Sought and Found

Unless God revealed Himself to mankind, we would never find Him.  It would be more impossible for a man to know the almighty God who dwells in unapproachable glory than for a cat to learn calculus or a dog to understand and explain Kepler's laws of planetary motion.  God is so great and beyond our comprehension it requires the gracious intervention of our Maker to open eyes of faith to see Him at work in everything.  God has promised those who seek Him will find Him, and blessed are those who believe His word and receive Jesus whom the Father has sent.

During my nightly reading I was captivated by what happened after the people of Judah united to serve only the LORD with an oath in 2 Chronicles 15:15:  "And all Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and sought Him with all their soul; and He was found by them, and the LORD gave them rest all around."  It was not out of the goodness of the hearts of the people, being fed up with life's troubles or even the negative consequences of their own sin that moved people to seek God:  it was an exhortation by the Holy Spirit through the prophet Azariah the son of Oded, a prophet likely you have never heard of because there are no books of the Bible titled by his name.  The Spirit of the almighty God came upon Azariah with a message for the king, and the hearts of the people turned to the LORD and found Him.

2 Chronicles 15:1-7 tells us what happened:  "Now the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded. ² And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: "Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. ³ For a long time Israel has been without the true God, without a teaching priest, and without law; ⁴ but when in their trouble they turned to the LORD God of Israel, and sought Him, He was found by them. ⁵ And in those times there was no peace to the one who went out, nor to the one who came in, but great turmoil was on all the inhabitants of the lands. ⁶ So nation was destroyed by nation, and city by city, for God troubled them with every adversity. ⁷ But you, be strong and do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded!"  The prophet related how God chastened His people when they departed from Him, but if they sought Him they would find Him.  For a long time the people were without peace and were troubled on every side.  There was great turmoil that resulted in destruction and adversity.  Seeking God required labour to obey Him and put away sin, and the exhortation came with the promise of sure reward.

King Asa and the people heeded the word of the LORD spoken by Azariah, and it required courage to put away idols and remove the queen from her position for her idolatry.  People from all around flocked to king Asa because God was with him (2 Chron. 15:10).  There were times when God revealed Himself with fire from heaven on Sinai, consumed the sacrifice on Mt. Carmel and a glorious cloud filled the temple.  You might wonder, how did people know they had found God?  Verse 15 gives us the answer:  the LORD gave them rest all around.  They were at rest inside and out, at peace with God and one another.  The trouble and adversity that plagued them dissipated and disturbance was replaced with rejoicing.  All Judah rejoiced and was at rest because they sought the LORD and He was found by them.  There is no need to complicate this, to obsess over how they knew they found God because we doubt such a thing is possible.  When a man previously blind was asked how he was miraculously made whole by Jesus he said, "One thing I know:  though I was blind now I see."

Jesus bid all come to Him and find rest for our souls, and rejoicing in the Prince of Peace is a consistent theme for all those who believed in Jesus Christ even in the midst of trials.  Jesus is our Peace, and God Himself is our reward.  People troubled by God were given strength to seek and find God, and they rejoiced to seek Him because their efforts were bountifully rewarded.  Praise the LORD Jesus is the Good Shepherd sent to find us lost sheep, and when we respond to His voice by seeking Him we are rewarded with His presence where we experience perfect peace and rest.

Souls at Peace

"As for me, I will call upon God, and the LORD shall save me. ¹⁷ Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice. ¹⁸ He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, for there were many against me."

Psalm 55:16-18

David was anointed king over Israel and the Spirit of God rested upon him, yet life was not easy.  He faced many troubles, struggles and many enemies--even in his own household.  All along David had great confidence in God's ability to hear, answer his prayers and save him.  When the men of Israel cowered in fear at the threats of Goliath, David alone was courageous to meet him in battle because he was sure God would deliver him into his hand.  There were many who gathered against David, but there were also many with him.

I am reminded of the time when Elisha was holed up in Dothan and the Syrians came and surrounded the city.  2 Kings 6:15-17 reads, "And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?" ¹⁶ So he answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them." ¹⁷ And Elisha prayed, and said, "LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha."  The servant saw the army encompassing the city and was afraid.  He wondered what they could possibly do and was blind to the divine protection provided by God's grace of an innumerable heavenly host.  Sometimes we are like the overwhelmed servant when we ought to have the fearless perspective of Elisha who prayed.

For all the troubles God allowed David to endure, He brought help, comfort and friendship in time of need.  When David was forced to leave his home and wife because of king Saul's murderous rampage, hundreds of men gathered to him who would remain loyal all his days.  He was separated from his family and hometown and 400 men swelled to 600.  After David fled Jerusalem during the coup led by Absalom, he directed the priests to return to the city and instructed 10 concubines to remain and keep the house while many mourned beside him.  Shimei threw stones and hurled insults at David, yet Barzillai and Shobi a Moabite came to comfort and provide much needed supplies.  David's trusted advisor Ahithophel turned against him, yet his friend Hushai came to help him.  It seemed for every foe God provided David a friend who rallied to his aid, and God was faithful to deliver him.

By faith in God there is strong confidence and great gain, for God hears, saves and delivers us according to His grace and goodness.  We may not feel we have a friend in the world and all seems against us, but may we never forget Jesus called His disciples friends.  Since we have sought the LORD and fled to Him for refuge who can separate us from His love and life?  Israel once complained about all the things that were against him because of the loss of Joseph, Simeon and Benjamin (Gen. 42:36) and did not comprehend at the time how God was for him.  God had preserved all three and used Joseph to save many other people alive through a severe 7 year famine.  Our God hears, saves and is always with us, able to redeem our souls in peace.

