Chapter 06: The Attack on God’s Omnipresence

Imagine for a moment that your best friend could only be in one place at a time. When you really need them, they might be miles away helping someone else. You’d have to wait your turn. You’d wonder if they could hear you calling. You’d feel alone sometimes, even though they care about you. This is exactly what Finis Dake taught about God. He said God the Father has a physical body that can only be in one place at a time. This teaching destroys one of the most comforting truths in the Bible – that God is always with us everywhere. Let’s look closely at what Dake taught, why it’s wrong, and what the Bible really says about God being everywhere.

Dake, Finis Jennings. Dake’s Annotated Reference Bible. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1963. Note on Jeremiah 23:24.

What Dake Really Taught About God’s Location

To understand how seriously wrong Dake’s teaching was, we need to look at his own words. Many people who use the Dake Bible don’t realize how extreme his views really were. They see his notes and think they’re just helpful explanations. But Dake wasn’t just explaining the Bible – he was changing what it teaches about God in very dangerous ways.

Dake’s Shocking Claims

In his note on Jeremiah 23:24, Dake wrote something that should alarm every Christian. The Bible verse says, “Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD.” This verse clearly teaches that God fills everything – heaven and earth. There’s nowhere we can go where God isn’t already there. But look at what Dake wrote about this verse:

Did you catch that? Dake put the word “NOT” in capital letters. He’s shouting at us that God is NOT everywhere! According to Dake, God the Father has a body that stays in one place, usually in heaven. Only the Holy Spirit can be everywhere. This means when you pray to God the Father, He might not be with you. His body might be far away in heaven. “Omnipresent, everywhere present. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all present where there are beings with whom they have dealings; but they are not omnibody, that is, their bodies are not omnipresent. All three go from place to place bodily as other beings in the universe do.”¹

But Dake didn’t stop there. In his note on Genesis 11:5, where the Bible says “the LORD came down to see the city,” Dake made another shocking statement:

Think about what Dake is saying here. He’s teaching that God the Father has to travel from place to place like we do. God has to “come down” from heaven to see what’s happening on earth. While He’s traveling to earth, He’s not in heaven. While He’s in heaven, He’s not on earth. This is not the God of the Bible – this is a limited god who can’t be everywhere.

How Dake’s Teaching Developed

Dake didn’t come up with this idea randomly. It came from his bigger error about God having a physical body. You see, if God has a body like Dake taught (which we looked at in Chapter 5), then that body has to be somewhere. A body can’t be everywhere at once. Your body is sitting or standing in one place right now as you read this. You can’t make your body be in two places at the same time. Neither can anyone else.

Dake applied this same limitation to God. Since he believed God has a body with hands, feet, eyes, and a mouth (as he lists in many places), then God’s body must be located somewhere specific. Dake taught that God’s body is usually in heaven, sitting on a throne. From there, God has to travel to other places when needed. “God’s body is like that of a man, for man was created in His likeness and His image bodily (Gen. 1:26, notes; also note r, Jn. 4:24).”³ He even stated that “God also has many other means of travel and goes from one place to another bodily as all other beings in existence. He is omnipresent, but not omnibody.”⁴

In his book “God’s Plan for Man,” Dake explained this even more clearly. He wrote that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit each have their own separate bodies. “What we mean by Divine Trinity is that there are three separate and distinct persons in the Godhead, each one having His own personal spirit body, personal soul, and personal spirit in the same sense each human being, angel, or any other being has his own body, soul, and spirit.”⁵ Just like three different people can be in three different places, Dake’s three gods can be in different locations. This isn’t the Trinity – this is three separate gods!

Dake was absolutely clear about his belief that God’s body is limited in size and location: “Spirit beings, including God, Himself, cannot be omnipresent in body, for their bodies are of ordinary size and must be at one place at a time, in the same way that bodies of men are always localized, being in one place at a time.”²¹

The Travel Schedule of Dake’s God

According to Dake, the Bible is full of examples of God traveling from place to place. Let’s look at how Dake interpreted some Bible stories:

The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:5-7): Dake said God had to leave heaven and come down to earth to see what people were building. God couldn’t see it from heaven – He had to travel there to check it out. Then He had to go back up to heaven. “It is clear from Gen. 11:5 that God appeared on earth at the time of the tower of Babel, for it says, ‘the Lord came down to see the city and the tower.'”⁶

Abraham and Sodom (Genesis 18:21): When God said, “I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it,” Dake took this literally. He believed God didn’t know what was happening in Sodom until He traveled there to investigate.

The Exodus (Exodus 3:8): When God said, “I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians,” Dake taught that God literally traveled from heaven to Egypt. God had to leave His throne and make a trip to help Israel.

Do you see the pattern? Every time the Bible uses language about God “coming down” or “going up,” Dake took it literally. He didn’t understand that the Bible often uses human language to help us understand God’s actions. When the Bible says God “came down,” it’s not saying God had to travel. It’s saying God acted in a special way in that place. But Dake missed this completely. “Omnipresence then, is different from omnibody, and is governed by relationship and knowledge of God. Like the presence of someone being felt by another who is thousands of miles away, so it is with the presence of God among men.”⁷

The Limits This Places on God

Think about what Dake’s teaching really means for God:

This creates huge problems for everything we believe about God. How can God govern the universe if He can only be in one place? How can God hear prayers from around the world if His ears are located in one spot? How can God protect His people everywhere if His body is limited to one location?

Dake tried to solve this problem by saying the Holy Spirit is everywhere, but God the Father isn’t. But this creates even more problems. It means the three persons of the Trinity aren’t equal. It means when Jesus said “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20), He couldn’t keep that promise if His body is in heaven. It means we have three different gods with different abilities, not one God in three persons. “These three (individuals-the Father, the Word or Son, and the Holy Ghost) are o. (1 Jn. 5:7). The only sense in which three can be done is in unity—never in number of persons.”⁸

Dake even tried to argue that Jesus’ own words support his view: “God personally dwells in Heaven, not everywhere. Jesus addressed His Father and referred to Him as being in Heaven. Eighteen times He said, ‘Father which is in heaven’ (Matt. 5:16, 45, 48; 6:1, 9; 7:11, 21, etc.). Shall we conclude that Jesus did not know what He was talking about?”²² But Dake completely misses that Jesus can speak of the Father being “in heaven” as His dwelling place while the Father is still omnipresent everywhere!

How This Contradicts Clear Scripture

The Bible couldn’t be clearer about God being everywhere. There are dozens of verses that teach God’s omnipresence (which means being everywhere). Let’s look at the most important ones and see how completely they destroy Dake’s false teaching.

Psalm 139:7-10 – You Can’t Escape God’s Presence

One of the most beautiful passages in the Bible about God being everywhere is Psalm 139:7-10. King David wrote these words:

Let’s break this down so we can see how clearly it teaches that God is everywhere:

“Whither shall I go from thy spirit?” – David starts with a question. Where can I go to get away from God’s Spirit? The answer is: nowhere!

“Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?” – Here’s another way of asking the same question. Where can I run to escape from God’s presence? Again, the answer is: nowhere!

