An ancient Chassidic parable tells the story of Yechiel, the young grandson of a Chassidic rabbi, who once played hide-and-seek with a friend. When it was his turn to hide, he found a great hiding place where he waited, somewhat impatiently, for his friend to find him.
He waited and waited; it seemed like hours—but his friend never came. In fact, his friend had never even started looking for him. He'd left the little boy and gone home.
With tears streaming down his face, Yechiel ran to his grandfather and told him what had happened. Deeply moved by the hurt of his grandson, the rabbi also broke into tears saying, "God says the same thing: 'I hide, but no one tries to find me.'"
I. INTRODUCTION
1. I hide, but no one tries to find me. When you hear that statement, you probably think, “God makes himself available to everybody, He doesn’t hide!” Your problem (mine, too), is that you think like a 21st century Gentile…
2. In ancient Jewish thought, God reveals himself only to those who seek him: in particular priests, prophets and others God specifically calls. They believe God hides himself from pagan nations because he does not wish to reveal himself to them.
3. Consequently, the Jews focus much of their theology on seeking God’s face (some believe this phrase is a reference to his “hiding”). Our goal is not to adopt their belief, but to understand it, and gain a new appreciation for Jewish thought as it relates to OT writings.
(Read 1 Chronicles 28:1-10 (JPS) while Bibles are closed, then PRAY.) —OYBT 1 Chronicles 28.
II. BACKGROUND/SETTING
1. In this passage the Chronicler records David’s plans for the building of the temple of the Lord, and his final instructions to his son Solomon.
2. David concedes that he will not build the temple for YAHWEH his God, despite his deep desire to do so (v.2). If you’ve experienced the loss of a dream, you understand David’s disappointment. He masks his regret (like us) with some positive self-affirmation (4-7):
A. YAHWEH, the God of Israel chose me to be king; first Judah, then my family, then me!
B. Among my sons, he has chosen Solomon to be king of the kingdom of the Lord.
C. Solomon, my son, will build the temple; he will be the LORD’s son
D. His kingdom will last forever if he is uncompromising in carrying out the law of God.
3. David’s self-affirmation is not pride, but duty to bless the LORD. Israel’s understanding is that God showers goodness on them, and they respond in praise, worship, submission and obedience.
4. Following his challenge to the children of Israel (v8) to live in strict obedience to the laws and commandments of YAHWEH, he turns to Solomon in a beautifully passionate moment, and gives him this emotional instruction (v9):
A. And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.
B. NIV acknowledge is unfortunate—should probably be translated know. Also, heart is not the organ or emotion, but inner midst of the will—the center of conscious decision (cf. mind, brain)
So, how do I seek God and know God, and are they related? The common answer is “read the Bible and pray.” Sound advice, but we need clearer direction than that to be effective.
[Seeking God begins with attitude, not activity. Seek Him with reckless abandon in all things.]
III. SEEKING GOD
1. Jesus taught that we should love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and mind. With that in mind, seeking God may follow this pattern.
A. Seek with your heart. Refers to the inner midst of the will—the center of conscious decision. Seeking God begins with attitude, not activity. Seek His will passionately in everything.
i. Drawing closer to God requires a change of attitude toward the things of God.
ii. This may involve changes in lifestyle, priorities and schedule; don’t say I didn’t warn you!
B. Seek with your soul. Goals require absolute committment. An hour here and there when it fits won’t do; dedicate your life, seeking God first in all things.
i. The goal here is intimacy. In order to get it, you must give it.
ii. Prayer is the secret to seeking with your soul; tell God your desire—be specific, intentional.
C. Seek with your mind. The study of scripture requires—wait for it—STUDY. I encourage you to invest in your relationship with God.
i. Get involved in a serious study group, something beyond a social gathering
ii. Take a class at a local Bible institute, college, or seminary
iii. Add four books to your library: a good study Bible, a concordance, a Bible dictionary, and a single-volume commentary on the Bible. These tools, your desire, and the prompting of the Holy Spirit is all that you need.
[Seeking God begins with attitude, not activity. Seek Him with reckless abandon in all things.]
IV. KNOWING GOD
1. When you seek God, you begin to know him in new ways. You read Scripture looking for insights into God’s character and his heart (theological insights about God). As you read, pray over the scripture and ask God to reveal himself to you through that specific passage.
2. With a little practice, you spot these insights quickly because you’ve trained your eyes and they leap off the page to you. Guess what! You’re beginning to know God better!
3. Your newfound knowledge (beyond intellectual, now personal and experiential) has another affect on you—suddenly, you want to seek God even more!
4. It’s unending spiritual formation; you seek, in order to know him, and as you know him, you seek him more to know him better! It’s a paradox (two conditions that seem to contradict each other). It may help to think of seeking God and knowing God as two sides of the same coin!
The late author and pastor A. W. Tozer said this about the relationship between seeking and knowing: “What I am anxious to see in Christian believers is a beautiful paradox. I want to see in them the joy of finding God while at the same time they are blessedly pursuing Him. I want to see in them the great joy of having God yet always wanting Him.” That’s it! Always having God yet always wanting more of him!
V. SERVING GOD
1. When this paradox defines your walk with the Lord, serving Him is a given: you can’t sit still!
2. You have greater peace in whatever he calls you to do, because you have come to know him—he’s not an acquaintance, he’s the closest friend you have.
3. You look for opportunities to serve—new areas of challenge that draw you still closer to him.
4. Your walk is defined by the intimacy you share with God. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?
VI. CONCLUSION
1. David’s advice to Solomon is simple—seek God, know God, serve God. Seeking God begins with attitude, not activity. Seek Him passionately in all things.
2. Lou Holtz, former football coach at Notre Dame said “never confuse activity with accomplishment”
Solomon’s life will be active—Dad wants accomplishment—that which grows from seeking, knowing and serving God. How about you?
