individuals “face-to-face.” But we have to question what this means when we recall verses like John 1:18 and 1 John 4:12 which both declare, “No one has seen God at any time.” Also, Paul says that we will not see the Lord “face-to-face” until we enter heaven, for he states in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” When the Bible tells us that people saw God “face-to-face,” does it really mean that they saw God’s actual face? This is the question we will try to answer.
God “Appears” to People
Before we look at some more verses that mention God speaking “face-to-face” with people, let’s examine some passages that refer to God appearing before people and see if this will help add to our understanding of what “face-to-face” might mean. First of all, in Genesis 12:7, 17:1, 26:2, and 26:23-24, we read that “the Lord appeared to Abram.” When the Lord appeared, he gave a personal message to Abraham. So, when God “appeared” to a person in the Scripture, did that individual see the Lord’s face? Let’s look at three passages that will help us understand what a person actually saw in such a situation.
Genesis 18:1-3 – Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant.” We read that “the Lord appeared to him,” and this is in reference to Abraham. In what form did the Lord appear to Abraham? In the form of “three men” (v. 2).
Exodus 3:1-2 – Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. If we look on down in verse 4 we read, “So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush.” We are all so familiar with the account of Moses and the burning bush that we might just assume that no form was seen at all. Perhaps it was just a voice. In what form does verse 2 tell us that God appeared to Moses? It says that He appeared by the “angel of the Lord.”
Judges 13:18-22 – And the Angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask My name, seeing it is wonderful?” So Manoah took the young goat with the grain offering, and offered it upon the rock to the LORD. And He did a wondrous thing while Manoah and his wife looked on – it happened as the flame went up toward heaven from the altar – the Angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar! When Manoah and his wife saw this, they fell on their faces to the ground. When the Angel of the LORD appeared no more to Manoah and his wife, then Manoah knew that He was the Angel of the LORD. And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God!” Here we read some of the account surrounding the birth of Samson. In verse 22, Samson’s father said, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God!” It appears that Manoah believed he had seen God “face-to-face,” but in what form did the Lord appear? By “the angel of the Lord” (vv. 18, 20, 21).
(Summary): We just read in these three passages about where the Lord “appeared” to certain individuals, but did they see His actual face? No. What did they see instead? In each of these passages the Lord appeared to them in the form of an angel, and in one passage we see where God appeared in the form of three angels (Genesis 18:2)!
God “Speaks” with People
So, we have looked at God appearing to people; so, let’s now, let’s look at some verses that mention God speaking to people. Perhaps, these verses will help add to our understanding of what “face-to-face” might mean.
Genesis 3:8-9 – And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” We read here that Adam and Eve heard God walking toward them in the garden, and that God called, or spoke, to Adam. God was right there in their midst, but in what form does the Scripture tell us they saw God? Verse 8 says they hid from “the presence of the Lord God.”
Deuteronomy 4:11-12 – “Then you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the midst of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness. And the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice.” We read here where God “spoke” to His people Israel, but did they see God’s form or any form at all? No. Not in this passage. Back in Exodus chapter 3, Moses saw the angel of the Lord in the burning bush, but that doesn’t happen here. What does the Scripture tell us they saw? Well, first off we read that they saw a fire that burned with darkness and a cloud (v. 11). Then we read that the Lord spoke “out of the midst of the fire,” and “you heard the sound of the words, but saw no form” (v. 12). I wish to emphasize that they “saw no form.”
Deuteronomy 4:15 – “Take careful heed to yourselves, for you saw no form when the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire.” Once again, the Lord spoke to the people from a fire, and what is emphasized here? “You saw no form.”
Deuteronomy 5:23-26 – “So it was, when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, that you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders. And you said: ‘Surely the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks with man; yet he still lives. Now therefore, why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God anymore, then we shall die. For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?’” We read here “that God speaks with man” (v. 24), and that the people “heard the voice of the living God” (v. 26). In what form did the people experience the Lord when He spoke to them? They heard the Lord from darkness and fire (v. 23). The people did not see God’s actual “face,” therefore what does verse 24 tell us that the Lord revealed to Israel? We read, “God has shown us His glory and His greatness.”