“If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there” – If I go up as high as possible, to heaven itself, God is there. Not “God will travel there” or “God can see there from a distance.” God IS there.

“If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there” – Even if I go down to Sheol (the place of the dead), look! God is there too. The word “behold” means “look carefully!” It’s emphasizing that God is already there.

“If I take the wings of the morning” – This is poetic language for traveling as fast as light travels from east to west at sunrise. Even if I could travel at the speed of light…

“And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea” – And go to the farthest possible place, the most remote location on earth…

“Even there shall thy hand lead me” – Even in that distant place, God’s hand is there to lead me. Not “God’s hand will come there” but “shall lead me” – it’s already there ready to lead.

“And thy right hand shall hold me” – God’s right hand (a symbol of His power) will hold me there. God doesn’t have to travel there first. He’s already there waiting.

This passage absolutely destroys Dake’s teaching. David isn’t saying God can quickly travel anywhere. He’s saying God is already everywhere. There’s no place in the universe where God isn’t fully present. You can’t outrun God. You can’t hide from God. You can’t go somewhere God isn’t, because God fills everything.

Now, if Dake was right that God has a body in heaven, this psalm makes no sense. How could God’s body be in heaven and hell at the same time? How could God’s physical hand be at the bottom of the sea and in heaven simultaneously? The only way this psalm makes sense is if God doesn’t have a physical body but is spirit who fills everything. Yet Dake stubbornly insisted that “God can do all things consistent with His nature and plan, but He cannot lie or act contrary to Himself and the best good of all.”⁹ But he also claimed “Omnipresent (not omnibody, 1 Ki. 8:27; Ps. 139:7-12). Presence is not governed by bodily contact, but by knowledge and relationship (Mt. 18:20; 28:20; cp. 1 Cor. 5:3-4). God’s body is not omnipresent, for it is only at one place at one time like others (Gen. 3:8; 11:5; 18:1-8, 33; 19:24; 32:24-32), but His presence can be realized any place where men know Him and seek Him (Mt. 18:20).”¹⁰

Jeremiah 23:24 – God Fills Heaven and Earth

Remember, this is the very verse where Dake added his “NOT” to deny God’s omnipresence. Let’s see what it really says:

God asks two questions here, and both expect the answer “No!” to the first and “Yes!” to the second:

First question: “Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him?” Can anyone hide where God can’t see them? NO! It’s impossible. Why? Because…

Second question: “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” Doesn’t God fill everything in heaven and earth? YES! God fills it all.

The word “fill” is crucial here. God doesn’t just “see” heaven and earth from a distance. He doesn’t just “know about” heaven and earth. He FILLS heaven and earth. Every spot in the universe is filled with God’s presence.

Think about what it means to fill something. If you fill a glass with water, the water touches every part of the inside of the glass. There’s no empty space. That’s what God is saying – He fills all of heaven and earth. There’s no empty space where God isn’t present.

Dake tried to get around this by saying God fills heaven and earth “in Spirit” but not “in body.” But the verse doesn’t make that distinction. It simply says God fills heaven and earth. Period. The God speaking here is the LORD (Yahweh), not just the Holy Spirit. The Father fills heaven and earth.

In his book “God’s Plan for Man,” Dake attempts to redefine what these passages mean: “This is what is meant by statements men use to prove that God personally fills the whole of all space and matter. In Ps. 139:7 the psalmist said, ‘whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?’ God said to Jeremiah, ‘Do not I fill heaven and earth?’ (Jer. 23:23-24). Paul said, ‘In him we live, and move, and have our being’ (Acts 17:27-28). We must understand all like passages, as teaching the omnipresence of God, but not the omnibody of God.”²³ But this is Dake adding his own interpretation to Scripture – the passages themselves make no such distinction!

Acts 17:27-28 – We Live Inside God

The apostle Paul, speaking to philosophers in Athens, taught something amazing about God’s presence:

Paul says God is “not far from every one of us.” Actually, that’s an understatement. God isn’t just “not far” – He’s so present that we actually live inside Him! Look at that phrase: “In him we live, and move, and have our being.”

We don’t just live near God. We live IN God. We don’t just move near God. We move IN God. We don’t just exist near God. We have our being IN God. It’s like fish living in water – completely surrounded and filled with God’s presence.

How could this be true if God has a body located in heaven? How could billions of people live and move inside God if God’s body is sitting on a throne far away? It’s impossible. Paul is teaching that God is everywhere present, surrounding and filling all things. We exist within God’s omnipresence.

This is why Paul could tell the philosophers that God isn’t far from any of them. Even these pagan philosophers who didn’t know the true God were still living within His presence. They couldn’t escape Him even if they tried.

1 Kings 8:27 – Heaven Cannot Contain God

When Solomon dedicated the temple, he prayed something that shows he understood God’s omnipresence:

Solomon understood something Dake missed – God cannot be contained. Not even “the heaven of heavens” (the highest heaven) can contain God. The word “contain” means to hold something inside, to limit it to a space. Solomon says even the biggest space we can imagine – all the heavens – cannot contain God.

Why not? Because God is bigger than space itself. God isn’t in space; space is in God. God doesn’t exist in the universe; the universe exists in God. God is omnipresent – everywhere present at once.

If Dake was right that God has a body, then heaven could contain Him. A body, no matter how big, can be contained. It has boundaries. It has limits. It fits inside space. But Solomon says heaven itself cannot contain God. This only makes sense if God is spirit without physical limits.

Proverbs 15:3 – God’s Eyes Are Everywhere

Here’s another verse that destroys Dake’s teaching:

Notice it doesn’t say God’s eyes can see every place from heaven. It says God’s eyes ARE in every place. They’re present everywhere, watching both evil and good things happening.

If God has physical eyes attached to a physical head on a physical body in heaven (as Dake taught), how can His eyes be in every place? Can you make your eyes be in multiple places at once? Of course not! Physical eyes are attached to one head in one location. Dake even admitted listing God’s physical attributes: “He has a spirit body (Dan. 7:9-14; 10:5-19; Isa. 6; Ez. 1; Rev. 4)…Eyes (Ps. 11:4; 18:24; 33:18).”¹¹

But God’s “eyes” (His ability to see and know) are everywhere because God Himself is everywhere. This is only possible because God is spirit, not a physical being limited to one location.

Isaiah 66:1 – Heaven Is God’s Throne, Earth His Footstool

God speaks through Isaiah with this amazing statement:

Think about the size God is describing here. All of heaven is His throne. All of earth is His footstool. This is picture language showing God’s incredible size and presence. He’s so big that the universe is like furniture to Him.

But if God has a physical body sitting on a physical throne in heaven (as Dake taught), this makes no sense. How can heaven be His throne if He’s sitting on a throne IN heaven? How can earth be His footstool if His body is far away in heaven?

God is using this language to show He’s too big for any house we could build. He’s too vast for any location. He fills everything and is beyond everything. This is omnipresence – being everywhere at once.

Ephesians 4:6 – God Is Above All, Through All, In All

Paul gives us a beautiful description of God’s omnipresence:

Look at these three descriptions:

“Above all” – God transcends everything. He’s higher than everything.

