The final words of Jesus just
before He ascended into heaven are a constant
encouragement in my ministry and should be for every
Christian.
“All authority has been given
to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the
age” (Matthew 28:18-20).
It is great reassurance to
remind ourselves, “I am with you always, even to the
end of the age” (v.20).
However, that is not a new
promise in the Scriptures. The
Psalmist David reflected on that great truth about
the LORD God is Psalm 139 when he wrote, “Where can
I go from Thy Spirit?” Or where can I flee from the
presence?” (v.7). I don’t think at that stage in his
life he wanted to escape from God.
He was thinking through the implications, and
applying the omnipresence of God to His own his own
life situations.
We are not alone in our
circumstances. The Lord is with us all the time. The
reason He sees and knows everything is because He is
everywhere all the time. God will forever be with
me. He is constantly aware of
where I am and what I am doing. I am never out of
His sight, and because I am never out of His sight,
I am never out of His awareness.
I am never “out of sight, out of mind.”
Nothing in my life catches Him by surprise.
It is a comfort to know that I
can never escape Him. Even if I
were so foolish to want to, I could never flee from
His presence or His knowledge of my circumstances.
“If I ascend to heaven, You are
there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are
there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell
in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your
hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold
of me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will overwhelm
me, and the light around me will be night,’ Even the
darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as
bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to
You” (Psalm 139:8-12).
Think about it.
There is no place to flee from His eyes.
But why should I ever want to flee His
presence? Knowing that He is
aware of my thoughts and actions gives encouragement
to keep my mind and heart pure.
“But you are not perfect Wil
Pounds.” No, I am not sinless in
thought or deed. But knowing that
He knows when I sin drives me to the cross, and the
fact that if the blood of Jesus does not wash me of
all my sins, I can never be saved and glorified.
The fact that He knows when I
sin is a humbling truth; however, it is also the
greatest incentive to go to Him as David did and
confess my sins. “I acknowledged
my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I
said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the
Lord’; And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah”
(Psalm 32:5).
The apostle John wrote, “And
the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin”
(1 John 1:7b). The original
language says, the blood of Jesus “continues to
cleanse,” keeps on cleansing constantly.
All my sins, every sin, are under His
cleansing blood. “If we confess our sins, He is
faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that
we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word
is not in us” (1 John 1:9-10).
Yes, He is an eyewitness, so
why should I fear His presence?
He has made a perfect provision to cover all my
sins. I am secure in His
all-knowing presence and powerful hands.
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
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Unless otherwise noted "Scripture quotations taken from the NASB."
"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE" © Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://www.bible.org/. All rights reserved.
Wil is a graduate of William Carey University, B. A.; New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Th. M.; and Azusa Pacific University, M. A. He has pastored in Panama, Ecuador and the U. S, and served for over 20 years as missionary in Ecuador and Honduras. He had a daily expository Bible teaching ministry head in over 100 countries from 1972-2005. He continues to seek opportunities to be personally involved in world missions. Wil and his wife Ann have three grown daughters. He currently serves as a Baptist pastor and teaches seminary extension courses in Ecuador.
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