Acts 17:27

THE NEARNESS OF GOD

‘He is not far from each one of us.’

Acts 17:27 (R.V.)

The words are taken from the great speech of St. Paul to the ‘men of Athens.’ Standing on Mars’ hill, in the metropolis of earthly wisdom, the Apostle discourses of the eternal wisdom, of the beginning of all real wisdom, the knowledge of the living and true God. God is not far off, sitting on high Olympus, holding Himself aloof from men and their affairs, as they vainly believed, but is nigh to each one of us.

I. He is near to us in His essential Presence.—As the Eternal Spirit, we believe His presence pervades all space. This essential presence of God is recognised by every true believer, and is a sustaining power in His life as a Christian man.

II. He is near to us in the workings of His providence.—How God draws near to us in those daily mercies which are gifts of His love His children bear witness to with a joy unspeakable. His fatherly hand is ever over us, His fatherly heart is ever bestowing upon us the necessaries of life, the comforts of our home, and all the blessings which we so richly enjoy. We confess with shame that too often we have received good at the hand of our God without one thought of the Giver.

III. He is near to us in the manifestation of His Divine pity.—The text embodies the great truth of the Nativity, ‘God with us.’ When there was no eye to pity, no arm outstretched to save, God stooped in His eternal pity from the throne of the universe to the manger at Bethlehem.

IV. He is near to us in His spiritual provision.—We know that He is present in the midst, where two or three are gathered together in His name. In the ‘sweet hour of prayer’ He draws nigh to His people, and His ear is open unto their cry. This is the highest privilege of prayer—communion of spirit with Spirit, and of us as children with God Who is our Father. We know, too, that He is not far from each one of us in the Holy Sacrament—the sacrament of His dying love. There, at the feast Divine, we see Him face to face; there we feed upon Him in our hearts by faith. Remember all that this full realisation of this nearness of God means to your soul, to your whole life.

—Archdeacon Madden.

Illustration

‘The inscription on Ruskin’s monument near Derwentwater runs as follows: “The Spirit of God is around us in the air we breathe; His glory in the light we see, and in the fruitfulness of the earth and the joy of His creatures.” ’