Where Is God?

Of course we know that God is omnipresent, which means that He is everywhere present, not in a geographical location. And of course God is not a “He” because He is not a man:

Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

The writer of this Scripture uses “He” to refer to God in the same sentence that tells us God is not a man. That’s because we have to use language when speaking of something that cannot really be described in language.

When speaking to the woman at the well, Jesus let her know that God is Spirit and must be related to by the Spirit, not as we relate on the physical plane.

(John 4:21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.) 

He also told her about the “living water” given to us by God as “a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

(John 4:10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?  12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?  13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be IN HIM a well of water springing up into everlasting life.)

On another occasion, Jesus spoke of this “living water” that would be a “river” flowing out of our “belly” (center of our being; inner man); and John adds that Jesus was actually referring to the “Holy Ghost.”

(John 7:37   In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. 38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.))

Before the crucifixion Jesus instructed His disciples concerning this “Holy Ghost” which He referred to as “the Comforter” and also as “the Spirit of Truth” that would “guide us into all truth.”

(John 16:7   Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. . . . 12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.)

This would be the voice of God speaking to us, showing us “all things that the Father has” which is to say, anything that we could ever desire or need for the life characterized by “righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” of which the “kingdom of God” is comprised (Romans 14:17)—the “abundant life” that Jesus said He came to give us (John 10:10). This is the Spirit that reveals to us the things that God has prepared for us when we are willing to go inside and patiently listen to the still small voice (1Kings 19:12)—the things that eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor have entered into the heart of man.

(Isaiah 64:4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

1Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.} 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.)

Jesus said that this Holy Spirit, this “Comforter” would be IN us:

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth. . . for he dwelleth with you, and shall be IN you.

And Paul tells us the same thing:

1Corinthians 3:16   Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth IN you?

Indeed, this was foretold long before Jesus told us:

Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my spirit WITHIN you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

And we cannot ignore what Jesus told us about the kingdom of God (or heaven) and how much God wants to give it to us:

Luke 17:20   . . . The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is WITHIN you. 

Luke 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Jesus also let us know that the Father was within Him:

John 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

If, therefore, we wish to communicate with God our Father, we must go within where He dwells:

2Corinthians 6:16 . . . for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Revelation 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

Yesterday morning I was praying in the Spirit, attempting to hear from God about something that was troubling me. Then I heard the voice of God inside me saying, “Go inside and listen, no matter what the question, problem, situation, need or desire; it is only there that you will get your answer or solution.” Of course going inside and listening is not a new practice for me. But it was a revelation (and such a great comfort—from the Comforter!) to realize that I needn’t ever be concerned about whether or not I can find what I’m seeking. What I am looking for I already have—within me. And, as both David and Jesus said, it will ALWAYS be there:

Psalms 139:7   Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?  8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.  9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;  10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

Matthew 28:20  lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.

Hebrews 13:5 . . . he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

John also reminded us of this truth—that everything we will ever need is inside us, because that is where God is:

1John 2:20   But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

V 27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth IN YOU, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

I was overwhelmed with the implications of this. No one can ever take this from us. We carry around in our innermost being the righteousness, peace and joy of God Almighty! We have around-the-clock access to all that God is and has (Luke 15:31 . . . Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.), all His wisdom, power, protection and peace. If I lose something, I don’t have to frantically look for it; I just have to get quiet and listen because I have access to the infinite intelligence (omniscience) of God, from whom nothing is hidden (Hebrews 4:13; Luke 8:17) (see What Is Prayer?). I began to understand how Psalm 91 could become a reality for me. Most importantly for me, I could now for the very first time see how this “perfect love,” from which I can never be separated (Romans 8:38-39), can cast out all the fear which brings torment (1John 4:18). I knew that I could begin to relax and stop seeking to get from some one or something else that which I already have. I can at last really let the government of my life be upon His shoulder (Isaiah 9:6), knowing that He is always inside instructing me as to how I should proceed in whatever circumstance I find myself in:

Isaiah 30:21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

Of course since God is omnipresent, I can hear Him speak through anyone or anything. But it will still be from going inside and listening that I will know what is and is not the voice of God. No longer will I attempt to get my answers from the reasoning of the human mind. Nor will I attempt to get them from the Bible, per se—because the “letter” kills; it is only the “spirit” of “the Word” that brings life (2Corinthians 3:6). Jesus Himself told us that we search the Scriptures hoping to find life, but that they can only lead us to Him who is Life (John 5:39; 14:6). He said that it is only the words He speaks to us, not the words that we read, which are life to us:

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Sad to say, when ordinary people finally gained access to the Bible through the Protestant Reformation and the invention of the printing press, they began to see it as “the Word” and began to see the literal reading of it as the final authority on any and every question that would arise in their minds. Out of this came every imaginable doctrine and horrendous practices such as the witch hunts and the Ku Klux Klan. Countless denominations have been built around Scriptures concerning baptism, the treatment of women, music in the church, etc. But, as John tells us, the Bible is not “the Word”:

John 1:1   In the beginning [long before there was a Bible] was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2 The same was in the beginning with God.  3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.  4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

“The Word” is God Himself, the incorruptible seed from which we were born:

1Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

But, you say, you yourself are quoting from the Bible to confirm the truth of what you are writing. Yes, I am, but I am hearing these Scriptures spoken to me from the inside by the Spirit—which is very different from basing my thoughts and actions on something I read in the Bible. Believe me, I know the difference. It’s the difference between law and grace. Whatever I hear from outside myself produces the law—the “thou shalt” and “thou shalt not.” I remember spanking my children when it was not in my heart to do it because I was taught that that is what the Bible said I should do and what God expected me to do. I was taught that I could not trust what was in my heart because the Bible says

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

But the Bible also says

Ezekiel 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

The Bible tells us that God says we are not to kill (Exodus 20:13) and also that God told Moses to stone a man for picking up sticks on the Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-36). The Bible tells us that God is love (1John 4:8) and that love doesn’t keep a record of wrongs (1Corinthians 13:5) and that we are to love, forgive, pray for and bless our enemies (Matthew 5:44; 18:21-22). But most Christians also believe the Bible teaches that God does none of those things, that He assigns His enemies to everlasting torment away from His presence.

It’s easy to understand how so many conflicting doctrines have come from trying to interpret the Bible with the human mind, with our reasoning faculties. What we inevitably end up with is a bunch of laws, different laws for different doctrines. But when I place no confidence in this “natural man” because

1Corinthians 2:14 . . . the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

and begin to go inside and listen to the Holy Spirit, whose function it is to guide me into all truth, I will experience the grace of God and at long last become “dead to the law” and “bring forth fruit unto God” (Romans 7:4). I will have responded to Jesus’ invitation to

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. 

I will have ceased my attempts to get instructions from the wisdom of this world which is foolishness to God (1Corinthians 3:19) and only produces the works of the law, by which no one is justified (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16; 3:11). I will have entered the rest that God has prepared for me, the rest wherein I continually stand still and see the salvation of God (Exodus 14:13).

Hebrews 4:9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.  10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.