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Muslims Asking Christians: Questions & Answer

http://answering-islam.org

A Series of Answers to Common Questions

Sam Shamoun

Question:

According to John 5:37, Jesus said that no one had ever seen God at anytime or ever
heard his voice. And yet people did see Jesus, which proves that Jesus cannot be
God.

Answer:

As it is often the case in polemical arguments, the paraphrase of the passage

misrepresents Jesus’ words in several ways. Jesus did not make a general statement ("no
one ever") but addressed a particular group of people ("you"). Moreover, he spoke about
the Father, not about God in general. Since Jesus is the Son, not the Father, the above
conclusion is invalid. Here is what that passage actually says:

"And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard
his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the
one he sent." John 5:37-38

The questioner is assuming that Jesus meant that no one at any time has seen God or
heard his voice, when in actuality his comments were addressed to a specific group, not
to everyone. Jesus was saying that those specific Jews whom he was directly addressing
hadn't seen or heard God. But even here Jesus clearly says that the Father has testified
concerning him, implying that God had indeed spoken and revealed himself in some way
to people in order to testify on behalf of his Son.

The following Scriptures explicitly state that many have both seen and heard from God:

"Micaiah continued, 'Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on
his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his
left. And the LORD said, "Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going
to his death there?" One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward,
stood before the LORD and said, "I will entice him." "By what means?" the LORD
asked. "I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets," he said. "You
will succeed in enticing him," said the LORD. "Go and do it." So now the LORD has put
a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. The LORD has decreed disaster
for you.'" 1 Kings 22:19-23

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"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and
exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with
six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and
with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: 'Holy, holy, holy is the
LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.' At the sound of their voices the
doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 'Woe to me!' I
cried. 'I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean
lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.' Then one of the seraphs
flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.
With it he touched my mouth and said, 'See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken
away and your sin atoned for.' Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I
send? And who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'" Isaiah 6:1-8

"As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His
clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was
flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out
from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten
thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened." Daniel
7:9-10

"As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was
opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a
voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'"
Matthew 3:16-17

"Then John gave this testimony: 'I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and
remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize
with water TOLD ME, "The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is
he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit." I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of
God.'" John 1:32-34

"While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud
said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!'" Matthew
17:5

"We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he
received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the
Majestic Glory, saying, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.' We
ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred
mountain." 2 Peter 1:16-18

"Father, glorify your name!' Then a voice came from heaven, 'I have glorified it, and will
glorify it again.' The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said

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an angel had spoken to him. Jesus said, 'This voice was for your benefit, not mine.'" John
12:28-30

In light of the foregoing, we can now take a closer look at the passage to see what the
Lord Jesus actually meant:

"And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness to me. His voice you have never
heard, his form you have never seen; and you do not have his word abiding in you, for
you do not believe him whom he has sent." RSV

Jesus was telling these Jews that their rejection of him demonstrated that God hadn't
enabled them to realize that he was speaking and revealing himself to them, since if he
did they would have believed in the One whom he had sent.

The Scriptures clearly teach that it is only through God illuminating and drawing a person
can he/she believe the revelation that God is giving in Scripture and/or Christ:

"‘No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him
up on the last day’ ... And he said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by the Father.’" John 6:44, 65

"Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you CANNOT bear to hear my
word ... Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear
them is that you are not of God." John 8:43, 47

As the Lord Jesus told Peter, after the latter confessed that Christ was God's Son:

"He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the
Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon
Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in
heaven.’" Matthew 16:15-17

Peter's confession demonstrated that he had both heard and received revelation from God
regarding who Christ truly was. The unbelieving Jews, on the other hand, had shown by
their unbelief that God hadn't testified to their conscience about who Jesus is.

