God’s House

This is what the Lord says: Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. What house could you possibly build for Me? And what place could be My home? My hand made all these things, and so they all came into being.[This is] the Lord's declaration. I will look favorably on this kind of person: one who is humble, submissive in spirit, and who trembles at My word. – Isaiah 66:1-2 HCSB

In our day to day confrontation with things materialistic and physical, it is easy to forget that God is a Spirit.[1] As such He has no body[2] and needs no place to house Himself[3]. He is omnipresent[4], which means that He exists simultaneously in every point of the universe[5]. We literally live, breathe and exist within Him[6].

But He is not, as the pantheists hold, the sum of the entire universe for He transcends the universe[7]. The universe is inside Him, much as one of our thoughts exists within the framework of our minds. If He so wished, He could simply think it and all of humanity with its megalomaniacal grandiosity would simply vanish[8] leaving Him as complete and awesome as before He spoke us into existence.

Yet amazingly, He has consistently chosen to dwell among us[9]. We are awed by this fact[10] and left to wonder what we can do to worship Him appropriately. Even if we built the grandest cathedral, what would that be compared to the glory of a billion galaxies?

Yahweh has told us what He desires[11]. He has given us the blueprint for the perfect house of God. A Spirit chooses to live in the spiritual domain. Those who are wise will remember this in their worship.[12] Therefore, He has chosen to live in our thoughts, in our attitudes. Of all the places He could have chosen, He chose our hearts.

This is not something that can be done on the surface. This is more than mere outward conformity. God looks down from heaven and sees all of mankind. From his dwelling place, He watches and considers everything we do.[13] He knows even our very thoughts. In fact, before a word can come off our tongue, He knows everything we are going to say and what motivates us[14].

Anything we do to beautify our spirits and souls simply improves His living conditions. We need to be humble, have submissive spirits, and tremble at His Word.[15] He lives in Heaven, a high and holy place, but He also lives in the hearts of the lowly and contrite.[16] Pride repels Him as much as humility attracts His blessed presence.[17]

Remember these things, work at developing your soul into an abode appropriate to His presence and He will draw near to you. Cathedrals and stadiums do not impress Him – your humble spirit does.

[1] John 4:24
[2] Luke 24:39; Colossians 1:15; Romans 1:19-20; 1 Timothy 1:17
[3] 1 Kings 8:27; Acts 17:24
[4] Psalm 139:7; Jeremiah 23:23
[5] Jeremiah 23:23-24
[6] Acts 17:27-28
[7] 1 Kings 8:27; Amos 9:2
[8] Job 34:14-15
[9] Exodus 29:45-46; Deuteronomy 4:7; Isaiah 63:11-14
[10] Psalm 96:4; 145:3; 2 Samuel 22:4; Revelation 4:11
[11] Micah 6:8
[12] John 4:24; Psalm 22:3
[13] Psalm 33:13-15
[14] Psalm 139:1-4
[15] Isaiah 66:1-2
[16] Isaiah 57:15
[17] 1 Peter 5:5-7; James 4:7-12