Seek Him While He May Yet Be Found

Ezekiel 20:42 Then you will know that I am the Lord

This is the focus of God's interaction with every one of us. He purposes to be known as the Sovereign Lord in each of our lives and His majesty and worth will be acknowledged by His entire creation.

God's work in our individual hearts is first to draw us by His love so He can shelter us under His wings when His judgment is executed on the powers of unrighteousness. He is not willing that any should perish, and He has paid the price so that each one would be able to find his way to safety in God's mercy and love, if we so choose.

However, as with our children, some will not be drawn by ties of love and care. Some are too focused on their own interests to hear the call. Some are angry over perceived "unfairness" and refuse to acknowledge the tug on their heart. Some are influenced by those outside and change their allegiance.

God never tires when seeking His sheep. The Spirit is always working, speaking to hearts, using circumstances, never relenting from the search. As we enter into the work of the kingdom of God, aligning ourselves with the heart of God, He empowers us to minister to others as we draw near to Him.

Hebrews 10
v.19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
v.22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith
v.23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess
v.24 let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
v.25 Let us not give up meeting together, ...but let us encourage one another

God calls us in our weaknesses, so that the work which is done is clearly by God's hand and not ours. He ensures that He *will* be known as the Lord in all that is accomplished. Therefore, He reveals His plan to those who realize they do not deserve it or have the means to do it, and He spurns those who attempt to do God's work out of their own strength, skill, and resources.

By God's encouragement, we step out in faith. Through the Body's support and ministry, we are strengthened in God's service. When standing on the Word of God, we find the victory in our own lives and in the lives of others as God watches over His Word to perform it.

Hebrews 10
v.16 I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.
v.17 Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.

As we grow in relationship with God, He equips us for a life in the spirit. He removes our doubt and uncertainty and replaces them with faith and confidence in Him. He removes our sensitiveness and replaces it with a healthy self-respect. He removes our self-centeredness and replaces it with a real interest in others. He removes our criticism and judgment of others and replaces it with a desire to encourage others, build them up and see them succeed in their walk with God.

He removes our resentments and gives us an open willingness to invest ourselves in others without recompense. He removes our sense of inferiority around others and gives us a willingness to step up and accept responsibility beyond our resources, realizing we can trust God to see us through. His book of remembrance will show our growth in His grace, not the weakness of our flesh.

Psalm 108
v.12 Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless.
v.13 With God we will gain the victory and he will trample down our enemies.

As we win the separate battles over our carnal nature through obedience to God, walking into the holiness and perfection that Jesus prepared for us by His sacrifice, we find that we often come under attack from the outside, as God's enemy seeks to intimidate us into departing from the path by which God is leading us.  No self-help book or seminar will help us in this. It requires the truth of God's Word, illuminated by God's Spirit. The finished work of the cross that Jesus accomplished is where we find the victory. God will be acknowledged as Lord by both sides when He completes His work in us.

Hebrews 10
v.35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.
v.36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.
v.37 For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay.
v.38 But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him."
v.39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.

Almighty Lord and God, Whom we accept as our loving Father and acknowledge as our trustworthy Redeemer, thank You for making a place for us in Your plan. We confess that Your grace keeps us, Your love lifts us, and Your mercy covers us. Without Your joy we have no strength, no hope. Accept our praise, worship, and adoration, we pray, not because we are the ones who give, for truly, all will eventually confess it. Accept it because it is given willingly to the One Who is worthy to receive it.

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