What Is a Theophany?

Summary

Summary prepared by Acts 2:38 Life from the transcript below — the preacher’s words follow in full.

What a theophany is — a visible appearance, not an incarnation

• The question posed (in the host's frame): in the Old Testament, God sometimes revealed himself through theophanies ('through theophanes', as the frame spells it). What exactly is a theophany? And why would God reveal himself in this way? (The episode also carries an invitation, in Bernard's own voice, to the gathering it names — which stands verbatim-only, as episode furniture, not as part of the answer.) The host's question: in your book, The Oneness of God (as titled), you wrote, that one way that God revealed himself in the Old Testament, and dealt with humans on their level, was through the use of theophanies ('theophanes', as heard). I think that begs a question: what is a theophany? And what are some Old Testament examples, of God revealing himself in this way? As a follow-up question to that, if you wouldn't mind: why did God choose to reveal himself, through theophanies? And maybe most important of all: is Jesus Christ — would you consider him to be a theophany? The answer: well, let's talk about this term, theophany. It's a technical theological term, that means: a visible appearance, or manifestation, of God. And it's used, because there are various passages in the Old Testament, where it's evident, that God appeared to human beings, in some kind of temporary visible form. In some cases, you might consider the glory Cloud, to be a theophany. Or the thunder and lightning, to be a theophany. But we usually think of some more visible form. But now: a theophany is different, from an Incarnation. Incarnation: of being — actually being manifested In the Flesh, as a human being. Theophany is just a temporary appearance. And it may not even be tangible. In other words: there may be no substance, to hold. But I think of — in Genesis, you find some theophanies ('theophonies', as heard). Often, the Old Testament uses the angel of the Lord. The angel of Yahweh is a theophany. Now: sometimes, when it says the angel of the lord, it's obviously just an angel. But at other times, the angel seems to speak with authority, and the people respond, as if the angel has Divine Authority. So that it becomes evident, that the angel was God, manifesting himself in some form.

Scriptures: Genesis (book-only)

Why God used them — and the examples: Jacob, Abraham

• And why would God do that? God was trying, throughout the Old Testament, to find ways to make himself known to people. To reveal his character, his identity, his presence. And I do think he was foreshadowing, that he would ultimately come — in human identity — as Jesus Christ. So the theophanies ('the theophanese', as heard) had an immediate purpose, of communicating with people, in a tangible way, so they could know, that God is a real being ('that God is a real human being he's not not a human being a real being', as the sentence corrects itself in the letters). Not an abstract impersonal subject. It's not a force. Not a generic force. Not pantheism — God is everything — but a personal spiritual being ('God is everything but a personal spiritual being', as spoken). And so the first purpose, for the theophanies, is to reveal God, as a personal being, in a tangible way, or a visible way. And then second, I think: to pre-shadow God's ultimate plan, of the Incarnation. For Jesus Christ, the son of God, to be born. To prepare people, to understand that. So let me give you a couple examples. The angel of the Lord — wrestled with Jacob ('the angel of the Lord are wrestle with Jacob', as the letters stand). But yet, the text says: he saw God. He wrestled with God. In the book of Hosea, referring back to it, talks about him encountering God. So it seems like — and maybe the awareness gradually dawned, upon Jacob — so there was an angelic appearance. And in this case, it was tangible: he wrestled with the angel. But then the realization came: this is the very presence of God. God chose to deal with him, in this way. And it was really a spiritual struggle. We might look at it, much like in our day: intercessory prayer. We're agonizing, through a difficult decision ('a difficult decisionSign andin we're', as the fused fragment stands), and we're wrestling with God: not as a tangible being, but God's presence. Another example is, when God appeared to Abraham, just before he pronounced judgment upon Sodom. And it says: these three men came. But then two of them were Angels, who went towards Sodom. But Yahweh, God, stayed with Abraham, and conversed with him ('and Converse with him', as spoken). So here's another example, of God revealing himself, in a visible form, like a man, and actually talking to Abraham. So you could — so I've given you several examples. And God appearing in human form. God appearing in Angelic form. God appearing through smoke, Glory Cloud, thunder, lightning. All these could be considered theophanies ('theophanes', as heard).

Scriptures: Hosea (book-only)

Jesus Christ — the culmination, but more than a theophany

• Now: Jesus Christ is the culmination, of those theophanies. Which is probably why we don't really have those same kind, today. And when we do have a visual appearance, it's usually a vision, or a dream, of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus becomes the Fulfillment, of the theophanies ('of the theologies', as heard). Much as the ceremonial law, in the Old Testament, points to Jesus — so we don't still follow the ceremony law ('the ceremony law', as spoken). So the theophanies — the various encounters, that people had with God, in the Old Testament — are ways of focusing people's faith, on the coming of the Lord. So when Jesus Christ was born: although he was the Fulfillment, or the culmination, of the theophanies, he was more than a theophany. Because he wasn't just the appearance of man. He was an actual human. Jesus Christ was born, in the womb of a virgin — which none of the theophanies went through, that process. He was an actual human being. God uniting himself, to human identity. A full humanity. And not just a shell. Not just a body. But human identity: whatever we think of, as a human — will, Body, Soul, Spirit — not separate from God, but joined to God's spirit. So: complete human identity ('so compute complete human identity', as heard), joined to the spirit of God. So that's what we call Incarnation. Or human personification of God. God being manifested, in the flesh. So, to summarize: John 4:24 (as he cites it) says: God is a spirit. He's invisible. We could never see God. So in order to bridge the gap, God gave theophanies. And today, God has come in flesh, as the Lord Jesus Christ. So in eternity, when we go to heaven, I think we're going to see one personal being — Jesus Christ — sitting on the Divine Throne. We're going to know him, as our heavenly father. We're going to feel the presence of God — which we know is today — is the holy spirit. But all the godhead will be focused, on the visible human being, Jesus Christ. And what's so beautiful to me, about the Incarnation — has — more than a theophany — is that: although God never changes, God somehow was able to come, in human flesh, and identify with the human race, and be something you've — he'd — never been before, in that sense. He has permanently identified, with us, as humans. So — so throughout eternity, God will be revealed to us, in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's pretty amazing: that God would care for us so much, and love us so much, that he would identify with human beings, throughout eternity. And that's what he's doing.

Scriptures: John 4:24

The books — a detailed discussion, and the sequel on the Incarnation

• (The host's follow-up between the spans stands verbatim-only: he points listeners to the fuller section in the book named in his question, where the discussion goes into greater detail.) Bernard's reply: The Oneness of God has a detailed discussion, of theophanies ('of theophies', as heard), the Angel of the Lord, and discusses the main examples, throughout the Old Testament. And then my sequel, the Oneness view of Jesus Christ (as titled), talks more about the Incarnation: how could Jesus be both God and human, at the same time? How — he could have deity, in his Humanity, in his Spirit. How could he truly be the Son of God, and God manifested in the flesh.

Scripture index: Genesis (book-only); Hosea (book-only); John 4:24.