Post Date: 1st Jun, 2006 - 11:48pm / Post ID:
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God Man Can
Before you start reading, place your Bible close by. If you think the following passages were taken out of context, each passage from the Bible is in italics and is followed by book, chapter, and verse. Read it for yourself.
Can you see God today? No. But he was seen both as a man and as a God many times We are reminded many times that we were made in the image of God. He said,
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  "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God man was made. (Genesis 9:6)  |
This makes it easy for Him to appear like the humans of the day and not be recognized until He tells them who He is or performs an act they don't understand. And while we"re on the subject of misunderstanding, more than one person has told me that when angels appeared to humans, the person seeing this angel called him Lord, out of respect, so they didn't really see God! I would like to clear this thinking before we go any further. There is a place in the Bible where angels, and God, and the Lord, appear all in the same place, at the same time. In
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   (Exodus 3:2) There an angel of the Lord appeared to him in fire flaming out of a bush.    |
Then in
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(Exodus 3:4)Â When the Lord saw him coming over to look at it more closely, God called out to him from the bush, "Moses! Moses!"Â He answered, "Here I am."Â God said, "Come no nearer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. I am the God of your father," he continued,'the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob."Â Â |
First there was an angel in the bush, then there was a Lord in the bush watching Moses come closer, then a God ...called out to him from the bush! Not only was it a God, the Bible tells you exactly which God! He claimed to be
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  ... the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob." |
And why did Moses hide his face? Because, the Bible tells us,
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  ... he was afraid to look at God.  |
In seven verses of the Bible, Gods, and Lords, and angels are all in the same burning bush, all interchangeable, just three different titles for a man they thought was their God. Who did Moses see in the burning bush? His God.
Other passages where God was seen as a man.
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 "My Lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant." Then the men set out from there and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham walked with them to escort them on their way. (Genesis 18:2)  |
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  "You are the God of Vision"; for she said, "Have I really seen God and remained alive after my vision?" (Genesis 16:13)  |
Jacob wasn't having a vision. He wrestled with a real person all night. Then his adversary
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  ...asked Jacob, "What is your name?" And he answered, "Jacob." He said, "You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, because you have contended with God and men, and have triumphed." (Genesis 32:28)  |
This contest is probably the only account of a man wrestling with a god and winning. God created heaven and earth in five days. Then on the sixth day, He created a man He couldn't beat in a wrestling match. He had to resort to trickery, dislocating Jacob's thigh to get away. I can see the headlines, "Mortal Pins God In Close Match."
Jacob wrestled in the dark with someone he couldn't see, but seventy-four Israelites had time to gaze on God. The Bible mentions nothing unusual except sapphire tilework. The elders recognized feet, not unusual feet, just human feet like theirs on clear tile.
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  ... and they beheld the God of Israel. Under his feet there appeared to be sapphire tilework, as clear as the sky itself. Yet he did not smite these chosen Israelites. After gazing on God, they could still eat and drink. (Exodus 24:10)   |
Moses was very familiar with God. He must have seen God often, because he was trusted throughout the house. Was there fancy communications by mental telepathy? No. God had a face and spoke to Moses plainly, in a language he could understand.
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    Should there be a prophet among you, in visions will I reveal myself to him, in dreams I will speak to him; not so with my servant Moses! Throughout my house he bears my trust: Face to face I speak to him, plainly and not in riddles. The presence of the Lord he beholds. (Numbers 12:6)   |
The God of the Jews was seen time after time as a male human being. Moses was his best friend. Do you know
why you think no one was allowed to
see God?
These are but a few of many times God was seen. There are several more.
Edited: mousetrails on 2nd Jun, 2006 - 4:22pm