class: center, middle ## Appearances of Christ in the Old Testament - Introduction (Derived from https://ichthys.com/1Theo.htm) --- ### Summary In this lesson, we primarily examine the concepts of Theophanies (appearances of God) and Christophanies (appearances of Jesus Christ), and argue that due to the Father's invisibility, inaccessibility, and dignity, it is the second person of Trinity (that is, a pre-incarnate Jesus Christ) that appears before mankind in the Old Testament, *not* the Father. This means that all Theophanies in the Old Testament are in fact Christophanies. --- #### Outline - [Overview](#4) - [Definition of Theophany and Christophany](#5) - [The invisibility of the Father](#6) - [The inaccessibility of the Father apart from Christ](#7) - [The dignity of the Father](#8) - [The visibility, accessibility and humility of the Son](#9) --- ### Overview In terms of their presentation of the Trinity, the main difference between the Old and New Testaments is that in the New Testament, Christ is clearly visible and distinct from the Father, while in the Old Testament, the Father and Son are often difficult to distinguish. Despite the discussion immediately above, there is a common misconception – even in many Christian circles – that the fact that the exact details about Christ's incarnation were shielded in the Old Testament means that the *visible* person in the Old Testament is primarily God the Father. This is not entirely accurate, for the Father has always appeared to the world *through* the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, and this fact was just as true in the Old Testament as it is in the New Testament; only the *manner* of the Father's representation of Himself through His Son changed: in the New Testament, an *incarnate* Jesus Christ becomes visible to the world (only His true glory is shielded), while in the Old Testament, Christ also represents the Father – but not in *incarnate* form. Additionally, in the New Testament, when our Lord says "I and the Father are one" (Jn.10:30), or otherwise speaks the Father's words (Jn.8:28; 14:24), the distinction between the Father and the Son (along with this unity) is perfectly clear and obvious. However, in the Old Testament, when God appears, it is consistently the Son who appears, but as the representative of the Father, speaking the Father's words, so that the distinction between the two was not, at the time, completely understood or appreciated (Jn.8:26 & 28): <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>John 12:50b | NIV11</strong> <p>So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.</p> </div> --- ### Definition of Theophany and Christophany The words "Theophany" and "Christophany" mean, respectively, "an appearance of God" and "an appearance of Christ", the second part of each being derived from the Greek root *phan*, "appear" (from which we get the word "phenomenon"). In this section it will be argued that in biblical terms, at any rate, the only category of event we really need to be concerned with here is Christophany, for, in my view, all cases of Theophany in the Old Testament are really Christophanies. It needs to be made clear right at the outset that by Christophany we are definitely not referring to the literal, physical appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ in His true humanity – ever since His deity assumed true humanity at the incarnation, Christ has not again appeared in temporary, Christophanic form. The position that all Old Testament appearances of God are, in reality, appearances of Christ, also allows for the possibility of other sorts of manifestations of the Father other than an ostensibly corporeal appearance here on earth, such as a dream or vision (Daniel's vision of the "Ancient of Days" being the prime example: Dan.7:13-14). --- ### The invisibility of the Father Until we get to heaven, we will not see the Father. We know that the Father is not invisible to the angels, for they "constantly see the face of My Father in heaven" (Matt.18:10). But He is our *heavenly* Father (Matt.6:9, 26, et passim), and as long as the earthly conflict between His would-be usurper, Satan, and His designated regent, Christ, still rages, in heaven He remains for His majesty's sake, speaking and working His will through His Servant. Until the final and ultimate victory, and only after the complete purging of the universe will the Father come to the new earth to make His abode with us forever (Rev.21:1-3). Until that time, the Father, though acting and speaking through His representative, His Son Jesus Christ, remains invisible to human eye. <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Exodus 33:20 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>"But", He said, "you cannot see My face. For a man may not see My face and live." </p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Isaiah 45:15 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>Surely, You are a God who hides Himself. </p> </div> --- <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>John 1:18 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>No one has ever seen God. God the only Son – the One who has always been at the Father's side – He has made Him known. </p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>John 6:46 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>Not that anyone has seen the Father except He [the Son] who has always been with the Father; He has seen the Father. </p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>1st Timothy 6:16 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>He [the Father] who alone possesses immortality, dwelling in <strong><em>unapproachable</em></strong> light, whom no man has ever seen, nor can see. </p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>1st John 4:12 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>No one has ever seen God.