Experiencing God

Introduction

Christianity has become one of two extremes: mindless enthusiasm or dead intellectualism. Within Baptist circles we tend to gravitate to the dead intellectualism side of things. We want to understand doctrine deeper. The bible is our sole authority so we pour over its pages missing the purpose for why it was written. The bible was given to show us God to mediate an experience with God. It is not just a record of dead men’s stories and neat poetry. Many approach their relationship with God as merely reading some words on a page. Can I make this statement? You can read the bible and not meet with God. Somewhere between mindless enthusiasm and dead intellectualism is a real authentic experience of God that is mediated by the word of God.

A relationship with God is not a mere list of facts. A relationship with God is meant to be experienced, enjoyed, and sought after. But so often, modern Christianity has lived in a wilderness when it comes to their experience of God. We don’t know what such an experience is like let along how to have such an experience. In our Psalm today, David was in such a wilderness. Notice the title under the Psalm A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah. Most believe this time in David’s life was when he was fleeing from Absalom not when he was fleeing from Saul. Notice in vs 11, he references himself as the King.

Often times it is in these wildernesses that men and women meet their God. Consider Hagar who met the God who sees in the wilderness Gen 16:13. Or Moses as he watched his father Jethro’s flock in the wilderness in Ex 3;1-4. There God appeared in a burning flaming bush that was not consumed. Or Elijah under the Juniper tree a day’s journey into the wilderness and now we have David in the wilderness. Wildernesses remind us of our need for God because everything that would meet our needs is stripped away. David did not long merely to memorize the Torah, he did not long merely to perform ceremonies in the temple. David longed for a true experience of God. I cannot in one sermon tell you everything there is to know on this topic. Rather I am going to limit myself to what David says in this Psalm because if we can grasp this we will be a long way towards experiencing our God in a deeper way. So how do we know if we have met with God? I am going to give you three tests from Psalm 63 this morning.

I. The Test of Desire vs 1

Let’s define desire first of all. According to the Oxford Dictionary, desire is a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen. Desire could be defined as delighting, wanting, finding your joy in something. So when I have a desire for God it is a yearning to be near Him and to be with Him. Have you ever had that aching in your heart because you want to know more of God, to spend more time with Him? I would say that most Christians have never experienced this relationship with God as is evidenced in the fact that they don’t spend any time in prayer or reading the bible.

What brings you joy? What makes you truly happy? Is it laying out on the beach relaxing? Is it standing on top of a mountain and breathing in the fresh air? Is it reading a book or watching a movie or game? Is it a person? Your kids? Your wife? girlfriend? Is it video games? When you get to the point that your happiness comes from God, then you are desiring God.

One author once said that your religion is found in your solitude. Let me explain what that means: When you have nothing to do, nothing to distract you where does your mind automatically go? Whatever that thing is is your religion. You could say it is your God. It is the center of your life and what is most important to you.

A. Personal- my- God wants a personal relationship with you. I can not deal with anyone else’s relationship with God although I am the pastor. I can encourage you, I can guide you, I can set an example for you; but there is one thing I cannot do and that is walk with God for you. I can’t desire God for you. I can’t make you love God more. I can’t make you desire him more. Trust me I have tried to hold people by the hand before, but you have to do this. Its a choice you have to make.

B. Priority- early, eagerness- The word early is not actually a word in the text, it is a preposition called an energetic nun (you look at the word and it looks like an energetic nun) carrying the idea of priority or eagerness. What comes first in you life? Is it God? What takes up the majority of your time? I must make seeking God a priority in my life.

C. Pining- longeth- longing is the sense of lack or desiring more. sensing the absence. Soul/flesh speak of the whole person. This longing is not merely intellectual. It is not mythical made up. It is not even spiritual of another domain that we can’t really experience but we just imagine it to be so. This longing is real. The relationship of soul and flesh here is important because in scriptures flesh is often a negative term. And while our fleshly desires often want to pull us away from God, the soul influences the flesh to yearn for God here.

Don’t we see this very thing in the gospels? Our hearts burned within us. Luke 24:32 “And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?” There were two things that produced this burning in their hearts: the presence of God and the words of God together. The verse speaks of longing like a dry wilderness where there isn’t any water.

Think of an Oklahoma summer day when we haven’t had rain for a month. The ground starts to dry up and pull away from the concrete. If you pour water on it, it will suck it all up. The ground is thirsty. How do you know if you pine after God/ How do you know if you desire Him and long for Him? Do you ache when he seems absent? Do you miss Him? Do you crave more of Him?

II. The Test of Sight vs 2-7

1 John 4:12 “No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.” God is invisible so how do we see God.

Part of the answer to that question is Jesus Christ. John 14:9 “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?” but that is not the answer David gives in this text.

I am teaching my daughters this semester how to study the bible. We are learning the inductive bible study method. We have really just begun but one of the most helpful things they are learning right now is to ask questions of the text. Who, what, when, where, why and how. We are going to ask some of those questions today about seeing God.

1. Who are we seeing? vs 2 God himself- I have seen thee. All of this experience, it is all about God. Not getting smatter by reading the bible. Not by looking good because we do some things. Its all about experiencing God.

Notice David desires to see God’s power and glory. The Hebrew parallelism here drives the point that seeing the glory and power of God is seeing God. To see God’s attributes is to see God. God has revealed Himself to us through his words whether written on our hearts or in scripture and his works among other things. From these we see what God is like. Remember that God is His attributes. 1 John 4:7 “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.” To see the character of God in God’s word and in His actions is to get a glimpse of God Himself.

