February 1 – Christ, the Revelation of God

"No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." (John 1:18, KJV)

Christ came into the world to reveal the character of the Father and to redeem the fallen race. The Redeemer of the world was equal with God. His authority was as the authority of God. He declared that He had no separate existence from the Father. The power by which He spoke and performed miracles was inherently His own, yet He affirmed that He and the Father are one.

Jesus had imparted a knowledge of God to the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles. The revelations of the Old Testament were progressive unfoldings of the gospel, displaying the purpose and will of the infinite Father. Through holy men of old, Christ worked for the salvation of fallen humanity. And when He came into the world, it was with the same message of redemption from sin and restoration to the favor of God.

What language is to thought, Christ is to the invisible Father. He is the manifestation of God and is called the Word of God. The Father sent His Son into the world, divinity clothed in humanity, that humanity might bear the image of the invisible God. Through His words, character, power, and majesty, He revealed the nature and attributes of God. The world beheld God personified in the purity and goodness of Christ.

As Lawgiver, Jesus exercised the authority of God; His commands and decisions were upheld by the sovereignty of the eternal throne. The glory of the Father was revealed in the Son. Christ manifested the character of the Father. He was so perfectly united with God, so fully encompassed in His surrounding light, that those who had seen the Son had seen the Father. His voice was as the voice of God. He declared, "I am in the Father, and the Father in me" (John 14:11, KJV). "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him" (Matthew 11:27, KJV). "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father" (John 14:9, KJV).

May we behold Christ and in Him see the revelation of the eternal Father, receiving the truth that leads to salvation and restoration in His divine image.