Am I a God who is near, says the Lord, and not a God far off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I do not see him? says the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the Lord.

Jeremiah 23:23–24 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

We all have a tendency to hide in shame from God. Adam and Eve did it. But Who came to find them?

When we consider that it was God Who sought them out in their self-made condition, He called to them, not because He didn’t know where they were or what had happened.

When they finally came out from hiding in their shame, God asked why. It wasn’t because He didn’t know. It was God from the beginning restoring what was lost. He came to them reconciled, wanting them to be reconciled to Him. He educed a confession of sin from both of them.

It’s the predicament of humanity. We lose our focus on God and get sidetracked… Often entering into flagrant rebellion against Him. It’s not unprecedented. In such situations, the shame of sin keeps us from God. We want to cover ourselves and hide.

God is always near. His nearness is not something to make us uncomfortable. On the contrary, it is that we need to know as the psalmist did. If God counted our iniquities against us, who could stand? (Psalms 130:3-4.)

He doesn’t want us hiding. He wants us to enjoy His presence, much the same way Adam and Eve did. He sent His Own Unique Son to ensure that. If sin gets in the way of that relationship between us and God, it’s because we (and the enemy) keep an account. 1 John 1:9 teaches us that we can run to God, not in shame but boldness. We can confess the iniquity and be restored.

You really cannot run and hide. Remember that. You wouldn’t be alive if He was counting your iniquities against you.