All Present - iV

(God’s Character)

Entering Into God’s Presence

Knowing Who God Is: His Character

God is All Present

To Study and Ponder:

What difference does it make to feel we are all alone, and when we know someone is there with us? How different is it when the one who is there is someone powerful and loving, or they are either weak or don’t care about what is best for us? The answers to those questions seem simple, but they help us to see a very important truth. If we truly believe God is loving and powerful and He is with us all the time, that can make a huge difference in how we live! Sometimes we live like we are alone…or that God is there just watching, or ready to be angry and punish us. The God of the Bible promises that He is with us all the time, always there for our good. May your time thinking about these verses fill you with new peace, confidence and joy!

A word for God being all present is “omnipresent”. It means that he is present everywhere and that everything and every person is seen by him. God is in all places, all the time and at the same time, but separate from the creation which he has made. Our human minds cannot completely understand this! We can only be in one place at a time, we cannot become omnipresent.
The writer of Psalm 139 says, “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.” (v.7-10).
Because God is present everywhere,“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable” (Heb 4:13). This is an awful thing for a person trying to hide the bad things they are doing, but for the children of God him being with us gives comfort and strength.
In the Bible the word used for presence is about being face to face, eye to eye. God wants to be with us and wants us to know him.
Jesus promised to be with us:-
“be sure of this: I am with you always” (Mat 28:20),
“… where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.” (Mat 18:20)
he promised us “another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (Joh 14:16-17).

We do not need to ever be afraid of being left alone or unseen by God.
In the Bible he is called Immanuel, which means “God is with us” (Matthew 1:24).
He will never leave us (Hebrews 13:5).
God says, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” (Isaiah 49:15-16)

God is present in every part of life and of his creation.
“Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord. “No, I am far away at the same time. Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord.” (Jer 23:23-24).
Who else has held the oceans in his hand? Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers. Who else knows the weight of the earth .... Isaiah 40:12
He displays his power in the whirlwind and the storm. The billowing clouds are the dust beneath his feet. Nahum 1:3b
The Lord is watching everywhere, keeping his eye on both the evil and the good. Prov 15:3
The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. Heb 1:3a

God is present in different ways in events in history:
You destroyed them (Kings of the earth) like the mighty ships of Tarshish shattered by a powerful east wind. Psalm 48:7
King David says in Psalm 16:8 “I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.”
Suddenly, they saw the fingers of a human hand writing on the plaster wall of the king’s palace, near the lampstand. Daniel 5:5
His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. Acts 17:27 (NLT)
Also read Deuteronomy 4:37-39; Jonah 1:1-3; Acts 17:24-28

Meditation/Memory:

Lower Grades:

Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord. Jeremiah 23:24 (NLT)

And be sure of this: I am with you always .... Matthew 28:20b (NLT)

Middle Grades:

Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord. “No, I am far away at the same time. Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord. Jeremiah 23:23-24 (NLT)

I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. John 14:16-17a (NLT)

Upper Grades:

I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. Psalm 139:7-10 (NLT)

His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ Acts 17:27-28 (NLT)