When God sees me he sees the righteousness of Christ, so how can God possibly know me personally?
1 John 3:1
ESV - 1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
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God knows you, he sees beyond what human eye can see. "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly" (Matthew 6:6 KJV) You so important to him that he knows even the number of your hair. "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows (Matthew 10:29 - 10:31 KJV)." When he looks at you, he sees the finished job of his son and the sacrifice that was made for you to be in right standing with him.
When God sees you, He sees...you. I know it’s a common idea in some Christian circles that God has some kind of Jesus-coloured glasses that He looks through when He looks at us, but that isn’t a biblical truth. Hebrews 10:14 says, “...by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” The Christian life is essentially a life of experiencing, by faith, who God has already made us to be, in Christ. When Jesus was on the cross, He was dying our death on our behalf, as our representative. In other words, it was as though we were on the cross paying the penalty of our sins in His body. If someone pays a debt on your behalf, the money is ‘imputed’ (not a word we use every day) to you, it is as though you were paying the debt, even though someone else is paying it on your behalf, but it applies completely to you. The idea that our Father sees Jesus instead of us when He looks at us isn’t biblical; He sees you, the real you, washed, bought back from under an authority that no longer has any claim on you, completely clean, redeemed, and made new because of His Spirit in you. The reason Jesus went through all that He did was to restore the relationship that God wants with His creation - people, you and me, personally. It was YOU that He was after, it is YOU that is redeemed. YOU now have the privilege of being His, because Jesus has justified YOU.
The Father sees us individually-- he knows our names (John 10:3), the hairs on our heads (Matt 10:30), knit every one of us together in the womb (Psalm 139:13-14), and knew the works He’d prepared for us (Eph 2:10b) before the world began (how awesome is that?)-- BUT He sees Christ in us as well. Galatians 3:27 states “And all who have been united with Christ in baptism HAVE PUT ON CHRIST, like putting on new clothes.” Romans 8:9 tells us that The Spirit of God resides in us if we belong to God. He cannot help but see Himself (Christ and the Spirit) when He looks at us, if truly we belong to Him. The best way my feeble mind understands is this: I was made to bear His image (Gen 1:27), not my own. I am made to reflect Him, like a shiny clean mirror reflects a face--perfectly. When sin entered the world, the image was clouded-- mud was thrown all over the mirror (me). No one can see the reflection anymore. All that can be seen is the mud; when we sin unrepentantly, our image reflects sin and the father of sin whom we have turned to (Psalms 115:8, Rom 1:23 and 1 John 3:8). Titus 3:4-6 details how that muddy mess is corrected: “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us... He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.” He washed everything clean. At that point, we again reflect God’s image, albeit imperfectly (the effects of sin have damaged the reflection, just as sand or time or discoloration damages a mirror). But God recognizes himself in us. “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” 1 Cor 13:12 How does God see both me and Christ (or Himself)? It is because we have been united with God by Christ and the Spirit! There is so much imagery concerning this in Scripture. Father and Children: Children resemble parents and each other (Matt 23:9, John 8:19, 8:41). God is our Father, Jesus is His firstborn and we have been chosen as His children to become like His Son, to receive an inheritance (Romans 8:29) Marriage: We are united as loving, sacrificial husband and faithful, respectful wife—Christ and the Church (Eph 5:21-33; 2 Cor 11:2, Rev 19:7, 21:9) The Head and Body: Jesus is the head and the Church is the body (Eph 5:29-30, 1:22, 4:15, 1 Cor 11:3, Col 2:19) Vine and Branches: Jesus is described as a vine and we are the branches that bear fruit, so long as we are attached to the Source of life (John 15:1-5, Gal 5:19-25, Jude 1:12d) Death and resurrection: We died to our old selves and are raised united with Christ (2 Cor 5:14-15, Rom 6:5, 7:4, Eph 2:6). New Creation: God makes everything new: For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:10a); He has taken the heart of stone that was within me and created in me a clean heart of flesh (Ezek 36:26, Psalm 51:10). God doesn’t put rose-colored glasses on. He knows our capacity for depravity. He takes us anyway, muddied and marred, and washes us clean and changes our minds and hearts. In so doing, He unites us with His Son and Spirit, so that we more closely reflect Him, bearing fruit for the Kingdom. Like a mirror that has some scratches and discoloration in it, but still is useful and purposeful to show His face, with the promise that we will be perfect image-bearers one day. The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. Amen
When we are saved, we inherit the righteousness of Jesus. i.e. his righteousness is imputed to us, or accounted to us. When God sees you, He sees you as perfect, sinless, and redeemed, not by your works, but by the forgiveness you receive when you accept Christ and by being given His righteousness.
First of all, we as finite mortal beings are far below the understanding of the LORD God. To attempt to give GOD the attributes of men falls far short. That said, when GOD sees us, as Christians, we are clothed in Christ. Similar to a robe of righteousness if you will. One must also keep in mind that it is not only the concept of being clothed in Christ but also GOD in us via the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Blood of Jesus is just as the blood the Israelites put on the door posts and lintles, death has passed over us, being under the Blood.
It's just absolutely important to know and always remember that JESUS is GOD, then this question is answered. He sees us but decides not to consider who we are and what we have done; instead, he just sees His own sacrifice for us in "Him-Jesus-the Ransom". He knows us individually as He testifies for Job and called Nicodemus by name. Peace and grace of the Lord Jesus upon you!
1.) How can God know me personally if He sees Jesus when He looks at me? In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us" God and God's Word are the same. The Word became flesh = Jesus (Yeshuah - "of God/of Yahweh"). “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” 1 Corinthians 8:6 So, the above mentions the truth, that Yahweh/Yeshuah (God/Jesus) are the same. God sees us and sees Jesus in us through the Holy Spirit. As Yeshuah ascended into Heaven, the "Helper" (Holy Ghost) descended onto the earth. We are baptized and "clothed" by Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. 2.) When God sees me he sees the righteousness of Christ, so how can God possibly know me personally? Look at your children. You know each one of them, yet you see yourself in them. Because they are of you, they are your children, you do everything you can for them. When they do something wrong, you have special love for them. You hear their cries, you see their needs, you want to help them in every way possible. It is because they are of you, you see yourself in them, they are your children and they call out your name when they are in need, distressed, in times of trouble, and you will hear them. They love you because you first loved them. They will know your voice when you call to them. When we were lost, becoming Christians we are now found and children of God. We are no longer disobedient creations but HIS children, He now sees Himself in us, and He hears our cries and our prayers. Without the blood of Jesus, we cannot be in God's presence. There is no other way He can accept us. Even Jesus, on the cross, cried out to God “Why have you forsaken me?”. The sins of the world were put on Jesus and God turned away, and Jesus felt it and cried out "why?" as it was Jesus' first time experiencing God's separation as Jesus had never sinned.
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