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. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,”even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you. – Psalms 139:7-12
If you spend time talking to people who are not church-goers, you discover that many people in America who are 20 years of age or older have attended church at one time or another. Many were raised in church but have dropped out or have drifted away from God for one reason or another.
Over the years of pastoring, I have discovered that one of the main reasons this happens is that many people build their walk with God on how they feel or what they see rather than who God is and what he has promised.
Oftentimes this might look like:
Nothing immediately happens after we pray, so we think God isn’t working.
No instant change occurs when we spend a week reading our Bibles so we lose patience.
If you have ever been tempted to take a break from church or even your devotion to God because of what you don’t see or feel you are NOT alone – in fact, even veteran believers can grow weary in well-doing.
And yet, the Bible teaches us that when we encounter the limitations of our strength and understanding, we are in an excellent position to experience the deeper workings of God.
There is ONE shift in focus we can all make during these times, which can make all the difference – that is, to focus on the attributes of God more than feelings or circumstances.
Charles Spurgeon said it this way…
And this is what David writes about in Psalm 139. This psalm is a hymn of praise, and it is a revelation.
David writes about the nature and attributes of God.
His song reveals how his focus on these attributes became the anchor for his soul through the storms of his life.
Last time, we looked at the first attribute of God, and David describes what happened when he anchored it.
The first characteristic of God we learned about is that…
God is Omniscient.
To say that God is Omniscient means that God is all-knowing and unfathomably wise. He knows every detail of our lives.
David said God is intimately aware of every detail of my past, present, and future, and he made the Omniscience of God personal.
In verse 1-2 David said…Father you know me.
In verses 3-4 David said… Father you…Guide me
In verse 5 David sang… Father you protect me.
Over the course of his life, through all of the triumphs and trials, David came to realize that God is all-knowing and unfathomably wise. That God was intimately aware of and even involved in David’s life.
And you can see in David’s song that he didn’t just believe this to be true; he made this revelation personal. That’s the secret! Applying this truth to our lives means we live daily because God is all-knowing. When we approach God as if he is all-knowing, our faith rises, and we experience more of God’s interventions.
Think about this…
There is never a time in your life that God isn’t aware of.
God is never caught off guard by a change in your job or a problem in your health.
He never has to pause momentarily and try to figure out a solution to your situation.
When we anchor our lives in the attributes of God, our faith grows.
God is Omniscient, and he is our God.
John Wesley said:
“Bring me a worm that can comprehend a man, and then I will show you a man that can comprehend the triune God!”
The second characteristic of God David brings to mind is closely related to the omniscience of God. It is that…
2. God is Omnipresent.
To say that God is omnipresent means that God is everywhere, all the time.
God is a spirit and is not bound by the limitations of time and space.
As a spirit, God can be in all places at all times.
'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?' . . . ‘do I not fill heaven and earth?' says the Lord? (Jeremiah 23:23,24).
In Deep space, the next closest star to Earth after the Sun is Proxima Centauri. It is only 4.23 light years or 25 trillion miles from our planet.
This is about 300,000 times the distance from Earth to the Sun.
If you could travel 56,000 kilometers per hour for 81,000 years, you could visit Proxima.
Proxima is the closest star after our sun; others are much further.
David says that for God, there is no space and time.
His spirit fills all spaces and places.
He is above, beyond, and outside of his creation.
David approaches this reality by asking two questions –
"Where can I go from your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?" (Ps. 139:7)
David was acquainted with Israel’s history and the stories of God’s dealings with His people. He knew God was with Abram and Sarai in Mesopotamia, Canaan and Egypt.
His was with Jacob at Bethel, and Joseph in Egypt.
He was with Moses in Midian.
He was with Elijah at a creek, a juniper tree, and a cave, Daniel in Babylon, Nehemiah in Susa, and Jonah sailing the Mediterranean in the great fish.
But now David uses colorful language to make this truth personal.
In (vs.8), he says that if he ascends to heaven (the heights) or makes his resting place in Sheol (The place of death), God is present.
In (vs. 9-10) He says Should he ride on the wings of the dawn—the sun’s rays breaking across the earth at the speed of light—God is waiting for him when he arrives. Should he reside in the farthest reaches of the sea, he can expect to feel the touch of God’s hand, and realize He is there before him.
In (vs. 11, 12) David imagines one other possible means of being beyond God’s perception and presence. Darkness can cover his movements. But darkness hampers God no more than distance, He perceives in darkness as distinctly as in the blaze of day light and in the far-off sea.
David lets his imagination roam to convince his own heart that the omnipresent God is also with him.
He makes it personal. And this attribute of God becomes an anchor for His soul.
Quick Takeaways:
1. A mark of a maturing Christian is trusting in God's promises and attributes rather than emotions of circumstances.
2. Our faith rises when we believe that God is omniscient and omnipresent.
3. God’s attributes become anchors for our souls when we make them personal!
About Pastor Bob Moya
Pastor Bob Moya has served as the lead pastor with his wife Candace at City Chapel in Arlington, Texas for over 22+ years. He is currently wrapping up his dissertation at Regent University and will graduate in the spring of 2024 with a doctorate degree in Spiritual Renewal and Leadership. When not serving at the church, you'll find Bob enjoying a good read at Barnes & Noble, sipping a nitro cold brew or black coffee at Starbucks, or spending time with his family.
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