Could you afford to reject God? Could you just set aside His Supreme Goodness?
Would you be interested in something other than Him?
David, who had a glimpse of His Divine Beauty, declared:
"One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to meditate in His temple" (Ps. 27:4, NAS).
"To behold the BEAUTY of the LORD"!!
Beauty attracts! It does not repulse!
We do not tend to reject something beautiful! We do not close our eyes to it. We are drawn toward it! We gravitate towards it.
If something beautiful that is created just out of nothing attracts us, how much more He Who Creates every beauty now and forevermore?
God’s Beauty is unsurpassed. He who beholds Him will so admire Him and will rejoice that he is in His Presence.
Also, we read in Isaiah 1:2-3:
"Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth!
For the LORD has spoken:
’I have nourished and brought up children,
And they have rebelled against Me;
The ox knows its owner
And the donkey its master’s crib;
But Israel does not know,
My people do not consider’" (NKJV).
We naturally drew nearer and attached ourselves to the one who nourished and brought us up.
God nourishes us!
But there are those who do NOT know. There are those who do not consider that God is their Loving and Sovereign Provider. They may know Him in their head, but NOT in their heart. They have their own human concept of God.
Blessed, indeed, are those whom God reveals Himself to them as their Heavenly Father Who nourishes them!
God attracts also because of His Great Mercy.
Consider the mercy shown by the good Samaritan in Luke 10:30-35:
"A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who ripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ’Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you’" (NKJV).
Do we "see" God in that story?
If we realized that we were also the "victim" of Satan, we became "spiritually UNconscious" and because God took pity on us, He "saved" us -- not just by taking care of us and bringing us to an inn, but He made us alive "and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6).
When the victim of the thieves would realize what the Samaritan had done to him, would he appreciate and admire him for his mercy?
Are we also so grateful for the mercy we received from the Good Samaritan (God)? Do we find Him attractive or repulsive?
He who experiences His Mercy will always find Him Attractive and Worthy of our praises!
Now, let’s listen to God’s Word in Isaiah 46:9-11:
“Remember the former things of old,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, ’My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure,’
Calling a bird of prey from the east,
The man who executes My counsel, from a far country.
Indeed I have spoken it;
I will also bring it to pass.
I have purposed it;
I will also do it” (NKJV).
He declared, “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me...”
And we also read in verse 5, “To whom will you liken Me, and make Me equal
And compare Me, that we should be alike?”
Are we not interested in something unique and incomparable?
There is none like God. He has no equal – Incomparable in His Attractiveness – in Who He is and What He can do!
Should we not appreciate Him and follow His Sovereign Call? If we know Him, we will surely respond positively (John 10:4).
Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, made this invitation:
"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matt. 11:28-30, NKJV).
If we realise that we need "rest," or heavy laden with sin (Isa. 1:18), we will not hesitate to come to God.
He said, "I will give you rest..." Also, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool" (Isa. 1:18).
We need also to understand that the "rest" is not something that we can just take from Him, then, we can go again in our way and still have rest. He Himself is our "rest." If we want to maintain it, we have to remain in His Presence (Ex. 33:14).
Thus, if we behold that He is the Everlasting Rest, we will surely be attracted to Him -- we will draw near to Him and remain in Him.
And would you hesitate to become attracted to something that satisfies you?
An Illegal drug could even attract, because of the satisfaction it brings, though temporary.
But we read in God’s Word:
"Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness" (Ps. 107:8-9, NKJV).
God SATISFIES the longing soul!!
Only God can fill and satisfy the human heart He created.
If He reveals to us that "He fills the hungry soul with goodness" and provides real heavenly satisfaction, we will seek nothing else to enjoy contentment!
Let’s refrain from making our own picture of God just as what we want Him to be. Rather, be acquainted with Him as He had revealed Himself in His Word and experience His Supreme Satisfaction!
David declared, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want" (Ps. 23:1, NKJV).
Do you need to be coerced in admiring and trusting God , if you have realized He is our Shepherd?
If you know that when you are in Him, you shall not be in want in Him, would you not admire Him ?
Do you know that, as the Good Shepherd, He makes you "lie down in green pastures" and leads you "beside still waters" (verse 2)?
Also, He "restores" your soul and leads you "in the paths of righteousness" (verse 3)?
And because He is with you, you "fear no evil" and His "rod" and His "staff" they comfort you (verse 4)?
As your Shepherd, He also prepares a table before you even in the presence of you "enemies" and He anoints your head with old that your "cup runs over" (verse 5)?
Did you really know God as your "Shepherd"?
If you do, would you not say:
"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever" (verse 6)?
As David also wrote in Psalm 9:10, "And those who know Your name will put their trust in You..."
Yes, those who really know God will find Him so attractive and trust in Him -- and we will choose to remain in Him, not turn away from Him!
And if we hear His Voice, we will surely come and run towards Him – not because we are threatened or forced, but because we know the Supreme Attractiveness of the One who Calls (see John 10:14, 16) – He nourishes, He extends His Great Mercy, He is Incomparable, He provides Rest, He Satisfies exceedingly and He is the Good Shepherd.
PRAYER: Our Glorious God, whose Divine Attractiveness deserves not only our admiration, but even our worship, we rejoice for making Yourself known to us. And as You continue to reveal Your Splendour to us, may You enable many more people to behold Your Irresistible Beauty through Your Son, Jesus Christ. In His Name, we pray. Amen.
