There are many religions today that speak of God. Multitudes acknowledge that there is a God, and many think they know Him. Yet, if it is the God of the Bible, few could identify Him as the one true God. They have preconceived ideas about who God is. Some refer to Him as The Man Upstairs, the Big Guy, or some other title that is disrespectful. They may think they know Him or want others to think they do, but if this is your idea of God, you don’t know Him at all. Most think God is in control and waiting for us to mess up so He can punish us. They also do not believe that His Son Jesus is truly His Son and equally God. They will not accept Jesus as God in the flesh. Any of the mentioned ideas about God can show that they have not studied the Bible or surrendered their lives to Him. They would be like Philip, who questioned Jesus in John 14:8: “Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
In John chapter 14, Jesus talks with His disciples. They had shared the Passover. He had told them of his impending death and shared with them that He would be leaving them to go and prepare a place for them. None of them seemed to understand. In John 14:5, Thomas questions Jesus about where He is going. He is seeing things in a literal sense and wants to know where He is going and the way He is going. Jesus proclaims to them that He is the Way, and if they want to get to the Father, they must go through Him. He tells Thomas just as He tells Philip that if they knew Him, they knew the Father also.
John 14:5-7 “Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not where you are going; and how can we know the way? 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.”
Earlier in the week, Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath in John chapter 5. The Jews were furious. Jesus tells them also that He and the Father agree on what He has done. As He continues, it is evident to the Jews that Jesus is claiming equality with the Father.
John 5:18 “This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.”
In John 10:30-33, Jesus does not mince His words. He is very clear that He and the Father are one. Again, this infuriates the Jews, and they pick up stones to kill Him. In their understanding, He was committing blasphemy.
John 10:30-33 “I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.”
Jesus repeatedly tries to teach that He and the Father are one. If you have seen Jesus, you have seen the Father. Jesus was and is God in the flesh. We have one God who manifests Himself in three forms: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In John 1:14, God the Son became flesh. This was done for our benefit so that a sinless, perfect sacrifice could pay the price for our sins.
John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”
He and the Father are one. They always have been and always will be. If you want to see the Father, look at Jesus. This is what Jesus was teaching throughout His ministry. In Colossians 1:15-17 Jesus is the image of the invisible God. He was the Godhead creator, the sacrifice, the forgiver, the builder of our Heavenly home, and He is equal to the Father and reveals Him to us in the life that He lived on earth.
Colossians 1:15-17 “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”
Whose image do you bear? Most of us have traits and features that connect us to our earthly family. Even an adopted child will have character traits like their parents because character traits are learned. We will like certain foods and talk a certain way because those things have been part of our lives. So it is examination time. If you are a Christian, do people watch you and know you are a Christ follower? Are you studying to discover what character traits your Heavenly Father exhibits so you can incorporate those into your life? A child who loves and admires their Father always mimics Him. Can you show someone the Father?