</p> </div> --- ### The inaccessibility of the Father apart from Christ If mankind were able to see God the Father in all His glory without perishing in the process, it is at least safe to say that the issue of human free-will would be seriously compromised from that point forward. Confronted with the magnitude and majesty of God, not only would it be impossible to deny His existence, but it is also likely that even against their will most men would find themselves obliged to follow Him and His will out of sheer terror (rather than from a truly free choice). Along with the principle of preserving mankind's free-will, the issue of *access* to the Father also helps to explain why the Father remains unseen to us in this present life. Although, as discussed earlier in this study, the Father is omnipresent in His creation, for purposes of visibility to His creatures, he is invariably described in the scriptures as residing in heaven (e.g., Matt.6:9, 26). Obviously, as long as we live in these physical bodies, we cannot go to heaven to "seek God" (Deut.30:12-13; Rom.10:6). The Father, by virtue of the fact that His throne room is in heaven (Rev.4:2; Heb.4:16), is inaccessible to us. This "physical" distance which separates us from the Father is indicative of the *spiritual* distance between God and mankind. As the person of the Trinity representing the authority and holiness of the Godhead, the righteous Father keeps Himself completely separate from human sin; it is in no small part because of mankind's sinfulness that face to face fellowship with the Father is impossible. In fact, for sinful human beings to be confronted by God brings immediate realization that we are worthy of death by our very nature (Gen.32:30): <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Isaiah 6:5 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>"Woe is me! I am done for! For I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips. For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."</p> </div> --- ### The inaccessibility of the Father apart from Christ Though we cannot go to heaven to plead our case with the Father, Christ Jesus is the one who has come down from heaven on our account (Jn.3:13). Through faith in Him and His death for us, we now have ***access*** to the Father in His name. By His blood (that is, His death on the cross on our behalf), Christ has broken down the barrier of hostility between the Father and those who believe in His Son. Jesus Christ has made peace between us, and, as a result, we now have been granted entrance into the throne room of heaven and the presence of the Father. This means that on the basis of the acceptability of Christ's sacrifice and our acceptance of Him, our prayers and petitions are heard by the Father now, and we ourselves shall enter into the heavenly holy of holies in His good time: <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Romans 5:1-2a | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>So now that we have been justified by faith, let us take hold of the peace [we have] with God [the Father] through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have also obtained our <strong><em>access</em></strong> into this grace in which we stand.</p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Ephesians 2:18 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>For through Him [Jesus Christ] we both [Jews and gentiles] have <strong><em>access</em></strong> to the Father by one Spirit.</p> </div> --- <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Ephesians 3:12 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>Being in Him [Jesus Christ] and having confidence through our faith in Him we possess this <strong><em>access</em></strong> [to the Father] and freedom to speak [to Him].</p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>Hebrews 4:16 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>So let us <strong><em>approach</em></strong> with confident free speech to the throne of grace [of the Father] that we might receive [His] mercy and gain [His] favor for timely help.</p> </div> <div class="special-content scripture"> <strong>1 Peter 3:18 | <a href="/site/content-features/#ichthys-translations">Ichthys translation</a></strong> <p>For Christ died once for us on account of our sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might <strong><em>bring</em></strong> us to God.