“Through all” – God pervades everything. He goes through everything.

“In you all” – God indwells His people. He’s inside believers.

How could God be above all, through all, and in all if He has a body in one location? A body can be above something or through something or in something, but not all three at once. Only an omnipresent spirit can be above all, through all, and in all simultaneously.

Matthew 18:20 – Jesus Is Present Where Believers Gather

Jesus made this promise to His disciples:

Think about what this means. Right now, around the world, millions of groups of Christians are gathered for worship, prayer, Bible study, and fellowship. According to Jesus, He is present “in the midst” of every single group.

How is this possible if Jesus has a physical body sitting at the right hand of God in heaven? Can one body be in millions of places at once? Of course not! This promise only works if Jesus, being God, is omnipresent.

And notice Jesus doesn’t say “My Spirit is there” or “I’m watching from heaven.” He says “There am I” – He Himself is present. This is only possible because Jesus is God, and God is omnipresent.

Hebrews 4:13 – Nothing Is Hidden from God

The writer of Hebrews tells us:

Everything is “naked and opened” before God’s eyes. Nothing can hide. Nothing is covered. Everything is exposed to God. Why? Because God is everywhere present. There’s no place to hide from someone who fills every place.

If God had a body in heaven looking down at earth, things could hide. Just like you can’t see everything from where you’re sitting, a God with physical eyes in one location couldn’t see everything. But because God is omnipresent, nothing can hide from Him.

The Difference Between God’s Presence and Manifestation

To understand where Dake went wrong, we need to understand an important distinction: the difference between God’s presence and God’s manifestation. This is a crucial concept that helps us understand many Bible passages correctly.

God’s Presence Is Everywhere

God’s presence means God Himself is everywhere. As we’ve seen from Scripture, God fills heaven and earth. There’s no place where God isn’t present. This is always true, whether we feel it or not, whether we see any sign of it or not. God is as present in a prison cell as He is in a church. God is as present in the depths of the ocean as He is in heaven.

Think of it like the air around you. Right now, air is all around you. It’s in every corner of the room. It fills every space. You don’t always think about it or feel it, but it’s always there. God’s presence is like that, except even more complete. At least air doesn’t go through solid objects, but God’s presence fills everything.

God’s presence is:

God’s Manifestation Is Special

God’s manifestation is when God makes His presence known in a special way. It’s when God acts or reveals Himself in a particular place for a particular purpose. The God who is everywhere chooses to show Himself somewhere specific.

Think about Moses and the burning bush. God was always present in that desert, but at that moment, God manifested Himself in the burning bush. God didn’t travel there – He was already there. But He chose to reveal Himself there in a special way.

Or think about the pillar of cloud and fire that led Israel through the wilderness. God was present everywhere in the wilderness, but He manifested Himself in that pillar. The pillar wasn’t containing all of God – it was just a visible sign of the God who filled everything.

God’s manifestation is:

Why This Distinction Matters

This distinction helps us understand difficult Bible passages. When the Bible says God “came down” or “departed” or “drew near,” it’s talking about manifestation, not presence. God is always present everywhere, but He doesn’t always manifest Himself everywhere.

Let’s look at some examples:

Genesis 11:5 – “The LORD came down to see the city”
This doesn’t mean God traveled from heaven to earth. God was already present at Babel. But now God manifested Himself to bring judgment. He acted in a special way to confuse their languages.

Exodus 3:8 – “I am come down to deliver them”
God didn’t travel to Egypt. He was always there, even during Israel’s slavery. But now God manifested His power to deliver them. He showed Himself as the deliverer.

1 Samuel 4:21 – “The glory is departed from Israel”
God’s presence didn’t leave Israel. God was still there. But His manifest glory, His special blessing and protection, was removed because of their sin.

Ezekiel 10:18 – “The glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold”
Ezekiel saw God’s glory (His manifested presence) leave the temple. But God Himself didn’t stop being omnipresent. He removed His special manifested presence from that place.

Dake confused manifestation with presence. When he read about God “coming down,” he thought God’s presence was moving from one place to another. But really, the omnipresent God was choosing to manifest Himself in a new way. “Abraham and Eve saw God in visible form after they had sinned, and hid themselves from Him ‘amongst the trees of the garden’ because ‘they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden’ (Gen. 3:8-19). They could not hide behind a tree from God in His invisible presence which is everywhere.”¹²

Different Kinds of God’s Presence

The Bible actually talks about God’s presence in several ways. Understanding these helps us avoid Dake’s errors:

1. God’s Essential Presence
This is God’s omnipresence – He fills everything always. “Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD” (Jeremiah 23:24). This never changes.

2. God’s Manifest Presence
This is when God reveals Himself specially. Like at Mount Sinai: “And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire” (Exodus 19:18).

3. God’s Indwelling Presence
This is God living in believers. “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16).

4. God’s Blessing Presence
This is God’s favorable presence bringing blessing. “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy” (Psalm 16:11).

5. God’s Judging Presence
This is God present to bring judgment. “The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men” (Psalm 11:4).

All of these are different aspects of the one omnipresent God. He doesn’t have to travel to be present in any of these ways. He’s already everywhere and chooses how to relate to each place.

Understanding “Anthropomorphic” Language

The Bible often uses anthropomorphic language about God. That’s a big word that means describing God in human terms to help us understand. The Bible talks about God’s hands, eyes, ears, and feet. It says God walks, sits, stands, and comes down. But these are picture words to help us understand God’s actions, not literal descriptions of a physical body.

Think about how we talk. We say “the sun rises” even though we know the earth rotates. We say “time flies” even though time doesn’t have wings. We say “the arm of the law” even though law doesn’t have arms. These are figures of speech that communicate truth without being literally true.

The Bible does the same thing with God. When it says God’s “eyes” see everything, it means God knows everything, not that He has physical eyeballs. When it says God’s “hand” delivered Israel, it means God’s power saved them, not that a physical hand picked them up.

Dake’s huge mistake was taking this picture language literally. He collected every reference to God’s body parts and said, “See! God has a body!” But he missed that these are accommodations to human understanding, not anatomy lessons. “In over 20,000 references about God in Scripture we get to know all we need to know about the subject. If we will take the Bible literally as to what it says about Him, as we do with other things the subject will be very clear.”¹³ Dake confused literal interpretation with literalistic interpretation, failing to recognize figurative language where it appears.

Why Omnipresence Is Essential to God Being God

God’s omnipresence isn’t just a nice extra feature – it’s essential to God being God. If God isn’t omnipresent, He isn’t really God. Let’s explore why omnipresence is absolutely necessary for the true God.

Omnipresence and God’s Infinity

God is infinite – without limits. This is basic to the concept of God. A limited god isn’t really God; it’s just a powerful creature. But if God has a body located in one place (as Dake taught), then God is finite – He has limits. He’s limited to where His body is.

Think about it this way. Everything with a body has borders. Your body ends where the air begins. You can draw a line around anything with a body. That line is a limit, a boundary. But the moment you can draw a line around God, He stops being infinite. He becomes finite, limited, contained.

