Who Is God? Part 4: God the Creator - Omnipresent

Introduction

What we have discussed so far:

God as Creator, and we have teased out that he is: eternal, transcendent, all-powerful (omnipotent), and Triune.

Today: Omnipresent (present to all all of creation, everywhere)

Tozer explains:

“Wherever we are, God is here. There is no place, there can be no place, where He is not. Ten million intelligences standing at as many points in space and separated by incomprehensible distances can each one say with equal truth, God is here. No point is nearer to God than any other point. It is exactly as near to God from any place as it is from any other place. No one is in mere distance any further from or any nearer to God than any other person is.” [Tozer, The Pursuit of God, 46]

1. God’s Presence in Creating (Gen. 1:2)

Genesis 1:2 “The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.”

In each successive day, God is intimately present and involved in creating.

We can call this God’s “immanence.”

God is Intimately Present to His Universe (Gen. 1:3)

Light: Genesis 1:3 “Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.”

The heavens: Genesis 1:6 “Then God said, ‘Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’”

Land and vegetation, stars and planets, sun and moon

We even see God’s intentionality, purpose, and design.

This stands in stark contrast to the gods of time. The gods of Canaan, Egypt, and the pagan world did not create the elements of the universe. They could not be present at all times to everywhere. They were physically limited beings who often lived in physically located places. They certainly did not care for creation. The used it to accomplish their own ends, and often to vent their anger and passions.

1 Kings 8:27 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house which I have built!”

Acts 17:24 “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.”

The all-present God of the universe even stands in stark contrast with the gods people worship today.

The God of Islam, Allah, may have created the universe, but he certainly has no care to be personally and intimately involved with it.

In Mormonism, it is said that the god of this earth (which is just one god among many) has a physical limited body. As such, he cannot be present to everything in the universe. He is taught in Mormonism that he is far away on or near some planet called Kolob.

But this is not the God of the Bible. This is not the God we worship, the one true Creator of all the universe. He is present everywhere in the universe. And he still is!

God is Still Present to His Universe (Ps. 47:2; 104:1-30)

He is still intimately present to and involved with his creation. He doing things.

We call this “providence.”

Psalm 104:10–30 NASB95

10 He sends forth springs in the valleys; They flow between the mountains; 11 They give drink to every beast of the field; The wild donkeys quench their thirst. 12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; They lift up their voices among the branches. 13 He waters the mountains from His upper chambers; The earth is satisfied with the fruit of His works. 14 He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, And vegetation for the labor of man, So that he may bring forth food from the earth, 15 And wine which makes man’s heart glad, So that he may make his face glisten with oil, And food which sustains man’s heart. 16 The trees of the Lord drink their fill, The cedars of Lebanon which He planted, 17 Where the birds build their nests, And the stork, whose home is the fir trees. 18 The high mountains are for the wild goats; The cliffs are a refuge for the shephanim. 19 He made the moon for the seasons; The sun knows the place of its setting. 20 You appoint darkness and it becomes night, In which all the beasts of the forest prowl about. 21 The young lions roar after their prey And seek their food from God. 22 When the sun rises they withdraw And lie down in their dens. 23 Man goes forth to his work And to his labor until evening. 24 O Lord, how many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; The earth is full of Your possessions. 25 There is the sea, great and broad, In which are swarms without number, Animals both small and great. 26 There the ships move along, And Leviathan, which You have formed to sport in it. 27 They all wait for You To give them their food in due season. 28 You give to them, they gather it up; You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good. 29 You hide Your face, they are dismayed; You take away their spirit, they expire And return to their dust. 30 You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; And You renew the face of the ground.

Scripture tells us that God is even holding up the universe in existence. Colossians 1:17 “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Hebrews 1:3 “3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

And God is still saving people through Jesus Christ. John 16:7–11 “7 “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. 8 “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; 11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.”

Ephesians 1:11 “. . . also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will.”

God’s act of creation may be complete, but he did not leave his creation by itself. He is ever present to it, working and doing things.

But God is also present to every person.

2. God’s Presence with Man

God is Intimately Present to Man (Gen. 1:26-29)

Genesis 1:26–29 NASB95

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you;

In creating him

Image of God; ability to be relational

Gen 3:8 even refers to God walking in the Garden of Eden, which presumably was a frequent event before the Fall and entrance of sin.

In providing for him

Food, a place to live, other humans to have relationships with (esp spouse)

In giving responsibility to him

Take care of the Garden (work is good); oversight of the animals; how to function within the family

God is Still Intimately Present to Man (Ps 139:7-10)

Psalm 139:7–10 NASB95

Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

God is Intimately Present at all Times to Us. David asks, “Where can I go from your Spirit?”

