Understanding Jesus' Teachings

Exploring the Connection with the Father

John 14.17

November 23rd 2014

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Okay, last week Jesus told the mourning apostles that yes, He was going away, but that they knew where He was going and the way to get there. Thomas disagreed and said, essentially, “Lord, we don’t know where nor do we know the way.” And we spent our time together covering Jesus response to Thomas when He said: “I am the way, the Truth, and the Life No person comes to the Father (the destination) but by me.” We talked at length about Him being the Way, the Truth, and the Life and we talked about His ultimate function – being the door or portal to the Father.

Jesus and the Apostles

In our passages today we learn more about this, and in particular we learn more about His relationship to the Father and our relationship to Him. So Jesus continues and says to Thomas and the other ten apostles:

7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
8 Philip saith unto him, “Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.”
9 Jesus saith unto him, “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.”

Some very big verses and I want you to know up front that I understand them differently than how many traditional Christian believers and their view understand them. Let’s go through them verse by verseTGNN’s Bible teaching series—book-by-book, through the lens of fulfillment and spiritual liberty. – so back to verse 7 where after having said to Thomas, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me,” He adds:

7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

I don’t think Jesus is telling the disciples that they don’t know Him but probably that they don’t know Him perfectly. This is obvious by the fact that they keep misunderstanding His person and purpose. At this point He was not fully revealed or known by them – but they would be. So he says to Thomas,

7 If ye had (completely) known me, ye should have known my Father also: (but then He adds) and (or but from this time forward) ye know him, and have seen him.

The Concept of Knowing

There is a word here that Jesus uses over and over again = know and known. There are a few Greek words that we translate to Know. “Eido,” “epignosko,” and “ginosko” are the major ones. Now, when the Greek is eido it means, “I see,” as in I literally see what you mean. Typically not spiritual knowledge but can lead to it. If I show you know to operate a vacuum your would say, “Oh, I see.” That is the Greek eido.

“Epignosko” is better understood as, “I understand.” If I call you on the phone and explain how to operate the vacuum and at the end of the conversation you say, “I understand,” you have not seen, nor do you know but your comprehend enough to get it, you epignosko. The last major word for know is Gnosko. It means, especially in spiritual realms, to know that you know that you know. And to be correct in your knowing.

Everytime Jesus uses know in verse 7 it is gnosko – and it relates to actual, trustworthy spiritual knowledge. That’s right – KNOWING. In the first line He gives them a hypothetical “IF/THEN” – “IF” they had KNOWN Him in this spiritual gnosko sense they would also have KNOWN the Father.” Recall from last weeks discussion that they appear to have still seem Jesus as an earthly king and savior and were missing some key elements to His true identity and make-up. We are all in the same boat as human beings – we receive and see Jesus in terms that are ever revealing themselves to us and helping us know Him in a better and clearer manner. Here He tells the eleven that had they known Him in the proper full ginosko sense of knowing they would have also known in the full ginosko sense the father (or whom scripture calls the invisible).

Understanding Jesus as the Image of God

Paul wrote to the church at Colosse and, speaking of Jesus said:

“Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature.” Image coming from the Greek “eikon” and in a figurative sense means Jesus incarnate was a physical and characteristic representation of the God who is spirit and therefore invisible.

“If you had truly KNOWN who I am you would have clearly KNOW the God, the Father who resides on High,” He says. Again, so it is with us today. Want to know the invisible God who is wholly unapproachable? “KNOW” His Son whom He sent. Who describes Him in word and deed and character and attitude.

What the incarnate Son did the invisible God would have done. What the incarnate Son said the invisible God would have said. How the Son loved is how the invisible God would have loved. Whom the Son hung out with is whom the invisible God would have hung out with. What the Son respected the invisible God would have respected.

I mean we have a living human model of God on earth – living breathing loving forgiving. Some folk singer years ago sang a song that asked: “What if God was one of us? Just a slob like one of us? Just a stranger on a bus trying to make His way home?” I’ve longed to contact her and tell her that He was one of us. And remains.

