How to Draw Near to God (1)
James 4:8
4-5-09
Intro
We begin this morning with this simple commandment from James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” The one thing everyone of us need is this nearness of God that James is referring to.
(1)We know God is omnipresent. So in one sense He is near to everyone, even the ungodly. Paul said to the pagans at Athens, “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ’For we are also His offspring’” (Acts 17:26-29). In one sense God is present with everybody—He gives each person his or her next breath. But that’s not the nearness James is talking about.
(2) We also know that God, the Holy Spirit, dwells in every believer. Rom 8:9 “... Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” But James is talking to believers and telling them to draw near. Therefore, the nearness of God that comes with being a Christian is not what James is talking about either.
(3) What is James talking about? He’s telling Christians to purposefully move into greater intimacy with God. It’s possible for a married couple to live in the same room. But if the husband is in his office on the computer and the wife is in another room watching television, is there any intimacy going on? They are logistically close to one another, but there’s no close interaction. Each is functioning independent of the other.
James is calling on Christians to get into the same room with God—get into a conversation with God—talk with Him and hear what He has to say to you--get to know God as a person much more deeply.
I think most of us intuitively know what James means when he says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” The question that we have is “How.” We want a closer walk with the Lord; we want to feel His presence—not only during church but throughout the week. OK—draw near to God. I want to do that. But where do I start and how do I proceed?
1st Prepare your heart to seek the Lord.
God commended King Jehoshaphat because he had prepared his heart to seek the Lord (2 Chron. 19:3). In 2Chron. 30 King Hezekiah led Israel to keep the Passover which the nation had not done in many years. The timing did not work out for it to be done exactly when the Law called for it. Many of the people did not have time to adequately sanctify themselves in preparation for the Passover. There were several technical infractions but Hezekiah appeals to God on this basis. 2 Chron 30:18-19, “May the good LORD provide atonement for everyone 19 who prepares his heart to seek God, the LORD God of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary." The one qualification these Israelites had met was this: they had prepared their hearts to seek God. The NIV translates it “who sets his heart on seeking God.” The Hebrew word translated prepares or sets is kuwn (koon). It’s root meaning is to be erect (i.e. stand perpendicular). Sometimes it is translated “make provision” or “make ready.” The word was used in reference to David preparing provisions for Solomon to build the temple. This word is also translated “be stable” or “establish.”
So what do we mean when we say, “Prepare your heart to seek the Lord?” We mean (1) make a firm decision to do it and (2) make preparations to do it. James tells us a double-minded man can not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Have you decided to follow Jesus? Have you made a firm decision to seek the Lord? David used this same word in Ps 57:7 when he said, “My heart is steadfast (kuwn -koon)(KJV says “fixed”), O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise.”
Without that kind of determination, it’s doubtful any of us will seek the Lord long. I’m asking you this morning to make a decision—a decision that you will seek the Lord. I don’t think that happens by accident. We have to decide that’s what we want to do. Let me share with you a very simple philosophy I have about leading this church. My approach is this: I have decided that to the best of my ability I’m going to seek the Lord for the rest of my life. I’m not going to be diverted from that. I’m going to pursue God. Now here’s the invitation to anyone in our community. If you would like to join me in doing that, I would love to walk it out with you. My goal is not to be the biggest church in town or to impress people with some kind of external success. I want to faithfully and fervently pursue God. I believe there are lots of people who feel the same way. I believe there are many in this room who are here because you’ve prepared your heart to seek God.
So there needs to be an erect, stand up decision to do this. And then preparations need to be made for it to happen. I said earlier, this word was used in reference to the preparations David made for building the temple. If we have decided to seek the Lord, the logical question is when, where, and how are we going to do this. We need specific plans for following up on our decision. Will we seek the Lord by gathering here each Sunday morning and sincerely worshipping God? Will we open our ears to God’s word and let it transform our lives? Will Sunday morning be something we consistently do or is it something we do if nothing else comes up? There are a lot of Christians who would lose their job if they had the same kind of commitment there as they have toward worship on Sunday morning. Will we seek the Lord by gathering with others on Wednesday evening for prayer? Will we seek the Lord during a pre-service prayer meeting in that little room? Will we draw near to God each morning in a daily devotion? When we’re driving down the road will we turn on a worship CD and praise God as we drive down the highway? There are many other venues we could talk about. But the point is this. We have to get beyond a vague, abstract intention to seek the Lord. We have to develop a plan as to when, where, and how we’re going to do that. Then we have to arrange our schedules and provide logistics for it to happen. Preparing our hearts to seek the Lord includes making specific plans and personal commitments to actually do it.
How do you draw near to God. 1st you prepare your heart to seek the Lord.
2. Make it a priority.
There are a lot of things I want to do and even intend to do that I never do. I want to go horseback riding. I want to spend some time on the shooting range. I never do those things. Why? They are never a priority. I want and even intend to clean out the garage; but it seldom happens. It seldom gets high enough on my priority list to get accomplished.
