Hide from God or in God?
The church leaders of a congregation I used to attend had appointed me to deliver a sermon on the 24th of October, 2017. But in the beginning of that same week, I rang up one of our deacons requesting him to take my place as the speaker of the divine service that was scheduled to be held on that day. However, on the 5th of November, I heard the voice of God saying to me, “Why do hide from Me?” It is based on this question that I wish to share my thoughts through this article.
Why We Hide From God? “Why do we hide from God?” I believe that all of us should be asking this question. It is a wonderful thing that the Bible gives the answer to this question. Let us look at two verses to see what the real reason for this kind of behaviour is.
Genesis 3:8-10 “And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. (9) And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? (10) And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Revelation 6:15 “And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains.”
The above verses from the word of God tell us that the real reason that we hide from God is sin. Sin has separated man from the close and intimate relationship that he once had with his Creator. Sin has marred our lives; and it has also led the Lord Jesus Christ, sinless that He is, to die for our sins. Sin has also led us to lose that spiritual peace and the consequences of sin are numerous.
Returning to God After we have fallen or committed sin, is it possible to hide from our Creator? The answer is no, because God is omnipresent and omniscient.
Psalms 139:7-12 “Whither shall I go from thy spirit or whither shall I flee form thy presence? (8) If I ascend up onto heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. (9) If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; (10) Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. (11) If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. (12) Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: and the darkness and the light are both alike unto thee.”
So then, when we sin, is it advisable that we hide from God as did Adam and Eve? Is it advisable to tell the mountains and the rocks to fall on us? Our sole duty is to confess our sins to God for He is ever ready to forgive us.
1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Yes, once we commit sin, our duty is to humble ourselves before God and confess our sins and ask for forgiveness and be cleansed by the blood that was shed on Calvary.
The Unpardonable Sin But there is another side to the story that I wish to depict, and that is the sin against the Holy Spirit or, as it is sometimes known as, the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. We find this recorded in Matthew 12:32.
Matthew 12:32 “And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”
From my personal walk and experiences, I believe that God has given each one of us His Spirit to show us what is permissible and what is not, what is righteousness and what is sin. As long as we heed the warnings of the Spirit, He remains in us. But it is our persistent efforts to reject the voice that speaks and whispers, and that convicts us of sin and righteousness that causes God to withdraw His spirit from us. Once this happens, it will cause man to have a heart of stone like the one that Pharaoh possessed. Just as Pharaoh rebelled against God, so shall it be with those who reject the admonishments of His Spirit. This is what Christ meant when He talked about the sin that is unpardonable in this world and the world to come.
I would also like to share with you, concerning this issue, the writings of God’s servant, Ellen G. White, from her book the Desire of Ages.
“Christ told them plainly that in attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan, they were cutting themselves off from the fountain of blessing. Those who had spoken against Jesus Himself, not discerning His divine character, might receive forgiveness; for through the Holy Spirit they may be brought to see their error and repent. Whatever sin, if the soul repents and believes, the guilt is washed away in the blood of Christ; but he who rejects the work of the Holy Spirit is placing himself where repentance and faith cannot come to him. It is by the Spirit that God works upon the heart; when men will fully reject the Spirit, and declare it to be from Satan, they cut off the channel by which God can communicate with them. When the Spirit is finally rejected, there is no more that God can do for the soul.” (The Desire of Ages, Chapter 33, page 321.)
“It is not God that blinds the eyes of men or hardens their hearts. He sends them light to correct their errors, and to lead them to safe paths; it is by the rejection of this light that the eyes are blinded and the heart hardened. Often the process is gradual, and almost imperceptible. Light comes to the soul through God’s word, through His servants, or by the direct agency of His Spirit; but when one ray of light is disregarded, there is a partial benumbing of the spiritual perceptions, and the second revealing of light is less clearly discerned. So the darkness increases, until it is night in the soul.” (The Desire of Ages, Chapter 33, page 322.)
The Promise When We Hide In God. So, when we hide in God, what are the promises that His word guarantees us? Let us now look at Psalms 91.
Psalms 91 “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, he is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall by thy side, and ten thousand by thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thy dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him, and honour him. With long life I will satisfy him, and show him my salvation.”
Through these verses, we see clearly the promise of God to those who hide under His care and keeping. I believe that the words in above passage are plain and simple, easy to grasp and understand; and I do not think that I should expound on them.
Rock Of Ages
But I only wish to end with a story about a young preacher who lived in the eighteenth century. His name was Augustus Toplady. As Augustus was taking a walk along the shores of the English coast, suddenly there was a storm that began to blow. He then saw a cave nestled in a huge rock. As he was hiding there, he pondered upon the relation that his hiding place had with the God’s help when the storms of life are raging. He did not have a piece of paper with him on which to write. But he noticed a gambling card on the floor of the rocky shelter and began to pen the words of that beautiful hymn, “The Rock of Ages.”
This event took place in the year 1775 and this hymn has been a source of strength to many a Christian to this very day.
Rock of ages cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
Through Thy riven side which flowed;
Be of sin the double cure,
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.
Think of the struggles and the hardships that you face. Do you need a hiding place? Do you need someone to shelter you from the battles in your life? Do you need the assurance that your sins have been forgiven? Like Augustus Toplady, we can also find a resting place and a promise from God.
Seek God; let Him be your refuge. Come closer to the Rock of ages for He is our shelter. When everything around you crumble, God is the Rock on whom you can stand. Amen.
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