The Psalmist wrote,
“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee
from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in
Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the
uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right
hand shall hold me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the
light about me be night,’ even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is
bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you” (Psalm 139:7-12).
A belief that is often misunderstood,
"If God is everywhere, then He is within me too since He created me."
"If God is everywhere, then He is within me too since He created me."
Well, yes and no. Let’s explore this in light of
scripture because that’s where we find the answers.
Many through the ages have
attempted to explain and grasp the idea of God, the almighty Supreme Being from
a human perspective with human wisdom and knowledge. The problem with that
approach is, the God of the bible, the one and only true God who as we just
noticed in Psalm 104 cannot be understood or identified on human terms. Understanding requires one to have the Spirit of God within them that only comes to those who
obey the gospel of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38). The bible says God is Spirit (John
4:24) who resides in His heaven with His legions of angels and workers He
himself created for His own purposes (Rev 5:8-14). It also says “God is light,
and in Him there is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5). The purposes of God are
innumerable to even contemplate because He is absolutely perfect in every way
(Ps 19:7-9) beyond our capability to grasp. The bible also says “No one has
seen God at any time” (John 4:12), and that if we were too, we would die (Lev
16:2). A more graphic historical accounting of God’s wrath among His chosen
people the Jews is dramatically depicted in His word in 1 Samuel 6:19 when He
slaughtered 50,070 souls for disobeying His command not to look inside the Ark
of the Covenant!
We now live in the Christian
age of grace and mercy through our advocate to the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ who conquered death after
His crucifixion on the cross 2000 years ago. The bible says "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). This means we don’t have to pay penance
or shed our own blood to be in communion with God as was done with animal
sacrifices in the Patriarchal age when God spoke to Moses and Priests in behalf
of the Jewish nation. The shed blood of Christ is what now cleanses our sins
through His resurrection - that is if one believes and as earlier noted –
responds to the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Cor 15:1-8) by obedient faith (Acts
6:7).
So to answer the first part of
the question posed in this post, “Is God Everywhere?” Yes He is by His
providence in the whole creation. The second answer to the more important part
of the question, “Is God with me?” Here is Gods answer:
“For a time has come for judgment to begin at the house (church) of
God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not
obey the gospel of God?” (1 Pet 4:17).
This states very clearly that
one (you or me) must do something to appropriate salvation for our souls. It
does not mean that we can just sit there loving God and know that He is real and created all
things that He is living with me and will give me the award of eternal life. That He will save me from eternal damnation just because I
believe there is an all mighty loving God "somewhere out there." It means God is not within you (but
is waiting) until you or I fully obey His commandments on how to be saved from eternal spiritual
destruction. There is a defined simple and perfect plan God has left us below to make salvation
real for us. And here it is. It’s called the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
John 8:58 - Jesus said to them, “Most
assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”
John 14:15 – “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
We must Hear -
Romans 10:14-17,
Acts 18:18
We must Believe -
John 3:16, Mark
16:16, Acts 8:37
We must Repent -
Luke 13:3, Acts
3:19, 2 Peter 3:9, Acts 17:30, 2 Corinthians 7:9-10
We must Confess -
Matthew 10:32-33,
Acts 8:36-37, Romans 10:10
We must be
Baptized for remission of sins and to be in Christ -
Matthew 28:19-20,
Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Acts 10:47-48, Acts 22:16, Galatians 3:27, 1 Peter 3:21
We must Live
faithfully to God -
Romans 6:4,
Colossians 1:22-23, 1 John 2:5-6, 2 John 1:5-6, 3 John 1:3-4
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"Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them." Acts 2:41
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"Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them." Acts 2:41
