"The express image of His person"

[Christ] Who being the brightness of His [God's] glory, and the express image of His [God's] 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 (Hebrews 1:3)

This is an amazing revelation to mankind! The Lord Jesus Christ is not only the brightness (or radiance) of God's glory, in that the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 4:6), but He is also "the express image of His person".

This actually speaks of the character of God, since the Greek word is exactly that -- charaktér:
Strong's Concordance
Original Word: χαρακτήρ, ῆρος, ὁ
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: charaktér
Phonetic Spelling: (khar-ak-tare')
Definition: a tool for engraving
Usage: an impression, representation, exact reproduction; a graving-tool

The Bible says that no man has seen God the Father at any time. This is absolutely true since God is "a Spirit". Therefore God has made provision to fully reveal Himself in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. The character of God the Father is totally and completely found in, and revealed in, the Son. Those who deny the deity of Christ are wilfully blind to what is revealed in the Bible.

So what is the character of God? The Bible says that God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all. This is not simply speaking about the supernatural brightness or radiance of God, but it is speaking about His character -- He is absolute purity, absolutely holiness, and absolute righteousness. And that is precisely the character of Christ.

Jesus was -- and is -- fully God and fully sinless Man at one and the same time. That is because He is God incarnate, "God manifest in flesh", "Emmanuel". And Christ came to earth to reveal God to mankind. So every word and every deed of Jesus of Nazareth was an expression of the character of God. Not only was the love and compassion of God expressed through Christ, but also His hatred for sin and hypocrisy was revealed in Christ. Christ not only took little children and held them tenderly in His arms. He also harshly rebuked the scribes, Pharisees and lawyers for their deeds and teachings, and actually condemned them to Hell.

But we see the amazing character of God in Christ on the cross. The sinless Lamb of God did not open His mouth in His defense at any time. Though He could have called down legions of angels to rescue Him, He would not do so. He did not say a word when He was mocked, spat upon, beaten with a rod, whipped while His back was torn, nailed to the cross, and mocked continuously while He hung there between two criminals.

He even asked the Father to forgive those who hated and reviled Him. And all this was done for one sole purpose. That all of sinful mankind could be saved from the wrath of God. God the Father literally abandoned His beloved Son, His perfect Son, so that the full wrath of God would come upon the holy soul of Christ. And as a result the penalty for the sins of the whole world (called "the sin of the world" because it encompassed all sins) was paid in full.

But Christ did not remain in the tomb. Death was defeated and destroyed at the cross, Indeed the powers of sin, death, Hades, Hell, and Satan were all destroyed on Calvary (Golgotha, the place of the skull). He rose again the third day as He had prophesied over and over again.

Thus Christ not only revealed the character of God in His life, but He also revealed the power of God in His death, burial and resurrection. And those who fully and truly believe this are saved by grace through faith in Christ and His finished work of redemption. There is no more sacrifice for sins, because Christ declared triumphantly on the cross "It is finished!" It was by Himself that Christ "purged our sins".

Now God expects those who believe on Christ to reflect the character of Christ in their words and deeds. But they are not left to their own devices. God gives the gift of the Holy Spirit to all who believe on Jesus, and it is by the power of the Spirit that we can reflect the character of God and Christ.

This is so amazing...I am lost for words

This isn't true. It's because our sweet Lord Jesus is the express image of God, that he endured with longsuffering sinful conduct committed against himself . Thats what his Father does every day. Our Savior showed mankind how his Father is, because he's One with his Father.

Read Psalm 22.

Wonderful ... Jesus is the visibility of the invisible God.

I've read the whole Psalm many times, not just the 1st verse. It's a psalm which teaches that God doesn't forsake the righteous in times of trouble, even though it may appear that way to the ungodly. They mocked him,

He trusted in God;let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. Mt.27:43

So our Lord quoted the opening verse of the 22nd psalm, which goes on to say,

He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. Psa.22:8

They should have known better.

One should not confuse how God deals with righteous men and women with what was necessary for the full penalty for sins to be paid at Calvary. Christ was speaking the truth when He hung on the cross and repeated the same words in Aramaic which are in Psalm 22:1 in Hebrew. He was literally forsaken by God the Father during those three dark hours on the cross. So for any Christian to deny this is to make God and Christ liars. Why would Christ ask that question in bitter anguish unless it had been a reality?

I just told you why. People were mocking him. Some of them were the so called experts in teaching the scripture. They could recite them verbatim,

the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said Mt.27:41

So Jesus quoted the psalm which shows that despite his suffering, God doesn't forsake the righteous,

Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. Psa.22:4

For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard. vs.24

Psalm 22 isn't about our Savior being forsaken. It's about the people's perception that he was being forsaken.

