Lesson Six • The Big 3 "O's"

Have you ever found yourself going down a rabbit trail of thinking about how big or vast God really is? Questions like, “Where is Heaven?” “What does God look like?” and “How does the Trinity work?” are very common thoughts in which we lose track of time!

One of my favorite questions to ask students to get their minds going is this:

(I may have asked you this at camp before) if we agree that God can do or create anything, can God create a rock so big or so heavy that He would not be able to lift or move it?

2. So, what do you think? (I will write my thoughts at the bottom of this week’s lesson!)

One thing to keep in mind is that as humans, our understanding of God is limited to human concepts. For example, we understand and perceive time as linear – that is all that we know. However, God is far greater than the limited understanding or box that we can understand or comprehend Him or His nature. It is actually pretty incredible to think about. This week we will be looking at three attributes of God: omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent.

Are you familiar with these terms? Do you know what they mean? Without reading ahead, write down your thoughts on what these three terms mean.

I will give you a hint, “omni” is a Latin prefix for the word “all.”

Omnipotent

The first term that we are going to look at is God’s omnipotence. Earlier we saw that “omni” means all. “Potent” means having great strength or power. Therefore, omni + potent = omnipotent or all-powerful.

3. Is there anything in your life that you feel you are not strong enough to handle on your own?

Check out these verses:

“He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Hebrews 1:3

“But Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” Matthew 19:26

“Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” Jeremiah 32:17

Omniscient

The next term that we are going to look at is God’s omniscience. Using our logic from above, if “omni” means all and “scient” means to know, then omniscient means all-knowing.

4. Does the thought of God being omniscient or all-knowing bring you comfort or does it freak you out? Explain.

Check out these verses:

“For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.” 1 John 3:20

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” Romans 11:33

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” Isaiah 40:28

5. Knowing that God deeply loves and cares for His children and readily offers grace, what things might you be trying to hide or withhold from God that He already knows?

Omnipresent

Last, but not least is God’s omnipresence. The word present we know as the state or fact of existing or being present. Therefore, omni + present = omnipresent or all-present (present everywhere).

6. Have you ever had a time when you felt that God was distant and wondered where He was?

Once again, let us look at a few verses that help convey this attribute of God:

“The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” Proverbs 15:3

“Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 23:24

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?” Psalm 139:7

7. How does having this understanding of God’s omnipresence change our perspective in times when we may think or feel that God is distant?

Everyone who has an understanding of God accepts that God is big – bigger than what we know, understand, or comprehend. Even though it is far above our understanding, I love looking at these three specific terms because they allow us to contextualize just how big and vast our God really is, as well as how much love, grace, and mercy He readily offers to us.

Finally, back to the first question I asked about if God could create a rock so big that He would not be able to move it. See, the question in and of itself is a paradox. My answer? “No.” It is not that He COULD not, but that He WOULD not because it is not in His nature to contradict Himself. Therefore, this remains simply a silly question just to try and get your wheels turning for this lesson!