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Now let's jump in. God cannot be contained by space, which means this: He's not limited to any one church, any temple, any building, any space at all. You can worship God anywhere. Let's talk about what that means for you coming up right now on the Clear Read Today Show. You're listening to Clearview Today with Dr.
Abadan Shah, a daily show that engages mind and heart for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm Ryan Hill. I'm John Galantis. Welcome to the Clearview Today Studio. We're so glad you're joining us in the conversation.
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We love to hear your stories, no matter how big or no matter how small. Dr. Shah, continue the conversation today about the omnipresence of God. Absolutely. Very, very different than saying, God is in the flowers and God is in the trees and God is in this and that.
And that would be pantheism or panentheism. Right. Can't have it. Can't have it. And I think people will hear that kind of cold open and say, you know what?
You're absolutely right. I don't need to go to church. I can worship God from my bed. I can worship God from my couch or my car. I'm taking the kids to vacation.
I think people will hear that and they'll maybe use that to try to minimize the church, but that's not what we mean. That's not what we mean. When we talk about. The omnipresence of God. We're saying that God is everywhere.
But he is not limited by anything.
So last time we talked about God is present everywhere. He specially manifests himself in diff in different places. directly manifested in heaven, the sun is more manifested on earth. As the As a redeemer? And then the Holy Spirit is manifested everywhere: heaven, earth, all does not mean the Father is not.
On earth, or that the spirit is not in heaven, no, everywhere, but more specially. Or if you would More specifically, he is manifested in these places. But then He acts differently in different places. We talked about that as in heaven, you see a certain presence of God. In hell, you see a presence of God as well, which is sometimes shocking to people because they think hell is the absence of God.
No, God is there. But he is not the loving, gracious, compassionate A God who is who is you know, long in patience towards us. No, he is a God of justice and judgment and wrath. That's right. Yeah.
And then we ta we're going to kind of focus now on that God is free of limitations. One verse that comes to mind is 1 Kings chapter 8, verse 27. But will God indeed dwell on the earth?
So, Will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold heaven and the heaven of heavens Cannot contain you. How much less this temple which I have built?
So, this ties back directly into what you were just talking about: about God being specially manifested in different ways in different places. You know, God the Father being specially manifested in heaven. But it says right here: heaven and the heaven of heavens, which is the sky or the cosmos, or nothing can contain God. Absolutely not. And that was King Solomon's prayer as he was inaugurating the temple, as he was praying to God to fill the temple with his presence.
And at the same time, he's also saying, not only to God, but also to himself and those around. That this little temple cannot contain him. In fact, the entire universe Heaven, earth, everything included cannot contain him. That's right. It's sort of the perfect attitude to christen this temple with.
Imagine you get to the end of a big project. And this is something that we always try to do and we. Encourage people who listen to the show, who do big projects like this, always celebrate the wins with God by saying that. You know, when we built this church, we knew this, we said sort of the same thing. You know, God is not contained here, God is working everywhere.
But by his grace, he's given us this day. That's right. So, also with this temple. Yeah, how does that feed into the conversation of the person who might say, well, God isn't contained in a church building. He's not contained in one congregation.
So I can worship God from my dock. I can't worship God from my back porch. Yeah, they often bring up that God is spirit and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and truth. But that was said by Jesus to the Samaritan woman because she was talking about worshiping at Mount Gerizim versus Mount Zion and that there. Understanding or their truth about God was different than what the Jewish people were doing.
And Jesus reminded her, You're wrong, lady. Salvation is of the Jews. Yeah. Means it is coming through their scriptures, is through them. You may not like them, and some of them may not have behaved nicely to you, but you didn't behave nicely to them either.
But let's not go there. God is spirit. It's not on this mountain or that mountain because there's coming a day where you can worship him from anywhere.
Okay, right now it is Jerusalem, but there's coming a day where every heart will be like a temple unto God. Having said that, to answer your question. Yes, we need to come together because coming together we encourage one another. Coming together, we are more effective. For the kingdom of God.
that I can bring my resources, you can bring your resources. He can bring his talent and she can bring her talents. We can put them together where I could only touch one person's life. I don't know, once every Six weeks? Or if you are a soul winner maybe every day?
