Many thoughts remained in my mind (and in my notes) following yesterday’s sermon. Belief in the omnipresence of God is not new for me. I have thought about it many times. But the significance of God’s continual presence with me (and all men) weighed on me in new and fresh ways this week. What follows are a few of those thoughts:
- Very often we think of the omnipresence of God and consider it from the perspective of “God is watching, so you better be good…” We think of His presence as producing something of a Santa Clause sanctification — because He’s watching we better be good, but only be good because He’s watching and might withhold something from us if we aren’t good. The presence of God is to be deterrent to sin; but it is to be so much more. It is to be a stimulant to righteousness and holiness from a desire for more of His presence and from the delight of His fellowship.
- God’s presence is, to the believer, a gift of grace and blessing. Scripture regularly affirms this. His presence in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve was a manifestation of grace and a demonstration of the purpose for which they were created — fellowship with Him. And while sin intruded, God still seeks fellowship with (and offers fellowship to) His people. In fact, the very name given to Jesus in the announcement of His coming — Immanuel — means “God with us.” And the great hope of eternity is that we will be with Him, and see Him, and be His servants — all different ways of saying that we were created to enjoy Him and His presence. Hence, a valid question is, “Do I view the omnipresence of God as merely an eternal and infinite watchdog over my life, or do I see Him as the gift of One who comforts, guides, protects, keeps, and helps His own?
- Understanding God’s eternal presence in hell as a means of constantly pouring out His wrath on deserving sinners is virtually incomprehensible. That no one will ever escape God’s presence is an awe-ful truth. We are lacadaisical in our gospel witness because we do not fear hell for others. We have not allowed its weight and horror to rest significantly on our hearts. We are not so bold with the gospel because hell is fundamentally inconcequential to us. May it cease to be so.
- David is clear that he hates those who hate God (Ps. 139:21-22). He affirms that conviction three times in three different ways in those verses. He does not pause to split the hair of “hating the sin but loving the sinner.” For David, and many of the other Scripture writers (and Jesus!), to hate sin is to hate those who sin.
- This is not to say that he is personally vindictive against those who sin; the follower of God should always be content to wait on God and His judgment (Rom. 12:19). But it is to say that He is far more interested in God’s righteousness being vindicated through His divine wrath than he is in watching sin be flaunted by those who are unrepentant.
- Nor is this to say that the man of God is not interested in the salvation of sinners — numerous times David affirmed his attempts to help those who were opposed to him (e.g., Ps. 35:12-14; 109:4-5), only to be rejected. And Christ also was very patient with those who were the most horrible of sinners — how else could he garner the title, “friend of sinners?” He does desire the salvation of sinners; but he also hates the proliferation of sin (which, I fear, we are sometimes far too tolerant of).
- To capture the heart of what David yearned for, we might say this: “Hate sin. Always. And in every form. But be gracious and kind, seeking the salvation of sinners (and always confronting them on their need for a Savior, and never excusing their sin).”
- David’s exclamation in this verse is an appeal to love the righteousness of God that will damn sinners. For we will love and praise God for all of eternity for preserving His righteousness through the just damnation of sinners.
- Every time I pick up Charles Spurgeon, I am amazed at his eloquence, his insights, and the breadth of his reading. His thoughts on this psalm, though long, are well worth reading. One statement (from v. 23) to whet your appetite:
What a mercy that there is one being who can know us to perfection! He is intimately at home with us. He is graciously inclined towards us, and is willing to bend his omniscience to serve the end of our sanctification. Let us pray as David did, and let us be as honest as he. We cannot hide our sin: salvation lies the other way, in a plain discovery of evil, and an effectual severance from it.
Words of Grace 