The Glorious Face of God
2 Corinthians 4:3-6
But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. 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.
The sightings of God are indeed rare. Moses got a glimpse from the rear as Yahweh passed by in Exodus 33:19-23. There the LORD says no one can see His face and live. John 1:18 asserts that no one has seen God at any time. Paul adds this in Colossians 1:15: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” There are other Scriptures which affirm the invisibility of God.
Yet, one finds Scripture which affirms that some people have seen God. Isaiah in the 6th chapter records a glorious vision of Yahweh in the Temple. He does not see the face, but he at least sees the feet and the train of His robe. Abraham, when he entertains the three angels, actually sees Yahweh in human form as he was one of the angels. Samson’s parents saw the LORD ascend in the smoke of the sacrifice. There are other Scriptures in which the LORD is seen either in vision or in person. It even says in the same 33rd chapter of Exodus that Yahweh spoke with Moses face to face. so how do we reconcile the statements that no one has ever seen the invisible God with these occasional glimpses of God?
In the same passage in the Gospel of John says that the Divine Word became flesh. This same Word is said that this Word has made God known. John 14:8 adds: that the one who has seen Jesus has seen the Father as well. The Father is indeed Spirit and is veiled in glorious light. Just as one should not look with the naked light at the sun, even during an eclipse, one cannot penetrate the shekinah glory of God. We observe solar eclipses indirectly to prevent blindness or severe damage to the retina. Even the glory of God is too much for our mortal bodies. Whenever it happens in Scripture, the one who sees the vision has a feeling of being undone. Samson’s father thought they would die. Isaiah cries out “Woe is me: I am undone. John and Daniel both fall as dead. The disciples upon the Mount of Transfiguration fall asleep. when we realize that sleep is often used as a euphemism for death, we should realize that Peter, John and James were totally overwhelmed at the glory of the transfigured Christ.
We reconcile the verses of the invisibility of God by realizing that the glorious face of God has to be veiled to some degree so that the beholder will not die. When Jesus walked the earth, he was veiled in His human nature. Except for a brief moment on the Mount of Transfiguration, the Glory of Jesus was not revealed, and then only to certain chosen people. He is also seen in his glory at His Ascension. There is perhaps one other time Christ’s glory was glimpsed. this was in the Garden of Gethsemane. It says that the disciples fell asleep three times. Was it just because they were sleepy? Perhaps. But perhaps we should consider that they encountered the Divine Jesus there. If so, it says that the glory of God cannot be hid, even in the face of the cross. Jesus was as much God in His humiliation and weakness as He was at the Mount of Transfiguration where Luke records that Jesus spoke of His coming exodus at Jerusalem, It would be as the Passover lamb that Jesus would set us free at the cross. Behold the face of God wearing a crown of thorns rather than the crown of the glorious King of the Universe!
John, in his first epistle, records that the apostles of Jesus saw His earthly ministry from its beginning. They not only saw, they beheld. They also touched the Word of Life of one who is fully God and fully man. They were granted extraordinary privilege to see God in human flesh in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. This privilege has not yet been granted to us, yet. But we shall see Him as He is one day, What we do have is the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets recorded in Scripture as well as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We are those who have not seen Jesus with human eyes, but in a way, we do see Him. We may see for now as though a glass darkly, but one day we shall see Him face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12).
Paul was another person who by extraordinary appointment was given a glimpse of the risen Christ at His conversion. The appearance was so powerful that Paul was physically blinded for three days even as his spiritual eyes were opened. He also records another time that he was carried up to the highest heaven and saw things which were not lawful to behold in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4
2 Corinthians 12:2–4 NKJV
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
Paul says this from the same epistle we read from this morning from 2 Corinthians 4:3-6. Here he refers to the veiling of the gospel. Even though we have seen that in some part, it is necessary that the glory of the Godhead be veiled to us, this is not the veiling which Paul refers to here. Here it says that the gospel of veiled to the unbeliever. It says this veiling is from the god of this world who has blinded their eyes. This is a different veil than that which the believer has out of necessity. Charles Wesley in his Christmas hymn “Hark the Herald Angels Sing cites the words “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; hail the incarnate deity.” Notice it says we see the Godhead in the person of Jesus Christ. But the unbeliever only sees a man named Jesus. They might think of Him either as an apocalyptic madman or a teacher, but all they see is flesh. The unbeliever is doubly veiled that they might not see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Yet, the bible does not excuse them. A veil does not shed out all light. Some light gets through just like a smoked bathroom glass passes light. But the image is indistinct.
