₦airaland Forum

Misconceptions about omnipresence

Misconception: God is present everywhere in creation.

Fact: God dwells neither on the earth nor elsewhere in the physical universe. (1 Kings 8:​27) It is true that the stars and other creative works “are declaring the glory of God.” (Psalm 19:1) However, God does not inhabit his creation any more than an artist lives in his painting. Still, a painting can tell us something about the artist who made it. Similarly, the visible world tells us about the Creator’s “invisible qualities,” such as his power, wisdom, and love.​—Romans 1:​20.

Misconception: God must be omnipresent in order to know all things and be all-powerful.

Fact: God’s holy spirit, or active force, is God’s power in action. Through his holy spirit, God can perceive and do anything, anywhere, at any time, without being present in person.​—Psalm 139:7.

Misconception: Psalm 139:8 teaches that God is omnipresent by saying: “If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there, and if I were to make my bed in the Grave, look! you would be there.”

Fact: This scripture is not talking about God’s location. It poetically teaches that no place is too remote for God to act in our behalf.

jw.org

So no, God is NOT omnipresent.

The writer of "The Good News According to Matthew" was pointing out proof that there was more to the Hebrew-Aramaic Scriptures than an "Old Testament". The Jews, which by the way were Matthew's main audience, had so many prophecies about the Messiah in their scriptures that they recognized. Matthew was pointing out that even the things they didn't think were about Jesus Christ really were.
"For the witness about Jesus is what inspires prophecy"-Rev 19:10