But we won't be able to touch as much of this world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. But coming together. Pooling our resources together. We can send missionaries. We can plant churches.
We can train pastors in seminaries to go out and Take positions in churches or plant new churches or go into the mission world. We can pool our resources together. But how can we do that if we're not coming together? Yeah. Yeah.
You know, I think about all the Christians who, and maybe this is a mindset of just the times we're living in, or maybe Dr. Shait's been here for longer, but this consumer mindset, right? If I can worship God just the same at home as I can in the church, then why don't I do that? And I like how you said, number one, you can't worship them the same. It's going to be different.
But number two, I think people are looking at church as, well, what am I getting out of this? When really you're saying, no, it's not what am I getting out of this experience, this personal me and Jesus worship time. What am I being made effective? Am I working together with other Christians? And I think we've taken that out of the equation.
And we just look at. What can this church do for me? Right. Because if I can just worship God on my couch and watch online, why wouldn't I?
Well, I think it's indicative of maybe even a larger problem where people who they have what they want to do or don't want to do. I mean, consumer mindset feeds into that. I don't want to go to church. I don't want to get up and get ready. I want to have a lazy Sunday where I just kind of chill and/or have family time or whatever that means.
So I'm going to find a verse taken out of context that will fit and feed that wrong theology. Yeah, because there's no chance anybody doesn't go to church and just sits on their couch and says, All right, kids, let's gather around. We're going to have our personal worship time. It's not happening. You're just skipping church.
Yeah, there are some who do that. You know, this they think, man, I'm going to have just our family together, or we're going to get a couple of families and have a house church thing. And that's okay, time to time to have that. But you do need to connect with other believers. In fact, it became a problem in the early church right from the get-go.
And that's why in Hebrews chapter 10, you hear it said, and let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some. But in exhorting one another, and so much more as you see the day approaching.
So, many reasons, stirring up love and good works. Exhorting one another. But also the day is coming The day of Jesus Christ is coming, means his return is around the corner. Make sure you keep connecting with each other. This was a really extensive and exhaustive way to say God is omnipresent, but that doesn't mean you can skip church.
Don't do that. Both can be true. God is omnipresent and go to church. Don't, it's not cute. Both are true.
Don't be cute. Even in Hebrews 10, it says that as is the manner of some.
So this was an old problem. It's not a new thing we've invented. But God's word gives us the answer right there. Don't forsake meeting together. And here's why.
So you can exhort one another and you can stir each other up to love and good works. We sort of talked about this on yesterday's show, Dr. Shub, but. As we're talking about God's omnipresence, I think a lot of times people can get bogged down in doctrine and say, okay, I'm learning about God. This is really great, but how does this help me?
I think everybody who's listening to this show, probably myself included, wants to know. What can I do? What can I take? What does this do for me? What does it do for me?
And how can I change even the next 24 hours so I can live as though God is actually omnipresent in my life?
So, in a sense, we're making the circle back to the beginning of this particular topic. The omnipresence of God. We began by noting that there is a negative aspect to this doctrine, and then there is a positive.
So, in conclusion, let's do that again. Sure, sure. There's a negative aspect, which means this. No one. No one can get away from God.
Even Jonah? No. As he's in the belly of the fish going down, down, down, he's like, man, I'm seeing the roots of the mountains, the moors. I'm like way down there. And God is still with him.
He can see the temple of Jerusalem from there.
Somehow he can see the presence of God.
So you cannot get away from God. Jeremiah 23, verse 23 and 24 says, Say that, Am I a God near at hand? says the Lord. And not a god afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places?
So I shall not see him? says the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? Says the Lord, do I not fill Heaven and earth. Phil.
Not just inhabit. Not just visit. Phil. Yeah. There's an old story.
I think you guys have heard it probably, and I've used it a couple of times in my messages over the years. Of a man who was in the marketplace of Damascus. Oh, yeah, I love this one. This is one of my favorites. And he came to face to face with came face to face with death.
