THE FACE OF JESUS CHRIST

W. McKillop

Isaiah 52: 13, 14; Matthew 17: 1, 2; Revelation 1: 12–16; 20: 11; 2 Corinthians 4: 5–7

As you know beloved brethren, I do not usually read so many scriptures, but what I have to speak about today, with the Lord’s help, I thought required the reading of these scriptures. What I want to speak about is the face of Jesus Christ. You will notice that in Isaiah His face is referred to as His visage, “his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the children of men”, and in Matthew it says, “his face shone as the sun”, and in Revelation 1, “his countenance as the sun shines in its power”, and in Revelation 20 (and I have to admit it is a terrifying thought to think of) “from whose face the earth and the heaven fled”. Finally in 2 Corinthians 4 for us, as believers, is the light of “the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”—our blessed present and eternal portion.

I thought to call attention to this word in Isaiah because we often refer to His sufferings at the hands of men, but (I speak for myself) I have not often thought about His sufferings particularly involving His face. You will remember when He stood before the high priest who challenged Him as to what He taught, the Lord said to him, “I taught always in the synagogue and in the temple ... in secret I have spoken nothing ... Demand of those who have heard, what I have spoken to them”, John 18: 20, 21. And it says an officer standing there gave him a blow on the face and said, “Answerest thou the high priest thus?” You might say in a certain sense that was the beginning of His sufferings at the hands of men. The Lord had had sufferings in His spirit and His soul long before, but with what grace and lowliness the Lord answered that brutal person saying, “if I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why smitest thou me?” (John 18: 23). The Lord felt that blow, not just physically, but He had been there in His perfection teaching among them, and expressing the grace of God, and when He answers truthfully and rightfully He is given a blow on the face. Of course, we know later in John’s gospel it tells us the soldiers beat Him on the face. And it is here prophetically in what Isaiah writes, “As many were astonished at thee”. I have no doubt they were, “his visage was so marred more than any man”. How affecting to the soul of any lover of Christ that is—“his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the children of men”. Well I would point out, as we know, the sufferings from the hand of man were not atoning sufferings. They were sufferings for righteousness’ sake, but they involved both intense physical and inward suffering for the Lord, blessed Man there in all His holy perfection. His visage was so marred more than any man. I think it causes us to ponder reverently. Why? That He would suffer at the hands of God when forsaken we understand, because without it there would be no redemption. But think of this physical side; what it brought out was His moral perfection. He says to that brutal officer, “if well, why smitest thou me?”

I read Matthew because His countenance is referred to. You notice that there are these three words used as to the features of Jesus—His visage, His countenance and His face. And so He took these three disciples with Him and took them up into a high mountain apart. And He was transfigured before them and His face shone as the sun. We might say they had a preview of Him as He would come in His heavenly kingdom. His face shone as the sun. If you think of the physical sun that has been placed in the solar system in the universe, it regulates everything in the solar system. I think the disciples here, and we ourselves, as seeing His face shining as the sun are to learn that He is to regulate everything. If He is to be with us all the days, until the completion of the age, we must be a subject and regulated people. Pharaoh said to Joseph, you remember. “according to thy commandment shall all my people regulate themselves”, Genesis 41: 40. I think this view of the Lord’s face, which they saw literally, but which we can understand by faith and the Spirit, is to bring about a subject people. Indeed we might say a willing people. He says in the Song of Songs, “Before I was aware, My soul set me upon the chariots of my willing people”, Song of Songs 6: 12. So we are not only a subject people but a willing people, because what the disciples saw here was the King. And as we see the King it is to bring about subjection, but also willingness to minister to Him, to be at His hand so to speak for whatever He has to do.

Well in the Revelation John sees the same Person he saw on the mountain but he sees Him in a different way. It says, “I turned back to see the voice which spoke with me”. It is a striking thing that he turned to see a voice. But then we know one another by our voices; often if we speak on the telephone to one another we know by the voice who it is. But he turned to see the voice which spoke with him and he sees one like the Son of man, not now with His visage so marred more than any man but “his countenance as the sun shines in its power”. And we would understand that this is the current aspect of the Lord’s countenance toward Christendom, where He set His name, we might say, His wife to whom He entrusted things in His absence. But as He goes through, speaking with John, we see what sorrowful conditions have come in. And so the Lord is presented here as the Son of man; that is, He is on our side. He is full of love and sympathy but there are certain things about His attire that indicate that there are matters He will have to address judicially—clothed with a garment reaching to the feet, to stress the great dignity of this Person; and then restraint of affection—girt about at the breasts with a golden girdle—his head and hair white like white wool as snow. If we refer to Daniel it would again remind us that it is the Son of man and it brings out this wonderful beauty, but here it is all in a judicial presentation—His eyes as a flame of fire; I think that would be something to stir the conscience of every believer who is not thoroughly subject to Christ and fully with Him at the present time; eyes as a flame of fire—they will miss nothing; that refers to the searching gaze of the Son of man; and His feet like fine brass, as burning in a furnace. And though He is walking in the midst of the seven golden lamps it is a judicial walk.