The Bible teaches God is infinite:

An omnipresent God has no boundaries. You can’t draw a line around someone who fills everything. There’s no place where God ends and something else begins because God fills all things. This is true infinity. Yet Dake claimed “Infinite: in presence (1 Ki. 8:27); power (Mt. 28:18); acts (Mt. 19:26); in time (Dt. 33:27; Ps. 90:2; Isa. 57:15); knowledge (Rom. 11:33); and in greatness (Ps. 145:3).”¹⁴ But then contradicted himself by denying God’s omnipresence!

Omnipresence and God’s Power

God is omnipotent – all-powerful. But power needs presence to work. You can’t exercise power where you aren’t present. You can’t lift something you can’t reach. You can’t fix something you can’t touch. Power requires some kind of presence.

If God isn’t omnipresent, His power is limited to where His body is. He could only do things in one place at a time. While He’s parting the Red Sea, He couldn’t also be protecting someone in China. While He’s in heaven, He couldn’t be working on earth.

But because God is omnipresent, His power works everywhere simultaneously. Right now, God is:

• Holding billions of galaxies in place
• Keeping every atom in existence
• Directing the growth of every plant
• Sustaining every heartbeat
• Hearing every prayer
• Working in every situation

This is only possible because God is present everywhere to exercise His power everywhere. As the Bible says:

Omnipresence and God’s Knowledge

God is omniscient – all-knowing. He knows everything that happens everywhere instantly. But how could God know what’s happening everywhere if He’s not present everywhere?

Dake might say God can see everywhere from heaven, like looking through a telescope. But there are several problems with this:

First, seeing from a distance isn’t the same as knowing fully. You might see someone crying from far away, but you don’t know their thoughts, feelings, and situation like you would if you were present with them.

Second, physical sight has limitations. Light takes time to travel. When we look at stars, we’re seeing the past because light took years to reach us. If God sees from heaven, He’d be seeing the past, not the present.

Third, things can block physical sight. You can’t see through walls or mountains. If God has physical eyes, His vision could be blocked.

But because God is omnipresent, He knows everything immediately and completely. He doesn’t watch from a distance – He’s present in every situation. As the Bible says:

Omnipresence and God’s Rule

God is sovereign – He rules over everything. But how can you rule what you’re not present to control? A king’s authority only extends as far as his presence (through himself or representatives) reaches. Beyond that, he has no real control.

If God isn’t omnipresent, there are places outside His direct control. While He’s dealing with one situation, others spiral out of control. Like a shepherd who can only watch one sheep at a time while wolves attack the others.

But because God is omnipresent, He rules everything directly. Nothing is outside His immediate control. No situation develops without His presence. No rebellion happens where He isn’t. As Scripture declares:

Omnipresence and God’s Immutability

God is immutable – He doesn’t change. “I am the LORD, I change not” (Malachi 3:6). But if God has to travel from place to place, He’s constantly changing location. He’s here, then He’s there. He’s present, then He’s absent. This is change.

Movement is change. When you walk across a room, you’ve changed. You were in one relationship to the room, now you’re in another. You were far from the door, now you’re near it. These are real changes.

If God moves from heaven to earth and back (as Dake taught), God changes. But this contradicts God’s immutability. An unchanging God can’t be constantly changing locations.

But an omnipresent God never changes location because He’s always everywhere. He doesn’t come and go because He’s always present. He doesn’t arrive or leave because He’s always there. This is the unchanging God of Scripture.

Omnipresence and God’s Perfection

God is perfect – complete in every way. Nothing is missing from God. He lacks nothing. But if God isn’t omnipresent, He lacks presence in most places. At any moment, God would be absent from countless locations. This is a lack, an imperfection.

Think about it: What’s more perfect – being everywhere or being limited to one place? Having complete presence or partial presence? Filling all things or filling one space? Obviously, omnipresence is more perfect than localized presence.

A perfect God must be omnipresent. Anything less is imperfection. As Jesus said:

Omnipresence Makes God Unique

Only God is omnipresent. No creature can be everywhere. Angels, as powerful as they are, can only be in one place at a time. Demons, despite their evil power, are limited to locations. Even Satan must travel: “The LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it” (Job 1:7). “Satan, as an angel, could not possibly enter bodily into Judas, for he has his own personal spirit body as big as a man.”¹⁵

Omnipresence is one of the attributes that makes God absolutely unique. It’s part of what separates the Creator from all creatures. When Dake denied God’s omnipresence, he reduced God to the level of a creature – just bigger and more powerful, but not fundamentally different.

This is why omnipresence matters so much. It’s not just a theological detail. It’s about whether we’re worshiping the true God or an idol. The true God fills heaven and earth. An idol, no matter how powerful, is limited to a location.

Practical Implications for Prayer and Worship

Dake’s denial of God’s omnipresence doesn’t just affect theology – it destroys the practical Christian life. If God isn’t everywhere, then everything about how we relate to God changes. Let’s see how devastating this would be for prayer, worship, and daily Christian living.

What Happens to Prayer?

Prayer is talking to God. Christians believe we can pray anywhere, anytime, and God hears us immediately. But if God isn’t omnipresent, prayer becomes extremely complicated and uncertain.

The Problem of God’s Location
If God has a body in heaven (as Dake taught), how does He hear prayers from earth? Sound doesn’t travel through the vacuum of space. Even if it did, it would take millions of years for sound to travel from earth to God’s throne. By the time God heard your prayer, you’d be long dead!

Dake might say God has supernatural hearing that works instantly across any distance. But then why does God need to “come down” to see what’s happening on earth? If He can hear from heaven, why can’t He see from heaven? Dake’s system is full of contradictions.

The Problem of Multiple Prayers
Right now, millions of Christians around the world are praying. If God has physical ears attached to a physical head, how can He hear all these prayers at once? Try listening to two people talking at the same time – it’s confusing! Now imagine millions of voices all at once. It would be impossible to understand.

A God with a physical body would have to process prayers one at a time. Your prayer might have to wait in line. While God is listening to someone in Africa, He can’t hear you in America. This destroys the personal relationship prayer is supposed to create. Dake actually taught that “God and angels eat even in heaven, so why not on earth? (Ps. 78:25; Lk. 22:16, 18, 30; 24:30, 43; Acts 10:41; Heb. 13:2; Ex. 24:11). What could this mean other than what it says?”¹⁶ If God needs to eat, what else does His body require? Does He need rest? Does He need time to process information?

The Problem of Private Prayer
Jesus taught us to pray in private: “When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret” (Matthew 6:6). But how can you pray “in secret” to a God who isn’t present in your closet? If God’s body is in heaven, He’s not in your room. You’re praying to someone who isn’t there.

The beauty of private prayer is that God is as present in your bedroom as He is in the greatest cathedral. You don’t need to go to a special place or speak loudly enough to reach heaven. God is right there with you. But Dake’s theology destroys this intimacy.

The Problem of Emergency Prayer
What about those desperate moments when we cry out to God in crisis? The car accident about to happen, the medical emergency, the moment of temptation. We need God RIGHT NOW, not later when He has time to travel to us.