The Grim Reaper himself. Yeah. And so the man noticed an expression of surprise, like a shock was on. Death's face. And the man himself was terrified and so when he saw death in the face and death is shocked and he is shocked, you know, he took off running.
He went to a wise friend for advice. He said, What should I do? And the friend said, Man, you've got to get away from death. go to the city of Aleppo. I mean, run away.
Just just get going.
So the man got on his horse, the fastest one he could find, and man, he reached Aleppo in record time to get away from death. And when he arrived, He wiped his brow and felt good. that he had escaped death. And just then he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and there stood Death.
Wait a minute. Dad said, Excuse me. Excuse me. but I have come for you. And the man's like, How is this possible?
I met you in Damascus yesterday. He said, I know it. Death replies, That's why I was so surprised to see you yesterday because I was scheduled to meet you today. I didn't expect to see you before our appointment. I knew you were where you were supposed to be.
No, th there's another variation of this story where where, you know, His master, the servant's master, meets up with Death and says, Hey, why why are you scaring my servant? That's the one I remember you thought. Yeah, and so there's the two versions. And the De and Death tells he's like, Aleppo. Yeah.
Yeah, that's why I was surprised to see him in Damascus this morning. Yeah, yeah. Because we're supposed to meet tonight. We're supposed to meet him tonight. That's the one I remember you tell.
That's a great one.
So, I mean, all that to say: you know, we cannot get away from God. Just the way we cannot get away from death. That's right. We cannot get away from God. Hebrews 4:13 says, And there is no creature hidden from his sight.
But all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. God sees everything on the other side of the moon, on the other side of the galaxy, and on the other side of this entire universe, God still sees as he's seeing me and you right now. You frame this as sort of the negative side of it, but what is the positive spin on that? that he's always near to us. He is always near us, to draw us when we drift away.
In Jonah, you know, you brought up Jonah earlier. word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amatiah, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it, for their wickedness has come up to me. But Jonah rose up, and he fled to Tarshish. From the presence of the Lord, he went down to Joppa, found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare, went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, running away from God. This is really present in my mind because I just had to write.
I think Dr. Shah had to help me with it. I just had to write a five or six page paper in Hebrew. About this exact passage. Wow.
I remember that. Yep. It was, it was crazy.
So this is like literally right fresh in my mind. Yeah, Jonah probably is the most clear case study of you can't get away from God. He's always with you. Yeah, I mean, Jonah went like 2,000 miles. to Tarshish, instead of just five hundred miles to Nineveh?
I mean, that's a long ways. It's kind of funny, too, especially the story of Jonah, because that's the one that you think of that's the quintessential children's story. We tell it to children really early so that they get it in their mind that they can't run away from God. And yet, I still sin every day, pretend like God can't see it. I still have thoughts, I still act on those thoughts, I still say things, and I'm like, well, I don't know, maybe, maybe, maybe God won't catch me for that one.
Well, and so this goes back around to our conversation about don't forsake meeting together. You have some people who, maybe not those of us who are sitting here, but some people who are not actively involved in ministry who will be reluctant to attend church if they've been struggling against or dealing with a particular sin. Like, they feel like I got to get cleaned up first before I go back. God, God's still with you. That's right.
God's there. He knows all of that. You don't have to straighten your life up before you get back to church. Go ahead and go to church and then straighten your life up. That's right.
Yeah, we feel like, I mean, we, and we do say that, that we've drifted away from God and that we are coming back to God. And we use that language. But I mean, God is with us in some sense. Amen.
Something else that is important when we're talking about. the nearness of God, that He is near us when we drift away. But he's also near us. When we are You know, struggling with knowing the way, just the way I'm struggling right now and putting these words together, God is there to direct us.
So, not just when we drift away, but also when we do not know the way. Man, that is a beautiful truth. When we're uncertain or when the road ahead seems murky or unclear, God is with us, and God will help us navigate the uncertainty. He'll help us navigate the unknowns of life. I think there's people listening today that need to hear that because they're in a season of uncertainty.