I don’t doubt that most Christians intend to pray; they intend to serve God in some capacity; they intend to do the right thing. But most of it never happens because they disobey one principle Jesus set forth in his Sermon on the Mount. Matt 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Where are your priorities? We can tell where our priorities are by what we actually do. All the other things are not done because we have excellent excuses for not doing them. Seek first—make it a priority—or you will never really get it done!
I have never been able to be consistent with morning devotions without making it a huge priority. That’s one reason I have to do it first thing. Somehow once the day gets rolling it’s much harder for me to stop and do it. This is one area in my life I want to strengthen.
Heb 10:22-25 “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Do you see any signs of the Day of the Lord approaching? How about the G20 summit last week? Are you aware of commitments made during that summit that lean toward giving some American sovereignty to the European alliance? I see movement toward conditions prophesied in the book of Revelation. But what does the Bible tell us to as we “see the Day approaching.” Are we told to freak out and bash Obama? No we’re told to assemble ourselves and encourage each other in the Lord. There is a built in accountability in that. One of the great advantages of church commitment is or tendency to be more faithful to something when we make ourselves accountable to one another.
So now I’m not just asking you if you want to seek the Lord. I’m asking you, “What is your plan? When and how will you do it? You may need to write it down; just so you’re clear on exactly what it is that you will do. You may want to share that plan just to feel more accountability to do it. Bottom line is this: at the end of the day, you either did it or you didn’t. At the end of the day you and I will either hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant, or we won’t.
So, how do we draw near to God. (1) We prepare our hearts to seek the Lord. We firmly decide to do it. (2) We make that a priority and maybe add some accountability into the mix.
3. Take a step in the right direction.
Someone has said, “A thousand mile walk begins with one step.” If we never take that step, we’ll certainly never make the journey. When we think about drawing near to God, sometimes we get such lofty ideals in mind that we never get started. Drawing near to God is a process. Sometimes God does seem to “suddenly” show up. But usually and often even on those occasions there have been some right preparations along the way. When Solomon dedicated the temple, God showed up in an awesome way. A shekinah cloud of glory entered the place. The anointing was so strong the priests couldn’t stand up to minister. All that occurred rather suddenly. But look at all the preparations that led up to that—all the preparations David did to supply the material for the temple—all the work that went into building the temple—the sanctification of the priests in preparation for the dedication—the slaying of thousands of sacrifices—the worship, etc. It didn’t just happen in a vacuum. It happened to people who had set their hearts to seek God. It happened to people ready to receive it. Hundreds of thousands of people were renewed in their walk with God at the Brownsville Revival in Pensacola, Florida. But for years that church had prayed for a breakthrough before it came. Somebody had to start.
How do we draw near to God? We not only take a step forward from where we are right now but we:
4. Continue with the process.
God used the construction of the tabernacle (and later the temple) to teach His people how to draw near to Him. Look with me at the layout of the tabernacle. The temple followed the same pattern.
(1) There was only one gate—only one way to approach the presence of God. A high fence surrounded the grounds so that a person could not just come in any way he wanted to. Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life.” No one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6).
(2) As a person entered the gate, he first encounters the brazen altar or altar of sacrifice. This is where the sacrificial animals were burned. The blood of these animals had to be shed before anyone could approach God. Heb 9:22 says “... without shedding of blood there is no remission.” Sin is only atoned for by the shedding of blood. A bloodless religion does not even get a person to first base in knowing God. Of course, these blood sacrifices in the O.T. were only a foreshadowing of the one eternal sacrifice of Christ on the cross. No one—absolutely no one—goes to heaven without faith in the blood of Christ for forgiveness of sin. It is not politically correct in our society to say that; but it is biblically correct. I would rather be biblically correct than politically correct. Amen?
What a foolish decision God made in sending His Son, if people could save themselves. To have His Son leave the glories of heaven, come to the earth, and suffer shame and pain would be foolish if it were not necessary. But God is not foolish. People are foolish who disagree with His decisions. There is salvation in no other name but the name of Jesus because no other paid the price for your sin. No other was worthy to do so and none other could have done so. Salvation does not rest upon a set of moral ethics designed to get people to be nicer. Salvation rests upon the penalty for your sin being paid by Jesus. Faith in Jesus and His work on the cross is the only way a person can come to God. You and I cannot save ourselves. We trust in Jesus for that.
So, to even become a Christian we must come to God through Jesus and we must be forgiven of our sin based on the payment he made on the cross. Even as Christians we are continually dependent upon the blood of Christ to cleanse of sin. Writing to Christians the Apostle John says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:7-9). When we pray daily, “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have sinned against us,” we are trusting in the blood sacrifice of Jesus as the basis of that request.
Does anyone here need to visit that brazen altar today? Is anyone carrying unnecessary guilt? Are you hesitant to come to God because of that guilt? The blood of Jesus can remove that guilt for saint or sinner. Ask forgiveness on the basis of Jesus’ sacrifice—not on the basis of your resolution to do better—but on the basis of what Jesus has already done.
