Self portrait

The extensive work of the painter Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) has been enriched by one painting. The small portrait "Old Man with a Beard", whose creator was previously unknown, can now be clearly attributed to the famous Dutch artist, said the recognized Rembrandt expert Ernst van de Wetering in Amsterdam.

Using advanced scanning techniques, scientists examined the Rembrandt painting. To her great surprise, the scan showed that there was another painting underneath the artwork - one that could be an early, unfinished self-portrait of the artist. It seems that Rembrandt started with a self-portrait and later used the canvas to paint the old man with a beard.

History can help us spot a mistake we might make in trying to understand God. Most of us grew up believing that God is like the visible image - an old man with a beard. That's the way religious artists portray God. We not only imagine God to be old, but also as a distant, rather threatening living being, rigid and angry quickly when we do not live up to his impossible standards. But this way of thinking about God is like the painting of the old man under which the self-portrait is hidden.

The Bible tells us that if we want to know what God is like, we should only look to Jesus Christ: “Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” (Kol 1,15).
To gain a true understanding of what God is really like, we must look beneath the layers of popular concepts about God and begin to see the God who revealed himself in Jesus Christ. When we do this, a true and undistorted picture and understanding of God emerges. Only then can we discover how God truly feels about us. Jesus says, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” (Joh 14,9).

Only Jesus shows us what God is really like. He is by no means a distant and aloof person, and he showed that God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—loves us unconditionally. God is not somewhere out there in heaven, looking down on us and ready to strike and punish us. “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” (Lk 12,32).

The Bible tells us that God sent Jesus into the world because He loves the world—not to condemn humanity, but to save it. “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2. Petr 3,9).

Once the layers of misunderstanding are overcome, the image of a God who loves us more than we can imagine is revealed. "What my Father has given me is greater than all things, and no one can snatch it out of my Father's hand." (Joh 10,29).

Through Jesus we are shown the true heart of God for us. We see him for who he really is, not somewhere far away and neither angry nor indifferent to us. He is right here with us, ready when we turn to receive his loving embrace, just as Rembrandt depicts in another of his paintings, The Return of the Prodigal Son.

Our problem is that we get in our own way. We use our own colors and draw our own lines. Sometimes we can completely erase God from the picture. Paul said, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into his image from glory to glory through the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2. Kor 3,18)Above all, the Holy Spirit makes us into the image of Jesus, who is the Father's self-image. As we grow spiritually, this image should become ever clearer. Don't let other images obscure your view of who God is or how God feels about you. Look to Jesus, who alone is God's self-image, his likeness.

by James Henderson