Who was this man, Jesus? He claimed to be God.
John 10:30 "I and my Father are one."
Jesus said that after the lost ones accused him of being a devil. He answered their question: No, Jesus is not the devil. He is God!
Those who had seen Jesus didn't know who they were seeing and hearing. To the eye the people were seeing a man. This man claimed to be God! However, the skeptics didn't see God, they saw a mere man. Those who claimed him a devil thought they were seeing something supernatural, but something evil. How wrong they were:
John 1:18 (ESV) "No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known."
The Old Testament Patriarchs didn't see or speak with God the Father. God himself said:
Exodus 33:20 (KJV) " And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live."
Moses, inspired by God, wrote that! If you'll remember Moses had to turn his face from God:
Exodus 3:2 "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed." 6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
"Fire" throughout the Bible represents God: As an example; Hebrews 12:29 ESV "For our God is a consuming fire."
Here we have God appearing as a burning bush. A bush which burns, but is never consumed! This is a great representation of God. He is the beginning and the end. He always was and always will be! However, is there a contradiction here? Remembering that there is One God with three persons (manifestations or personalities), who did Moses see? He sees Jesus! Jesus is referred to as "the angel of the Lord"; not only here, but when Joshua wrestled with "the angel of God" afterwards saying:
Genesis 32:30b "...I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
There is one explanation. When man sees God, it's Jesus who's seen! If he had seen God the Father he would have died, but he lived! Until we get to heaven viewing the glory of God is forbidden. There we shall see him face to face. Here's what John saw in his vision of God the Father:
The Old Testament Patriarchs didn't see or speak with God the Father. God himself said:
Exodus 33:20 (KJV) " And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live."
Moses, inspired by God, wrote that! If you'll remember Moses had to turn his face from God:
Exodus 3:2 "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed." 6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
"Fire" throughout the Bible represents God: As an example; Hebrews 12:29 ESV "For our God is a consuming fire."
Here we have God appearing as a burning bush. A bush which burns, but is never consumed! This is a great representation of God. He is the beginning and the end. He always was and always will be! However, is there a contradiction here? Remembering that there is One God with three persons (manifestations or personalities), who did Moses see? He sees Jesus! Jesus is referred to as "the angel of the Lord"; not only here, but when Joshua wrestled with "the angel of God" afterwards saying:
Genesis 32:30b "...I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
There is one explanation. When man sees God, it's Jesus who's seen! If he had seen God the Father he would have died, but he lived! Until we get to heaven viewing the glory of God is forbidden. There we shall see him face to face. Here's what John saw in his vision of God the Father:
Revelation 1:13 "And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters."
God in his glory has eyes "as a flame of fire"! The Son of man is likened into him. That Son of man is Jesus and he appeared to Moses as a burning bush, a flame of fire.
Then we have Jesus transfigured. Just what is "transfiguration"? Jesus is exalted. He's shown in his glory! His appearance is transformed. He's manifested for a brief time as he appeared to the patriarchs so many times before:
Mark 9:1 "And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power. 2 And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. 3 And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them." 7 And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. 8 And suddenly, when they had looked round about, they saw no man any more, save Jesus only with themselves."
Matthew 17: 2 "And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light."
Luke 9:32 "But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him."
Jesus appeared to the apostles as he had appeared to Moses and to Elijah. However, whereas before, Jesus was spirit, now he was flesh. He was the Son of Man. When Jesus was transfigured God the Father's spirit entered the body of the Son of Man and he was fully God and man! He appeared again as he had been seen before!
That's what the transfiguration was about! It reconciled the "angel of God" with Jesus. They were the same since Jesus has always been. He appeared as a cloud, as fire, as an man-like angel, as a man in the oven with Shadrack and his brothers, and finally as Jesus, God incarnate called Immanuel (God with us)! At the transfiguration The Old Testament Patriarchs joined The New Testament apostles where they saw God give his glory to Jesus on that high mountain! God's the same always. There were three persons (better called personalities or manifestations) at day 1 as there will be at day infinity. That's a mystery of God. How can he be three in one? He IS because he said "I AM WHO I AM".
Matthew 17: 2 "And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light."
Luke 9:32 "But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him."
Jesus appeared to the apostles as he had appeared to Moses and to Elijah. However, whereas before, Jesus was spirit, now he was flesh. He was the Son of Man. When Jesus was transfigured God the Father's spirit entered the body of the Son of Man and he was fully God and man! He appeared again as he had been seen before!
That's what the transfiguration was about! It reconciled the "angel of God" with Jesus. They were the same since Jesus has always been. He appeared as a cloud, as fire, as an man-like angel, as a man in the oven with Shadrack and his brothers, and finally as Jesus, God incarnate called Immanuel (God with us)! At the transfiguration The Old Testament Patriarchs joined The New Testament apostles where they saw God give his glory to Jesus on that high mountain! God's the same always. There were three persons (better called personalities or manifestations) at day 1 as there will be at day infinity. That's a mystery of God. How can he be three in one? He IS because he said "I AM WHO I AM".
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