(3) Now the goal in drawing near to God is the Holy of Holies. When James tells Christians to “draw near to God” as a good Jew he is thinking about the Holy of Holies where God dwells. In the Old Testament, coming that close to God was a privilege only available to the High Priest once a year on the Day of Atonement. But at the cross all that changed.
Heb 10:19-22 “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” The writer of Hebrews is using the same imagery of the tabernacle as we are this morning to encourage Christians to draw near to God. When Jesus died on the cross, he gave his life to open up the way for us to come to God as sons & daughters of the Most High. This heavy veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies tore into from top to bottom the moment Jesus died at Calvary (Mk 15:38). So Hebrews 10 gives three key reasons we can enter into the very presence of God: 1.The blood of Jesus as been poured out in payment for our sin. The offense toward God has been removed “by the blood of Jesus.” 2. The tearing of his flesh in sacrifice for us has opened the way for us to enter God’s presence. This was symbolized miraculously by the tearing from top (by God) to bottom the curtain that separated us from that presence. 3. We have a High Priest who intercedes for us. As our resurrected Lord, Jesus lives forever in that capacity.
So don’t miss this point. The privilege of is entirely based on Jesus work not our own.
Now let’s get back to this process of drawing near to God. I am born again. I am a Christian. But I have not yet grown angel’s wings. I still struggle with things. I still am not completely sanctified. How do I draw near to God?
(4) As we approach God we come to the Brazen Laver. This was a huge bowl where the priests washed their hands and feet. Their sin was atoned for at the Brazen Altar. But they continually came to this laver to wash away the influence of this dusty world. Here is a revelation on how to draw near to God. This laver represents the cleansing influence of the word of God on our lives. Heb 10:22 again “let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience (brazen altar) and our bodies washed with pure water (brazen laver). Our external behavior—our external walk and work (hands and feet) corrected/cleansed by the influence of the Word in our daily lives. Eph 5:25-27 “25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.” Hear these words with fresh understanding “26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word...”
So if we would draw near to God, we must approach His Word continually. We must apply that word to areas of our lives that need cleansing. Ps 24:3-6 “Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face.”
How do we draw near to God?
(5) There is instruction for us Christians in the Holy Place. Once we get in here the metal is gold not brass. There are three articles of furniture there:
a. The Golden Lampstand was the only source of light. As we draw near to God we walk in the light that He gives us. We are no longer children of darkness. We are no longer of the night. We are no longer groping around in unbelief. Paul wrote to the Christians as Thessalonica (5:5-8) “You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.”
b. The Table of Showbread (Menorah) had 12 loaves of bread each representing a tribe of Israel. The priests only ate the bread in the Holy Place. The showbread was also called “bread of the presence” because it was always eaten in the presence of the Lord. We understand some of the meaning of this table because of the communion in our services. Here our fellowship with Christ brings nourishment to our souls. Jesus said, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger....” Here we are fellowshipping with the Lord and with one another. 1 John 1:3 “that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.”
How does the Table of Showbread instruct us about drawing near to God? We’ve got to maintain a wholesome fellowship with the Lord and with His people—all of them—all 12 tribes. The twelve loaves represents all of God’s people. So I want to draw near to God. Ok, get the relationships right. Forgive perceived offenses—turn it loose, turn it loose, turn it loose. Get rid of the albatross of unforgiveness. Learn to fellowship with God’s people—even those you don’t agree with. What would keep us from doing that? Pride more than anything else—especially spiritual pride will isolate you from the Body of Christ. Do not be deceived into thinking you can draw closer to God by disconnecting with His people. Just the opposite is true. Before you get to the Holy of Holies you must walk through the Holy Place where the Table of Showbread stands.
c. The Golden Altar of Incense was also in the Holy Place. The incense was to be left burning continually night and day as a sweet aroma to the Lord. Rev 8:3-4 “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand.” What does this Golden Altar of Incense represent? It represents prayer which is offered to God. Prayer is an essential element of drawing near to God. If we neglect we will not live in the presence of God. “My house,” God says, “shall be called a house of prayer.”
So, what do the articles of furniture in the Holy Place teach us about drawing near to God. The Golden Lampstand teaches us to walk in the light. The Table of Showbread teaches us to live in fellowship with Christ and His people. The Golden Altar of Incense teaches us to be a people of prayer.
“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” That’s a command with a promise. We have to be honest enough to say whether we really want to draw near to God. You can have church without drawing near to God. People can conduct all kinds of social activities without the presence of God. Christians can live their lives without intimacy with God—just kind of living a nice life but keeping God arm’s length away. Draw near to God—will we? Will we
1. Prepare our hearts to seek the Lord?
2. Make it a priority?
3. Take a step in the right direction?
4. Continue with the process as revealed in the Tabernacle structure.
Pray
For FOOTNOTES/SOURCES go to www.GatewayNixa.org
Richard Tow
Gateway Foursquare Church
Nixa, Missouri
