From the garden of Eden to the great restoration of the last days, men and women have attempted to hide themselves from God, seeking safety and avoidance of the consequences of sin due to those who think, speak, and act contrary to God’s good design.
We first find this in the garden following the initial sin of Adam and Eve. After seeking their own pleasure, satisfaction, and authority, they felt the onset of conviction over their sin. Their solution to this sense of wrongdoing was to hide from the One who made them, loved them, and had given them the instructions they rebelled against. No surprise to us, God knew where they were. He drew them out of their hiding and confronted them in their attempts to hide their sin.
Even in the last days, this effort to hide from God won’t be successful. In Revelation 6 as the seals are being opened, verse 15 speaks of kings, nobles, generals, rich, powerful, slaves, and free people hiding in caves and among the rocks as the wrath of God for sin becomes more and more imminent. In an effort to hide from the God, they run for cover hoping they can escape the looming punishment. In the subsequent chapters of this apocalyptic letter, that coming wrath is revealed against the ungodly and their hiding proves to be to no avail.
Reading these accounts of people seeking to hide from God brings to light at least two very important truths. First, we cannot hide from God. There is nowhere we can go in His creation that He will not be aware of. Second, God knows not just where we are, but every other detail of who we are as well.
In light of this, Psalm 139 provides the most freeing of assurances to our failed attempts to hide, giving the reader a beautiful understanding of the sovereignty of God and the value of every human life. Not only is there no where we can go to hide from God, but every other detail of our lives is known to Him, and even determined and directed by Him.
The next time you are tempted to hide from God because of sin, guilt, or shame, remember these central truths. There is nowhere you can go to flee from God. He knows you better than you know yourself. And He wants you to accept that, willingly confess your sin to Him, and trust that He is gracious and merciful to forgive His children because of His Son, Jesus.
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FAMILY TALKING POINTS
CHRIST CONNECTION
This is the big idea of how this week’s Bible story points to Jesus.
- Babies & Toddlers: God made us and cares for us. He sent Jesus to save us from our sins.
- Younger Preschool: Every person matters. God created us and cares for us. He sent His Son, Jesus, to save us from our sins. God commands us to show love to everyone.
- Older Preschool: Every person matters. God created us and cares for us. He sent His Son, Jesus, to save us from our sins. As we love and follow God, He commands us to show love to everyone.
- Kids: Every person matters. God created us and cares for us. He sent His Son, Jesus, to save us from our sins. As we love and follow God, He calls us to love others and show respect to everyone
BIG PICTURE QUESTION & ANSWER
This is an important biblical truth that your child will encounter each week of this unit.
- Younger Preschool: What makes people special? People are special because God made us.
- Older Preschool: What makes people special? People are special because God made us in His own image.
- Kids: What makes people special? People are special because we are made in God’s image, as male and female, to know Him.
KEY PASSAGE
This is a Bible verse that relates to what your child will encounter each week of this unit.
- Babies & Toddlers: God made me. Psalm 139:14
- Younger Preschool: I will praise God because He made me. Psalm 139:14
- Older Preschool: I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made. Your works are wondrous, and I know this very well. Psalm 139:14
- Kids: For it was you who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made. Your works are wondrous, and I know this very well. Psalm 139:13-14
** Next week: Jeremiah Encouraged God’s People (Jeremiah 29–30)