Jesus Reveals God
John 1:14-18
Seeing the Invisible: How Jesus Reveals God to Us
Have you ever wondered what God is really like? It’s one of humanity’s most profound questions. The challenge, as Scripture tells us, is that “No one has ever seen God” (John 1:18). This invisible God seems beyond our reach—yet He hasn’t left us in the dark. Through Jesus Christ, the invisible God becomes visible, knowable, and approachable.
The Problem of Knowing an Unseen God
Our problem is simple yet profound: we have never seen God. But there is someone who can make God known to us. As I shared in our recent message from John 1:14-18, “There is only one person who can explain God to us fully, and that is Jesus.”
Jesus is “the perfect interpretation of God.” When we wonder how we can know God or learn more about Him, the answer is straightforward: get to know Jesus, because Jesus reveals who God is.
Jesus Reveals God Through His Humanity
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
God came to earth in the flesh. He tabernacled among us. As we sang in worship, “He came to earth that we might have heaven among us.” Through Jesus’s humanity, we learn profound truths about God’s character:
- When Jesus confronted the Pharisees, we see God’s holiness and truth
- When Jesus spoke to the woman at the well, we see God’s kindness and compassion
- When Jesus taught and trained his disciples, we see God’s patience and purpose
- When Jesus ministered to the outcast, we see God’s mercy
- When Jesus wept over Jerusalem, we see God’s sorrow and long-suffering
- When Jesus died on the cross, we see God’s love, justice and mercy coming together
- When Jesus rose from the dead, we see God’s power and faithfulness
- When Jesus restored and sent his followers, we see God’s forgiveness and mission
Whatever you need to learn about God, look at the Son. Like father, like son.
Jesus Reveals God Through His Supremacy
“John bore witness about him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me'” (John 1:15).
John the Baptist demonstrated remarkable humility in acknowledging Jesus’s supremacy. Though John was physically older than Jesus, he understood the eternal nature of Christ—”He was before me.” John knew that Jesus existed from the beginning, as I’ve mentioned in previous messages: “In the beginning was the Word” (John 1:1). Jesus was already there in Genesis 1:1.
John didn’t just casually mention this truth—he “cried out,” making a public declaration of Jesus’s authority. While others took offense at Jesus’s claims, John knew exactly who Jesus was and responded accordingly.
The Bible tells us that “at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow.” He is supreme. He is the King of Kings. We must each respond to this reality—it’s “cut bait or fish” time. When Jesus is supreme, you must make a decision to submit to Him as Lord.
Jesus Reveals God Through His Generosity
“For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:16-17).
The law revealed God’s holiness and man’s sin. “The law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good” (Romans 7:12). But while the law could reveal sin, it could never remove sin. “Through the law comes the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).
Think of it this way: Imagine standing in front of a mirror after working in your garden all day. The mirror (like the law) shows you the dirt on your face, but you can’t clean yourself by rubbing against the mirror. The law shows our sin but can’t cleanse it.
The law could command righteousness but not create it. It could restrain behavior but not renew the heart. It’s like slowing down when you see a police car—once the officer is gone, you might speed up again. The law has limited power to change us.
But Jesus brings something different. “From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” Jesus is the source of all our spiritual blessings. The phrase “grace upon grace” literally means “grace in place of grace”—a continuous, never-ending flow.
It’s like standing under a waterfall of God’s grace that just keeps coming and coming. While I might run out of resources to give, “Jesus will never be bankrupt. He can just keep giving and giving and giving.”
Grace and truth aren’t merely given through Christ—Jesus IS grace and truth. When you have Jesus, you have both. Grace forgives our sin; truth transforms our hearts. Grace removes guilt; truth renews the mind. Grace gives what the law demanded; truth shows who God really is.
Life Application: Responding to God Revealed
When we truly see God through Jesus, how should we respond? Scripture shows us several appropriate responses:
Awe and Fear
Like Isaiah who cried, “Woe is me, for I am undone!” (Isaiah 6), we should stand in awe before God’s holiness.
Worship and Adoration
Throughout Scripture—from Exodus to Revelation—those who encounter God respond with worship.
Confession and Repentance
Job declared, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5-6).
Surrender and Obedience
Isaiah responded, “Here am I, send me,” and Paul asked, “Lord, what do you want me to do?”
Joy and Praise
The shepherds, after seeing the newborn Jesus, “returned glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen.”
Proclamation
Like the Samaritan woman who “left her water pot and told others, ‘Come and see,'” we should invite others to encounter Jesus.
Transformation
“We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Jesus said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). The question I leave with you is this: Who do others see when they see you? Is there any family resemblance? Like Father, like son?
Jesus is always the hero of our story. If you’re struggling with something today and need His grace, call out to Him. There’s no other name, no other hope, no other life but what’s found in Christ alone.
Full of Grace And Truth
Point To Jesus
When Light Broke The Darkness
That You May Believe – The Gospel of John
We hope you enjoyed the sermon and would love to see you in person. Plan your visit to Community Baptist Church in Spring Hill, Tennessee today!