If you seek Him you will find Him

Intro:

Over the last month we have been in a series called Dwell. A foundational scripture for this series is John 15:16 which says, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

Here is a brief recap of the series.

In week 1 we looked at how the power of God is in His word. Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;”. I shared that His word has the power to shape and transform your life. That we must be mindful not to have enough word to be saved, and not enough to be transformed.

In week 2 I shared with you that the word of God is not merely a set of do’s and don’ts. It is an invitation to know Him. We looked at how the word reveals who He is along with the framework of the relationship that He desires to have with us. God calls us to abide in Him.

In week 3 Pastor Chris reminded us that the promises of God do not expire, and that we can trust God to keep His word.

Last week I shared with you that God will not break his covenant, nor alter the word that He has spoken. We saw that God’s covenant is more than a contract. It is not limited to an exchange of property “this yours and that is mine”, a covenant is an exchange of life “I am yours, and you are mine”.

I also shared with you that words are containers that carry faith or fear, and they will reproduce after their own kind.

This morning we are going to dive into the result of abiding in Him. Remember God is a covenant God. In that covenant we are receiving more than a religion, we are receiving Him. I want to dive into what that looks like today.

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Submit:

The Lord has impressed on my heart over the last several months that many do not see him clearly. He is often viewed as nonexistent or abstract, or that He is just an angry being up in the cosmos looking to get everybody. A cruel taskmaster who does not care about what is happening to us.

I am sure there are many more perceptions that I am completely unaware of. Yet this morning these things couldn’t be further from the truth.

God is not abstract or nonexistent. He is a God who has revealed himself.

He has revealed himself in creation. Romans 1:20

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,”

He revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 34:6-7

“And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.””

He has revealed Himself to the world through Jesus. John 3:16-17

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”

Q. If God has revealed himself with such clarity to the world why then is it so difficult for many to see Him?

I would submit to you this morning that the issue lies in the pursuit. Listen to Jeremiah 29:13 it says, “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

We will seek and find WHEN we search with all our heart. Jesus reiterates this truth in Matthew 7:7-8.

Matthew 7:7-8 ““Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”

God has revealed himself through the word, but it is up to us to search for Him with all of our hearts. To seek with our whole heart we will have to be mindful of distractions. Many distractions are seemingly innocent, but they can have a negative effect on our pursuit.

Candace vision

Here are a few examples of potential distractions.

Social Media- Statistics tell us that the average adult spends 2hrs and 22 minutes on social media each day. Kids and teens 5 to 7.5 hrs per day on entertainment media.

We easily spend hours scrolling through stories or Reels on facebook. We can watch countless hours of Youtube videos or shorts. We can scroll for hours through TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat. On top of that we have so many avenues of streaming services. We can watch content anytime and anywhere. No service no problem. Download it to your device before you go.

On top these obvious distractions we simply have life. Chore lists at the house, work, raising a family, and so on.

All of these things can easily crowd out seeking to know Jesus. The urgencies of the day or the moments of distraction we allow will easily rob us of the ability to see clearly.

I shared with you in this series a question I ask when people are in crisis and I ask the question how much time have you spent in the word lately. The response is typically none because they have been really busy lately. I want you to recognize this morning that there is something to that.

People who are consistent in the word are rarely in crisis. This doesn’t mean they don’t face hardships in life, but for many it means they have an answer and wisdom in the midst of their situation. This is available to all, but it must be sought out.

We must understand that God has revealed himself clearly but it is our responsibility to seek Him out. The great news in that is that He promises us we will seek Him and find Him if we seek for Him with all of our heart.

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Apply:

Now lets shift gears for a minute. I want you to see something. Turn with me to Proverbs 1:1-7.

Proverbs 1:1-7 It says, “The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, To perceive the words of understanding, To receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; To give prudence to the simple, To the young man knowledge and discretion— A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, To understand a proverb and an enigma, The words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

The word “Know” means to a make oneself known, to perceive and see, to find out and discern. There is something more to knowing wisdom that I want you to see. Before that let me give you practical application the concept of knowing.

There are people in this room that know about me, but there are also people in this room that know me. Most know that I pastor this church, don’t have crazy fashion sense, and love Jesus.

But there are others that know me. They know what foods I like, the car I drive, my hobbies, and even a little bit of what makes me who I am.

There are also people in this room that know me well. They can tell just by looking at me wether or not I am having a good day, or what my mood is, etc.

Solomon in Proverbs 1 says to know wisdom and instruction. It seems to be that His writing is referring to general knowledge, and subjects like justice, judgement, and equity. It can almost be viewed as just general information about these topics. Can I tell you this morning there is more to it than general knowledge.

Now turn to Proverbs 8:6-17

“Listen, for I will speak of excellent things, And from the opening of my lips will come right things; For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. All the words of my mouth are with righteousness; Nothing crooked or perverse is in them. They are all plain to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge. Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold; For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her. “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate. Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength. By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice. By me princes rule, and nobles, All the judges of the earth. I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me.”

Do you see it? Solomon wasn’t merely sharing general knowledge in Proverbs 1. He was trying to introduce us to a person. Look again in Proverbs 8. Notice the shift to first person? It is no longer to know about wisdom and instruction. It has become a dialogue from the first person. Listen for I will speak, From the opening of MY lips, Receive my instruction. This first person declaration even says in vs. 14, counsel is mine, and sound wisdom. I am understanding, I have strength.”

These declarations are not abstract thoughts about wisdom. They are revealing a person. Who is the person? The word who became flesh. (Jesus) (John 1:14)

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Closing:

At the center of abiding and remaining is the undivided heart of one who is seeking. We are not just seeking wisdom but the one in whom wisdom dwells. When we know Him we will know wisdom.

When we know wisdom we will ask, seek, and knock and receive what we ask for. Why because what we seek is in His word and His word does not return void. Its Matthew 6:33.

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

If we seek Him we will find Him. His word will give us revelation and instruction for this life. Psalm 119:130 says, “The entrance of your word gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”

Jesus echos this in Matthew 7:24, “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

This morning it is in the pursuit that our lives become established in Him, and we will gain the ability to see clearly.

Let’s Pray!

Father open our eyes to see,.

Prayer for salvation (we cant see spiritual truth if we spiritually dead)