As one reads through the Bible it is valuable for them to know that Jesus is the central figure throughout it. As one older gentleman told me years ago, “You can find Jesus from lid to lid when reading the Bible.” Now this doesn’t mean that Jesus is found under every rock and behind every tree but as you read and heed you should come to discover that he is the “Rock” and that he is the “Branch.” Psalm 18:2; 1 Corinthians 10:4; Isaiah 11:1-5; John 15:1
A word that is used to explain this is Christophany. It means an appearance or non-physical manifestation of Christ. There are two important points to know about Christophanies. One is that they are always references to Christ. The second is that Christophanies are distinct from Christ’s incarnation and his appearance in that form to his disciples.
The first Christophany recognized as such by scholars is the appearance of God walking in the garden with Adam and Eve. This is seen as a Christophany because of Christ’s role in creation as the Word of God. Genesis 3:8; John 1:1-5.
Another one that should be impossible for all good Bible students to miss is the prophecy of “The seed/offspring of woman.” Genesis 3:14-15; Isaiah 7:14; Galatians 4:4
Another that scholar are challenged by is that of Melchizedek, the mysterious king and priest of God Most High. Many believe that he was actually a manifestation of Christ, or a Christophany even though it is not explicitly stated in the Bible. Take some time and consider the scriptures giving reference to him and see what you come to a conclusion about him. Genesis 14:17-24; Psalm 110:1-7; Matthew 22:41-46; Mark 12:35-37; Luke 20:41-44; Acts 2:22-36; Hebrews 1:1-13, 7:1-28
Another incident that scholars point to is the three men who visited Abraham in Genesis 18.
Another is when Jacob wrestled with God. Genesis 32:24-32
Another that the early church fathers also indentified as a Christophany is the appearance of “The commander of the army of the Lord” in Joshua 5:13-15.
As we read through our Bibles this year and focus on Jesus we will encounter many manifestations, patterns and types referring to Christ Jesus. The important thing is not to read into the text what God does not intend but to discern the truth as God intends for us so we can come to a better knowledge of full identity of Jesus. So as we do our Bible reading this year and focus on Jesus the one thing that I hope we will all discover is that Jesus is the central figure of all the scriptures and that once we understand this that we will all make Jesus the central figure of our lives.
-Don Bahr
De Soto church of Christ 