Knowing God Through the Son

Know the Son and we know God the Father. Miss knowing the Son and we will certainly miss knowing God the Father – that’s all there is to it. We get so wrapped up in the identity of Jesus and His relationship to God. I think it’s all pretty unnecessary.

God is a consuming fire of spirit light and love. He is one God no more. He became human, manifesting Himself in flesh and saved the world. And He sends His spirit now into the hearts of those who believe on His fleshly manifestation. There it is.

Call it modalism. Call it binity or trinity or call it God. But there it is. Taking on flesh is what was called the Son of God. Presenting Himself in spirit He is called the Spirit of God. Residing invisibly in heaven He is called God the Father. Encounter, see, experience any of them and you have encountered God.

I believe Jesus was trying to get these men to understand this perspective. So he tells them:

7 If ye had (spiritually) known me, ye should have (also spiritually) known my Father also: (but then He adds a super curious line) “and” (or but from this time forward) “ye know him, and have seen him.” Honest to goodness I really don’t know how much more plain this can get.

The Perception of God

In all that is about to occur you will both know that you know Him (the Father) and you will know that you have seen Him. Since God the Father is invisible we have to read this passage reasonably. First of all, we cannot take this passage literally from the English that Jesus was saying that they had SEEN (with the eyes) the Father. First of all He is invisible.

Secondly, listen to John

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.” That’s a great way to explain what Jesus, as the WORD, did – He DECLARED God. Get it?

Then in 1st John 4:12 we read:

“No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.”

So again, when Jesus says, “but from this time forward you know Him and have seen Him,” we cannot suggest that he meant with the physical eye OR that when they physically look upon Jesus they are physically “seeing” the Father. We can say this because of the passages that say no one has seen God at anytime but also because the word Jesus uses for “see” here (as in and HAVE seen Him) is not “blepo” or physical but is “horao” which better means to “perceive” or “discern.”

“In short order you will know Him,” Jesus says, (because you have known me and all that I have said has been true) “and you will realize that you perceived Him in me.” “I am going away. I will disappear. But upon my resurrection, and my ascention, and by the Holy Spirit which I will ask the Father to send to teach you all things.

Understanding Philip's Request

you will GINOSKO (know) the father and you will have perfectly perceived Him in me.” In spite of these words, and the knowledge these men will eventually have into His true identity as God incarnate, they were still (at this point) uncertain of the real meaning of His words. Which helps us understand and have compassion on Philip. Next verse.

8 Philip saith unto him, “Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.”

In other words, Philip asked: “Reveal the Father to us, Jesus” – “show Him to us and we will want for nothing more.” Philip was not getting Jesus words and his request here reveals this perfectly. He wanted an outward and or physical manifestation of God. We could probably understand the words of Philip in a number of different ways but I find the request kind of troubling. I mean Philip was a first-hand witness to many, many miracles from the hand of the Lord – miracles that firmly established the fact that Jesus was at least sent from God.

Jesus' Response to Philip

But Jesus own words gave them spiritual insights that were far, far deeper. Yet Philip still wanted or requested for more. He wanted something physical from heaven not realizing that he actually had it standing right in front of him! And so after everything was said and done by the King over these three years, he still had the nerve to ask Jesus: “Show us the Father and we will not ask for anything else.” Jesus response to Philip accomplishes a number of important things – for him and for us the reader.

The Message Behind Jesus' Words

First, it gets right to the heart of the problem – Philip was not yet convinced that Jesus was who He claims to have been and what His miracles proved Him to be. This is why Jesus says to Him: “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip?” Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father but Jesus response points the request back upon Himself! Did you notice this? “Have I been so long with you, and YET hast thou NOT KNOWN ME, Philip????? In this we are given a clear insight into Philips problem – He did not yet see Jesus as God in the flesh.