The Bible is full of emergency prayers that God answered immediately:

• Peter cried “Lord, save me!” when sinking in water (Matthew 14:30)
• The thief on the cross said “Remember me” and was saved (Luke 23:42)
• Stephen prayed while being stoned (Acts 7:59)

These instant answers only make sense if God is omnipresent. A God who has to travel couldn’t help in emergencies.

What Happens to Worship?

Worship is honoring and praising God for who He is. But Dake’s theology completely changes what worship means and how it works.

The Problem of God’s Presence in Worship
Jesus promised, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). This is one of the most precious promises for Christian worship. When believers gather, Jesus is present with them.

But how can this work if Jesus has a physical body at the right hand of the Father in heaven? Right now, there are millions of Christian gatherings around the world. Is Jesus splitting His body into millions of pieces? Is He rapidly traveling between all these meetings? Or is He just watching from heaven? Dake claimed “Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father. He came from heaven into the world as a person distinct from both the Father and the Holy Spirit—to live here, then return to heaven and the Father to be seated on His right hand, from whence He will come again.”¹⁷

If Jesus isn’t really present but just watching from a distance, then worship becomes a performance for an absent audience rather than fellowship with a present Lord. We’re not meeting WITH God; we’re putting on a show FOR God.

The Problem of Simultaneous Worship
Think about Sunday morning. As the sun moves around the earth, worship services begin in New Zealand, then Australia, then Asia, then Africa, then Europe, then the Americas. For 24 hours straight, millions of services are happening.

If God has a body in one location, He can only be present at one service at a time. Which one does He choose? The biggest? The most sincere? The most correct? Every other congregation would be worshiping an absent God.

But because God is omnipresent, He’s fully present in every worship service. The smallest house church has as much of God’s presence as the largest cathedral. God doesn’t have to divide His attention or choose favorites. He’s completely present everywhere.

The Problem of Individual Worship
Not all worship happens in church. Christians worship God in their daily lives – singing in the car, praying during work, praising God while walking. Paul says, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

This lifestyle of worship only makes sense if God is always present. How can you worship someone who isn’t there? How can you glorify God in your eating and drinking if God isn’t present at your table? How can you pray without ceasing to a God who might be elsewhere?

Dake’s theology turns personal worship into shouting at the sky, hoping God might hear from heaven. It destroys the intimacy of walking with God through daily life.

What Happens to God’s Promises?

The Bible is full of promises that depend on God’s omnipresence. If God isn’t everywhere, these promises are empty. Let’s look at some:

“I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5)
How can God promise never to leave us if His body has to be somewhere else? If God is in heaven, He has left earth. If He comes to earth, He has left heaven. A God with a body is always leaving somewhere.

“Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20)
Jesus promised to be with us always. Not just to watch us always or remember us always, but to BE WITH us. This requires omnipresence. A bodily Jesus in heaven can’t be with us on earth.

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee” (Isaiah 41:10)
God’s presence is supposed to remove fear. But if God might be elsewhere when danger comes, we have reason to fear. Only an omnipresent God can guarantee He’ll be there when we need Him.

“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee” (Isaiah 43:2)
God promises to be with us in trials. But if He has a body that might be busy elsewhere, this promise is uncertain. We might go through deep waters alone while God is helping someone else.

“The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him” (Psalm 145:18)
God is near to ALL who call on Him – not just some, not just those He has time for, but ALL. This is only possible if God is omnipresent. He can be near to everyone because He’s everywhere.

These promises are the foundation of Christian comfort and confidence. They’re what get believers through hard times. But if God isn’t omnipresent, they’re all lies. They’re promises God can’t keep.

What Happens to Christian Living?

Beyond prayer and worship, Dake’s theology affects every aspect of how Christians live.

The Problem of God’s Guidance
Christians believe God guides them through life. “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD” (Psalm 37:23). But how can God order our steps if He’s not present with us? How can He guide from a distance?

If God has to travel to help us, we might make important decisions while He’s elsewhere. We might face temptation when He’s not around. We might need wisdom when He’s busy with someone else. The constant guidance Christians depend on becomes sporadic and unreliable.

The Problem of God’s Protection
The Bible says God protects His people: “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them” (Psalm 34:7). But if God isn’t omnipresent, He can’t protect everyone at once.

Think about all the dangers Christians face every day around the world. Car accidents, diseases, violence, temptation, spiritual attack. If God has to choose who to protect based on where His body can be, most believers are unprotected most of the time.

The Problem of God’s Comfort
God is called “the God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3). But comfort requires presence. You can’t comfort someone from a distance. A hug from far away isn’t a hug. A God who isn’t present can’t truly comfort.

When a Christian loses a loved one, faces illness, or experiences heartbreak, they need God’s immediate presence. They need to know God is right there with them in their pain. A God watching from heaven can feel sorry for them, but He can’t comfort them like a present God can.

The Problem of Sin and Holiness
The Bible teaches that God’s presence helps us resist sin: “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9). Joseph resisted temptation because he was aware of God’s presence.

But if God isn’t omnipresent, there are places and times when God isn’t watching. We could sin in private when God’s attention is elsewhere. This destroys the motivation for holiness and opens the door to hidden sin.

It also affects confession and forgiveness. How can we confess to someone who isn’t present? How can we receive immediate forgiveness from a God who might be far away? The intimate process of repentance becomes a long-distance transaction.

The Destruction of Relationship

At its heart, Christianity is about relationship with God. Jesus said eternal life is knowing God (John 17:3). But real relationship requires presence. You can’t have a deep relationship with someone who’s never around.

Think about human relationships. Long-distance relationships are hard because presence matters. Being together, sharing space, experiencing life together – this is what builds deep connection. Phone calls and letters help, but they’re not the same as being together.

If God isn’t omnipresent, our relationship with Him is always long-distance. We’re trying to connect with someone who’s usually elsewhere. We’re trying to walk with someone who can’t walk beside us. We’re trying to live with someone who doesn’t live where we live.

The Bible describes believers as:

• God’s children – but what father is never present with his children?
• Christ’s bride – but what husband is always away from his bride?
• The Spirit’s temple – but what spirit doesn’t inhabit its temple?
• God’s friends – but what friend is never around?

All these relationships assume and require presence. They’re meaningless if God is usually absent. Dake’s theology doesn’t just change doctrine – it destroys the very heart of what it means to be a Christian.

The Comfort and Assurance of God’s True Omnipresence

After seeing how Dake’s false teaching destroys so much, let’s focus on the wonderful truth: God really is omnipresent! He really is everywhere all the time. This truth brings incredible comfort and assurance to believers. Let’s explore the blessings of God’s true omnipresence.

You Are Never Alone

The first and perhaps greatest comfort of God’s omnipresence is that you are never, ever alone. No matter where you are, no matter what you’re facing, no matter how isolated you feel, God is there with you.

Think about the loneliest places and times:

David understood this truth even in his darkest moments. After his terrible sin with Bathsheba, when he felt crushed by guilt, he could still say to God, “Whither shall I go from thy spirit?” (Psalm 139:7). Even in his sin and shame, he knew God hadn’t left him.

