We do not see God; we do not make an image of him, nor do we create a mental image of him, not even if we think of Christ, our Saviour. We see him by faith. It may be that sometimes in your mind there is the mere shadow or possibility of a person, but never make for yourself a mental image, which is recognisable to you, in which you can see a definite form and derive your comfort from that. The eye of faith isn't seeing either in reality or in mental image a person. Maybe you are a very visual thinker; you cannot think without feeling a sort of outline. Well, be that as it may, but never try to do that, because what we are to cultivate is the eye of faith. We see his attributes and his ways and his kindness and our confidence is in his character and his power, and his promises and his word.
There are people today who claim that they have seen the Saviour, and they make a lot of money from God's people and they raise huge contributions for their cause. Sometimes the false teachers make it very easy for us to recognise them. They become so absurd and so extreme. There are false teachers on the God channels who claim that they see Christ and he speaks to them. ‘No man’, says the Scripture, ‘has seen God, at any time. The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father. He hath declared him’ (John 1:18). Yes, people saw God in a sense in the person of Christ, but even when he was incarnate, he could only truly be known by faith. When Peter made his profession, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God’, Christ said to him, ‘Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven’ (Matthew 16:17). When Christ was on earth they saw the second person of the Trinity the God-man, Jesus Christ, but no physical description of him is recorded in Scripture. He has declared the living God, and then he returned to the heavenly place. Even the apostles who saw him with their eyes, and heard him with their ears, and handled him; after his resurrection and ascension, they had to say with Paul, ‘though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more’ (2 Corinthians 5:16). The Lord Jesus Christ said to Thomas, ‘Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed’ (John 20:29).