Then Jesus gives even more clarification which, again, by placing Himself squarely between the invisible God and Philip (and all people) as He adds: “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, “Shew us the Father?” This line is so radical it sets me back every time I read it. Let’s first talk about what it is NOT saying. It is not saying that to see Jesus the Son physically is to know what the Father looks like.

As mentioned a few weeks ago, the LDS missionaries are famous for taking this passage and suggesting that what Jesus was saying was when Philip looked at Him in his body of flesh and bone, that he was getting a pretty good idea of what the Father looks like in His Body of flesh and bone too. In other words they’ll say, “See here, even Jesus points out that when the disciples looked at him it was just like they were looking at his father – and since when the disciples looked at Jesus they saw flesh and bone then we know that the Father must have a body of flesh and bone too.” From everything we have already discussed about God’s make-up we know that this would be a wholly contradictory stance Jesus would be making if it were true.

We also know that Jesus, in His flesh, was NOT telling Philip that He was The Father – that to see Him was to see the Father, meaning He was NOT saying, “I am both the Son and the Father.” In flesh, Jesus was the Son of God. With a Son in flesh, the invisible God became the Father. Prior to the Word being made flesh God is NEVER called the Father, and the Word is NEVER called the Son. So at the incarnation of the Word, the Word became the Son of God, making God His Father. Physically, Jesus of Nazareth was separate from the Father though He was one with Him spiritually.

Additionally, when Jesus said to Philip, “If you have seen me you have seen the father,” the Greek word for “seen” in both cases is not blepo (as in physically see) but is horao (as in perceived). I mean this was the hope and drive Jesus had had in

Understanding Jesus as the Representation of the Invisible God

All of His work with these men – that they would perceive from the heart and realize spiritually that when they were dealing with Him and sensing his purpose and mission that they were dealing with God! The invisible God! Again, He didn’t say, “when you visibly have looked upon me, Philip you have visibly looked upon the Father,” but was speaking only of spiritual knowledge, knowledge that transcends the physical and moves into realms that are far, far superior.

Reflection on Hebrews 1:3

In Hebrews chapter 1 verse 3 we read (speaking of Jesus):

Hebrews 1:3 (KJV) Who being the brightness of [his] glory, and the express image of his 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; This translation lends credence to the idea that Jesus was a physical replication or image of the invisible God. To allow ourselves to think this is juvenile when we consider the rest of scripture. By looking at other translations of this passage we get some clarity.

For example, The ASV says: “who being the effulgence of his glory, and the very image of his substance,” Darby says, “who being [the] effulgence of his glory and [the] expression of his substance . . .” The MNT says, “He being an emanation of God's glory and stamp of his substance, and upholding the universe by the utterances of his power, after by himself making purification of our sins, has taken his seat on the right hand of the Majesty on High. And the Revised echoes this, saying: “He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature . . .” The WNT says: “He brightly reflects God's glory and is the exact representation of His being, (rather than His Body).

By asking, “In what way was (and is Jesus) the stamp or the exact representation of the invisible God’s being?” we can clearly say that this certainly wouldn’t mean the invisible God had brown hair and eyes and was five foot nine, etc. The exact stamp or representation was in the spiritual essence or being of the Invisible God which Jesus tells Philip he has “perceived” when he perceived the heart of Christ.

Spiritual Unity of God and Jesus

In the next verses the Lord says more about Him and His relationship with God the Father than any other place in scripture. We have established that Philip was having trouble with Jesus being God, being from God, being filled with and representing God. And so Jesus says:

10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?

Again, the questions go straight to the heart of the problem Philip (and Thomas and the others, possibly) were having: They were not certain that Jesus was in the Father and that the Father was in Him. When we speak of physical matters these words are impossible for us to reconcile so obviously we know Jesus was speaking of spiritual matters.

Being that God was spirit, and what was God about Christ was His spirit (and NOT His flesh) we know that the spirit within Christ was fully God and that this Spirit was fully in God and God was fully in Him. For me, the best analogy for understanding this – an analogy supported by scripture – is fire. God is called a consuming fire, which filled the fleshly container called Jesus while simultaneously burning on high. Such a picture allows for God the Father to be in Jesus and for what was in Jesus to be in The Father.

