A Nugget from New Life Network
Scripture for the Day (July 25, 2017)
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. (Exodus 33:20)
The Old and New Testaments appear to be pretty clear about us not being able to see God or look on His face in the natural. However, let’s look at a few scriptures in the New Testament that gives us a little bit more insight into this matter.
No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (John 1:18)
Now, let’s look at this same scripture in the Amplified Bible:
No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, or the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom [in the intimate presence] of the Father, He has declared Him [He has revealed Him and brought Him out where He can be seen; He has interpreted Him and He has made Him known]. (John 1:18, AMPC)
In John 14 Jesus gives us a little bit more information:
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? (John 14:6-9)
We can see clearly from these scriptures that one of the things Jesus did while walking this earth was to show us the Father. He and the Father are one so whatever Jesus did or said was coming straight from the Father. Now, you might be thinking, that’s great but how does this help me? I am glad you asked because this can be a tremendous help to all of us in determining the will of God. What does God think about certain things? Does He approve or disapprove? Is it His will or is it not His will?
The first thing I do if I have any question concerning the will of God is to look at Jesus. What did He do? What did He say? Did He address the subject, directly or indirectly? The second thing I do is look at the Word. What does the Word say about it? For example, what does God think about healing, speaking in tongues, women in ministry, homosexuality, or any other hot button topic you can think of? I’m not interested in what theologians or commentaries say about these subjects until I hear from Jesus and the Word. I’m not interested in a paraphrased version of the Bible until I have read a translation. I’m not interested in what preachers think about a topic until I hear from God and His Word. Jesus (who is the Word), the Bible, the voice of God (that His sheep should be able to hear), and the Holy Spirit, are our spiritual guides. Those should be the guides we use for determining the will of God.
Here is the bottom-line. Today, we can see God and we can see Him through Jesus Christ and His Word. We no longer have any excuse. The will of God is evident in the words and actions of His son Jesus!
