Connect Revelation 1:4 with other scriptures about God's omnipresence. Grace and peace from the Ever-Present God “John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven Spirits before His throne” (Revelation 1:4). • “Him who is and was and is to come” points to the Lord’s eternal, unbounded existence—past, present, and future simultaneously. • Omnipresence flows naturally from that eternity: if God fills all time, He also fills all space. Old Testament echoes of His everywhere-presence • Psalm 139:7–10: “Where can I go from Your Spirit? … If I rise on the wings of dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me.” • Jeremiah 23:23–24: “ ‘Can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see him? … Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?’ declares the LORD.” • 1 Kings 8:27: “The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain You.” These passages underline that the Lord who speaks in Revelation has always filled every corner of creation. New Testament confirmations • Acts 17:24–28: Paul proclaims that in God “we live and move and have our being.” • Hebrews 4:13: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.” • Matthew 28:20: Jesus promises, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” The same Christ who greets the churches through John assures every believer of His unbroken presence. The seven Spirits before His throne • “Seven” in Revelation pictures completeness; the phrase signals the fullness of the Holy Spirit. • Isaiah 11:2 lists sevenfold descriptors of the Spirit—“Spirit of the LORD, wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, fear of the LORD”—hinting at why John uses the number. • Because the Spirit is fully present everywhere, He simultaneously ministers grace and peace to each church—and to us. Seeing the thread woven together 1. Eternity (“who is and was and is to come”) guarantees omnipresence. 2. Old Testament songs and prophecies celebrate a God who fills heaven and earth. 3. New Testament teaching shows Father, Son, and Spirit actively present with every believer. 4. Revelation gathers all these strands: the ever-living God stands among His people, watches over His churches, and will still be there when time itself wraps up. Living in light of His omnipresence • Confidence: No circumstance lies outside His reach. • Comfort: No place is too remote for His grace and peace to arrive. • Accountability: Because He sees all, worship and obedience matter in every hidden moment. The opening greeting of Revelation invites believers then and now to rest in—and respond to—the God who is everywhere, always. |
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