The Holy Spirit in Trinitarian Belief

Also note Jesus failure to mention the Holy Spirit in His declaration to Philip. Trinitarianism insists on making a huge deal about “the actual third person or being of the Holy Spirit” but Jesus makes no mention of it. He simply says to Philip:

10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?

Add in the fact that in every single one of the introductory statements of Peter, James, John, and Paul all of them thank and recognize the Father and the Son but none of them include the person of the Holy Spirit and I see good reason to believe that the Holy Spirit is exactly what the name implies – it is the spirit of God and not a THIRD person in a man-made trinity. Take it for what it’s worth. After asking Philip if he believed that the Father was in Him and that He was in the Father Jesus reiterates a point.

Jesus' Unique Connection with the Father

He really wanted these disciples to understand, saying:

“. . . the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.”

Back in chapter 7 Jesus said

16 “My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.”

This is a theme that runs through almost everything Jesus says to people (especially His disciples) throughout His ministry – “I am on errand from the Father. I speak what He tells me to speak and do what He tells me to do. Trust this.” It’s the message that separates Jesus of Nazareth, the carpenters Son, the Son of Man, the human who bled and died from Jesus the Son of God who was from eternity to eternity, without beginning or end, creator of all things.

Speaking and Doing on God's Behalf

There is a subtle difference here in what Jesus says in verse ten and Jesus being sent from God and doing His works by assignment. Prophets of old were sent by God to say things as directed. So were angels. But what is a clear distinction in what Jesus is saying here in verse ten is that He says it is the Father who is actually doing the works and speaking the words, and not Him. In other words there is a great difference between someone speaking and doing things on God’s errand and God literally speaking and doing things through someone. This is the difference not only between Jesus and prophets and angels but between Jesus and the rest of humanity.

Let me put it another way – there is a difference between someone being tempted and doing evil and Satan actually entering into a person and living and acting through them. Only in Jesus was the Father present fully and acting in the world. Only in Jesus was the invisible Father perfectly represented in flesh. Only in Jesus was the Father in utter and total control – in the rest of us, He is working out His ways and will through us by His Spirit, but IN Christ the fullness of the Godhead dwelled bodily.

This is yet another reason how Jesus is so much different than the rest of us and NOT our spirit brother. He was God IN THE FLESH, we, in our flesh, have God’s influences – He was God. Get it? Catch me at any given moment and you will discover a lack of God. Not so with Jesus because He was (or is) God . . . incarnate.

Belief Through Words and Works

At this point with Philip the Lord seems to give him some alternative ways to view Him . . . to believe on Him. And He says:
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.

I have spoken and taught and made claims about my person and nature, Philip. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and that the Father is in me OR ELSE believe me from the works you have seen done by the Father through me . . . The water to wine The healings The walking on water The raising the dead

It’s really interesting isn’t it that Jesus gives them some options. In fact it’s frankly fascinating. He gave them two “grounds” or witnesses upon which they might believe on Him – one was his own testimony and the other was the works done through Him. I believe that the Lord appealed to both human nature and to the Old Testament Law where in the mouth of two or three witnesses all things would be established. In the realm of human nature there are those who believe through words which testify to their spirits. Others are only convinced by sights and signs and wonders.

While believing is the end objective it seems that believing on the words is more of a blessed state than those who are convinced through miracles and signs. We know this from Thomas and His reaction to claims of Jesus and His resurrection. Remember? We’re going to read about it in chapter 20. Anyway . . . the other apostles witnessed the resurrected Lord but Thomas was not there. When they told Him they had seen Him Thomas said (in John 20:25):

John 20:25 “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into

Faith and Belief

"the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace be unto you.”