They're in, maybe, you know, your job is up in the air. Maybe you don't know what's happening with a diagnosis that your family member just got, or maybe you don't know what's going on with your kids you haven't heard from. God's with you. Yeah, I think there's so much gray in life. And I don't mean like morally gray, but there's just so much of like, I've got two potentially good things.
Which one should I choose? Which is God's will. You know, we typically put like uncertainty. And kind of aimlessness, as in, I'm sinning, I'm wandering. And maybe that's true, but maybe there's also, Dr.
Shell, like God is placing multiple opportunities in front of me, and one of them is his will. And I feel like I'm supposed to guess or I'm supposed to know. But can you talk to our our listeners about that as to how to know which one no maybe not which one God has, but how to sense that directing?
Well, I think back to Genesis 28. When Jacob was also running from God. But he was not really running from God, he was running from his brother. But in a sense, it was just running, just trying to get away from. This situation, which had very quickly escalated, and his brother wanted to kill him because he had.
Not really stolen, but he had taken the blessing that was rightfully his.
Okay. And so he dreams. He's out in the wilderness. And you know, it it is It's surrounded by these limestone. Rocks All around him.
I mean, it's a very dry, dusty, sort of almost, I hate to use the word hardcore, but that's all I can think of. Just very harsh. Environment and in this harsh environment, see, see, many times God uses our environments to speak to us so. Here That's what happens with Jacob.
So, whatever environment you're in, in a sense, God will reveal himself to you in a way that you will readily pick up on God being there. I feel like that's its own episode right there. Oh, man. Wow. I'm sort of latched onto that right now.
Yeah. And I know we only got like 10 minutes left in the show, but maybe we mark that down for another day. Yeah. Like, I mean, if you're on the ocean, God spoke to Jonah in a very watery language. If you are like Joseph in that prison cell, God speaks to him in a very, very dark, dungeonous place.
But here with Jacob. It says here that he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth. and its top reached to heaven. and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. Behold, I am with you, and I will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land.
for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you. Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. And he was afraid, and said, How awesome is This place. This place.
So again, God uses our environment to speak to us. He is not the environment, he is the one who made the environment. He is not bound by the environment. He's above and beyond it, and yet it all encompasses him. Right.
I think there's a great conversation there, Golly. Maybe we should make this a three-parter because I think. We talk about God being omnipresent, and yet he's put Me. Ryan, you, the listeners. Where they are in their life.
Yeah. And so, for all these people who are like running, or maybe just trying to move to another church or move to another opportunity or find something else. Maybe this is, maybe this is sort of a wake-up call where Jacob even recognizes how awesome is this place. Is this place? Yeah.
Yeah. Maybe that's something for us to recognize. Like, even if you're aimless right now, how awesome is the place that God has put you in? Yeah, even the fact that we're all connected through this episode right now, whether you're listening to it on Pray.com, Truth Network, or the local radio station, you're connected via this episode to all of us. We are in this moment connected together, and God speaks through the environment.
I love that because He's the creator, so the creation serves His purpose. Absolutely. I mean, it says right here, Jacob says in verse 17.
So, if you're following along in the Bible, it is Genesis 28, verse 17. And he was afraid and said, How awesome is this place? This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
So, somehow, in his dream, those big limestone blocks of stone around him.
Sort of rearranged themselves to become the massive white. glowing gates, like the pearly gates of heaven. And he's like You know, and you can see he's in a trance state, and in a sense, maybe he's like. half sleep, half awake kind of state. And he's like, whoa.
I feel like I'm standing in in By the gates of heaven. And and that same arid, dusty Harsh. Environ became Heaven for him because God was immediately there. And so, what does he do? Listen to verse 18.
Then Jacob rose early in the morning. took the stone that he had put at his head, And set it up as a pillar. And poured oil on top of it, and he called the name of that place. Bethel. Bethel.
Wow. That's insane.
So Dr. Shuff, somebody is listening to this right now. And they are dissatisfied. Right. God is everywhere, but I'm here.
