Old School

Exodus 33:20 (NASB95) — 20 But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!”

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Was Jesus really God? Perhaps there's been a mix up. Maybe it's just gotten twisted and the church proclaimed Him as God because they mythologized Him. How could God be a man and still God?!

Great questions, let's investigate......old testament style. The "You" coming up is God.

Exodus 33:18–20 (NASB95) — 18 Then Moses said, “I pray You, show me Your glory!” 19 And He said, “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.” 20 But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!”

Here Moses is told that no one can see God and live. Pretty straight forward.

Now...let's look at some other accounts.

There was a man named Jacob. Jacob was terrible. He had cheated his brother out of his money and run away like a worthless coward. He spent years and years away from home, then some twenty or so years later he comes back....back to meet his brother who by the way was not the type of guy you want to mess with. His name was Esau, and he was awesome. He was a man's man, no girly stuff.....Jacob was the girly one.

The night before they are going to meet up, this story below takes place

Genesis 32:24–30 (NLT) — 24 This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. 25 When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 “What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.” 28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.” 29 “Please tell me your name,” Jacob said. “Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there. 30 Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.”

Jacob saw God face to face, but he lived?! What's going on? I thought no man could see God and live!

Let's look at another. For those of you with some Bible knowledge, this couple listed below became the parent of Samson.

Judges 13:2–3 (NLT) — 2 In those days a man named Manoah from the tribe of Dan lived in the town of Zorah. His wife was unable to become pregnant, and they had no children. 3 The angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah’s wife and said, “Even though you have been unable to have children, you will soon become pregnant and give birth to a son.

Judges 13:6 (NLT) — 6 The woman ran and told her husband, “A man of God appeared to me! He looked like one of God’s angels, terrifying to see. I didn’t ask where he was from, and he didn’t tell me his name.

Judges 13:8 (NLT) — 8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord, saying, “Lord, please let the man of God come back to us again and give us more instructions about this son who is to be born.”

Judges 13:9–10 (NLT) — 9 God answered Manoah’s prayer, and the angel of God appeared once again to his wife as she was sitting in the field. But her husband, Manoah, was not with her. 10 So she quickly ran and told her husband, “The man who appeared to me the other day is here again!”

Judges 13:17–18 (NLT) — 17 Then Manoah asked the angel of the Lord, “What is your name? For when all this comes true, we want to honor you.” 18 “Why do you ask my name?” the angel of the Lord replied. “It is too wonderful for you to understand.”

Judges 13:19–22 (NLT) — 19 Then Manoah took a young goat and a grain offering and offered it on a rock as a sacrifice to the Lord. And as Manoah and his wife watched, the Lord did an amazing thing. 20 As the flames from the altar shot up toward the sky, the angel of the Lord ascended in the fire. When Manoah and his wife saw this, they fell with their faces to the ground. 21 The angel did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Manoah finally realized it was the angel of the Lord, 22 and he said to his wife, “We will certainly die, for we have seen God!”

Judges 13:23 (NLT) — 23 But his wife said, “If the Lord were going to kill us, he wouldn’t have accepted our burnt offering and grain offering. He wouldn’t have appeared to us and told us this wonderful thing and done these miracles.”

They saw God?! ..... and lived?! 

Let's do another...my favorite one...

You've heard of Moses? He was succeeded by a warrior who lead the Israelites. This guy was legit, people feared and respected him, he was charismatic, and he had the LORD's blessing. This story starts with an interaction between Joshua and the LORD...

Joshua 1:1 (NLT) — 1 After the death of Moses the Lord’s servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant. He said,

Joshua 1:5–6 (NLT) — 5 No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you. 6 “Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them.

You've heard the song...Joshua fit the battle of Jericho...that's what's about to happen. Joshua has his army settled down waiting for an attack. Joshua wants to go up to the hills and survey the battlefield before and develop a strategy.

Joshua 5:13 (ESV) — 13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?”

Nobody stands around on a battlefield with a sword drawn unless he means business. What do you think the man said?

Joshua 5:14–15 (ESV) — 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

Awesome...

Here you have Joshua worshiping the commander of the Lord's army. But what about the 1st commandement?!

Exodus 20:3 (NLT) — 3 “You must not have any other god but me.

How is it that no man can see God and live, and yet there are times when people have seen God and lived? Then you have Joshua bowing down and worshipping the commander of the Lord's army, who was that?

If God is able to take the form of a man in the Old Testament, he would also be able to take the form of a man in the New Testament...and that's just what he does. Who is it that is given the authority to command the Lord's army, who also is holy and worshipped by men but can be seen by men without death resulting?

John 1:1 (NLT) — 1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 (NLT) — 14 So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

John 10:27–30 (NLT) — 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”