Being confined for an extended period of time to self-isolation and quarantine can have a devasting psychological effect on some people. But can it even cause imagined or real paranormal encounters with ghosts, as some claim?
Download AudioSpirit World
Is God really omnipresent, that is, everywhere at all times? Scriptures like Genesis 3:8-11 seem to suggest the opposite!
The question of God’s omnipresence has puzzled men for centuries and millennia, and diverse and sometimes incredible answers have been proposed.
One common idea in Orthodox Christianity is that God, as a Spirit being, is everywhere, as allegedly, Spirit has no form or shape–no limitations–no “parts.” God is understood to be–even though proponents of that idea would oppose such wording–a formless or shapeless “blob”–permeating everything.
This idea is clearly unbiblical. God HAS form and shape. God said that Moses saw the glorified “form” of the LORD (compare Numbers 12:8). God, when creating man, said that man was to be made in accordance with the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27; 9:6). God is described as having a head, arms, a body, feet, eyes and hair, among other aspects. Man is made in the physical form of God–he is a physical reflection, if you please, of the Spirit Beings, God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. Please also note that Christ is described as the [Spirit] image of God the Father (2 Corinthians 4:4). He looks like God the Father; that is why He could say, even when He was here on earth in human form; “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). In that same way–on a physical level–man is made in the image of God.
Given the fact that God has form and shape, He IS therefore at one given moment in only one place at one specific time. This means, when He is sitting on His throne in heaven, He is therefore not at that very same moment on earth, or on planet Mars, or in another galaxy billions of light-years away. This is why we read that God came down from heaven to walk on earth; that Jesus Christ, after His resurrection to a Spirit Being, ascended to heaven; that He was brought before God the Father in heaven to receive kingship and power; and that He will return to this earth, in power and glory, to rule all nations. Of course, we must also understand that God CAN “travel” from one place to another within a “split second.” But as we will see, when God is at a certain place, at that very same moment, He cannot be–as a Person–at a different place at the same time.
And still, it IS correct that God IS omnipresent–that is, that He is everywhere at all times, and NOTHING escapes His attention or is hidden from His eyes (Matthew 6:18).
Let us understand how this is possible.
David gives us the answer to this puzzle, which most professing Christians simply do NOT understand. He writes in Psalm 139:1-2:
“LORD, You have searched me and known me, You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought AFAR OFF.”
David knew that God could be “afar off,” and still understand all of his thoughts. How? Continuing in verses 3-6:
“You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. You have hedged me behind and before. And laid your hand upon me [i.e., He has given him protection and security]. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.”
But David did not conclude that God’s miraculous omnipresence was due to God being everywhere like a form- and shapeless blob; he knew better than that. And so, he continues to explain HOW God is omnipresent, beginning with verse 7:
“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?”
Here is the answer! God the Father and Jesus Christ are both Spirit beings. They both have form and shape, composed of Spirit. But the Holy Spirit is NOT a being–rather, it is the power emanating from God (compare Micah 3:8; Luke 4:14). It is through the POWER of God’s Holy Spirit that things are created. And God’s Holy Spirit does not have form and shape–God’s Holy Spirit does not exist in a bodily form. When God gave His Holy Spirit to the disciples gathered in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, there was a representative appearance in the form of “tongues as of fire” (compare Acts 2:3). However, the Holy Spirit was also here represented by a sound, “… as of a rushing mighty wind” (verse 2). These accompanying manifestations were given as signs to accompany this glorious event of the giving of God’s power and nature–His own Holy Spirit!
God’s Holy Spirit is everywhere. It is true that we read of another incidence when John the Baptist saw the Holy Spirit descending “like a dove” on Jesus Christ, Mark 1:10. This, however, was just a vision from God, showing John that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God, compare John 1:29-34.
God, a Spirit being, Who has form and shape, is everywhere through His Spirit. And so, David continues to meditate on this fact, as follows, in verses 8-12:
“If I ascend into heaven, You are there [through the Spirit of God]; If I make my bed in hell [Hebrew sheol, the grave], behold, you are there [through God’s Spirit]. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there your hand shall lead me [through God’s Holy Spirit], And your right hand shall hold me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall fall on me,’ Even the night shall be light upon me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.”
We read in Genesis 1:1-3: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was [better: became] without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the SPIRIT OF GOD was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.”
God the Father gave the command, Jesus Christ, the Son, the Word of God, spoke the word, gave the order, and created light through the power of the Holy Spirit (compare Psalm 104:30: “You send forth your Spirit, they are created.”). We read that God the Father created everything through Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2), and Christ did so by using the power of His Holy Spirit to accomplish this. Job 26:13 says: “By His Spirit He [God] adorned the heavens.” In that sense, the “Spirit of God has made [Elihu], And the breath of the Almighty [gave him] life” (Job 33:4). God’s Spirit can be compared with breath or wind. Note that the New Jerusalem Bible translates Genesis 1:2 as, “…with a divine wind sweeping over the waters.” God’s Holy Spirit emanates from God. It is not a person, but the power of God–and through the Holy Spirit, God is and can be everywhere at all times.
