Knowing the God that Sees

One of the most incredible attributes of God is His omni presence and the fact that He is not a God far away, but a God who is present in our midst and that He sees and hears everything that goes on in and around us.

This truth is too wonderful to grasp in many circles, even in this dispensation of grace within His Church.

Today we need to identify with His name that introduces Him as Jehovah Shammah. A name that identifies His presence in our lives, in our conversations and all our doings.

In all the prophetic scriptures of the Old Covenant readings we see that the Lord points to this age of grace where He would come and would tabernacle with His people by living in them and in their midst as a God who sees and hears all they do or say. By this He is the only faithful witness one can ever know.

This presence of God in the midst of His people first took place in the wilderness upon their exodus from Egypt.  The representation of His presence within their congregation and the tent of meeting meant to speak of this truth. Secondly it represented their future acknowledgement of His fleshly dwelling in their midst. This is why God at this point was introduced as Jehovah Shammah or the Savior who is present with them at all times.

This heavenly reminder of His eternal Characteristic was meant to bring them first a sense of comfort and encouragement and at the same time a sense of an awe and healthy fear of the Lord. One of the reasons that this heavenly reminder was and is needed is to make us aware of His ever presence in our midst. Also this was a foreshadowing of the presence of God by His Holy Spirit in the lives of all believers in this age of grace. That is why this truth must be reemphasized at all times as reminder to us of His greatness.

In the prophetic book of Ezekiel in chapter 48 verse 35 when the Lord speaks to prophet Ezekiel about the measurement of the future temple and the future city of God He ends His instructions with this words that describes His everlasting presence in that place by saying “The Lord is there” meaning in that abode the Lord meaning Jesus through His eternal Spirit is present there. This gives its readers the understanding of how intimate He walks with us when we are totally given to Him by faith.

As I said this is the best God has ever done for any one, by coming and residing with them. To be first their shield and exceedingly great reward and then to be the faithful witness of all that goes on with them. He also by this proclaims that I know all things; I hear all things and see all things speak of who He really is. This also says no one can escape from the fact that He tests all things and knows even the intents of men’s hearts.

This is why every believer needs to understand that God’s omni presence is a very definite part of His out pouring of the His Holy Spirit in our midst. A very wonderful thing, if one regards it as His grace and mercy in our lives. It also assures us that Him being the creator of all things and being all knowing,  knows all things  about everything and even further that His judgments are true and very dependable.

Him being the author of true life offers us His unfathomable grace in truth to help us live righteous lives before Him and in doing so He wants us fully dependent on Him in all our choices in life, because He is the only one who sees and knows the depth of all things.

By coming to Him as a righteous redeemer we need to declare our flesh as dead and fully yield our deeds to Him, since He knows all things much better Let us look at an event in the Old covenant readings of 1 Samuel the 16^th chapter. This is nothing but the commissioning of David for His future office of the Kingdom of Israel. Samuel being a wise man, a trained prophet of the Lord a true Seer is now sent to Bethlehem of Judea to anoint the future King of Israel.

This man who has been the spokesman of the Lord, a man whom many feared when he uttered words from the Lord is now being commissioned to go to Jesse’s house to anoint the next king, yet in all his years of being a seer and a man of Go who has been trained in the house of Eli the priest to hear God now is faced with a greatest challenge of his lifetime.

Although God is sending Him to Jesse’s house he is not told the specifics of his assignment right away. All he knows it is a son of Jesse, but which one he has no idea.

As he arrives 7 sons of Jesse are presented

Than we can ever think or understand in our human strength gained through Adamic rebellion.

To him by Jesse their father and every time he comes to choose one of them the Lord stands in his present as Jehovah Shammah and says to Samuel this is not the one I have chosen and anointed, but that I the Lord have rejected him. I feel to Samuel this could have been a little strange and embarrassing to hear your choice is not my choice. Until in verse 7 the Lord says to Samuel His trained and anointed prophet the is the main subject of our sermon today, and the purpose of our knowing God in His heavenly wisdom and the depth of insight.

Many define grace in different ways, but let us examine grace in this fashion today. Grace is the unmerited favor of God, yet in its depth in the life of a believer is not a license to sin, but a means to leave the reliance upon our flesh and to trust God’s sight and His leading with all of our choices.

If you and I say we are believers in Christ Jesus, we should no longer live with our own standards and our own choices in life, since they are so far from God’s heavenly wisdom. It is only God who sees men’s heart and we should go to Him for all our answers about our choices.

It is God’s take on matters that we should follow and not our human choices. Many to us just like prophet Samuel might look handsome and good looking and kind hearted, but He alone sees their true heart.

Following…

“Do not look at his a When God had chosen David from the sheep fold He had anointed him before even Samuel got there. Samuel was just an earthen vessel to bring His choice into the physical realm.

When God chose David He also fought for Him in the supernatural as Adoni Teviot or the Lord of Hosts to bring him from the sheepfold to the Kingdom. (2nd Samuel 7)

He the Lord saw in the spirit that he was going to be the giant killer one day. When we inquire of God and walk with His choice in mind, we would never fail. Why? Because He is a God who sees what man in his frailty of flesh is hindered to see. This is why in the book of proverbs Solomon says…

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him. And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh.” Pr.3:5-7

Appearance or his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart”.

Wow what a great unveiling of God’s heavenly wisdom. Here even the prophet of the Lord Samuel is rebuked for his lack of reliance on God’s complete leading in the spirit.

It seemed His Flesh or human understanding was in the way of His choicEven a trained man in the spirit could not work with the capacity of his human understanding and his own choices. He needed to acknowledge God’s choice of men. The outward qualifications of men will always fail them, but the sovereign choices of God would stand forever.

I have heard this saying which says “The one God ordains he also sustains” This trust is true with every aspect of our lives. Our marriages, our choice of partners in life and friends and all other different dimensions of our being in Him.

Prophet Samuel being such an anointed man of God could not work independently from God. This part of the scripture too tells us that giant men like Samuel had a carnal disposition and that could have been a hindrance to them in following the spirit of God and His instructions to them.

Samuel eventually anointed God’s choice of men and not his own best choice.

e of men. God says “For the Lord does not see as man sees”

The lesson further learned here is that the best of men without complete leading of the Holy Spirit could be lost in their service to God if the supernatural intervention of God would not interfere their own carnal actions.

Many in this day and age speak on behalf of God and say “The Lord said this and the Lord said that” where the Lord has not been speaking and that is to our shame. Under the Old Covenant law these men would have stoned to death, yet the Spirit of grace has been grieved, but yet waits for their repentance.

In the New Testament letter of Romans Apostle Paul in chapter 8 verses 12 & 13 & 14 says….. “Therefore, brethren we are debtors- not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God these are sons of God.” This is why we learned today that a true believer no longer should live independent of the Sprit’s guidance. A complete reliance on the indwelling Holy Spirit by the guidance of His word of truth is the only way to spiritual vitality and the abundant life in the Spirit.

A definite rejection of our own thoughts and understandings of our former ways, can bring us to the fullness of God’sabundant life intended for us in the spirit first and then in the flesh.

By doing this and living in such ways it is no longer important what men of the flesh would say about us, but what the Lord will say to us. This is the measure by which we will be measured one day at the Judgment seat of Christ also. There no man’s opinion is rendered important, but what the Lord would say about us. That is what would be determining our eternal destiny with or without Him.

Yes to this end I want to know the God who sees all things. What about you Church?