Ironically, in their stubbornness and obtuse refusal to believe in Jesus, they failed to see
that the very One standing before them was the visible manifestation and revelation of the
invisible God:

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the
glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth... No one
has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him
known." John 1:14, 18

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"Then Jesus cried out, 'When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in
the one who sent me. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.'" John 12:44-45

"'If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know
him and have seen him.' Philip said, 'Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for
us.' Jesus answered: 'Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such
a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, "Show us
the Father"? Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The
words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing
his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least
believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.'" John 14:7-11

Thus, they failed to realize that seeing Jesus was to see the very human form of God! If
they had believed they would have then realized that they were seeing God manifesting
himself and speaking to them through and in Christ, a point which Jesus himself makes:

"They said to him therefore, ‘Where is your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither
me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’" John 8:19

To summarize, the passage is not denying that people have seen or heard from God. It is
simply stating that those particular Jews, whom the Lord Jesus was addressing, showed
through their unbelief that God hadn't enabled them to accept and realize the fact that the
Person standing before them was God's self-revelation to them. In other words, it wasn't
that God hadn't made himself known to them, since he definitely had in the Scriptures
and through the Person and work of Christ. But that, despite the revelation they were
receiving, God hadn't set them free from their spiritual blindness in order to be able to
discern the fact that he was clearly speaking to them in his Son.

A similar objection is often raised based on John 1:18 which is the topic of discussion in

Part 2
Question:

The Bible says that God has never been seen (cf. John 1:18), and yet Jesus was seen
and heard. This again proves that Jesus cannot be God.

Answer:

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Just as in Part 1 (on John 5:37), a careful reading of the passage helps to resolve the
problem. Notice that in John 1:18, the Evangelist says that God's Son, WHO HIMSELF
IS GOD, has made God known. How did he do this? By becoming flesh. John therefore
affirms that GOD has appeared visibly and revealed himself to others when the Son took
on human nature. (Cf. John 1:1-3, 10-11, 14)

Furthermore, the God whom no one has seen is the Father. Note the text again:

"No one has ever seen God. It is GOD the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart,
who has made him known." NRSV

So this in itself suffices as a response since John is not denying that God has ever been
seen, but that the Father has never been seen.

With that said, we must now understand what John meant that the Father has never been
seen.

A careful examination of the context shows that John is actually expounding upon the
Greek Septuagint (LXX) of Exodus 33:7-20:

"And Moses took his TABERNACLE (ten skenen autou) and PITCHED IT without the
camp, at a distance from the camp; and it was called THE TABERNACLE of Testimony
(skene marturiou): and it came to pass that every one that sought the Lord went forth to
THE TABERNACLE (ten skenen) which was without the camp. And whenever Moses
went into THE TABERNACLE (ten skenen) without the camp, all the people stood every
one watching by the doors OF HIS TENT (tes skenes autou); and when Moses departed,
they took notice until he entered into THE TABERNACLE (ten skenen). And when Moses
entered into THE TABERNACLE (ten skenen), THE PILLAR OF THE CLOUD
DESCENDED, and stood at the door of THE TABERNACLE (tes skene), and God talked
to Moses. And all the people SAW THE PILLAR OF THE CLOUD standing by the door
of THE TABERNACLE (tes skenes), and all the people stood and worshipped every one at
the door OF HIS TENT (tes skenes autou). And the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as
if one should speak to his friend; and he retired into the camp: but his servant Joshua the
son of Naue, a young man, departed not forth FROM THE TABERNACLE (ek tes skenes).
And Moses said to the Lord, Lo! thou sayest to me, Lead on this people; but thou hast not
shewed me whom thou wilt send with me, but thou hast said to me, I know thee above
all, and thou hast favour with me. If then I have found favour in thy sight, reveal thyself
to me, that I may evidently see thee; that I may find favour in thy sight, and that I may
know that this great nation is thy people. And he says, I myself will go before thee, and
give thee rest. And he says to him, If thou go not up with us thyself, bring me not up
hence. And how shall it be surely known, that both I and this people have found favour
with thee, except only if thou go with us? So both I and thy people shall be glorified
beyond all the nations, as many as are upon the earth. And the Lord said to Moses, I will
also do for thee this thing, which thou hast spoken; for thou hast found grace before me,
and I know thee above all. And Moses says, Manifest thyself to me. And God said, I will
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pass by before thee WITH MY GLORY (te doxe mou), and I will call by my name, the
Lord, before thee; and I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and will have pity
on whom I will have pity. And God said, Thou shalt not be able to see my face; FOR NO
MAN SHALL SEE MY FACE, and live. Exodus 33:7-20

Carefully note that the passage states that the pillar of cloud descended upon the Tent
(skene) in full view of Israel. The cloud represented God's glory:

