Interesting Questions-77
God is everywhere
(Jeremiah 23:23)
Letter to the Editor:
PASUGO, June 2002, p.2
THE TEACHING THAT God is everywhere is against the
Bible. If God were everywhere, He must also be in beer houses,
prostitution dens, and crack houses. In Matthew 6:9, Jesus
said in His prayer that God is in heaven.
Isn't it that God is in heaven and not in places
where there is immorality?
Jay Magunay
Sta Rosa, Laguna, Philippines
Editor's reply:
The teaching that God is everywhere or that God
is omnipresent is a biblical teaching. In fact, it was the Almighty
God Himself who declared that He is everywhere:
“I am God who is everywhere and not in
one place only.” (Jer. 23:23, Today’s English Version)
We do not oppose the Lord Jesus Christ’s
prayer written in Matthew 6:9. What we are opposing is the erroneous
conclusion about the verse. It is true that the Lord Jesus
acknowledged in His prayer that the Father is in heaven. But, He did
not say that the Father is in heaven only. To assume such is a
violation of biblical teachings.
We cannot confine God to any specific
location. Apostle Paul, in fact, testifies that “He [God] is
everywhere and in everything” (Eph. 1:4, Easy-to-Read Version).
However, we should not think that the
omnipresence of God is the same as pantheism-equating God with the
combined forces and laws that are manifested in the existing
universe. For example, we should not think that God is in the table
in our living rooms and therefore, that table should be worshipped.
God is omnipresent in the sense that He can see everyone and
everything and no one can hide from Him. The Almighty proclaims:
“No one can hide where I cannot see him.
Do you not know that I am everywhere in heaven and on earth?” (Jer.
23:24, TEV)
Even King David emphatically expressed
in one of his psalms that there is no place he can go to escape from
God.
“Where could I go to escape from you?
Where could I get away from your presence? If I went up to heaven,
you would be there; if I lay down in the world of the dead, you
would be there. If I flew away beyond the east or lived in the
farthest place in the west, you would be there to lead me. You would
be there to help me.” (Ps. 139:7-10, Ibid.)
___________________
Bible Study
Suggestion: If you have further questions, please feel free
to visit the
Iglesia ni Cristo congregation nearest you. A minister or
an evangelical worker would be happy to answer any biblical question
you have in mind.