So here's a question. How close is the Father to us? Revelation 4:3-4 "The One sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones--like jasper and carnelian. And the glow of an emerald circled his throne like a rainbow.Twenty-four thrones surrounded him, and twenty-four elders sat on them. They were all clothed in white and had gold crowns on their heads." If you keep reading into the next chapter you can tell that this is talking about the Father and not Jesus. So yes He has the form of a human, but looks more like a gemstone than a human, because the Father is not technically human, He's a Spirit through and through. Or rather He's the Spirit of Spirits; that would be appropriate. The answer is, in heaven. Where is heaven though? In the Hebrew language the word for heaven is also used for the sky. So the answer I think is in a "high place", or "upper realm". I think of it to mean outside the reaches of space, or perhaps heaven is another dimension. My opinion is that it is somewhere outside of space, but the unseen, supernatural miracles happen throughout the universe just as in heaven, just less often. Because remember Jesus taught us to pray the Lord's prayer: "Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" implying that the best option for earth dwellers such as ourselves is to aim to establish the earth with the happenings of heavenly occurrences.
There must be made a point which involves Genesis and Revelation, the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end. From Genesis we see in the Garden that God and man was in harmony, then it was not so any more, yet we see through faith in the prophesy that after the world is judged on Judgement Day this will happen: Revelation 21:3 "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God." Why mention that God will be His people, and his people will have their God if it wasn't already so? In some sense it must not be so until this point in revelation simply because it's part of the prophesy. In Genesis 6:2,3 we see that: It came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. Yahweh said, "My Spirit will not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; yet will his days be one hundred twenty years." You decide what strive means, the Bible word there is Strongs #1777, one occurrence; it's left vague. It's to be understood by the study and insight of other verses because God wants you to look for Him. Humans were the ones to break God's original law, and humans are all related through ancestry, so humans must be the ones to give to God. Give loyalty, give worship, give sacrifice! That is why Jesus had to have been a human to be our good and acceptable sacrifice!
Verse 5: "The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil." And we see in the prophesies of Jesus: Luke 17:26 "And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man"-as in His second coming. And this would make sense of the world wide destruction which takes place through the book of Revelation. And verse 6,7 God: "And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. And the LORD said, "I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing--all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I made them." If God felt this way about the human race when it was Noah's day, He might be starting to feel that way about the human race today. How can we tell it's the last days? 2 Timothy 3:1 "But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God--having a form of godliness but denying its power. [all over the world] Have nothing to do with such people." If you think the world doesn't affect you think about this verse. 1 Corinthians 15:33 "Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.â€
Do you also remember Romans 9:13 "Jacob I loved Esau I hated", or in some translations "loved less" the word for hated means: 3404 mis銖 properly, to detest (on a comparative basis); hence, denounce; to love someone or something less than someone (something) else, i.e. to renounce one choice in favor of another.God chooses some people and not others. That much cannot be disputed. Matthew 22:14 "For many are invited, but few are chosen." Romans 9:15 For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." My next point is simply what this says, so as to think about it.Job 35: "Look to the heavens, and see. See the skies, which are higher than you.If you have sinned, what effect do you have against him? If your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?If you are righteous, what do you give him? Or what does he receive from your hand?Your wickedness may hurt a man as you are, and your righteousness may profit a son of man.“By reason of the multitude of oppressions they cry out. They cry for help by reason of the arm of the mighty.But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,who teaches us more than the animals of the earth, and makes us wiser than the birds of the sky?’There they cry, but no one gives answer, because of the pride of evil men.Surely God will not hear an empty cry, neither will the Almighty regard it.How much less when you say you don’t see him. The cause is before him, and you wait for him!But now, because he has not visited in his anger, neither does he greatly regard arrogance."
I have heard this from a TV preacher, maybe you heard something similar. "We think God is so far away from us up in Heaven, but He really just wants to be our friend." Let me tell you something, God isn't lonely. He doesn't need you. That makes Him sound like a pansy. He does however want you to be affectionately close to Him through faith and love and be good like Him. And the perfection of this will be to come. That's our hope. To be close to God. If we are taught and believe an attitude like this then we are likely to become angry at God when He doesn't treat us like Mosses. But even that is inaccurate because Mosses represented an entire nation! What do I mean? Exodus 33:11 "The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend." Remember also however that "Moses was very humble--more humble than any other person on earth (Numbers 12:3)." And Luke 14:11 says: "For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." So I think it's safe to say that you'll have God speaking to you more clearly if you humble yourself for Him.
It's true that God is near you if you are near to Him. James 4:10 "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." So you decide. How close is God to you? God gives us a lot of freedom in this life, and that includes the ability to come to Him. Is it worth it? YES!!! Let me hear an Amen!
The Father is not so distant that He doesn't care for you because, gloriously enough, we are actually INSTRUCTED to not worry! Why? Because trusting in the Father always means you're cared for in the best possible way. He cares much more for you than He does for the animals, and He feeds the birds for free them and clothes the grass of the field for free." And He is acquainted with the most intimate detail of your life, ever hair on your head is numbered. May you be comforted by the Holy Spirit of God. Amen.
