What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God? Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you.” In this Scripture, God clearly commands our confident trust in His sovereign authority, ability, and power to do what He says He will do. Due to the fact that we live in a world that encourages us to believe in ourselves, our strength, and to strive for the achievement of all that we desire, it is of great importance to understand who and Whose we are. We all know that the society has set a bar to earn and accumulate. Accessories and accomplishments are lauded above humility and God-ordained purpose.
It is unfortunate that we generally have hard times when it comes to taking God by His word. This is obviously because of our sinful and unbelieving human nature. However, things ought not to happen this way. God is one with His Word. God’s promises never fail. He did it in the past, H is doing it today, and He will certainly do it in times to come (Hebrews 13:8). That is, you can be sure of God’s promises. You can be certain that He will accomplish all that He said He will. God calls on us to be strong and courageous because He will never leave nor forsake us. That is, the nearness of God to His people is a sure fact. God is so close to His children that nothing happens to them without His knowledge.
What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
What the Scriptures say about nearness
The Scripture is clear on the fact that anyone who remains faithful to God can count him/herself among those who dwell in His presence. Adam and Eve lived very close to God but their rebellion shifted them far from His presence. Despite their rebellion, God did not completely abandon them but He promised to send His Son to restore the lost closeness with Him. The Bible says that God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, Jesus Christ to become the lamb that takes away the sins of those who Believe and come to Him through a Sincere Repentance. And behold, talking about a sincere repentance is talking about a mind ready to obey the Key Teachings Of Jesus Christ. Those who follow His Teachings are those who are destined to benefit from God’s special gift of Eternal Life in His presence.
What The Bible Says About Nearness To God
Psalm 16:11 – “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”
Psalm 34:17-18 – “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
2 Thessalonians 3:16 – “Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.”
2 Chronicles 15:2b – “The Lord is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.”
Philippians 4:5 – “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.“
1 Chronicles 16:11 – “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”
John 14:18 – “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”
Psalm 105:4 – “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”
Ephesians 2:13 – “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
1 John 4:13 – “This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.”
Psalm 27:4 – “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”
Psalm 23:6 – “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Group 1 – What The Bible Says About Nearness To God
2 Corinthians 13:11 – “Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.”
Luke 10:9 – “Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”
Psalm 84:10 – “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.”
Isaiah 55:6 – “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.”
1 Kings 8:57 – “May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake us.”
1 John 1:9 – “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Isaiah 26:3 – “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”
Nehemiah 9:31 – “But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.”
Exodus 34:28 – “Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.”
John 1:18 – “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.”
Group 2 – What The Bible Says About Nearness To God
Psalm 42:5 – “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation.”
1 John 4:19 – “We love because he first loved us.”
Titus 2:13 – “Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,”
Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”
Hebrews 4:15 – “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
Psalm 119:105 – “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
Romans 8:28 – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
1 Corinthians 10:31 – “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
Hebrews 10:25 – “Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
Titus 3:5 – “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,”
1 Peter 5:7 – “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
Group 3 – What The Bible Says About Nearness To God
Psalm 8:4 – “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?”
Joshua 1:8 – “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”
Romans 8:9 – “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.”
1 Corinthians 3:16 – “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”
James 4:8 – “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
1 John 1:7 – “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”
2 Peter 3:16 – “As he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.”
1 John 3:2 – “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”
Group 4 – What The Bible Says About Nearness To God
Hebrews 1:14 – “Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”
2 Timothy 3:16 – “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”
Hebrews 10:22 – “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
1 Peter 2:24 – “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”
1 Peter 3:18 – “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,”
2 Corinthians 7:10 – “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 – “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”
2 Corinthians 11:3 – “But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 5:21 – “But test everything; hold fast what is good.”
Group 5 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Revelation 5:9 – And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,”
Psalm 96:9 – “Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth!“
John 10:10 – “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
1 Corinthians 1:2 – “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:”
John 14:15 – “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
Revelation 13:1-18 – “And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?” And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. …”
Group 6 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Revelation 20:11-15 – “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, ...”
1 John 4:8 – “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
1 John 5:13 – “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.”
Jude 1:14 – “It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones,”
Jude 1:3 – “Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.”
Revelation 7:15 – “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.”
Group 7 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
1 Peter 2:9 – “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
1 Peter 1:13 – “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 2:1 – “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”
1 John 5:10 – “Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son.”
2 Timothy 3:13 – “While evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”
2 Timothy 4:5 – “As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.“
Hebrews 13:15 – “Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.”
Hebrews 12:6 – “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”
James 2:26 – “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”
Group 8 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
1 Timothy 6:10 – “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”
1 Timothy 1:15 – “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.”
2 Timothy 1:12 – “Which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.”
2 Timothy 4:2 – “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”
Colossians 1:10 – “So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
1 Thessalonians 2:13 – “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.”
Colossians 3:16 – “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 – “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
Group 9 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Ephesians 5:33 – “However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”
Philippians 1:6 – “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
Ephesians 6:12 – “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.”
Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
Ephesians 5:22-33 – “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, …”
Ephesians 5:18 – “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,”
Philippians 4:7 – “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Group 10 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Ephesians 2:8-9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
1 Corinthians 10:20 – “No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons.“
Galatians 3:14 – “So that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”
Ephesians 3:16 – “That according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,“
Ephesians 4:11-12 – “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,”
2 Corinthians 3:18 – “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”
2 Corinthians 4:6 – “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Galatians 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
2 Corinthians 5:17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
Group 11 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 – “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
Ephesians 3:19 – “And to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
1 Corinthians 14:24-25 – “But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.”
1 Corinthians 11:28 – “Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”
Romans 8:18 – “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Romans 10:13 – For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
1 Corinthians 15:1-58 – “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. ...”
Group 12 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Romans 8:32 – “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
Romans 8:26 – “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”
Romans 13:8 – “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”
1 Corinthians 3:17 – “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.”
Romans 15:4 – “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
Romans 13:1-4 – “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.”
1 Corinthians 1:24 – “But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
Group 13 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
Romans 13:1-14 – “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. …”
Romans 2:15 – “They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them.”
Acts 17:11 – “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”
Romans 5:5 – “And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
Acts 16:31 – And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
Romans 5:8 – “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Group 14 – What Does The Bible Say About Nearness To God?
John 15:5 – “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
Romans 6:14 – “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”
Acts 5:29 – But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.”
Acts 1:1-26 – “In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” …”