"Then the cloud covered THE TENT OF MEETING (ten skenen tou marturiou), AND
THE GLORY OF THE LORD FILLED THE TABERNACLE (kai doxes kuriou eplesthe he
skene). Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it,
AND THE GLORY OF THE LORD FILLED THE TABERNACLE (kai doxes kuriou
eplesthe he skene). In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from
above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out-
until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and fire
was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels."
Exodus 40:34-38

Furthermore, in Exodus 33 Moses asked God to manifest himself, to show Moses his
face. In other words, Moses wanted to see a full blown manifestation of God's glory as
opposed to seeing a small veiled glimpse of it. God responds by saying that no one can
see the fullness of his Divine glory, the visible revelation of his complete essence. We
know that this what Moses meant since Exodus clearly says that God appeared to Moses
and the latter saw him:

"Then He said to Moses, 'Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and
seventy of the elders of Israel, and you shall worship at a distance. Moses alone,
however, shall come near to the LORD, but they shall not come near, nor shall the people
come up with him.' ... Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of
the elders of Israel, AND THEY SAW GOD OF ISRAEL; and under His feet there
appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not
stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; AND THEY SAW
GOD, and they ate and drank. Now the LORD said to Moses, 'Come up to Me on the
mountain and remain there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the
commandment which I have written for their instruction.' So Moses arose with Joshua his
servant, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. But to the elders he said, 'Wait here
for us until we return to you And behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a
legal matter, let him approach them.' Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud
covered the mountain. The glory of the LORD rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud
covered it for six days; and on the seventh day He called to Moses from the midst of the
cloud. And to the eyes of the sons of Israel the appearance of the glory of the LORD
was like a consuming fire on the mountain top. Moses entered the midst of the cloud
as he went up to the mountain; and Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty
nights." Exodus 24:1-2, 9-18

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Therefore, Moses was asking to see the whole bare essential Divine glory visibly
manifested before him, not just a small veiled portion of God's glorious majesty.

With this in mind, let us now turn to John's prologue:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing
was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The
light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. There came a man
who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning
that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he
came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was
coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through
him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own
did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he
gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of
human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became flesh AND
PITCHED HIS TENT AMONG US (kai eskenosen en hemin). WE HAVE SEEN HIS
GLORY (ten doxan autou), THE GLORY OF THE ONE AND ONLY (doxan hos
monogenous), WHO CAME FROM THE FATHER, full of grace and truth. John testifies
concerning him. He cries out, saying, 'This was he of whom I said, "He who comes after
me has surpassed me because he was before me."' From the fullness of his grace we have
all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and
truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only,
who is at the Father's side, has made him known."

The verb eskenosen comes from skenoo, where we get skene or tabernacle, the very word
used in the Greek version of Exodus 33 and 40! It is clear that by using the terms skene
and doxa, and by referencing Moses, John is presenting the Lord Jesus as the very glory
of God who pitched his tent among us. In other words, Jesus' physical body is the
permanent tabernacle for the fullness of God's glory to reside in. This means that when
John says no one has seen God, John is referring to the fact that no one has seen God
fully manifestating his glorious essence. Yet Jesus permanently houses God's glory and
essence in the flesh. This is why Christ could speak of his physical body as God's
tabernacle, and why the glory cloud descended upon him, just as it had descended upon
the tabernacle:

"Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them
up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His
face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. And behold, Moses
and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Peter said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us
to be here; if You wish, I will make three TABERNACLES (skenas) here, one for You,
and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' While he was still speaking, a bright cloud
overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, 'This is My beloved
Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!'" Matthew 17:1-5
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"Jesus answered them, 'Destroy THIS TEMPLE, and in three days I will raise it up.'
The Jews then said, 'It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in
three days?' But He was speaking of THE TEMPLE OF HIS BODY. So when He was
raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He said this; and they believed the
Scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken." John 2:19-22

Thus, John's prologue is essentially saying that the unseen, invisible God has visibly
manifested his glory by appearing in human form. And that human form just so happens
to be the human nature, the very physical body, of God's eternal Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ!

Far from disproving the Deity of the Lord Jesus, John's prologue does a superb and
masterful job of demonstrating it (obviously due to divine inspiration of course)!

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