For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. vs.16

When those educated men read this, they never perceived theyre the dogs.

Jesus had the power to destroy them, but instead showed great restraint toward people who sinned against him. Because he's merciful, like his Father.

Actually, it does not say that:


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 phrase is a figure of speech that simply means no one has fully understood or known God except Jesus and that's because Jesus is God's son.


Clarke:


It is likely that the word seen, here, is put for known, as in Joh_3:32; 1Jo_3:2, 1Jo_3:6, and 3Jo_1:11; and this sense the latter clause of the verse seems to require: - No man, how highly soever favored, hath fully known God , at any time, in any nation or age; the only begotten Son


Many people have seen God:

Gen 32:24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
Gen 32:25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
Gen 32:26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
Gen 32:27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
Gen 32:28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
Gen 32:29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.

Here Jacob not only wrestles with God physically, he also was allowed to see His face and live.


1 Kings 22:19 And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.

Exo 33:20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
Exo 33:21 And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
Exo 33:22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
Exo 33:23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.


Here we see that he does have a face, has a hand, and has "back parts" of a body. Moses was not allowed to see his face, but he saw his hand and saw his "back parts".

Exo 24:9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:
Exo 24:10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
Exo 24:11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.



Isa 6:5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts[/U]!”

Isn't God invisible though?

No.


Col 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

When the Father is close by he can be seen and many scriptures attest to this fact. If he is in heaven and a person is on the Earth, he is "invisible" meaning not able to be visually seen and the same can be said about anything or anyone in heaven. We cannot look up and see heaven, God's throne or the Father. Invisible here simply does not carry the same meaning as it does in modern English like an invisibility cloak or the invisible man who can sneak around without being seen.

Example. My car is invisible to everyone here only because no one knows where it is and are too far away to be able to see it but the car isn't literally invisible.

There’s a lot of excellent points in this thread! Amen!

That is definitely not a figure of speech. It is plain language which corresponds to this verse: And He [GOD] said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. (Exod 33:20)

And also this verse: [God] Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. (1 Tim 6:16)

How do people go off the rails in spite of these Scriptures?

Because they aren't Hebrew scholars and do not know when something is a figure of speech. Many saw God and lived as I already have proven.

Exo 24:9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:
Exo 24:10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
Exo 24:11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

"they saw God" Pretty easy to understand right?

Isa 6:5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts

They indeed did see God!

Also Genesis 32:30 Jacob named the place Peniel, saying, “Indeed, I have seen God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”

You forgot this verse:

Exo 33:23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.

Moses DID SEE God, just not his face.

It's impossible to see God as He is. It would be like a fish trying to see the ocean.

But don't worry, He sent His Son. His Son said "When you've seen me, you've seen the Father."

It's hardly impossible since many people have seen God including Moses.

nobody has seen the father at any time but the son of god has declare him.

To continue:

And when Christ who is your life appears you will also appear with Him in glory. This is not the second coming, this is the appearing of Christ in those who believe.

So, we should put on Christ and let Him be seen in us. When this is accomplished we may say to the one who receives us in Lord, when you've seen me, you've seen the Father.

A man, dear to my heart, was visiting a couple in Europe. The woman married her first husband in the Roman church. He was abusive and violent. Against the advice of her priest, and after many hard years, she divorced the man. The priest let he continue in the church but she could not take communion.

My friend was sitting at the table of the woman and her new husband, a kind man who was a believer (this was 20 years after her divorce). My friend explained how, within the most common things, God reveals His majesty. He said, "This bread for instance is here on your table. This is common to you as it was to Jesus. This wine here, sitting on the table, was also common."

He continued, "So, Jesus took the wine which was a common staple in their culture and said 'This is the blood the the covenant' and He passed it to the disciples for them to drink." My friend did the same, poured a glass of wine and gave it to the husband and wife to drink.

"Then," my friend added, "Jesus took the bread, like the bread here on your table, gave thanks and said 'This is my body broken for you'." My friend did the same; took the bread from the table, gave thanks, and broke a piece for himself and then passed it to the woman and her husband who also took a piece and ate it. Then my friend said, "Jesus said, do this in remembrance of me."

When they were finished, my friend put his hands on the table and said, "That is the Lord's supper."

The woman, her eyes suddenly opened, gasped and began to weep. She grabbed my friend's hands and kissed them. Then she threw up her hands and said in her native tongue "Cristo ha visitato la nostra casa oggi!"... "The Lord has visited our house today!" Of course, she knew my friend was just a man but through him, she saw Christ and the Father. Now, when he travels to that area, she and her husband often insist that he stay with them.

In Christ,
Aaron56

No, "nobody has UNDERSTOOD the father at any time but the son of god has declare him."

MANY people have seen Father.

no that the son