</p> </div> --- ### The inaccessibility of the Father apart from Christ The fact that through faith in the Son we now have full ***access*** to the Father (sonship, fellowship, acceptance of prayer, and eternal life with Him), shows that before the Son came and died for us, such access was at least *limited*. The Father's splitting of the temple's veil at the conclusion of our Lord's sacrifice on our behalf is a dramatic indication that through His death the barrier that had previously separated us from the Father (that is, our sins) has now been removed (Lk.23:45). Now we have access to the Father in prayer, though we still cannot enter into His presence in heaven as long as we remain in these earthly bodies. Before the cross, the Father was even more inaccessible to sinful mankind. It would be surprising, therefore, if the instances of Theophany in the Old Testament are actual appearances of the Father. It is much more likely (based upon this principle of greater access *after* the cross, less beforehand) that just as the Father made Himself known through His Son in the New Testament (Heb.1:1-2), so also in the Old Testament His appearances were mediated by this same Son, that is to say, by Christophany. --- ### The dignity of the Father The fact that the angelic rebellion led by Satan precedes the creation of man (Job 38:7; Is.14:12-15; Ezek.28:12-19) explains much about the Father's modus operandi of working through the One who will ultimately replace Satan as ruler of this world, His Son Jesus Christ (Lk.10:18; Jn.12:31; 16:11; 1Cor.15:24-25; Col.2:15; Rev.11:15). As the Trinity's figure of authority and majesty, the Father chooses a representative to wage the struggle against Satan, even He who by His sacrifice will redeem sinful mankind and replace our adversary, the Morning Star replacing Lucifer (compare Is.14:12 with Rev.22:16). So it should not be surprising that throughout the Old Testament too, the Son is the One representing the Father, speaking His words whenever He appears (in Christophany), for He is the anointed One, the Messiah, the One sent into the world by the Father (Matt.10:40; 21:37; Lk.9:48; 10:16; Jn.12:44; 13:20). This principle of the Son *representing* the Father as His agent in the plan of salvation can also be seen from Christ's... --- ### The dignity of the Father 1) **Message**: Christ is the Word (Jn.1:1-3). This means that He is the embodiment of the message and truth of the Father, and speaks the Father's words truly and precisely at all times (Deut.18:18; Jn.8:55; 14:10&24). Christ is the Father's ultimate message (Heb.1:1), the messenger of the Father's new covenant in His blood (Is.42:6; Jer.31:31ff.; Mal.3:1; Matt.26:28; 1Cor.11:25). 2) **Mediation**: Christ is the Mediator between God the Father and sinful mankind (Gal.3:19-20; 1Tim.2:5), the One who reconciles us to the Father by His blood (Rom.5:10-11; 2Cor.5:18-21; Eph.2:14-16; Col.1:20-22). 3) **Mission**: Christ is the One anointed and sent by the Father to offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins (Heb.9:11-14). He is thus the ultimate high priest who makes atonement to the Father on our behalf (Heb.5:5-10). 4) **Monarchy**: In recognition of His victory at the cross, the Father has "appointed Him Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36), that is "the Lord anointed (to rule the world)". This passage signals not only Christ's replacement of Satan as ruler of the world, but His acceptance of the regency of the world as the Father's representative (explaining many Old Testament passages referring to the Father's impending return being applied to the Son in the New Testament): a) the Son's ascension into heaven (Ps.110:1 with Matt.22:44); b) the Son's ascension to the throne on earth (Ps.45:6-7 with Heb.1:8-9); c) the Son's primacy from creation to eternity (Ps.97:7b with Heb.1:6). All the above examples of Christ's role of *representing* the Father in God's plan of salvation support the position that all Old Testament Theophany is truly Christophany, the Son appearing, representing, and speaking for the Father before His incarnation. --- ### The visibility, accessibility and humility of the Son While we cannot initially see the Father, we can see the Son and the Father through the Son (Jn.14:9). While we could not initially approach the Father, through the Son we have gained access to Him (Jn.14:6). And while our sinfulness kept us separated from the perfect holiness of the Father, the work of the Son has rendered us holy and has reconciled us to the Father (Col.1:22). As the visible, accessible member of the Trinity who was willing to humble Himself and associate with us to die for us (Phil.2:5-11), Christ has always been our point of contact with the Godhead, whether in Old Testament Christophany, or after His appearance in true humanity following His incarnation. <!-- Footnote List --> <div class="footnotes"> <ol> </ol> </div> --- #### Outline - [Overview](#4) - [Definition of Theophany and Christophany](#5) - [The invisibility of the Father](#6) - [The inaccessibility of the Father apart from Christ](#7) - [The dignity of the Father](#8) - [The visibility, accessibility and humility of the Son](#9)