I'm in this little tiny town in North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland. I'm stuck in this big nameless city in Texas, in Chicago, wherever, you know. And They're looking for satisfaction in their environment and they're looking for that place to run. That greener grass syndrome. What would you say to that person right now?
I totally get it. I totally understand where you're coming from because, let's say, you're like, man, I wish I was in the mountains because that's where I find myself at peace and I feel so much closer to God. And then there are people who will say, no, wait a minute, wait a minute, not the mountains, the beach. is by the waters as I'm hearing the war waves come in and just kind of lap against my feet. And I see the sun just kind of, you know, basking down.
And it's like, oh, this is just heaven. And you find yourself in that warehouse where you're working, or in that little apartment or You are in the dorm room, or you are right now, you know, in a workplace or a life situation where it's not. is not It doesn't give you the feeling about God. Learn from Jacob. Jacob understood the omnipresence of God.
Surrounded by this really lifeless, cold, dusty. slabs of stone He saw the gates of heaven instead. And he realized that God was so close to him. He was right there, and he even anoints That That stone. And he says, How awesome is this place?
That place, maybe it's a prison cell. That place can be an awesome place for you. And somebody may say, that's easier for you to say. Because you're sitting in your nice, cushy studio and your church office surrounded by rows and rows of books and all that. It's easy for you to say, I understand that.
I understand. But don't forget, I've also been in those Bethel. Like places. and without, Seeing them The way Jacob saw Bethel, I would have lost my mind. I would have made a bad decision, I would have quit.
I would have walked out. But by the grace of God, I was able to see the presence of God. And realize how awesome is this place. And in time, I didn't stay in that place, but in time, that experience helped me have a closer walk with God.
So you may stay in that prison cell all your life, you may stay in that apartment for five more years, or you may be in that job. for the next 10 years of your life, for 10 months? I don't know. Only God knows that. But if you let God help you, that place can become The gates of heaven.
What is the prayer that we need to pray, Dr. Shaw? What should we ask God to help us have eyes to see how He's working and how He is present even in the situation that maybe is less than desirable?
Well, exactly what you said. Open your eyes. Ask God to open your eyes. Say, God, open my eyes, help me to see you, and more specifically, to see the Son of God with me. And if you do not know him, then you're not going to see him.
You need to see him with the eyes of faith as your Savior. Dying on the cross for your sins. Can you walk us through that? Because I have a feeling there's people listening right now who are. Seeing him very faintly.
Maybe there's an outline. Maybe it's like, okay, I sort of see where you're coming. I want that life. I really want this life you're talking about. And I want to love where God has put me.
Even if I.
Sort of halfway believe that he's there. Right, right. Can you walk us through that plan of salvation? Of course, of course. In the Bible tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.
So hear this. Jesus Christ, God's Son. Came. and gave his life on the cross In your place. for your sins.
And this was no random act? This was something that had been promised and prophesied since the beginning of time, ever since our grandparents, Adam and Eve, sinned against God. And sin came in, and death came in. This. promise was there and The prophets, the people of God, They waited on this promise.
and in the fullness of time Jesus came. and he fulfilled every single prophecy about him. And then He did what he came to do. Went to the cross. died on the cross for our sins, was buried for three days.
But on the third day he rose again. And he rose again because, number one, he did not sin, he died for our sins, and number two, he was the Son of God, the Prince of life. He cannot keep the Prince of Life in the grave. That's right. And he rose again.
And what is he doing now? He is seated at the right hand of the Father. What is he doing now? He's calling all peoples, men, women, boys, and girls, no matter where you come from, no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter what you've done. He's calling you to come to him.
And through the eyes of faith, you can. And it's a simple prayer that says, Jesus, open my eyes. that I may see you. I believe that you died for my sins. You are God's only answer for my Salvation.
And I need you to be my Savior and my Lord, my King, and help me to live for you from this day forward. That's the prayer. Amen.
And as you. Pray that. Just know that the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. Who's everywhere? But now he's also living in you.
not just convicting you from the outside But encouraging you From the inside, and start walking. The life of a believer. Amen.
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