An additional piece of this marvelous truth is that God lives in converted Christians through His Holy Spirit–the Spirit of God the Father AND of Jesus Christ the Son. This is HOW God–both the Father and the Son–can dwell in thousands of Christians all at the same time (John 14:23)–through His Spirit (compare Romans 8:9-11, 14-15; Galatians 4:6).
Turning now to Genesis 3:8-11, we find that God–actually in the Person of Jesus Christ, as no man has ever seen the Father (John 1:18; 6:46)–“walked” in the Garden of Eden. That must be understood quite literally. At that moment in time, Christ appeared to Adam and Eve in a physical manifestation, but through His Spirit, He was still everywhere. [Later, we find that Christ appeared to Abraham and Sarah, together with two angels, manifesting themselves “as” humans, to eat and to speak with them about their future son and to warn Abraham of the impending destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (compare Genesis 18:1-2, 13, 16-33; 19:1).]
When God asked Adam in Genesis 3:11, whether he had eaten from the tree of knowledge, that is not to be misunderstood in the sense that God did not know this. He most certainly did–nothing is hidden from His eyes–but God engaged Adam in a dialogue to see how he would react. He gave Adam a chance to express his sorrow and grief–to express repentance for what he had done; instead, Adam chose to blame Eve and God for his sin (compare verse 12: “The WOMAN whom YOU GAVE to be with me, SHE gave me of the tree, and I ate.”).
To summarize, God the Father and Jesus Christ DO have form and shape. They exist as Spirit beings. Jesus revealed this key understanding that “God is Spirit…” (John 4:24). As the record of the Bible shows, Jesus–along with other Spirit composed beings, that is, God’s holy angels–manifested themselves at times in human form. While the Bible does not teach that God’s angels are omnipresent, it is clearly revealed that through the Holy Spirit of God, emanating from both the Father and the Son, God IS omnipresent.
For more information, please read our free booklets: “Is God a Trinity?”, “God Is A Family,” and “Angels, Demons and the Spirit World.”
Lead Writer: Norbert Link
Are angels or demons able to have sexual relationships with women and produce human offspring?
Absolutely not! God’s Word is very clear that such a possibility simply does not exist.
First
of all, let us remember that God made animals and humans according to
their kind (Genesis 1:21, 24-28). Animals can only reproduce other
animals, according to their kind (two dogs can produce another dog, but
they can’t produce a horse or a bird), and men can only produce humans
(they can’t produce animals). Since men and angels belong to a
different “kind,” it is impossible for that reason alone, that they
could produce human offspring.
In addition, as created spirit
beings, angels or fallen angels (demons) do not reproduce sexually or
by any other means. Jesus made this very clear. He said in Luke
20:34-36 that the “sons of this age,” i.e. human beings who live today,
“marry and are given in marriage.” One of the purposes of marriage is
reproduction, as well as having a sexual relationship (compare Genesis
1:28; 2:24). Married couples are to become “one flesh”–including
sexually. That is the reason why it is wrong to have sexual
relationships with a prostitute (1 Corinthians 6:16, 18). But
Christ told us that those who are worthy to attain the resurrection to
eternal life, will not marry or be given in marriage, but they will be,
in THAT sense, equal to angels. They will be OVER angels in authority
and essence (1 Corinthians 6:3; Hebrews 2:5-8), being children of GOD,
not of angels, but they will be EQUAL to angels in the sense that they
will no longer “marry”–physically–and engage in sexual activities. If
we want to accept Christ’s saying, it is obvious that angels (including
fallen angels) CANNOT have sexual relationships with humans and produce
human offspring.
Some quote Genesis 6:4 for the false idea that
angels married women and produced human offspring prior to the flood.
However, this interpretation is totally erroneous and must be rejected.
In Genesis 6:1-4, the context shows that sexual intercourse and
reproduction strictly through humans is described. We read:
“Now
it came to pass when MEN began to multiply on the face of the earth,
and daughters were born to them, that the SONS OF GOD saw the daughters
of MEN, that they were beautiful; and they took WIVES for themselves of
all WHOM THEY CHOSE. And the LORD said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive
with MAN forever, for he is indeed FLESH; yet his days shall be one
hundred and twenty years.’ There were giants (lit. mighty ones) on the
earth in those days, and also afterward, when the SONS OF GOD came to
the daughters of MEN and THEY BORE CHILDREN to THEM. Those were the
mighty MEN who were of old, men of renown.”
Although it is true
that in rare instances, “sons of God” can refer to angels (compare Job
1:6-8; 2:1), it refers most of the time to human beings (compare
Malachi 1:6; 2:10; Luke 3:38; Romans 8:14; Revelation 21:7). This is
also the case in Genesis 6. God decided to destroy sinful
men–flesh–not angels. We read that all flesh and every MAN died in
the flood (Genesis 7:21-23). Because of this, some commentaries point
out that the term “sons of God” might, in this instance, refer to the
“godly line of Seth” (compare Ryrie Study Bible). Halley’s Bible
Handbook allows for the possibility that the “sons of God” were
“leaders in Sethite families who intermarried with godless descendants
of Cain. These abnormal marriages… filled the earth with corruption
and violence.”
