The Face of God

"One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after" (Psalm 27:4). King David knew there had to be more to knowing God; he sensed there was something of the Lord he hadn't obtained, and he would not rest until he found it. He said, in short, "There is a beauty, a glory, an excitement about the Lord I haven't yet seen in my life. I want to know what it's like to have uninterrupted communion with my God. I want my life to be a living prayer. Only that will see me through the rest of my days."

The face of God is his likeness, his reflection. In answering the cry of David's heart to have intimacy with him, God said, "Seek ye my face." David's response was, "Lord, when you said, 'Seek my face,' my heart leapt in response." "My heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek'" (Psalm 27:8).

In answering as he did, the Lord revealed to David that he could satisfy his longings by reflecting God in his own life. He was instructing David, "Learn of me. Search my Word and pray for understanding through the Spirit, so you can be like me. I want your life to reflect my beauty to the world."

This was not merely a call to prayer; David had already been praying seven times a day. In fact, David's prayers are what created this passion in him to know the Lord. No, this call from God was to hunger for a lifestyle that totally reflects who Jesus is.

You see, at Calvary, God took on a human face. Jesus came to earth as a man. God in flesh. And he did this so he could feel our pain, be tempted and tried, as we are, and show the Father. Scripture calls Jesus the express image (meaning the exact likeness) of God. He is the same essence and substance of God the Father (see Hebrews 1:3), the same "engraved cut." In short, he is "the same as" the Father in all ways.

To this very day, Jesus Christ is the face, or very likeness, of God on earth. And because of him, we have uninterrupted fellowship with the Father. Through the Cross, we have the privilege of "seeing his face," of touching him. We can live as he did, testifying, "I don't do anything except as I see and hear it from the Lord."

Today, when God says, "Seek my face," his words have greater implications than at any other time in history. With all that is going on in the world around us, how should we respond? When David was surrounded by a host of idolaters, God said, "Seek my face." And we do it for one purpose: that we may be like him! That we become his express image, so that those who seek the true Christ will see him in us.