There is sufficient light, therefore, in the Gospel to condemn all men. Paul draws out this truth in the first chapter of Romans. The unbeliever should know from creation itself that there is God who is creator of all. Man is also created in the image of God. Even though Adam fell, the light is not extinguished. but it is suppressed. they are without excuse. It is true that Satan has a hand in this, but this is no excuse for the blindness of man. One cannot quote Flip Wilson that “The devil made me do it. The same passage from Isaiah 6:9 which Isaiah is told to preach to Judah that they see but do not perceive and hear without understanding. This verse is quoted by John in John 12:39-40 which indicates this blindness also comes from the Lord. Here John is explaining why some were chosen to understand the truth while others are hardened. But the LORD is not responsible for their unbelief either. The unbeliever hardens his own heart to the words of the gospel and it, therefore, culpable before God for his unbelief.
The Church is as full of apostacy as it was with Judaism in the days of Jesus. But even these churches go through the motions of worship. If one listens to the Anglican mass fro example, they will hear several passages from the Scripture. They will sing many good hymns with sound theology. And they sing these hymns with majesty and reverence. It is a mystery to me when hearing the majestic “All Creatures who on Earth do Dwell” sung at Westminster Abbey should fail to believe that there is a Creator. When the Eucharist which is offered daily and commemorates the sacrifice of Jesus christ on the cross for our sin as well as the promise that the same Jesus will again drink the cup with us in the Kingdom of God. they hold the Virgin in highest esteem, and deny her virginity. They remember Easter Sunday while denying the resurrection of Jesus. So the blindness of many in the Church is willfully and doubly blind that of the Jews in Jesus’ day. they had the true witness of Scripture. They had a sacrificial system. Yet they were blind to Christ. But we not only have this witness, but the witness of the person of Jesus, the Apostolic witness, the history of the Church. the church Fathers, and the martyrs. What an even greater cloud of witnesses we have been given. Blessed are those whose eyes are opened and have received the truth of the Gospel.
Many say that the Church is in great need of revival. This is true, but perhaps it would be better to say that it needs a reformation or even a resurrection. We need to be transfigured to see who Jesus really is in the power of His glory. Few are given such privilege which we have mentioned before. But we do have the witness of Scripture and Spirit. We are given sufficient light and grace to believe. This should be our mission, to proclaim the word of God to a hardened generation. We must plant the Word and nourish the Word in the churches. realizing that it is God who makes the increase. Are we willing to share such a call which all to often is soundly rejected, even among the people who call themselves Christian.
If we need to see a glimpse of the transfigured Christ, God will grant it. But our faith must not be based upon our spiritual experiences. Such boasting leads to jealousy and division in the Church. There were some at Corinth who were guilty of boasting. As we saw Paul before in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4 that Paul had to relate his own greater spiritual experience. Some accuse Paul of joining the boasters, but it should be noted that he mentions these toward the end of the epistle. His teaching on the matter came first. In this morning’s passage, the emphasis is not the glory of Paul and his company but that they were servants (slaves) of the church for Jesus sake. Isaiah’s vision made for a humble and difficult mission for Isaiah. The same can be said for Paul who also had to be stricken with a thorn in the flesh to keep him humble as well as prohibited from sharing the full detail of his experience. We should therefore be satisfied to see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. We should also ask that Christ remove and veil from us that hinders our belief. May His grace shine upon us and lead us on our journey until we see Him face to face. Amen.
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