It is not like the walk that John the baptist called attention to; “looking at Jesus as he walked, he says, Behold the Lamb of God”, John 1: 36. That was a sacrificial walk but this is a judicial walk and the Lord would impress us that while He still loves all that are His, He is moving judicially because of how things have deteriorated in Christendom. And then His voice as the voice of many waters; and having in His right hand seven stars; the Lord still has control of the position; He has not given it up yet to be taken over by the beast and the false prophet. And out of His mouth a sharp two-edged sword going forth; an allusion to the power of the Spirit in the Lord’s current speaking to bring about needed adjustment. And then His countenance as the sun shines in its power; that would bring before us the thought of the power of the King. Matthew 17 is more the glory of the King. His face shone as the sun, but here it is the power of the King as it says elsewhere, “the word of a king is power”, Ecclesiastes 8: 4. Such is the Lord’s word, and so John is greatly affected, and we are greatly affected, by thinking of the Lord’s judicial attitude towards Christendom. But He will do with us what He did with John, “he laid his right hand upon me, saying. Fear not; I am the first and the last, and the living one”. Everything is in His hand that pertains to what He introduced as having been perfected.

But then there is the whole race on the earth, much of it outside of Christendom, and although the glad tidings are going out to it He is still largely rejected by men, and that is why I read that verse in Revelation 20, to show that His face will not always be towards them in blessing. You can understand therefore Paul saying, “Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord we persuade men”, 2 Corinthians 5: 11. There is no more terrifying setting in scripture than this one; “I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it”. That is terrifying in itself but, by the Spirit through John is added, “from whose face the earth and the heaven fled, and place was not found for them”. What aspect must the face of the Son of Man have had as sitting on the great white throne? for it is He who sits there. John tells us the Father judges no one but has committed all judgment into the hand of the Son “that all may honour the Son, even as they honour the Father”, John 5: 23. And these persons called the dead “will honour Him there, not as we are privileged to honour Him out of Spirit-begotten affection, but out of the conviction of a guilty conscience, that the judgment about to be meted out to them is entirely righteous and justified. But see what an effect His face has—“from whose face the earth and the heaven fled”. I have been struck thinking about that this week. I knew the verse was there, I have often read it and perhaps mentioned it, but think of what that face must be that the earth and the heaven flee away! And the dead are there suspended before the great white throne, and they are looking at such a face. No wonder Paul says, “the terror of the Lord”.

Well, thank God, that is not our portion and that is why I read in 2 Corinthians 4. “We do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus Lord, and ourselves your bondmen for Jesus’ sake”. That was true of Paul and the other apostles and I think in spirit it is true in measure at the present time. But he says, “Because it is the God that spoke that out of darkness light should shine”; think of that! That is an allusion to Genesis when God said, “Let there be light. And there was light”, Genesis 1: 3. Even infidels have had to say there is no grander statement in the whole of scriptures or language than “Let there be light”. What it is, we could not say, but it was a power of some kind and it did not dispel the darkness but it was there in spite of it and that is what exists at the present moment. In verse 4 the apostle says, “in whom the god of this world has blinded the thoughts of the unbelieving, so that the radiancy of the glad tidings of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine forth for them”. They are the persons that are referred to in Revelation 20 as “the dead”. The darkness is impenetrable, irremovable and yet what is shining toward them and upon them is “the radiancy of the glad tidings of the glory of the Christ”.

But then as to ourselves, he says, “Because it is the God who spoke that out of darkness light should shine who has shone in our hearts”. Think of God doing that, not shining into but ‘shone in our hearts’; that means that He had to be there to shine in them. It must allude to the blessedness of the new birth and the work of redemption, and that God is there shining, and it is said that there might be “the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”. The shining forth will allude to what goes out from us but it is the “knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”. Beautiful! I think Mr. James Taylor said this was the loveliest spot in the universe—“the face of Jesus Christ”. And “we have this treasure in earthen vessels”. These earthen vessels are fragile, but the treasure is there, and it is maintained that the surpassingness of the power may be of God and not from us. Well, the only thing I would add, beloved brethren, is, as the old hymn-writer said, ‘What wait I for most blessed Lord except Thy face to see’. Think of actually seeing His face! I can think of no feature of hope that is more blessed to cling to than that. John says elsewhere, “we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3: 2), and so we shall, but think of seeing that face in which the glory of God shines. Well, may God bless the word.

Preaching at Ormond Beach
7 October 2012