Omnipresent

Throughout my life I have been taught and I have believed that God is omnipresent (always present), omnipotent (all powerful), and omniscient (all knowing).  When we read the Word, Jeremiah 23:24 tells us, "Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not I fill heaven and earth?" Also, Psalm 139: 7-10 tells us, "Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me." These two verses among many others point to God being everywhere at once and always everywhere. 

However, throughout the years I have been told that God isn't in Hell. Yet this goes against God being omnipresent. I questioned how can God be in Hell, yet isn't Hell the absence of God? Romans 1: 18-19 tells us, "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them." Another verse 2 Thessalonians 1:9 states, "They will suffer punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might."  Looking at Revelation 14:10-11, we read, "he also will drink the wine of God's wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb." These three verses gives us a different picture than God not being in Hell. It actually shows God is in Hell, but not his perfect love and kindness, but rather His wrath and anger. What a scary picture this paints! I think of how I have felt when someone has released their anger on me. I wanted to shy away from the person. I wanted to fix what I had broken. I wanted to apologize and move on. Yet, this is a small fraction of what a terrible ordeal Hell will be for those who turn away from God. God not being in Hell was sad thought for me. Yet an even scarier thought is God's wrath and anger being poured out to those in Hell. This fact in another great reason to share the love of Jesus with everyone. We see in the book of Luke chapter 16 verses 19-31 that the rich man goes to Hell and Lazarus goes to Heaven. This story tells us that it is our job to share the good news because there is no going back once we are dead.  So the next time you feel tempted to walk away from sharing God's promise to someone, remember this is their only chance. Tomorrow is not promised.