Acts 17:26–28 “26 and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’”

We cannot go anywhere where he is not. We cannot escape his presence.

He is still intimately present in creating new life

He is still intimately present in providing: Paul in the city of Lystra - Acts 14:14–17 “14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their robes and rushed out into the crowd, crying out 15 and saying, “Men, why are you doing these things? We are also men of the same nature as you, and preach the gospel to you that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16 “In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways; 17 and yet He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good and gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.””

He is still intimately present in giving him responsibilities: Began in the Garden to care for it; continues today; God esp calls us to spread the Gospel; parents in families; husbands and wives; even specific individual things in life

Illustration: Satan Claus is Coming to Town

He sees you when you're sleeping, He knows when you're awake, He knows if you've been bad or good, So be good for goodness sake. You better watch out,  You better not cry, Better not pout, I'm telling you why: Santa Claus is comin' to town.

3. Are We Aware of God’s Presence?

Often, we are not

“If God is present at every point in space, if we cannot go where He is not, cannot even conceive of a place where He is not, why then has not that Presence become the one universally celebrated fact of the world? The patriarch Jacob, “in the waste howling wilderness,” gave the answer to that question. He saw a vision of God and cried out in wonder, “Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.” Jacob had never been for one small division of a moment outside the circle of that all-pervading Presence. But he knew it not. That was his trouble, and it is ours. Men do not know that God is here. What a difference it would make if they knew.” [Tozer, The Pursuit of God, 47]

Why does it seem God is not present to us or that he is so far away?

Psalm 13:1 “How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?”

Psalm 88:14 “O Lord, why do You reject my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me?”

We have partially accepted scientism/naturalism (anti-supernatural bias)

The Yale philosopher Norwood Hanson is known for his objection to God’s existence based upon his hiddenness. Hanson admits that if God would just clearly reveal himself then he would believe in God. But Hanson has his own thoughts on what would constitute as God “clearly” revealing himself. Hanson envisions one great event in which the following occurs:

An earth-shattering thunderclap, snow swirling, leaves dropping from trees, the earth heaving and buckling, buildings collapsing, the sky blazing with a silvery light, and the clouds opening up with a radiant-like Zeus figure appearing. Then God would boomingly say, “Humans, I most certainly exist! Believe in me!”

Unfortunately, some Christians have been influenced by our culture’s belief in anti-supernaturalism.

Because we hear so much about the laws of nature, gravity, etc., we come to view life through that lens—that everything can be explained naturally. And so we do not see God working in our world or lives much. Unwittingly we have taken on an unbiblical view of life and the world.

But God is still working. Science may help explain how God created or how the world operates according to cause and effect, etc., but behind it all is God.

What if what we call naturals laws are actually descriptions of the movements or doings of God?

Many today mockingly refer to the ancients who attributed the weather and natural disasters to God or “the gods?” But what if they were, at least partially, correct? Just because we now know a lot about our material world, how does this imply that all that exists is the material world and there is no God present? Why is it not both?

As Christians, we actually know it’s both.

We often look in the wrong places or we do not look at all

We look in the stars, horoscopes, online, YouTube, phenomenal events, dreams; we try to read into circumstances; we listen to those who claim to have had visions or discussions with God.

Some of us may listen to another person’s radical testimony and then feel left alone by God because we do not have a dramatic testimony. God may have been found in such testimonies by those who tell them. I’m not the judge of that.

But we miss looking where he says he can most be found: in his (1) Word. We try to make a radical distinction between God and his Word, but it is just not there.

Jesus in John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.”

Jesus in John 14:6 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

Which is it? Is God’s Word the truth or is Jesus the truth? Yes!

(2) God is present also, and esp, in his people, the Church

1 Corinthians 6:19 “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?”

Paul Copan points out, “The appropriate stance for the seeker is not to demand of God, but to ask what God, if he exists, demands of me.” Only when people seek God honestly and humbly do they find God.

Blaise Pascal once wrote, “Willing to appear openly to those who seek Him with all their heart, and to be hidden from those who flee from Him with all their heart, [God] so regulates the knowledge of Himself that He has given signs of Himself, visible to those who seek Him, and not to those who seek Him not. There is enough light      for those who only desire to see, and enough obscurity for those who have a        contrary disposition” (Pensees, #430).

Sometimes our sin clouds the presence of God

It is difficult to sense the presence of God and it’s difficult to find him when we are in the throes of sin.

Recall the Garden of Eden.

There is a relational distance between God and us because of our personal sin.

God’s presence is also somewhat hidden because of the separateness between God and the sinful world in general. We will have to wait until Jesus returns for this “veil” to be lifted.

Question: do you desire to be in the presence of God like never before?

What would our life be like if we were to be always aware of God’s presence?

God is here now.