In Response to what someone wrote ...
It's scary hearing people talk about "when God leaves us" and "God who hides himself" and "a Godless world" ... please understand how it is a contradiction to reference those things and then note "no God is not relative ... He is absolute." You are right God is absolute. God is always there. God is omnipresent. Psalm 23:4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." Read Romans 8:35 - 39. When we enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ, there is never a time that He is not there - there is never a time that He leaves us. Just because we turn our eyes from Him, or have doubts, does not mean that God has left us. This has nothing to do with sin as you talked about. It just has to do with our fellowship (which changes) in our relationship (that doesn't change) with God.
John the Baptist, whom Jesus referred to as "honored above all men" - in other words, besides JC he was the best dude who ever lived. When he was still in the womb he jumped when he came near to the still unborn Jesus. He knew who God was. He knew when Jesus approached him to be baptized that He was the son of God. Yet later, when John was in prison (headed to be be-headed) he sent people to Jesus to ask "are you the one we are waiting for or will there be another?" John had not sinned, he simply doubted because things weren't quite like he thought God was supposed to be doing them - so he wondered if God was really there.
We do the same thing sometimes. A lot of different things can lead to this ... often it is when things in our lives or someone else's life do not go like we think God would want them to - so we wonder if He is there. That is why Jesus' answer to John's question included - blessed is he who does not turn away because of me. What He is saying is that - we might not like how things are, we might not understand how or if God is here with us right now in these things, but God is concerned with our happiness in eternity, not here ... so, blessed is the man who can understand that God is here with us in the middle of all of these things in this world, and not turn away or question if God is here just because it is so hard to believe understand or accept.
Even Jesus on the cross had a hard time accepting things - let this cup pass from me, yet not my will but yours be done. Jesus obviously never sinned, but still struggled through knowing that God was still with Him (He just didn't lose in this struggle like we sometimes do - He didn't doubt). Even through this Jesus knew that God was with Him. God never turned his back and was never far away. God is always there.
Some people make the mistake of thinking that Jesus said that God was far from Him or turned away when Jesus said - my God why have you farsaken me. I have even heard sermons preached on this false believe. Jewish people at the time referred to scripture and titled it by the first line, describing what it was about. So Genesis was not Genesis, but "In the Beginning" - the same for all of the Old Testament Books. Each psalm was the same way. Jesus was not literally asking God why He forsook Him. Jesus was referencing to the prophetical psalm from David "My God, My God why have you forsaken me" (or psalm 22). This psalm outlining prophetically what happened to Jesus and expresses the struggle with the FEELING that God was not there in verses 1 and 2. However, it goes on to stress the FACT that God was not far away, that God is still there and will save Him in verse 19. In fact, it's funny you used a reference to hiding your face ... because verse 24 specifically says "For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; HE HAS NOT HIDDEN HIS FACE FROM HIM but has listened to his cry for help."
If you have a relationship with Jesus Christ ...
GOD DOES NOT EVER LEAVE YOU
GOD DOES NOT EVER HIDE HIS FACE FROM YOU
GOD IS NEVER "NOT THERE"
It might not be how we like it, want it, believe it, or accept it to be but ... God is always with us, He will never leave us or forsake us.
This true because when we enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ, we are married to Him in a 1 + 1 = 1 relationship. God sees us as His son - and just the same as Jesus He will not leave us, turn away from us, forsake us, or hide His face from us. This is the only kind of unfailing, agape loving God I could ever serve - and I am thankful that He is my God. Since I have a relationship with God I CANNOT experience a Godless world. At times it might FEEL like it, but that is only a false feeling.
John the Baptist, whom Jesus referred to as "honored above all men" - in other words, besides JC he was the best dude who ever lived. When he was still in the womb he jumped when he came near to the still unborn Jesus. He knew who God was. He knew when Jesus approached him to be baptized that He was the son of God. Yet later, when John was in prison (headed to be be-headed) he sent people to Jesus to ask "are you the one we are waiting for or will there be another?" John had not sinned, he simply doubted because things weren't quite like he thought God was supposed to be doing them - so he wondered if God was really there.
We do the same thing sometimes. A lot of different things can lead to this ... often it is when things in our lives or someone else's life do not go like we think God would want them to - so we wonder if He is there. That is why Jesus' answer to John's question included - blessed is he who does not turn away because of me. What He is saying is that - we might not like how things are, we might not understand how or if God is here with us right now in these things, but God is concerned with our happiness in eternity, not here ... so, blessed is the man who can understand that God is here with us in the middle of all of these things in this world, and not turn away or question if God is here just because it is so hard to believe understand or accept.
Even Jesus on the cross had a hard time accepting things - let this cup pass from me, yet not my will but yours be done. Jesus obviously never sinned, but still struggled through knowing that God was still with Him (He just didn't lose in this struggle like we sometimes do - He didn't doubt). Even through this Jesus knew that God was with Him. God never turned his back and was never far away. God is always there.
Some people make the mistake of thinking that Jesus said that God was far from Him or turned away when Jesus said - my God why have you farsaken me. I have even heard sermons preached on this false believe. Jewish people at the time referred to scripture and titled it by the first line, describing what it was about. So Genesis was not Genesis, but "In the Beginning" - the same for all of the Old Testament Books. Each psalm was the same way. Jesus was not literally asking God why He forsook Him. Jesus was referencing to the prophetical psalm from David "My God, My God why have you forsaken me" (or psalm 22). This psalm outlining prophetically what happened to Jesus and expresses the struggle with the FEELING that God was not there in verses 1 and 2. However, it goes on to stress the FACT that God was not far away, that God is still there and will save Him in verse 19. In fact, it's funny you used a reference to hiding your face ... because verse 24 specifically says "For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; HE HAS NOT HIDDEN HIS FACE FROM HIM but has listened to his cry for help."
If you have a relationship with Jesus Christ ...
GOD DOES NOT EVER LEAVE YOU
GOD DOES NOT EVER HIDE HIS FACE FROM YOU
GOD IS NEVER "NOT THERE"
It might not be how we like it, want it, believe it, or accept it to be but ... God is always with us, He will never leave us or forsake us.
This true because when we enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ, we are married to Him in a 1 + 1 = 1 relationship. God sees us as His son - and just the same as Jesus He will not leave us, turn away from us, forsake us, or hide His face from us. This is the only kind of unfailing, agape loving God I could ever serve - and I am thankful that He is my God. Since I have a relationship with God I CANNOT experience a Godless world. At times it might FEEL like it, but that is only a false feeling.