This is so different from Dake’s god who might be elsewhere when you need him. The true God is always present. As He promised Joshua: “I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Joshua 1:5). Not because God will try really hard to be there, but because the omnipresent God is already there.

God Sees Your Situation Completely

Because God is present in your situation, He sees and understands it completely. He’s not watching from a distance, trying to figure out what’s happening. He’s right there, experiencing it with you.

When Hagar was alone in the desert, rejected and hopeless, she discovered God was there. She called Him “Thou God seest me” (Genesis 16:13). Not “God who sees me from heaven” but “God who sees me” – present tense, immediate, personal.

This means:

God doesn’t just know about these things intellectually – He’s present in them. He’s there when you cry. He’s there when you struggle. He’s there when you serve faithfully with no recognition. He’s there when you’re in need.

Help Is Always Available

Because God is omnipresent, His help is always immediately available. You don’t have to wait for God to arrive. You don’t have to hope He’s not busy elsewhere. The psalmist celebrated this truth:

Notice that phrase: “very present help.” Not future help that’s coming. Not distant help watching from afar. Present help – help that’s already here when trouble strikes.

This is why Christians can face anything with confidence. Not because we’re strong, but because omnipresent help is always available:

• When temptation strikes suddenly – God is there to provide escape (1 Corinthians 10:13)
• When we need wisdom immediately – God is there to give it (James 1:5)
• When we’re too weak to go on – God is there with strength (Isaiah 40:29)
• When we don’t know how to pray – God’s Spirit is there helping (Romans 8:26)

Imagine if God had a body in heaven, as Dake taught. You’d cry for help and wonder if God heard. You’d wait and wonder if He’s coming. You’d face emergencies alone while God travels to reach you. But the omnipresent God is already there with help ready.

No Place Is God-Forsaken

One of the most depressing thoughts is being in a “God-forsaken place” – somewhere so bad, so evil, so hopeless that even God isn’t there. But God’s omnipresence means there are no God-forsaken places!

Jonah learned this in the belly of the fish: “Out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice” (Jonah 2:2). Even in what seemed like hell itself, God was there.

The three Hebrew young men learned this in the fiery furnace. They were thrown in to die, but “Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” (Daniel 3:25). God was present in the fire with them.

This means:

Missionaries have taken great comfort from this truth. They go to places that seem completely without God – places of darkness, idolatry, and evil. But they know God is already there before they arrive. They’re not bringing God to those places; they’re announcing the God who’s already present.

Perfect Security

God’s omnipresence provides perfect security for believers. If God is always present, we’re always protected. Paul celebrated this truth:

Why can’t anything separate us from God’s love? Because God is omnipresent! Death can’t separate us because God is present in death. Distance can’t separate us because God fills all distance. No creature can separate us because God is present with every creature.

This security isn’t based on our strength but on God’s omnipresence. We’re secure not because we hold tightly to God, but because the omnipresent God surrounds us completely. As Moses told Israel: “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27).

Think about what those “everlasting arms” mean. Not arms reaching down from heaven, straining to hold us from a distance. But arms that are underneath us wherever we are because God is present everywhere. You can’t fall out of omnipresent arms!

Constant Communion

Perhaps the sweetest blessing of God’s omnipresence is the possibility of constant communion with Him. We don’t have to go to special places or wait for special times to meet with God. Every moment can be a moment of fellowship with Him.

Brother Lawrence, a Christian monk, wrote about “practicing the presence of God” – living in constant awareness of God’s presence. This is only possible because God really is always present. We’re not imagining His presence; we’re recognizing it.

This means:

• You can talk to God while driving – He’s in the car with you
• You can worship while working – He’s at your workplace
• You can pray while walking – He’s walking beside you
• You can thank God while eating – He’s at your table
• You can seek God’s wisdom during a meeting – He’s in the room
• You can rest in God’s presence while sleeping – He’s watching over you

This constant communion transforms ordinary life into continuous worship. Everything becomes sacred when you realize God is present in everything.

The Blessing of Secret Prayer

Jesus taught us to pray in secret, and God’s omnipresence makes this wonderfully possible:

Your closet (or any private place) becomes a throne room because the King is present there. You don’t need a priest, a temple, or a special phone line to heaven. The omnipresent God is as available in your bedroom as He would be if you could travel to heaven itself.

This democratizes prayer – everyone has equal access to God. The poor person in a shack has the same access as the rich person in a mansion. The prisoner in solitary confinement has the same access as the pope in the Vatican. Why? Because God is equally present everywhere.

Confidence in Guidance

Because God is always present, we can trust His guidance completely. He’s not giving directions from a distance, hoping we can follow them. He’s walking with us, guiding each step.

The Bible compares God’s guidance to a shepherd with sheep:

A shepherd doesn’t shout directions from far away. He walks with the sheep, leading them personally. That’s what our omnipresent Shepherd does – He’s right there with us, leading us step by step.

This gives us confidence to:

• Make difficult decisions – The all-wise God is present to guide
• Face uncertain futures – The all-knowing God is already there
• Navigate complex situations – The omnipresent Guide sees all angles
• Trust when we can’t see the way – The One who is the Way is with us

Judgment and Mercy

God’s omnipresence means both perfect judgment and available mercy. Because God is everywhere, nothing is hidden from Him. Every sin is seen. Every wrong is known. This should make us serious about holiness.

But it also means mercy is always available. We don’t have to travel to find forgiveness. We don’t have to wait for God to arrive with pardon. The moment we repent, the omnipresent God is there with forgiveness.

The prodigal son discovered this. The moment he “came to himself” in the far country and decided to return home, mercy was available. His father (representing God) saw him “when he was yet a great way off” (Luke 15:20). God’s omnipresence means He’s present in our rebellion, waiting for our repentance.

The Ultimate Comfort: God With Us

The name “Emmanuel” means “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). This isn’t just a nice title – it’s the ultimate comfort of Christianity. God is WITH us. Not far from us, not watching us, not thinking about us – WITH us.

This has been God’s plan all along:

In Creation: God walked with Adam and Eve in the garden
In the Exodus: “My presence shall go with thee” (Exodus 33:14)
In the Incarnation: “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14)
In the Church: “I will dwell in them, and walk in them” (2 Corinthians 6:16)
In Eternity: “God himself shall be with them” (Revelation 21:3)

The story of the Bible is the story of God being with His people. And this is only possible because God is omnipresent. A God with a body (like Dake taught) could visit His people but couldn’t dwell with them all. Only the omnipresent God can be “God with us” for all of us all the time.

Answering Dake’s Objections

When confronted with clear Scripture teaching God’s omnipresence, Dake and his followers raise certain objections. Let’s examine these objections and see why they don’t hold up.

Objection 1: “The Bible Says God Came Down”

Dake’s Argument: The Bible repeatedly says God “came down” or “went up.” This proves God moves from place to place and therefore isn’t omnipresent.

The Answer: This confuses omnipresence with manifestation. When the Bible says God “came down,” it means God specially manifested Himself or acted in a particular place. The omnipresent God chose to reveal Himself or act uniquely in that location.

