Before Time Began: Exploring the God Who Exists Beyond Our Clocks

Written by: Laura McDowell

Time. We measure everything by it – our days, our memories, our milestones, even our hopes. It orders our lives so completely that we rarely stop to question it. We accept its linear march as absolute: a beginning, an end, and the stretch in between where our entire earthly existence unfolds.

But what if time itself is far smaller than we imagine? What if time is not the container of reality but simply one small feature within it?

Scripture invites us into this mystery. When we read phrases like “before time began,” or “before the world was made,” something inside us stirs (see 2 Timothy 1:9-10, Titus 1:2,

Ephesians 1:4-5, and John 17:5). Before…time began. Before…the world was made.

Our finite human minds immediately push back. How can there be a “before” without

time? What does existence look like outside the boundaries that dictate every moment

of our lives?

And yet, the Bible speaks confidently of a God who inhabits that very “before.”

Our Finite Minds, His Infinite Nature

We struggle to grasp eternity because everything we experience is temporary. We

struggle to imagine a being without a beginning because beginnings shape our entire

understanding of existence. We struggle to envision a future without end because

endings frame every story we know.

It’s not that eternity is illogical – it’s that we are limited.

Our minds are wired for sequence: yesterday->today->tomorrow.

God, however, is not.

He does not dwell in a timeline. He does not grow older. He does not wait for anything.

There was never a moment when He began, and there will never be a moment when

He stops.

Trying to fit God inside our concept of time is like trying to pour the ocean into a teacup.

The Spiritual Realm: Outside the Clock?

As I was reflecting on this mystery, a powerful question emerged:

Is it possible that we cannot see the spiritual realm because it exists outside of time?

It’s a fascinating thought – and a compelling one.

If time governs physical creation, and the spiritual realm existed before physical

creation, then it makes sense that the two realms operate differently. Humanity, created

within time, perceives reality through the lens of time. So perhaps we cannot see

spiritual realities because we are bound to a dimension they are not confined to.

Angels, demons, God’s presence, and eternity itself may not be invisible due to distance

or concealment but because they occupy a plane of existence where time has no

authority.

Just as a two-dimensional being would struggle to understand a three-dimensional

world, we cannot naturally comprehend a realm where seconds, minutes, and years

carry no meaning.

And yet – even if our eyes cannot see it – our souls can sense it. And perhaps the

reason our souls can sense it is because they too are not bound by time – after all, it is

our souls that will live forever in eternity.

Even though the spiritual realm operates beyond time, it still intersects with our world in

ways we can feel, perceive, and experience. We may not see God’s presence with

physical sight, but we recognize it in moments of peace that defy circumstance, in

conviction that comes from beyond ourselves, in comfort that settles in without

explanation, and in the unmistakable nearness of the Holy Spirit.

Just because something is invisible does not mean it is inaccessible.

The wind cannot be seen, but its movement is undeniable.

In the same way, the spiritual realm may be unseen, but it is far from unfelt.

And sometimes, God pulls back the veil.

Scripture shows that while the spiritual realm is normally hidden from our time-bound

perception, there are moments when God chooses to let human eyes glimpse what is

otherwise unseen. One powerful example is found in 2 Kings 6, when Elisha’s servant

panicked at the sight of an enemy army surrounding them. Elisha prayed, “Lord, open

his eyes so that he may see,” (verse 17) and suddenly the servant saw the mountain

filled with horses and chariots of fire – heavenly forces that had been there all along.

God had not made them appear; He had simply allowed them to be seen. These

moments remind us that the spiritual realm is not far away or inaccessible – it is

present, active, and closer than we realize. And when God chooses to reveal it, even

briefly, it expands our understanding of His protection, His presence, and His power at

work beyond what our natural senses can perceive.

God’s presence is not limited by time or space – and yet He graciously allows His

timeless reality to meet us right where we are.

God Stepped into Time – For Us

The beauty of the gospel is that the timeless God stepped into time.

Jesus was born into a world of days and nights.

He lived within the flow of moments, deadlines, and seasons.

He submitted Himself to the constraints of the very creation He authored.

Why?

To reach us where we are.

To meet us inside our limitations.

To rescue us from time’s ultimate consequence: death.

In Christ, eternity entered the temporary so that the temporary could enter eternity.

Eternity: Not Just Endless Time, But Something Entirely Other

When we picture eternity, we often imagine time stretching on forever. But eternity isn’t

“more time.” Eternity is a reality where time doesn’t define anything.

It’s not a clock that never stops – it’s a life in which the very idea of clocks becomes

irrelevant.

No waiting.

No aging.

No deadlines.

No distance.

No separation.

Only presence – God’s presence – unbroken and complete.

We struggle to imagine it because it is unlike anything we’ve ever known. But perhaps

that’s the point. If we could fully comprehend eternity now, it would be just another

feature of this world, not the breathtaking promise God has prepared for us.

Living Now with Eternity in Mind

So, what do we do with this mystery?

We trust.

We marvel.

We worship.

And we remember that while our lives feel wrapped tightly in the rhythm of passing

days, we belong to a God who is not limited by any of them. A God who holds time in

His hands but is never held by it. A God who invites us into a reality far bigger, deeper,

and more beautiful than our linear minds can grasp.

One day, when we step beyond this temporal world, we will finally understand what our

hearts have long sensed, but our minds couldn’t articulate:

We were made for eternity.

And the One who lives outside of time has been preparing a place for us since before

time began.