“The Son Shows Us What God Is Like: Whoever Has Seen Me Has Seen the Father!”

What is God Like? – How Can We Know for Sure? – Part 13

By Richard Allen – August 24, 2026

We’ve been working our way through the sorry condition that fallen man finds himself in – Blind, Deaf and Ignorant of the ‘Knowledge of God’ – since Adam and Eve’s disobedience. God, in His infinite ‘longsuffering and patience,’ worked for generations on His plan to recover men – not just to a ‘full knowledge of Himself,’ but to a ‘restored relationship!’  Doing this took more than just ‘making Himself known’ through the ‘Revelation of Himself by His Son, Jesus.’ It would require making an atonement for man’s sin that would ‘establish God’s justice, vindicate His judgment on guilty sinners, and restore fallen men to a relationship of love and devotion.’ As we stated in the last Blog, these ‘gracious acts’ could only happen through Jesus Christ (John 1:17). Digging a bit deeper into the ‘So Great Salvation’ of Jesus Christ, it’s clear that His disciples knew that ‘He had come from God.’  Some even confessed that Jesus was the “anointed one,” whom God had purposed to send (John 11:27). But questions still persisted. At one point, near the end of Jesus’ ministry, Philip, one of the disciples said to Him: “Jesus, just show us the Father and it will be enough for us!”  Here’s how this interesting interaction between Jesus’ disciples and Himself is recorded:

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’ Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, show us the Father?’ ” (John 14:6-9).

Just preceding this question, Jesus had a discussion with His disciples – telling them He was going away to prepare a place for them, and at the same time telling them: ‘they knew the way.’  Incredulous, His disciples responded: “We don’t know where you are going, so how would we know the way?” (John 14:5).  In response, Jesus tells them:

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him” (John 14:6-7).

There is a bit of irony here. He tells them ‘they know the way,’ but they say they don’t – so He tells them: “I am the Way, and no one comes to the Father except through me!” Then they ask Him to “see the Father,” and yet Jesus chides them in His conversation with Philip, lamenting: ”Have I been with you so long, and yet you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). The Old Covenant of Works, written on ‘Tables of Stone’ – because of man’s carnal condition – kept our spiritual eyes from ‘understanding God,’ exactly because He is Spirit and Truth! The genius of the New Covenant of Grace is, now through Faith, ‘God can reveal Himself in ways that were not available under the Old Covenant of Works!’ Paul the Apostle made a ‘contrast between Moses’ ministry of death and bondage’ coming from Mount Horeb, ‘blazing with fire and the sound of a tempest,’ and the ‘ministry of freedom in Christ, which gives life.’ The sight and sound of a ‘Holy God’ descending upon Mount Horeb made the Israelites cry out that “God would no longer speak to them” (Hebrews 12:19). In fact, when Moses descended from Mount Horeb, his countenance shone with the ‘Glory of God,’ so Moses put a veil over his face so the Israelites would not see it. Paul explains how the ‘revelation of God through Christ by the Spirit’ totally changed our understanding of God’s nature and character – and our access to Him:

“But our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses' face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end, will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?  For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.  Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.  But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:5-18).

This is a most amazing passage! Paul tells his Gentile readers in the Church at Corinth, that the ‘ministry of death,’ that is the Old Covenant Law, shone with such glory that the Israelites couldn’t look at Moses’ face because of it – even though that ‘glory was coming to an end!’ Paul reasons: “will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?” The ‘ministry of death’ was ‘coming to an end,’ it was only ‘temporary.’ The New Covenant ministry of the Spirit was permanent, it will last forever. Paul further states that ‘when Jews today read the Old Testament, the veil remains unlifted’ from their hearts! Through Christ, that veil is taken away when anyone ‘turns to the Lord.’  It’s only by the Spirit of the Lord that anyone can be set free from the ‘ministry of death.’ Unlike Moses who had to veil his face so that the Israelites would not see the glory fading, we all – both Jews and Gentiles now ‘behold the Glory of the Lord in the face of Jesus Christ’ – and that ‘glory transforms us.’ In the very next chapter, Paul finishes his thoughts:

“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:3-6).

When Jesus told Philip: “He who has seen me, has seen the Father,” He wasn’t just stating that “I and the Father are One,” (John 10:30), but making it clear that the Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all intricately involved in our Salvation! It was the Father who Loved His Church and sent His ‘only begotten Son,’ and it was the Son who obediently came, revealing the ‘One True God who had sent Him to atone for our sins.’ Here’s what the Apostle John says at the start of his Gospel:

“No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:18).

But God’s method to reveal Himself goes even farther than work by both Father and Son. ‘God, by His Spirit, transforms poor lost sinners into His image by the Spirit’ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Paul explains how the Holy Spirit  remolds our hearts and minds by: “shining His glory into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). This isn’t just divine assistance – but rather the work of Regeneration, writing God’s Law on our Hearts by His Spirit!  This process alone brings poor sinners from death to life, and enables them to ‘understand, receive, believe and take up their cross and follow Him!’ If the New Covenant of Jesus Christ didn’t ‘change us from the inside out,’ we’d be in the same place as the Israelites were in the flesh, when God gave them the Law and said: “Do this and Live!” (Leviticus 18:5). To those of us whom God has ‘given eyes to see and ears to hear’ (Matthew 13:16-17), The Triune God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – are powerfully involved in bringing us back from death into life. Not only can we know God – but we have Him revealed in all His Glory by the ‘sending and ordaining Father – the obedient and sacrificial Son – and the illuminating and quickening Spirit of the Triune God!

I recently watched a misguided conservative (Dinesh D’Souza) debating a theologian (J.D. Hall) on ‘God’s purpose and plan for the Ages – especially during the Old Covenant period. Dinesh somehow believed that God’s calling of Abraham by promise, and His dealings with his natural posterity, had another purpose beyond ‘the Revelation of Himself through Jesus Christ!’  It was clear after more than an hour of useless chatter that Dinesh – a man who has blessed me with his wisdom regarding political and cultural issues – was clueless about God’s purpose in Jesus. He almost made it sound like Jesus coming to Redeem His Church (made up of Jews and Gentiles), was a separate issue. He goes on to say that God’s real purpose and plan was to make physical Israel the focus of His dealings with mankind – separate from Jesus Christ. Nothing could be further from the truth. God has ‘no other plan for Jews or Gentiles apart from His ‘so great salvation’ that He offers freely through Jesus Christ.  It should be clear that reversing ‘man’s blindness and ignorance – resulting the fall in Eden, restoring us to Himself as His own prized possession’ has always been God’s eternal purpose and plan!  It should also be clear that this was only accomplished by “God shining into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). Jesus is the only ‘Hope of Israel’ (Acts 28:20), and the only hope for fallen Gentile sinners. Because Jesus our Messiah accomplished our Redemption – God will once again “tabernacle  among with men” (Revelation 21:3).

Soli Deo Gloria!