Think about the sun. The sun’s light is everywhere during daytime, but sometimes the sun breaks through clouds in a special way. We say “the sun came out,” but the sun didn’t travel – it was always there. The clouds just moved. Similarly, when God “comes down,” He’s specially manifesting His presence that was always there.

Consider Genesis 11:5 – “The LORD came down to see the city.” Does this mean God didn’t know what was happening at Babel until He traveled there? Of course not! Proverbs 15:3 says, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place.” God knew exactly what was happening. His “coming down” was to bring judgment, not to gather information.

Objection 2: “God Has a Throne in Heaven”

Dake’s Argument: The Bible says God sits on a throne in heaven. A throne requires a body to sit on it. This body is located in heaven, not everywhere. “God has been seen bodily by human eyes many times (Gen. 18:1-33; 19:24; 32:24-30; Ex. 24:11; 33:11-33; Josh. 5:13-15; Judg. 6:11-23; 13:3-25; 1 Chr. 21:16-17; Job 42:5; Isa. 6; Ez. 1:26-28; 10:1, 20; 40:3; Dan. 7:9-14; 10:5-10; Acts 7:56-59; Rev. 4:2-5; 5:1, 5-7, 11-14; 6:16; 7:9-17; 19:4; 21:3-5; 22:4).”¹⁸

The Answer: The throne is symbolic of God’s sovereign rule, not a piece of furniture for a physical body. When the Bible says God “sits on a throne,” it means God rules as King, not that He’s physically sitting.

Consider Isaiah 66:1 – “Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool.” If we take this literally (as Dake would), then heaven itself IS the throne. God isn’t sitting ON a throne IN heaven; heaven is His throne. Earth isn’t a footstool under His feet; earth IS His footstool. This poetic language shows God’s sovereignty over all creation.

Moreover, Psalm 11:4 says, “The LORD’s throne is in heaven,” but Jeremiah 23:24 says God fills heaven and earth. These aren’t contradictory. God rules from heaven (throne language) while being present everywhere (omnipresence language).

Objection 3: “Jesus Is at the Right Hand of God”

Dake’s Argument: The Bible says Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father. This requires both to have bodies in specific locations in heaven.

The Answer: “Right hand” is a Hebrew idiom for the position of highest honor and authority, not a physical location. When the Bible says Jesus is at God’s right hand, it means Jesus has all authority, not that He’s physically sitting next to a physical God.

Consider these verses:

• “The right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly” (Psalm 118:15) – Does God’s hand detach and fight?
• “Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power” (Exodus 15:6) – Is only one hand powerful?
• “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand” (Psalm 110:1) – This is about authority, not furniture

Furthermore, Stephen saw Jesus “standing on the right hand of God” (Acts 7:56), while other verses say He’s “sitting” there. Is Jesus standing or sitting? The confusion disappears when we understand this is about position of authority, not physical posture.

Objection 4: “We Can’t Understand God Having a Body and Being Everywhere”

Dake’s Argument: It’s a mystery how God can have a body but still be omnipresent through His Spirit. We just have to accept both truths.

The Answer: This isn’t mystery; it’s contradiction. A mystery is something beyond our full understanding but not against logic. A contradiction violates logic itself. Saying God has a localized body but is omnipresent isn’t mysterious – it’s contradictory.

It’s like saying God is completely powerful but completely powerless, or God is all-knowing but knows nothing. These aren’t mysteries; they’re nonsense. Similarly, God being bodily in one place but present everywhere isn’t a mystery; it’s impossible.

The real mystery is how the infinite, omnipresent God can be fully present everywhere while transcending space itself. That’s beyond our full comprehension but not contradictory.

Objection 5: “The Holy Spirit Is God’s Omnipresence”

Dake’s Argument: God the Father isn’t omnipresent, but the Holy Spirit is. The Spirit is how the Father is “omnipresent” without being everywhere Himself.

The Answer: This divides the Trinity into separate gods with different attributes. If the Father isn’t omnipresent but the Spirit is, they’re not the same God. You’ve got one limited god (Father) and one unlimited god (Spirit). This is polytheism, not Christianity. “The Holy Spirit. He is spoken of as moving upon creation (Gen.1:2), coming into the midst (2 Chr. 20:14), descending from heaven upon Jesus (Mt. 3:16; Mk.1:10; Lk. 3:21-22), and abiding with or departing from men (Jn.14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7-11).”¹⁹

The Bible teaches all three persons of the Trinity are omnipresent:

All three persons share the divine attribute of omnipresence because they are one God.

Objection 6: “God Must Have a Form to Be Personal”

Dake’s Argument: A God without a body would be impersonal, like a force. For God to be personal and relational, He must have a form like we do.

The Answer: This confuses personality with physicality. Personality involves mind, will, and emotions – not body parts. God is supremely personal because He has perfect knowledge, will, and love, not because He has a body.

In fact, a body would limit God’s personal relationships. If God has a body in one location, He can only be personally present with people in that location. But because God is omnipresent spirit, He can be personally present with every believer everywhere.

Jesus taught this clearly: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). God being spirit doesn’t make Him impersonal – it makes Him infinitely personal, able to relate personally to everyone everywhere.

Objection 7: “We’re Made in God’s Image, So God Must Look Like Us”

Dake’s Argument: Genesis says we’re made in God’s image and likeness. Since we have bodies, God must have a body we resemble.

The Answer: The image of God in humans isn’t physical appearance but spiritual qualities: rationality, morality, creativity, relationality, and dominion. The Bible itself defines the image of God in non-physical terms:

• “Put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Colossians 3:10) – The image involves knowledge, not body parts
• “Put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:24) – The image is righteousness and holiness, not physical form

If the image of God is physical, which human body type is in God’s image? Male or female? Tall or short? What race? The physical interpretation leads to absurdity and has been used to justify terrible racism (as Dake himself did).

The Real Issue: Dake’s Method

The real problem isn’t just these individual objections but Dake’s whole approach to Scripture. He:

1. Takes figurative language literally
2. Ignores clear statements about God’s nature
3. Doesn’t compare Scripture with Scripture
4. Rejects centuries of Christian understanding
5. Creates contradictions instead of harmony
6. Makes God smaller to fit human understanding

When someone has to deny clear Scripture like “God fills heaven and earth” and twist the meaning of omnipresence itself, something is seriously wrong with their interpretation method. Dake even went so far as to claim that “All such statements are unscriptural in the extreme and are contradicted by thousands of plain passages about God.”²⁰ referring to traditional Christian understanding of God as spirit!

Conclusion: Why This Matters for Your Faith

As we end this chapter on God’s omnipresence, you might wonder: “Why does this matter so much? Why spend so much time on this one issue?” The answer is that God’s omnipresence affects everything about your Christian life. Getting this wrong doesn’t just mess up your theology – it can destroy your faith, your comfort, and your relationship with God.

This Is About the God You Worship

First and foremost, this is about who God really is. Are you worshiping the true God who fills heaven and earth, or are you worshiping Dake’s limited god who has to travel from place to place? These are not the same being.

