What a Healthy Relationship with God looks like
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As we look at the human interactions with God in the scriptures we come to one amazing gracious conclusion: God, who is rich in mercy and has displayed this mercy through Jesus Christ, can be found and saved and transformed by anyone.
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Sinful prostitutes like Rahab - no problem, in fact God saved her so powerfully that she ended up as a great.... grandmother of Jesus.
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Awful adulteress like David - again no problem and was so transformed by the power of God that he was called a man after God’s own heart.
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Sinful Roman tax collectors and oppressors of God’s people like Matthew - no problem, in fact you will be a disciple and be filled with the Spirit to such a degree that you will write an account of my life.
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Cold blooded murders like Saul - incredible again - no problem - and Saul was given a new name: Paul and became God’s chosen Apostle to take the gospel to the gentiles and write more than 2/3’s of the NT.
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God, it seems, can save, transform and mighty use anyone.
However, there is an attitude that if a person has it, so long as they have it - God will not be in a relationship with such a person.
So long as this exists in a persons heart, grace will not be given.
5 You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
13 “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.
In fact God says that even if a proud person cries out - God will not answer him.
12 “There they cry out, but He does not answer Because of the pride of evil men.
A relationship with God is a relationship that is based on Faith and Humility.
Jesus made this abundantly clear:
4 “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
In fact: According to God Himself, this is what He requires of us:
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?
tithe world celebrates pride….
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So here is today's question:
According to Jesus, who is the author and finisher of our Faith, how can we make sure than we maintain an attitude of constant humility before God?
I believe that Jesus gives us a powerful answer in the Sermon on the Mount.
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
8 “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
Our attitude towards God, our relationship with God is summed up in these 3 powerful words:
Ask, Seek and Knock.
The reason that the proud cannot be in a relationship with God...
The reason God will always resist the proud...
The reason why God hates Pride...
Is because a proud person is spiritually incapable of Asking, Seeking and Knocking.
Pride does not ask - Pride makes demands.
Pride does not seek - Pride expects to be given.
Pride does not knock - Pride expects the door to be opened for it..
Lets take a closer look at these words because these words sum up the attitude of a person who is in a healthy relationship with God through Faith in Jesus Christ.
Ask.
Ask.
The Greek word for ask is “At-eo”.
In the bible it is only used as a predictor Verb twice.
Once here in Matthew 7 where it is translated as “ask” and once more in Mat 27 where this same word is translated:
58 He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.
Now don't misunderstand: This does not mean that we are beggars before God.
It means that we humbly acknowledge, like Joseph of Arimathea did to Pilate - that though we have a right to ask - the decision is up to God and if He denies there is nothing we can do about it.
To ask is a recognition and acknowledgment of our subordination total dependence on His grace.
Seek.
Seek.
The Greek word for seek used here is: “Ze-teo”.
This is a fascinating little word and it means more than just to look.
Literally means “To reach for something”.
In context we can understand it it as to reach for something that is out of our reach.
Little children do this all the time.
A child reaching for the biscuits that are to high to reach is a brilliant way to understand this.
A child will reach for the tin and knowing its to high, while reaching they will ask for help - either to be lifted or for the tin to be lowered.
Seeking from God is the recognition and acknowledgment that without God’s help, grace, mercy and strength we will not be able to lay hold of that which we desire.
But note: It is an active verb. Which means that we don't just reach, see we cannot reach, stop trying and ask it to be just handed to us.
It means that we constantly reach for the thing, while trusting God to bring it within our reach.
Knock.
Knock.
“Krou” in the Greek is much more straight forward.
It simply means to knock as to make your presence known.
Yet even so it is also saturated in humility in this context.
To knock is to recognize and acknowledge that whether or not the door is opened is completely dependent on the other person.
If they do not open the door for you, then the door will not be opened.
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Can you see the absolute necessity of humility we need before God?
In Israel’s pride and rebellion they abandoned the notion of “serving” God.
When God spoke through the prophet to turn them back what did God say they needed?
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
What was God looking for in Israel before He would hear, heal and forgive?
Righteousness?
Success?
Good works?
No.
Humility.
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Pride is Satanic sinfulness.
The sin that was found in Satan’s heart was pride.
6 not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.
Even as God says:
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.