Wk-6: God Is Near

Week 6  Devotional on the Theme: God Is!

Last week we considered the truth that although God is beyond us, He is also knowable.  This week let’s take a step further and acknowledge and take comfort in the truth that God is also close by.  God is near!

In Paul’s sermon to the intellectuals of his day on Mars Hill, he tried to introduce them to the God they identified as “The Unknown God”.  His argument reveals much about the sovereignty of  the true God as well as the fact that He is near even though one may not realize it.  Let’s pick up his teaching in Acts 17:24:

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’ . . . (ESV).

While reading this passage, did you sense that without God we would not have the gift of life?  The fact that you and I are alive is a testimony that God is near and that He wants us to seek Him and find Him!  Whether people realize it or not, God “is actually not far from each one of us.”  In fact, the Psalmist of Psalm 139 clarifies that fleeing from God’s presence is impossible:

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 (Psalm 139:7-10 ESV).

God’s prophet Jeremiah, as His spokesman, declares, “‘Am I a God at hand,’ declares the LORD, ‘and not a God far away?  Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the LORD. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 23:23-24 ESV).

Scripture makes it absolutely clear that God is near?  If we are unaware of His closeness the problem is not with God, but with us.  We should ask, “What is keeping me from knowing and experiencing God’s nearness?   The answer has all to do with Jesus’ good news message as recorded in Mark 1:15, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”   I hope you will mediate on Bible passages which reveal the essence of a relationship with the God who is near. Blessings to you in Christ.

With Prayer, Mark                                                                                         © January, 2011

Selected Bible Passages on the Nearness of God
Quotations from the ESV (emphasis added)

Psalm 73:21-28,  When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart,
I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you.
Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;
you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
But for me it is good to be near God;
I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.

Psalm 145:8-20,  The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
The LORD is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD,
and all your saints shall bless you!
They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power,
to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
(The LORD is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.)
The LORD upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The LORD is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

James 4:4-10, You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?  But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.   Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.