The Omni-presence of God
WHEN IS CLOSE TOO CLOSE?
INTRODUCTION
A. This past week I had one of those all to familiar
yet frustrating experiences…looking for discipleship material…possibly you can relate.
B. We all experience situations which we just shouldn’t have to face alone. Like a child finding the bathroom in the dark…a mother hearing the judge tell her that she was loosing custody of her children to her abusive estranged husband…in such situations we cry out, “will anyone be there for me?”
C. In this our last message in this series on the Nature of God we want to talk about the omnipresence of God. When we face life’s challenges can we count on God being there,
being close…?
I. GOD IS ALWAYS PRESENT WITH US (Psalm 46).
A. Our text promises that God is “ever present” (v. 1).
1. Means “ever to be found”. There is no situation in
which any person can find themselves where God is
not present to help.
2. His presence is everywhere, not his essence.
3. He is “ever to be found” because He is ever “with” us (vv. 7,11).
B. God promises to stay “ever present” with us.
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." (Deuteronomy 31:8 NIVUS)
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever-- (John 14:16 NIVUS)
C. Illus. of me working up in Puk. I felt so alone…No one needs to say I can’t make alone because they are never alone!
II. THE PROBLEM OF GOD’S PRESENCE (Ps. 139:1-12).
A. If God is ever-present He knows what you are truly like (v. 1). (It is said that the test of a person’s spirituality is what he does when no one is watching. The problem for us is that God is always watching!)
1) The psalmist correctly asks: If we had forgotten the
name of our God or spread out our hands to a
foreign god, would not God have discovered it,
since he knows the secrets of the heart? (Psalms
44:20-21 NIVUS)
2) The Apostle Paul looked forward and says, “then I
shall know fully, even as I am fully known. (1 Cor.
13:12).
B. If God is ever present then He knows your thoughts (v. 2). (That means He know how sincere we are when we
confess our sin…Illus. of the “Christian” lady in North
Carolina, who had allegedly murdered her first
husband and had been sentenced to death for
murdering her second husband, who was able convince
a jury to spare from the death penalty by outwardly
portraying contriteness).
C. If God is ever present then He knows your mode of
operation (vv. 3-4). (illus. of Stan Unwin “operating” in
our church in Calgary. We didn’t know what he was
up to till afterwards…God does not have that
problem.)
D. If God is ever present then there is no place you can hide from Him (vv. 5-12). (like in the game of hide and seek, we keep on find new hiding places and God keeps on finding us. And just like the game when he finds us he puts his arms around us and the seeker and the finder embrace like friends)
III. THE BENEFITS OF GOD’S PRRESENCE (Ps. 139:13
-24).
A. God’s presence provides you with significance
(vv. 13-16a).
B. God’s presence provides you with purpose (v. 16b).
C. God’s presence provides you with knowledge of Him (vv.
17-18).
D. God’s presence provides you with an identity (vv. 19-22).
E. God’s presence provides you with accountability (v. 24).
CONCLUSION
A. To begin we asked whether God can be relied on to draw
close to us when we need Him. But the real question to
ask is: Do we want Him as close to us as He is?
B. Even though He is near to each one of us, we are still left
with a decision to make. Are we willing to fully
experience the benefits of His presence? It’s like having
a 24 speed bike and only driving it in first gear no
matter the steepness of incline or the sharpness of the
decline. God want us to use all the gears!