You saw GOD!?

Did Adam and Eve see GOD? I mean, did they really see him? You know, the part of GOD that causes people to fall flat on their faces and cry out? Those are the questions we’re exploring today, but before we do, I’d like to share a short poem I wrote to help us set the scene.

What did Adam see when he first opened his eyes? Most of us would probably say God, and in some ways, we would be correct; after all, Genesis 2:8 says, “And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.”

Gen. 2:8 seems to imply that Adam saw the LORD God, but we have a slight problem. Jesus said something different. In John 1:18, Jesus said, “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.”

Is that a sort of one-off passage with a hidden meaning? Not exactly. The Apostle John (disciple of Jesus) echoes his Master’s words in 1 John 4:12 “No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.”

Well, it’s complicated, but several reputable commentators whom I place a great deal of trust all agree that when the text says, “no one has seen God,” what we’re talking about is the full expression of GOD; or in other words, ‘knowing/seeing him completely.’

It isn’t overly challenging to respect their opinion when we take a closer look at those passages of scripture that say someone “saw God.”

Wait. Doesn’t Ex. 33:18 say Moses spoke to God face to face?

That is what Exodus 33:18 says, but is that what it means?

When we study the Bible, we must compare scripture across all 66 books. That sounds daunting, you say? Well, it’s not nearly as overwhelming as it sounds. You see when we read the scripture for enjoyment and fellowship with God, the Holy Spirit will often remind us of passages that we’ve read that help shine light on confusing topics.

Well, primarily that no one, at any time, has ever seen GOD the Father in his fullness. Therefore, we’ll attempt to understand better what Adam, Eve, Moses, Abraham, and Ezekiel saw by starting with the words of Jesus. As it turns out, Jesus is very reliable. Who would have guessed?

In Exodus 33:18, Moses says, “Show me your glory.” What exactly does he mean by that? As we mentioned above, we need to compare scripture with scripture to get a clearer picture.

God responds to Moses’ request: “You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”

So, although Exodus 33:11 says, “Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend…” we come to understand that the language is figurative and implies the level of intimacy that Moses enjoyed with GOD.

I’m glad you asked. Interestingly, Adam and Eve were perfect, which leaves me wondering why they couldn’t see GOD in his fullness. I’m obviously concluding that they didn’t see GOD in his fullness based solely on what Jesus said, “no one has ever seen God…”

Then what did they see? Maybe it would help us to look at a couple of other examples where people have “seen God.”

Abraham saw GOD as a man in Gen. 18:2 whom he could talk with. Whereas the Prophet Ezekiel describes the glory of God that he saw, which made him fall to the ground. He also says God had a human-like appearance. Ezekiel 1:26-28.

Some will say that these statements about God in human form are nothing more than anthropomorphic statements.

Anthropomorphic: attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities.

Is that what’s happening here? Possibly, but I like to lean on Gen. 1:26 when God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.

Am I naïve for believing GOD literally meant that he was going to create Adam and Eve in his image and likeness? Possibly, but I tend to take the Bible as seriously as possible and see no reason to attempt to make the statement in Gen. 1:26 match others’ presuppositions.

To draw from the poem about Adam above, “Do eyes burst open, filled with shining sun, or open to gaze upon the face of God the Son?” 

The same question can be asked as it relates to his final breath. What did he see when he breathed his last and “the silver cord [was] snapped… and the dust returns to the earth as it was…”? (Ecc. 12:7) Did his eyes burst open, as at first, and gaze upon the grandeur and beauty of his Creator?

One day, like Adam, we will all take our final breath; it’s inevitable. When that happens, those who have placed their faith in the saving sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, will see the Father in a way far beyond the human imagination.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him, should not perish but have everlasting life.