(Summary): We just read in these four passages of where the Lord “spoke” to certain individuals, but did they actually see God’s face? No. So, what did they witness? Well, they saw various things such as fire, smoke, darkness, and a cloud, and then they heard the sound of the Lord walking and they heard His voice. What we need to take from these verses is that they did not see God’s actual face, but they experienced God’s “presence” (Genesis 3:8), they saw God’s “glory and His greatness” (Deuteronomy 5:24), and they “saw no form” (Deuteronomy 4:12, 4:15).
God Speaks Face to Face
Earlier, I shared a few verses which mention God speaking “face-to-face” with certain people. Now, I want to share some more verses just like those; however, these next verses provide greater detail about what “face-to-face” actually means. We are going to discover that the term “face-to-face” has a similar meaning as the verses that mention God “appearing” to people and coming to “speak” with people.
Numbers 12:7-8 – Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the LORD. When Moses saw God “face-to-face,” what does verse 8 tell us this means? It says that he saw “the form of the Lord.” We just read in Deuteronomy 4:12 and 4:15 that the Israelites “saw no form.” In Deuteronomy 4:12 and 4:15 the word “form” is used in reference to God’s actual “physical appearance,” which they did not see. If they had seen God’s actual “physical appearance,” the Scripture says they would have tried to copy his form and made an idol. Here, the word “form” is used to refer to God’s “likeness.” They saw God’s “likeness,” which could mean they saw or experienced His “presence.”
Numbers 14:13-14 – And Moses said to the LORD: “Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your might You brought these people up from among them, and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, LORD, are among these people; that You, LORD, are seen face to face and Your cloud stands above them, and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.” When the Lord appeared “face-to-face” to His people Israel, how did they really see Him according to verse 14? They saw God “in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.”
Deuteronomy 5:1-5 – And Moses called all Israel, and said to them: “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today, that you may learn them and be careful to observe them. The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The LORD did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, those who are here today, all of us who are alive. The LORD talked with you face to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire. I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the LORD; for you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up the mountain.” We read in verse 4 that the Lord talked with Israel “face-to-face,” but did the people really see God’s face? From where does verse 4 say they saw God’s face? They saw Him “from the midst of the fire.” And did anything block their direct view? Yes! What do we read in verse 5 about what blocked their view? Moses said, “I stood between the Lord and you.” Whether this really obscured their view or not, I don’t know; but the takeaway is that they probably saw only God’s glory from the midst of the fire.
Deuteronomy 34:10-12 – But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, in all the signs and wonders which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land, and by all that mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel. We read in verse 10 that Moses saw God “face-to-face,” and in verse 11 we are given a description of what that actually means. How did Moses see God’s face according to verse 11? Moses saw him “in all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt .” Verse 12 also tells us how Moses saw God’s face. What does it say? It says that Moses saw God by “mighty power and all the great terror.” So, Moses saw the Lord’s face through His activity in the world, such as signs and wonders.
(Summary): We just read in these four passages of where the Lord was seen “face-to-face” by Moses and by the children of Israel, but did they actually see God’s face? No. So, what did they witness? Well, just as in the instances where God “spoke” to people, they saw things such as fire, cloud, God’s presence, and signs and wonders. This expression “face-to-face” doesn’t mean that the people really saw God’s actual face and physical form. In The New Bible Dictionary we read that “the Hebrew word . . . [for] the ‘face’ of a person became synonymous with his ‘presence’.” (1) That’s all we need to understand. The word “face” is used in reference to the Lord’s “presence.” Now we can justify these passages with John 1:18 and 1 John 4:12 which declare, “No one has seen God at any time.” Just as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face,” we can now be assured that no one has seen God’s actual face in earth’s history, but that we will all one day see God’s face in heaven.
Time of Reflection
2 Corinthians 4:6 states, “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” We may not be able to see God’s actual face, but when Jesus walked the earth, people definitely saw His real face; and spiritually speaking, we can still see Him today. When we look unto Jesus we can see “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God.” God’s glory and His presence emanates from the face of Jesus! The good news from the Scripture tonight is that God speaks to His people and we can experience God’s presence; and because of this, we can have a face down worship experience with the Lord!
NOTES
(1) “Face,” The New Bible Dictionary (Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House, 1962), taken from Logos 2.1E on CD-ROM.
