Day 3 | Invisibility Definition

Read John 1:18; 4:24; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:16

Have you ever wondered why we can’t see God? The Bible tells us in multiple places of God’s invisibility, but even still, we struggle to grasp this characteristic of God and what it tells us about His character and nature. So why can’t we see God? First, we can’t see God with our physical eyes for the simple reason that He is a spirit, and He doesn’t have a body like we do (John 4:24). Paul speaks of this reality when He speaks of Jesus being the “image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). But a second reason for why we can’t see God is because of our limitations as humans. By nature, we, as human beings, are both sinful and finite. God is far too great, bright, glorious, and perfect for us to see Him with our physical eyes and live (Exodus 33:20). So how does knowing this characteristic about God help us?

God’s invisibility reveals to us the vastness of His glory. In our desire to make God relatable and approachable to humanity, we so often emasculate the reality of His glory. But anyone in the Bible who caught just a glimpse of the trailing afterglows of God’s glory often reacted with fear, terror, and a profound sense of undoing awe (Isaiah 6:5; Genesis 28:16–17).

God’s invisibility also reveals to us His “otherness.” We incorrectly assume that God is just like us, only slightly better. But God is not like us. He isn’t limited by the constraints of a physical body, and His invisibility is connected to His omnipresence (God is present everywhere at all times).

The vastness of God’s glory and the mystery of His “otherness” should lead our hearts to a place of worship and adoration. It’s amazing to consider that a God this glorious would be acquainted with the intimate, everyday details of our lives and desire to have a relationship with us. We are sinful, broken, imperfect, flawed, and limited creatures. And yet, this perfect, infinite, immeasurable, and invisible God wants to speak with us. In fact, He loved us so much, He took on flesh, dwelt among us, and even died in our place. Surely He is great, and beyond our understanding (Job 36:26).

Pray for 10 minutes