The Standpoint of the Cross
T. L. Cuyler. Exodus 33:20-23 And he said, You can not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.… I was talking about Christ to an impenitent neighbour the other day. He said: "Why can't I feel about Him as you do? I have read the Bible a good deal. I have heard a good deal of preaching. Yet I can't get up any enthusiasm in regard to this Saviour that you talk so much about." I said to him: "You make me think of my visit to the White Mountains some years ago. We were told that there was a wonderful piece of natural statuary there — a man's face, chiselled, as it were, out of a granite cliff. We went to see it. We found what we supposed was the cliff, but there was no appearance of human features — no form or comeliness such as we had been told of. We were about to turn away disappointed, when a guide came along, and said, 'You are not looking from the right point.' He led us up the road a few rods, and then said, ' Now turn, and look.' We did so, and there was the face as distinct as any of ours, though of gigantic size. Until we reached the right spot we could see only a jagged rock, and not a symmetrical face. The vision of the form and comeliness depended upon the angle of observation. And it is so with you, my friend. Come with me under the shadow of the Cross. Come there as a penitent sinner. Look there upon that 'visage so marred more than any man.' Realize that the mangled, thorn-crowned Sufferer is dying for you, and you will see in Him a beauty that will ravish your soul." (T. L. Cuyler.). Parallel Verses KJV: And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. WEB: He said, "You cannot see my face, for man may not see me and live."