Give Praise To God

Because we live within the confines of time marked by years, months and days that repeat, it is common for people to mark particularly meaningful days like birthdays, wedding anniversaries and holidays.  There are also days that "live in infamy" when people and nations have suffered great tragedies that will be soberly remembered for generations to come.  We look forward to days we celebrate, and Christmas is a day rapidly approaching many gladly anticipate.  Everyone has different holiday traditions and why a day is more meaningful or worthy of celebration, and for me Christmas is a reminder of something I can rejoice in every day:  that God sent Jesus Christ our Saviour to give us eternal life by faith in Him.

The giving and receiving of gifts on Christmas is a longstanding tradition among many people and cultures.  I find it interesting the different ways people discuss Christmas, like we are going to "have Christmas" at someone's home--meaning there will be a special meal or the exchange at that location rather than somewhere else.  An article reporting on an interview with an epidemiologist on The Project said, "After the interview, Wilkinson seemed sceptical that Australia’s politicians would follow the health experts’ advice: “They know that the greatest gift they could give, as politicians, is to give us Christmas,” she said.  “You don’t want to be the politician that destroyed Christmas,” quipped panellist Nazeem Hussain."  Can a politician give anyone Christmas or destroy it?  I suppose that depends on how you define Christmas.

God has given us Christ, and thus the purpose and reason Christmas exists for me does not depend on our ability to gather with family, to drink eggnog, eat special foods or the exchange of gifts.  I personally enjoy the exchange of gifts as an expression of thankgiving for the LORD's greatest gift in sending us His Son.  This morning David's words directed to God in Psalm 54:6 resonated with me:  "I will freely sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good."  David was obligated under the Law of Moses to offer sacrifices to the LORD from his flocks and herds.  As a shepherd he knew what to look for in quality sheep, goats and cattle and selected the best to give to God who gave him all things.  His obligation under Law was not an arduous and annoying duty but a joyful opportunity to freely sacrifice to God and praise God because He is good.  This is the heart we can have in giving to God and others every day, for God's goodness does not hinge on politicians or legislation.

Giving ourselves in praise to the LORD is fitting for every occasion as it is written in Hosea 14:1-2:  "O Israel, return to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity; ² take words with you, and return to the LORD. Say to Him, "Take away all iniquity; receive us graciously, for we will offer the sacrifices of our lips."  See this divine exchange:  having received Jesus our LORD and Saviour by faith, God's people are received by God according to His grace.  We are sinners, and God sent us a Saviour.  God knew what mankind needed and gave us the perfect gift, the Person of Jesus Christ the LORD.  Hebrews 13:15 is the perfect response in light of all God has done for and given us through Jesus:  "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name."  Let us give thanks unto our LORD freely, for He is good.

The Father Loves You

God's grace and love is foreign to this world and we can struggle at times to receive it.  We naturally love based on who a person is in relation to us, if our experiences with someone have been favourable or out of appreciation for admirable qualities we find in others.  This offer or withdrawal of love based upon performance can filter into our relationship with God, imagining He only loves us because of Jesus.  Jesus loves us, this we know because the Bible tells us so.  Did you realise God the Father loves us too?

A friend told me of a recent conversation he had when he extended an invitation to church.  "Oh I couldn't go to church," he was told.  "I'd be burned up for sure."  This perspective was not one of confidence in the love of God that seeks to forgive and restore lost sinners to fellowship with Himself.  Some see God as a vengeful, angry judge who is ready to smite sinners in anger when suddenly meek and mild Jesus steps in and the Father's wrath abates.  Rest assured there is no divine nepotism at work, no "good cop bad cop" routine where God is primed to destroy and Jesus wants to show mercy.  Jesus and the Father are one, and God is love.

Do you see God the Father as a surly, divine bouncer who guards the gates of heaven?  Do you imagine tentatively approaching the gates of pearl and suddenly God grabs you by the scruff of the neck to dispatch you into hell and Jesus, seeing His Father a bit unhinged says, "Oh, he is with me."  At the words of Jesus the Father releases His hold, smooths out our rumpled clothing and relents from what He really wants to do, which is to throw us into the eternal flame of hell.  This is a completely false, unscriptural idea of what God is like.  God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son Jesus to save sinners, not condemn them.  We were condemned already!

Jesus said in John 16:26-27, "In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; ²⁷ for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God."  God the Father answers the prayers of those who trust in Jesus, not just for Christ's sake but because the Father Himself loves us.  This is a wonderful thing Jesus revealed.  Those who love Jesus are in a posture to receive the love of the Father and share it with others.  Anything on earth we receive and share with others means we have less of it, yet the more we share God's love the more it grows and expands within us.  God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit are in full agreement as one God, revealing the gracious love of God for undeserving people.

God loves you, you don't deserve it and you never will.  But will you receive the love of God freely offered to you?  Will you choose to love God and others as you exercise faith by obedience in the God who delivers, redeems and saves?  God is the righteous judge of all and made a way of salvation by faith in Jesus for unworthy sinners because He loves us.  God loved us and sent His Son, and the Father Himself loves those who love Jesus.  The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love.  May we be enraptured in the love of God provided by His grace and grow in it by loving Him and others.