Thought for Today
Exodus 3:2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
Numbers 27:12 The LORD said to Moses, "Go up this mountain of the Abarim range, and see the land that I have given to the Israelites.
Matthew 4:8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor;
2 Peter 1:17 For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased." 18 We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.
Mountains or valleys? Seacoasts or deserts? High plains or old-growth forests? Where do you feel closest to God? Where do you most sense the presence of the Creator of Creation?
I once heard someone remark that “Epiphanies occur on mountains; everyday life is lived in valleys.” Certainly, Moses encountered the voice of God in that burning bush upon Mt. Horeb. Moses came down from Mt. Sinai with the stone tablets of God’s Commandments in his hand.
We know that the Greek word often translated as hell is γέεννα (gay enah). My lexicon tells me, “Gehenna, literally valley of Himnom, a ravine south of Jerusalem where fires were kept burning to consume the dead bodies of animals, criminals, and refuse.” (Friberg, Analytical Greek Lexicon)
“Jerusalem is situated on the southern spur of a plateau in the Judaean Mountains, which include the Mount of Olives (East) and Mount Scopus (North East). The elevation of the Old City is approximately 760 m (2,490 ft). The whole of Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys and dry riverbeds (wadis). The Kidron, Hinnom, and Tyropoeon Valleys intersect in an area just south of the Old City of Jerusalem.” (en.wikipedia.org) Jerusalem’s elevation is 2474 feet above sea level. That is almost ½ mile high. Denver, Colorado calls itself “The Mile High City.” Is God in Denver? Is God in Jerusalem? Is God somehow ‘more in’ one city than the other because of geography or elevation? Where do you feel closest to God? Where do you most sense the presence of the Creator of Creation?
I spent most of my life on the coastal plains of Texas, As adults, Greta and I discovered the Rocky Mountains. Now we live in New England, again along a coastal plain. The coasts of Texas and Massachusetts are quite different; but, both are still coastal plains. In Texas we were a long drive from any mountains. Guadalupe Mountain, the highest peak in Texas at 8751 ft. above sea level, was 591 miles west from Houston. In New England we are only 156 miles from Mt. Washington in New Hampshire and 6288 ft. above sea level. My smartphone tells me that our own home is 110 ft. above sea level. Is God on Guadalupe Mountain? Is God on Mt. Washington? Where do you feel closest to God? Where do you most sense the presence of the Creator of Creation?
Ministers and theologians write and speak a lot about the ‘omnis.’ We describe God as omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent. Those words are our best effort to describe the indescribable. This morning, I am particularly thinking about God’s being omnipresent. Elijah fled from his confrontation with the priests of Baal to a cave on Mt. Horeb. He was told, "1 Kings 19:11 Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.”
I never want to contradict the Bible, but I do believe God was in the wind, in the earthquake, in the fire and in the silence. I believe God is there when I walk through the field behind our home, when we worship in church, and everywhere we are at any time. I feel closest to God whenever I think about God, wherever I am. I sense the presence of God whenever I open up my senses and try to feel the presence of God. God is truly omnipresent.
Stay safe, look for God wherever you are, trust God,
Pastor Ray