Have You Ever Asked The Question, Where Are You God? by Ed Pruitt

Psalms 42:11-11

HAVE YOU EVER ASKED THE QUESTION WHERE ARE YOU GOD?
Sunday evening July 13,2003

Pastor Ed Pruitt

Psalm 42:11
11 Why am I discouraged?
Why so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and my God!

Do you ever feel alone, abandoned, and forsaken like David did in this psalm?

Has satan ever struck up a conversation with you when you’re down in the dumps?

The only time that satan ever has anything to say to us is when he wants to, Discourage us, to Deceive us, and to Distract us!

We must know that it is always a mistake for us to ever join a conversation with satan at all!

Satan is the only one that would ever cause you to question God!

Tonight I want to answer the question, “Where are you God” with the Word of God!

I want to tell you, the devil, and everybody else where our God is!


I want you to leave here tonight with assurance, confidence, and determination because you know where your God is!

First of all we know that our God is above us!
Let’s read it in, Psalm 115:1-3
1 Not to us, O LORD, but to you goes all the glory
for your unfailing love and faithfulness.

2 Why let the nations say,
“Where is their God?”

3 For our God is in the heavens,
and he does as he wishes.

And again in, Deuteronomy 4:39
39 So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The LORD is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other god!

Praise God, there is no other God!
Our God is the real thing!

In Isaiah we read that God is God and He has all understanding!
Isaiah 55:8-9
8 “My thoughts are completely different from yours,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

We can read of His Power in Ephesians!
Chapter 1:19-23
19 I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power

20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else in this world or in the world to come.

22 And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church.

23 And the church is his body; it is filled by Christ, who fills everything everywhere with his presence.

We read how to praise Him in, Ephesians 4:6
6 and there is only one God and Father, who is over us all and in us all and living through us all.

And in, John 3:31
31 “He has come from above and is greater than anyone else. I am of the earth, and my understanding is limited to the things of earth, but he has come from heaven.

And in, James 1:17-18
17 Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above, who created all heaven’s lights. Unlike them, he never changes or casts shifting shadows.

18 In his goodness he chose to make us his own children by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his choice possession.

And in, 1 Chronicles 29:10-20
10 Then David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly: “O LORD, the God of our ancestor Israel, may you be praised forever and ever!

11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.

12 Riches and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and it is at your discretion that people are made great and given strength.

13 “O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name!

14 But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you have already given us!

15 We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a shadow, gone so soon without a trace.

16 “O LORD our God, even these materials that we have gathered to build a Temple to honor your holy name come from you! It all belongs to you!

17 I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives, and I have watched your people offer their gifts willingly and joyously.

18 “O LORD, the God of our ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, make your people always want to obey you. See to it that their love for you never changes.

19 Give my son Solomon the wholehearted desire to obey all your commands, decrees, and principles, and to build this Temple, for which I have made all these preparations.”

20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Give praise to the LORD your God!” And the entire assembly praised the LORD, the God of their ancestors, and they bowed low and knelt before the LORD and the king.

Our God never looks up to anybody!
Everyone must look to Him!

We should be awe struck by this truth!

Nobody can lay their hands on our God!

Our God is around us all the time and He is always here to Deliver us if we will let Him!

Psalm 34:7
7 For the angel of the LORD guards all who fear him,
and he rescues them.

Psalm 32:7
7 For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble.
You surround me with songs of victory.

God is here to protect us all we have to do is to call upon Him!

Psalm 125:2
2 Just as the mountains surround and protect Jerusalem,
so the LORD surrounds and protects his people, both now and forever.

Psalm 5:12
12 For you bless the godly, O LORD, surrounding them with your shield of love.

God is always here to watch over us!
Psalm 139:3-10

3 You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest.
Every moment you know where I am.

4 You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD.

5 You both precede and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to know!

7 I can never escape from your spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!

8 If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there.

9 If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans,

10 even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.

