An Ever-Present God

“Without Moses, it took just forty days to abandon the true God and set up something else to worship. This is first and foremost why an awareness of God’s presence is important—because it doesn’t take us long to replace God.”

Let God Be Present--Matthew D. Brough

I recently heard someone say that if there are no people in a church then God is not there, and it's just an empty building --that the term “church” refers to the people and not a building. I was taught and believe that God is all-powerful (omnipotent), all-knowing (omniscient) and all-present (omnipresent). He is always everywhere. I firmly believe that to teach otherwise is false teaching.

I do believe that the term “church” also refers to the people who have accepted the Lord and are the family of God. This truth has been known and accepted by Christians (including myself) for over two thousand years. I am not disputing that. But I believe God is slowly and subtly being pushed out of our churches.

Sometimes in our earnestness to walk with the Lord on our personal journey, we feel the Holy Spirit’s presence so profoundly that it feels as though there is nothing else. It is the Lord and us. It’s as though there’s nothing else around us and we want to accept and share what He so freely gives us: His love, His presence, His forgiveness. Eugene Peterson reminds us: “No Christian is an only child.” We walk together as a church body. Because we are saved—because we know the Lord.

But where does the unsaved person go to find God? He’s not looking within. He’s looking for refuge and protection. Many years ago, I was in an abusive marriage. One Friday night I took my then nine-month-old son, his carriage, some bottles of formula and diapers and walked out of that marriage. I just wanted to get out of there. I walked and walked until I came to a Catholic church. I didn’t really know the Lord at the time. I wasn’t saved and didn’t even know I should be. But I knew God was in that church and that He would help me. I was determined to stay right there because I felt safe. After a while a priest came in and I told him why I was there. It was a Catholic holiday weekend, and the Catholic school would be closed that Monday. He brought my son and me into the school and to the nurses' office because there was a cot in there and I could sleep there. The next day, he returned with the church secretary, and she offered to let me stay at her house until other arrangements could be made. People who know “about” God but don’t yet know the Lord, and are looking for refuge, naturally walk into the only place that makes sense to them.

The argument over “the empty building” is not an "either/or" issue. It is both. Yes, we are the church, AND God is everywhere, including an unoccupied church building or anywhere else. We simply don’t have the power to control God’s presence. God has that power, not us. We cannot change God’s character to fit into our own personal agenda. God is not a “concept”. He is real. He deserves our reverence—always and everywhere.