27 Then saith he to Thomas, “Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.”

28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, “My Lord and my God.”(Which is my master and my supreme divinity – and Jesus did not correct Thomas in saying this. But He did say): 29 “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”

I would think that there is a marked difference, due to this passage, between those who see and believe (as in miracles) and those who have not seen and believe (as in believe on His Word). Because faith is the substance of things NOT seen we could probably assume that the reason those who believe by hearing only are exercising more faith in God, and because Hebrews says that it is only by faith that we can please Him, then we might safely assume that to believe having not seen is more blessed than to believe from or as a result of seeing.

The Journey from Faithlessness to Faith

One last thing that I think is worth mentioning here at this point and before we wrap it up for the morning. We all begin life in this world faithless and knowing nothing. Spiritually dead is the way Paul describes it – “dead in sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace.” whether we are but children or adults, until we are regenerated (born-again) we are living in a world of faithlessness.

Of course when we first believe, when we are born again, we enter into a world of walking by faith. We trust, and we look to Him in hope that He will be faithful to His promises. Again, we have stepped from the dark into the light and we learn to walk and live by faith. This takes time – a life time – and no matter how mature we get in Christ we will always walk by faith to some degree or another.

The Realm of Knowing

But scripture takes believers and moves them into yet another realm which is not spoken of much in Christian circles. It’s the realm of knowing. Let me see if I can explain this.

When I first became a believer I walked very tenuously by faith. In all honesty I did not trust God would do what was best for me but assumed He would do things to mess me up or really harshly break me down. In time, and after years of praying to be a man of faith I was gifted with the faith that allowed me to more and more trust Him with the outcome of important decisions in my life. Again, over time, He moved me from operating by little faith to walking in abundant faith. Of course it’s still smaller than the size of a mustard seed but it is a billion times more than it used to be.

Here’s the deal, however. When I speak with God now, when I go and converse with Him over almost any matter, I am not entering into prayer by faith. In other words, I am not really hoping and trusting that God will hear me or that He is there. LISTEN . . . I KNOW He’s there. With that ginosko “knowing.” That spiritual knowing that defies description or explanation to the outside world.

So the point I am trying to make is once people have transitioned from deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God. to life, from unbelieving to faith, and once time and maturity in the word and in Christian experience has occurred, in some or many areas I think God wants us to slide into the realm of knowing. And when a person knows something, faith no longer exists.

For this reason I do not believe that faith will be requisite in the afterlife. We will know. And so as we mature in faith, and move into the state of knowing, we are actually just getting a jump on being in direct relationship with the God of heaven.

For this reason the writer of Hebrews wrote this to the believers under His care.

Hebrews 6:1-2 “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,”

Foundation of Faith in Christ

"Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.”

Did you hear this? He actually said, let us leave the doctrines of Christ and not lay again the foundation “of faith toward God!” That is radical. But it is right in line with the desires God has for His children. Let faith abide (and faith remain) but build upon it, and let it serve to move you toward a higher place, a place the writer calls perfection! Completeness. Of course, total completion or completeness will be had at death, when instead of seeing through a glass darkly all things will become clear. But along the way, there is this process where in some areas we will move into that place on high spiritually before we actually get there. In those moments and in those instances, we shift from walking by faith to standing in knowledge.

Spiritual Knowledge in the New Covenant

For this reason, the writer of Hebrews says (8:11) speaking of the new covenant: “And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord:’ for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.” 1st John 2:5 says: “But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.” The Greek word for “know” here is the word for true spiritual knowledge. The writer purposefully does NOT use faith (or pisteuo) here but ginosko.

God's Teachings Through the Holy Spirit

What’s interesting is the method by which we know things in the New Covenant. All the way back in Isaiah 54:13 we read: “And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.” Later, John the beloved puts it this way in 1st John 2:20: “But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” In other words, in the New Covenant, God is our teacher, by and through His Holy Spirit, and as a result, we KNOW things rather than just have faith in them. Not all things – we will always have to take some things by faith. But when the Holy Spirit moves and teaches us, we are no longer under faith, but in knowledge – a small step toward heaven.