UNDERSTANDING GOD IN THE OLD TESTAMENT PART OF THE BIBLE PART 1
The knowledge of God is very important in our walk with God. Have you ever read the old testament part of the Bible and asked which God did this people really serve. Reading from Genesis to Malachi, you will see so many places that God was portrayed in a way contrary to what we see in Jesus and in Matthew to Revelation. Is it that God changed ? So how can we really be certain about the nature of God with all these many seemingly contradictions ? Here lies the essence of this series. I strongly encourage you should not conclude yet in this series till we get to the final series. We have yet many things to say but we can not say them all in one write up.
First we understand some key things about God . GOD CANNOT AND DOES NOT CHANGE. It is the same God before that we have now .
Malachi 3
6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
This is a great truth. God cannot change. We must understand the consistency of God. Any thing God did before , He will do again. His actions are consistent. If God caused pestilence in the Old Testament, it means He can cause it again today . God cannot change. So the fallacy that makes it look like “Jesus got God born again” cannot be sustained in the scriptures. God forever remains good .
Numbers 11
19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
• God is the same . God is not a man that He should lie. So we can boldly say that any thing God truly did in the old testament part of the Bible , He can do now. In our last series, we saw that there are no contradictions in the Bible. Contradictions only exist when we don’t know the proper explanation in Christ. So note that God is unchangeable.
GOD IS INVISIBLE. One other key characteristic of God is that God is invisible. God can never ever be seen outside Jesus . Many times , humans seem to attribute different actions to God because God is invisible. So how do we now know this invisible God? How can we be certain of what He can do and can not do.
1 Timothy 1
17 Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever.
Notice the fact that God is invisible. God is King eternal. God is invisible. So any search of God to be seen will be idolatry. Humans in generations have always desired a God that they can see. This has given birth to different religions.
So is there ever a solution for this dilemma ? This dilemma of knowing this God that cannot be seen .
THE INVISIBLE GOD HAS BEEN MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST
The invisible God has been made visible in Jesus .
1 Timothy 3
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Without controversy, this hidden secret is that God was manifest in the flesh in Christ. This is with the consent of all. Now there are no controversies about this. The first time even angels saw God was in Christ. But, man of God, are you saying angels are not with God serving Him? Angels serve God by serving man . They are made for men. How can angels protect protection or saved salvation? Angels were glad when Jesus was born because it was the first time they saw God visible as man.
Philip a disciple of Jesus , once asked Him, show us the father that it might be enough for us . This is the same drive for most persons. They really want to see God . Let’s see what Jesus said?
John 14
8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
9 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, Shew us the Father?
Jesus told Philip have I been so long with you and you have not known me ? Notice Philip didn’t say to Jesus SHOW US YOURSELF. He said , SHOW US THE FATHER. Jesus said , He that has seen me had seen the father . In other words, you cannot be looking for God when you have seen me. Jesus made it clear that He THE FATHER MADE VISIBLE.. So now we are not confuse about the nature of the invisible God. Why is this important in this series? Any God we see in the Old testament part of the Bible that doesn’t look like Jesus cannot be God. This is because Jesus is God made visible to men. Men cannot truly know God without Jesus .
So if Jesus is the God made visible, what of the many places we read men say in the old testament of the Bible that they saw God ? Was it really God they saw? Let’s look at the testimony of Jesus and John the Baptist on this .
John 1
18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
This is the testimony of John the Baptist about Jesus. Notice the emphasis, NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD at any time. No one actually means no one. The first time we saw men see God was when Jesus was born. This no one means that people didn’t really see God in Genesis to Malachi. So any knowledge of God we see from Genesis to Malachi must be subjected to what we see in Jesus. So we are reading with the answer. Now we know how God looks like . We have seen Jesus . We are not lost again to knowing God .
Colossians 1
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
God has translated us into the kingdom of His dear son, Jesus. This Jesus is the image of the invisible God. The God that is invisible is now seen in Jesus .
Hebrews 1
1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
Notice in verse 1, God spoke to the fathers by the prophets. So it was the prophets that truly spoke to the fathers. The fathers heard about God through the prophets. Notice the manner of the prophets speakings was in sundary times ( different portions ) and divers manners ( different ways). This will be further explained in the next part of this series on how to interpret Genesis to Malachi.
Notice verse 3 emphasis of Jesus as the express image of God’s person.
The word express image has to do with exact expression. Christ is the exact expression of God. He is not just a resemblance. He is the exact image of God’s person. The Greek word used for person is hupostasis. It means concretely essence, or abstractly assurance (
confidence, confident, person, substance. The same Greek word was used as confidence in Hebrews 3:14 and substance in Hebrews 11 :1(Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen)
Therefore Christ is the express image of God’s person. HeHis is the express revelation of God’s confidence and substance. This means that we can be very certain about anything we see about God in Christ. The certainty is in Christ. So we are not lost to knowing who this invisible God is. We have seen His face in Christ. For example, you read the book of Jonah, it looks like God was causing Jonah to be drowned because God was running from the will of God. How many persons did Jesus do that to ? We have people left Jesus . In John 6 many persons left Jesus because He told them to eat His flesh which is to believe in Him. Jesus didn’t now say, for this you have done, your businesses will collapse. Nothing like that. We even see a rich man left Jesus because Jesus told him to go give his money to the poor. Jesus didn’t now say He will become poor for leaving him. So we must be careful of fallacies we have believed about God because of what is seen in Genesis to Malachi. The certainty of the character of God is in Christ.
Jesus told us that men have not seen the shape of God nor here His voice.
John 5
37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
38 And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.
39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
41 I receive not honour from men.
42 But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you.
43 I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.
44 How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?
45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
46 For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.
47 But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?
In case , you didn’t believe in John the Baptist testimony in John 1:18 or the apostles testimony, you have to believe Jesus words your Lord . Jesus said, you have neither heard the voice of the father nor seen His shape . This means that many places you see the voice of God in Genesis to Malachi you must be very careful. You must submit it to the voice of God in Christ. Jesus went further to explain that THE SCRIPTURES testify of Him. So Genesis to Malachi speaks of Jesus . You can only have life in Christ, not by studying the scriptures outside Christ. Any study of the Bible outside Jesus will produce death and condemnation . Jesus further buttress this by pointing to the writings of Moses. Notice verse 45, Moses condemns. This is in the writings of Moses. So in Moses’ writings we have condemnation. According to Jesus , we also see the speakings of Christ. Moses Spoke of Jesus . In the same writings. This means we must be very careful in how we read Genesis to Malachi. We must learn how to read and interpret Genesis to Malachi. Does the Bible explain to us how to explain Genesis to Malachi? Yes.. watch out for the next part of this series.
So far we have seen with enough scriptural proofs that that Christ is the certainty of the character of God. He is the express image of the invisible God. I’m Christ we can know truly who God is. Christ came to give us an understanding of the true God.
1 John 5
20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.
Jesus came so we can know the true God. True there means the real nature not just in resemblance. It is that which is Opposite to the counterfeit. The real. So in Christ we can see the real God. Any God we see OUTSIDE JESUS is fake. It is counterfeit. We cannot rely on it. But, in Christ we see the certainty of the truth about God. It is the certainty we use to read Genesis to Malachi. This is key in many other things we will see in this series.
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Good morning sir
Am indeed Blessed to see d True Nature of our God.
His True Nature is Found in Christ.
I know God was made Flesh.
Thank You sir for the Light.
God bless you sir
It is clear
Thank God