Jesus said, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). We must worship God as He really is, not as we imagine Him or as false teachers like Dake describe Him. Worshiping a god with a body who isn’t omnipresent is idolatry – creating a god in our image rather than worshiping the true God.

The God you worship shapes everything about your faith:

• If God isn’t omnipresent, you can’t trust His promises to be with you
• If God isn’t omnipresent, you can’t rely on His constant help
• If God isn’t omnipresent, you can’t experience His intimate presence
• If God isn’t omnipresent, you can’t be sure He hears your prayers
• If God isn’t omnipresent, you’re often alone even as a believer

This isn’t a minor theological detail – it’s about the very heart of who God is and how we relate to Him.

This Is About Your Daily Experience

God’s omnipresence isn’t just doctrine to believe – it’s reality to experience. Every day, you face situations where God’s omnipresence makes all the difference:

When you wake up anxious about the day ahead, God’s omnipresence means He’s already in every moment of your future day. He’s not waiting to see what happens – He’s already there.

When you face temptation and need help, God’s omnipresence means help is instantly available. You don’t have to wait for God to arrive – He’s already there with a way of escape.

When you feel lonely and isolated, God’s omnipresence means you’re never truly alone. The Creator of the universe is as present with you as He is in heaven itself.

When you’re making important decisions, God’s omnipresence means perfect wisdom is available. The all-knowing God who sees all outcomes is right there to guide you.

When you’re suffering and need comfort, God’s omnipresence means the God of all comfort is present in your pain. He’s not watching from a distance – He’s there with you.

Dake’s theology would rob you of all these daily experiences of God’s presence. You’d be left wondering if God is near, hoping He might come, wishing He were present. But the Bible’s teaching gives you certainty – God IS present, always, everywhere, completely.

This Is About Your Security

Your eternal security depends on God’s omnipresence. Jesus promised, “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28). How can Jesus keep this promise if He isn’t omnipresent?

If Jesus has a body in one location, there are places you could go where He couldn’t protect you. There are situations where His hand couldn’t hold you. There are enemies who could snatch you while He’s elsewhere. Your security would depend on Jesus being in the right place at the right time.

But because Jesus is omnipresent God, you’re eternally secure. No matter where you go, His hand is there. No matter what attacks you, He’s present to protect. No matter what tries to separate you from Him, He’s already there preventing it. Your security rests not on your ability to stay close to God, but on the omnipresent God’s inability to be far from you.

This Is About the Gospel Itself

The gospel message depends on God’s omnipresence. How can God save people all over the world simultaneously if He isn’t omnipresent? How can the Holy Spirit convict, regenerate, and indwell millions of believers if He has a body in one location?

Think about what happens in salvation:

1. The Holy Spirit convicts of sin – requires His presence with the sinner
2. The Father draws people to Christ – requires His presence with them
3. Christ receives all who come – requires His presence to receive them
4. The Spirit indwells the believer – requires His presence in them
5. God begins transforming them – requires His constant presence

None of this works if God isn’t omnipresent. The gospel becomes limited to wherever God’s body happens to be. Most people would have no access to salvation. The Great Commission to reach all nations would be impossible.

This Is About Resisting False Teaching

Dake’s error about omnipresence didn’t happen in isolation. It came from his wrong teaching about God having a body, which came from his hyperliteral reading of Scripture, which came from his rejection of sound theology. Error builds on error.

This is why you must be vigilant about doctrine. When someone starts teaching that God has a body or isn’t omnipresent, don’t dismiss it as a minor issue. It’s an attack on the very nature of God. It’s the kind of error that spreads and corrupts everything it touches.

The apostle Paul warned: “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). False teaching often seems subtle at first, just a small deviation. But small errors about God’s nature become huge heresies that destroy faith.

This Is About Trusting Scripture

When Dake added “NOT” to Jeremiah 23:24, claiming God is “NOT omnipresent in body,” he was essentially saying Scripture is wrong. The verse says God fills heaven and earth, but Dake said He doesn’t. This is a direct attack on the truth and authority of God’s Word.

You must decide: Will you believe what Scripture clearly says, or will you let false teachers like Dake explain it away? Will you accept “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” or will you add “NOT” like Dake did? Will you trust God’s Word or man’s interpretation?

Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). God’s Word is more reliable than the physical universe. When someone contradicts clear Scripture, no matter how confident they seem, you must stand with God’s Word.

The Blessing of Truth

While it’s important to expose and refute error, the greatest blessing is knowing the truth. The true God – the omnipresent, infinite, spiritual God of the Bible – is so much greater than Dake’s limited god. Consider the contrast:

Which God would you rather serve? Which God can truly save you? Which God deserves worship? The answer is obvious – only the true, omnipresent God of Scripture is worthy of our faith and worship.

Moving Forward in Truth

If you’ve been influenced by Dake’s teaching about God not being omnipresent, it’s time to return to biblical truth. This isn’t just about changing your theology – it’s about experiencing the real presence of the true God.

Start by meditating on the Scriptures we’ve studied about God’s omnipresence. Let Psalm 139 sink deep into your heart. Let the truth that God fills heaven and earth transform how you think about every moment of your life. Let the promise “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” become your daily comfort.

Then live in the light of God’s omnipresence:

• Pray with confidence, knowing God is right there hearing you
• Face challenges with courage, knowing omnipresent help is available
• Resist temptation with strength, knowing God sees and is present to help
• Worship with joy, knowing you’re in God’s immediate presence
• Rest in peace, knowing the omnipresent God watches over you

Don’t let false teachers like Dake rob you of these precious truths. God really is everywhere. He really is with you right now as you read these words. He really will never leave you or forsake you. This is the God of the Bible, and He is worthy of all worship, trust, and love.

A Final Warning and Encouragement

As we close this chapter, remember that Dake’s error about omnipresence is just one part of his systematic attack on God’s nature. He also denied God’s spiritual nature (claiming God has a body), God’s unity (teaching three separate gods), and God’s other infinite attributes. These errors work together to replace the true God with a false god.

This is why you must be careful about what study Bible you use, what teachers you follow, and what doctrine you accept. The Dake Bible may have some helpful notes, but its core teaching about God is heretical. It’s not worth risking your faith for whatever small benefits it might offer.

But don’t let the existence of false teaching discourage you. The truth is available, clear, and powerful. God has preserved His Word and His truth through all generations. The same God who filled heaven and earth in David’s time fills heaven and earth today. The same God who promised to be with Joshua is with you today.

Stand firm in the truth. Reject error no matter how popular it becomes. Trust the clear teaching of Scripture over the complicated explanations of men. And rejoice in the wonderful truth that the infinite, omnipresent God is with you always.

Remember: You are never alone. You are never forgotten. You are never beyond God’s reach. You are never outside God’s presence. The omnipresent God who fills heaven and earth is with you now and forever. This is the truth Dake denied, but it’s the truth that will sustain your faith, comfort your heart, and give you hope through every trial.

Hold fast to this truth. Teach it to others. And worship the God who is truly worthy – the omnipresent Lord who fills all in all.

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