Our God is always going before us, He is our constant companion to lead us day and night!
Exodus 13:21-22
21 The LORD guided them by a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. That way they could travel whether it was day or night.

22 And the LORD did not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire from their sight.

God will always lead us to rest!

Numbers 10:33
33 They marched for three days after leaving the mountain of the LORD, with the Ark of the LORD’s covenant moving ahead of them to show them where to stop and rest.

And in John 10:4
4 After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they recognize his voice.

God will always fight for us!
Deuteronomy 10:22
22 When your ancestors went down into Egypt, there were only seventy of them. But now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky!

And in, Psalm 68:7-10
7 O God, when you led your people from Egypt,
when you marched through the wilderness,

8 the earth trembled, and the heavens poured rain
before you, the God of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel.

9 You sent abundant rain, O God, to refresh the weary Promised Land.

10 There your people finally settled, and with a bountiful harvest, O God, you provided for your needy people.

We will never run up on anything that God hasn’t already run over!

We have no idea what we would face without him!

We think it is rough now, but God’s already taken care of all the big stuff!

Each step I take, the Savor goes before me. And with his loving hand he leads the way

Not only does our God go before us He is also always behind us!

When we’re afraid our past will catch up to us we find that if we are a truly God’s children the scripture tells us in,
Exodus 14:19

19 Then the angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to a position behind them, and the pillar of cloud also moved around behind them.

When we’re tempted to turn around or quit we read in,

Isaiah 30:21
21 and you will hear a voice say, “This is the way; turn around and walk here.”

God comes behind us with goodness and mercy to clean up our messes!

Psalm 23:6
6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.

And then we find that God comes right behind us with refreshment for the journey!

1 Corinthians 10:4
4 and all of them drank the same miraculous water. For they all drank from the miraculous rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ.

Our God, is not only above us, and in front of us, and behind us, He is also beneath us so we can be assured that He will not drop us!

Deuteronomy 33:27

27 The eternal God is your refuge, and his everlasting arms are under you. He thrusts out the enemy before you;
it is he who cries, ‘Destroy them!

And in, Isaiah 40:11
11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.

If we are truly seeking God with all of our heart, body, mind and soul, God is not going to allow anything or anybody to get us!

John 10:28-30
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from me,

29 for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. So no one can take them from me.

30 The Father and I are one.”

We can also be assured that God is not going to allow us to fall as we can read in,
Psalm 40:2-3
2 He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground
and steadied me as I walked along.

3 He has given me a new song to sing,
a hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see what he has done and be astounded.
They will put their trust in the LORD.

Jude 24-25
24 And now, all glory to God, who is able to keep you from stumbling, and who will bring you into his glorious presence innocent of sin and with great joy.

25 All glory to him, who alone is God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, glory, majesty, power, and authority belong to him, in the beginning, now, and forevermore. Amen.

Just like the song goes,

My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ blood and righteous. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name. On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand!

Our God is Always with us just like He was with others in the scripture!

Hebrews 13:5
5 Stay away from the love of money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you.
I will never forsake you.”

Philippians 1:6
6 And I am sure that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again.

God was there for Abraham, as we can read in Genesis 21:22

22 About this time, Abimelech came with Phicol, his army commander, to visit Abraham. “It is clear that God helps you in everything you do,” Abimelech said.

God was there for Isaac, Genesis 26:3
3 Do as I say, and stay here in this land. If you do, I will be with you and bless you. I will give all this land to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father.

God was there for Jacob, Genesis 28:15
15 What’s more, I will be with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. I will someday bring you safely back to this land. I will be with you constantly until I have finished giving you everything I have promised.”

God was there for Joseph, Genesis 39:2
2 The LORD was with Joseph and blessed him greatly as he served in the home of his Egyptian master.

Genesis 39:21
21 But the LORD was with Joseph there, too, and he granted Joseph favor with the chief jailer.