2. Where do we see God?

a. in the sanctuary- vs 2 It should not be ignored that even though our relationship with God is personal it is also corporate. We can all together experience God as we join together. In church, the bible is taught, we praise God, we can worship God, we can pray together- all of these things can mediate the presence of God to us.

b. in my bed- vs 6 The point here is that you can only experience God in church or in your bed but that you can experience Him on your own as well. You do not have to have the church. You do not have to be in this building to experience God’s presence. In talking to the Samaritan women about the right location to worship God, Jesus said John 4:23-24 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” We can worship and experience God where ever we are.

3. Why should we long to see God? Because his lovingkindness is better than life. Lovingkindness is the word for God’s steadfast covenant love.

vs 3 Many try to find fulfillment in many other things, but true joy and fulfillment come from being God. I wish I was a better model of what this looks like. I know I am more melancholy in nature and at times serious. But believe me their is a joy and a passion that can be found in seeing God. Being with Him is more important than even life. Phil 1:21 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” There is no greater pursuit that we could ever have than to see God.

4. How do we see God? When and How go together in this passage.

Remember- There is a key aspect of communing with God: we must remember what He has said and what He has done. This is why bible memorization is so important, but can I challenge you with something else? This is why keeping some kind of a record of what God has done in your life is so important. We forget a lot of things.

Meditate- You can’t meditate on what you don’t remember or have written down somewhere to jog your memory. Meditation means to think over. One of the best illustrations I have heard to show meditation is what a cow does with its food. We call it rumination.

A Cow will chew its cud which means it will chew its food swallow it then digest it a little bit, then regurgitate the food and chew on it some more. We need to keep coming back to the same thoughts and passages about God over and over again as we ruminate over them. God’s spirit joins with us in illuminating for us a vision of God in His word and works. Psalm 119:18 “Open thou mine eyes, That I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.”

vs 6 Seeing God is not with our physical eyes here on earth. One day we will see God physically. 1 John 3:2 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” but for now we see him with the eyes of faith as we behold how He has revealed Himself through His words and His works.

5. What are the results of seeing God?

satisfaction vs 5-6 It fills you with delight. You never get over it. It is kinda like that first bite of that amazing steak. The taste is so good. 1 Peter 2:2-3 “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” I mention this verse a lot, but see the connection here. The milk of the word is scripture according to the context. Vs 2 speaks of desiring the milk and vs 3 speaks of tasting that God is gracious. Here is my point to see the goodness of God in the word of God is to taste the goodness of God. And that taste is pleasing, it is satisfying, it is delightful.

joy vs 7 Have you ever had that “AHA” moment where God shows Himself to you? Isn’t it exciting. It brings joy. As CS Lewis says, what you truly find joy in inevitably finds itself coming out of your mouth in praise. vs 3

III. The Test of Seeking vs 8-11

Seeking God means to pursue, stick to or cling to God. The word is the same word used in marriage for a man shall cling to his wife.

When you have a desire for God, when you see God in His beauty, you will be continually seeking after God. Imagine one of your kids runs away from home. Are you not going to go seeking for them? Will you just go on about your day as if nothing has happened? How frantically will you seek for them? Will other obligations keep you from seeking for them or will all time stop until you find them? You seek them because you love them. Their absence is noticed.

When we have wandered away from God, do you notice? Remember God hasn’t wandered from you; God is always there waiting for you. I think of the story of the prodigal son, the Father came running with open arms to his son when he returned. God wants to be with us. Jesus in praying to the Father desired that we would be with Him John 17:24 “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.”

vs 9-11 Verses 9-11 seem to out of place with the rest of the Psalm but they really are not. This Psalm was written while David was fleeing from an enemy. And while he fled, he concludes that not even the enemies who want to kill him can take him away from his relationship with God. Psalm 63:11 “But the king shall rejoice in God; Every one that sweareth by him shall glory: But the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.” Notice the But of vs 9; this is a direct contrast with seeking God. and then notice the but of vs 11. David is confident that his God will deliver him.

No one can take you away from your relationship with God. You parents can’t keep you from it, your boss can’t, an army can’t, even death can’t. The only one who can keep you from having this kind of a relationship with God is you. We are our own worst enemies sometimes. The world entices us away from God, Satan temps us to forsake God; but we make the choice. Even without the world and Satan, we allow our own fleshly desires to come between us and God.

We don’t read the bible because we have another football game or episode to watch on TV.

We don’t pray because we are too tired in the mornings.

We allow hobbies, excessive work, reading, playing, activities, parties to get in the way and in the end we have no time for God.

Conclusion

There is more to Christianity than memorizing the doctrines of the bible, coming to church and participating in ritualistic services. God wants a personal, passionate and prosperous relationship with you. All of these points are both a test and a process. If you want to know what it is like to experience God ask yourself, “Am I desiring God, am I seeing God and am I seeking after God?” So they can tell us whether we are experiencing God or not but they can also be how we experience God. If you want to experience God, you must desire Him, see Him and seek Him.

If I were to die today but I were to get this across then everything I have said and done would be worth it. This is why my life verse is Phil 3:10 “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;” If my children can get this one lesson, everything else will take care of itself. Everything else other than salvation becomes secondary to this.

This is why I preach against sin because it is what is keeping you from this.

This is why I preach on the church because it is part of the picture for how we get here.

This is why I will be preaching on the home because if you home life isn’t right, you won’t be right with God.

I could keep going, but once you are saved, this is the treasure you must get above all things, get God. Desire Him, See Him and Seek Him for only then will you truly find satisfaction and joy.