Even though the “sons of God” (human beings)
belonged to the line of Seth, and might have worshipped the true God
(compare Genesis 4:26), they took for themselves whatever women they
wanted–including those who did not believe in and worship the true God
(compare God’s warning in Malachi 2:15 and in 1 Corinthians 7:39; 2
Corinthians 6:14). The consequence was that “the wickedness of man was
great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart
was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5).
The Commentary of
Jamieson, Faussett and Brown agrees that Genesis 6 refers strictly to
human marriages, stating: “‘the sons of God saw the daughters of
men’–by the former is meant the family of Seth, who were professedly
religious; by the latter, the descendants of apostate Cain. Mixed
marriages between parties of opposite principles and practice were
necessarily sources of extensive corruption. The women, irreligious
themselves, would as wives and mothers exert an influence fatal to the
existence of religion in their household, and consequently the people
of that later age sank to the lowest depravity.”
Matthew Henry
agrees with this explanation: “The sons of God (that is, the professors
of religion) married the daughters of men, that is, those that were
profane, and strangers to God and godliness. The posterity of Seth did
not keep by themselves, as they ought to have done. They intermingled
themselves with the excommunicated race of Cain.”
Similar the
Soncino Commentary, identifying the “sons of God” as “the sons of
princes and judges,” referring to the fact that the word “Elohim” (in
“sons of God” or “Elohim”) always implies rulership and can refer to
human judges (compare Exodus 4:16; 7:1). It goes on to say that “thus
the very men who should have defended justice openly committed
violence” and that they took wives “by force,” including those “married
to others.”
The New Bible Commentary: Revised agrees with the
conclusion that Genesis 6 describes sexual relationships between human
beings only, but gives a slightly different meaning of the passage.
They point out that “‘the sons of God’ could be translated ‘the sons of
the gods.’ Ancient texts attest to an ideology of divine kingship;
human kings were called sons of various gods. This blasphemous cult was
a culmination of the Cainite name-lust… ‘daughters of men’ are the
daughters of men in general. By ‘such of them as they chose,’ polygamy
is meant…”
Based on the Biblical evidence, it is abundantly
clear that Genesis 6 does NOT teach at all that angels or demons had
sexual intercourse with women and produced human offspring.
Some
refer to a passage in Genesis 3:15, for the concept that Satan and his
demons can produce human offspring. However, this passage does not
allow for such an understanding. In Genesis 3:15, God speaks to Satan,
after he had tempted Eve to sin, stating: “And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall
bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”
The reference
here is to Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the “Seed of a woman,” and to the
human beings who would be under the influence of Satan the devil–his
“seed.” Christ, born of a woman, would nullify Satan’s power over man.
Satan bruised Christ’s heel, causing Him to suffer and to be put to
death, but Christ conquered death through the resurrection (Hebrews
2:14-15). He overcame Satan and will ultimately replace him, when He
returns. “Satan’s seed” refers to human beings in general who are still
under Satan’s sway. Satan, as the god and ruler of this world, has
deceived the whole world. Humans follow him, and they are called in the
Bible “children of the devil” (John 8:44; compare Matthew 13:38). They
are not the LITERAL physical offspring of Satan, of course, but his
spiritual seed. Once we accept God’s way of life and receive God’s Holy
Spirit, we become begotten children of God (1 John 3:1-2)–but again,
not in the sense that we are the LITERAL physical offspring of God, but
we are His spiritual seed. The ONLY one who was LITERALLY physically
begotten by God the Father, through the Holy Spirit, was Jesus Christ
(Luke 1:30-35)–that is why He is called the “ONLY-begotten Son” (John
1:18; 1 John 4:9).
The Ryrie Study Bible explains Genesis 3:15 in
this way: “‘between thy seed’ (the spiritual descendants of Satan, cf.
John 8:44; Eph. 2:2) ‘and her seed’ (those who are in the family of
God)… An individual from among the woman’s seed, namely Christ, will
deal a death blow to Satan’s ‘head’ at the cross [and His subsequent
resurrection from the dead], while Satan (‘thou’) would ‘bruise
Christ’s heel’ (cause Him to suffer).”
Even though the woman’s
“seed” might very well include the “family of God”–that is, converted
Christians–it is nevertheless true that the most obvious reference is
to Jesus Christ. As Halley’s Bible Handbook points out: “Here… is
God’s prophecy that His Creation of Man would yet prove to be
successful, through the ‘seed of the Woman.’ This is the Bible’s first
hint of a Coming Redeemer. The use of ‘He’ (15) shows that One Person
is meant. There has been only ONE descendant of Eve who was born of
Woman without being begotten of Man.”
In conclusion, the idea
that angels or demons can produce human offspring is a dangerous and
wrong concept. It has inspired Hollywood’s movie writers to produce
some terrible and demonic pieces, such as “Rosemary’s Baby.” But many
ARE deceived today, thinking that such a diabolic act might be possible.
For more information on the world of angels and demons, please read our free booklet, “Angels, Demons and the Spirit World.”
Lead Writer: Norbert Link