Genesis 39:23
23 The chief jailer had no more worries after that, because Joseph took care of everything. The LORD was with him, making everything run smoothly and successfully.

God was there for Moses, Exodus 33:14
14 And the LORD replied, “I will personally go with you, Moses. I will give you rest—everything will be fine for you.”

God was there for Joshua, Joshua 1:5
5 No one will be able to stand their ground against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.

God was there for the Psalmist, Psalm 46:7
7 The LORD Almighty is here among us;
the God of Israel is our fortress.

God was there for the Disciples, Matthew 28:20
20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

God was there for Paul, Acts 18:9-10
9 One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent!

10 For I am with you, and no one will harm you because many people here in this city belong to me.”

And in, 2 Timothy 4:17
17 But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength, that I might preach the Good News in all its fullness for all the Gentiles to hear. And he saved me from certain death.

And man oh man was He ever there for the Hebrew Children as we can read in, Daniel 3:1-30
1 King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue ninety feet tall and nine feet wide and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.

2 Then he sent messages to the princes, prefects, governors, advisers, counselors, judges, magistrates, and all the provincial officials to come to the dedication of the statue he had set up.

3 When all these officials had arrived and were standing before the image King Nebuchadnezzar had set up,

4 a herald shouted out, “People of all races and nations and languages, listen to the king’s command!

5 When you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other instruments, bow to the ground to worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s gold statue.

6 Anyone who refuses to obey will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

7 So at the sound of the musical instruments, all the people, whatever their race or nation or language, bowed to the ground and worshiped the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

8 But some of the astrologers went to the king and informed on the Jews.

9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “Long live the king!

10 You issued a decree requiring all the people to bow down and worship the gold statue when they hear the sound of the musical instruments.

11 That decree also states that those who refuse to obey must be thrown into a blazing furnace.

12 But there are some Jews—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—whom you have put in charge of the province of Babylon. They have defied Your Majesty by refusing to serve your gods or to worship the gold statue you have set up.”

13 Then Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and ordered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be brought before him. When they were brought in,

14 Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up?

15 I will give you one more chance. If you bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments, all will be well. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. What god will be able to rescue you from my power then?”

16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.

17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty.

18 But even if he doesn’t, Your Majesty can be sure that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”

19 Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual.

20 Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace.

21 So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully clothed.

22 And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames leaped out and killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in!

23 So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, securely tied, fell down into the roaring flames.

24 But suddenly, as he was watching, Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and exclaimed to his advisers, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?”
“Yes,” they said, “we did indeed, Your Majesty.”

25 “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire. They aren’t even hurt by the flames! And the fourth looks like a divine being!”

26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the fire.

27 Then the princes, prefects, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

28 Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel to rescue his servants who trusted in him. They defied the king’s command and were willing to die rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.

29 Therefore, I make this decree: If any people, whatever their race or nation or language, speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they will be torn limb from limb, and their houses will be crushed into heaps of rubble. There is no other god who can rescue like this!”

30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to even higher positions in the province of Babylon.

If we are living for God He is always there!

Isaiah 41:10
10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.

Isaiah 43:2
2 When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.

But now we find that our God is not only always with us, He is living within us!

John 14:16-17
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you.

17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you do, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.

1 Corinthians 6:19
19 Or don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself,

Colossians 1:27
27 For it has pleased God to tell his people that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. For this is the secret: Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in his glory.

God is so awesome as we can read in,
Ezekiel 36:26-27
26 And I will give you a new heart with new and right desires, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony heart of sin and give you a new, obedient heart.

27 And I will put my Spirit in you so you will obey my laws and do whatever I command.

Ephesians 3:14-19
14 When I think of the wisdom and scope of God’s plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,

15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.

16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit.

17 And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love.

18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is.

19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

In closing tonight we have found in these scriptures that our God is exactly where He has always been!

God is the same yesterday, today and forever and He never moves!

If there seems to be a distance between you and God today remember, He has not moved!
 

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