Psalm 91 - Study 23 - One thing I seek
We read in Psalm 91:9-10, “Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” (KJV)
Psalm 91, as we have understood from our studies, is one that elaborates the protection and security that is available to those who put their trust in the Lord. The one thing that is topmost on everyone’s mind these days is that this pandemic should not come near any of our homes, so that we and our dear ones can remain safe. We comprehend from these verses that it is not enough for God to be our refuge alone, but He must be our habitation as well. It is only when this becomes a reality in our lives, can we be guaranteed that no plague will come near our dwelling.
David earnestly sought after God
David who wrote Psalm 91 surely understood all that it took to make God one’s dwelling place.
These are the words of David in Psalm 27:4, “One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” (NIV)
There are two words which I wish to highlight in the above mentioned verse, ‘ask’ and ‘seek.’ While the word ‘ask’ is mentioned once, the word ‘seek’ is repeated twice. We generally ask God for answers to various requests when we go to Him in prayer. However, to seek God, implies that we put our faith into action. Often there seems to be a discrepancy between our prayers and our practices. No wonder then that there is a break-down as the ones who pray don’t practice and many who practice don’t pray.
David was very sure that he would not only ask God, but would also be one who would fervently sought after God and this he made his paramount priority.
Wise Men sought after Jesus
We read in Matthew 2:1-2, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, Wise-men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we saw his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” (ASV)
Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea. In those days there was an exceptional star that appeared and there were wise men who took note of this. These learned men realized that this was a spectacular star that signified the birth of a king. When they saw the star in the east and understood the connotation of that star, the news would have been sensational, and must have certainly created much excitement and curiosity among many. However, it was only a few wise men who actually ventured out and traveled really far in search of this king who was born into the world. In order to see this king and worship Him, these men had to leave their towns and their families behind. Travel in those days was an arduous task which was often filled with dangers and hardships. These men were willing to take on these challenges, as they were resolute to find this king and pay obeisance to Him.
Never in the history of the world have we heard of a star appearing to commemorate the birth of a king. Jesus was the King of Kings born into this world. His birth was so significant and unique that the wise men decided to find Him so they could worship Him.
Even today the Lord is performing many signs and wonders, there are many who desire to know God, but are unwilling to truly seek after Him. To seek after means to give up all the comforts, to overlook the circumstances that are unfavorable, with the sole purpose to find and attain that which we are searching for. This is the kind of seeking that is pleasing to the Lord. The question is what have we left behind in order to seek after Jesus?
David was willing to give up everything to seek after that ‘one thing’ which was really important to him. The wise men had to give up a lot in order to go and seek after Jesus, the new born king.
Let’s see what Paul gave up in order to find Christ. We read in Philippians 3:8, “Nothing is as wonderful as knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have given up everything else and count it all as garbage. All I want is Christ” (CEV). At one point in his life, Paul was so proud about his upbringing, his prominence in society and all the traditions that he adhered to blamelessly. Nonetheless, when Paul met Jesus, he considered everything that he held dear rubbish, when compared to the surpassing knowledge of knowing Christ.
There are still those today who are caught up with their background, position and are bound by many traditions. The thing we need to ponder on is are we willing to give up everything that is unnecessary and a hindrance, in order to gain Christ in our lives.
The Wise Men did find Jesus
We read in Matthew 2:11, “And when they came into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. And opening their treasure boxes, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.” (LEB)
As the wise men ventured out to find Jesus, they were guided by the star which led them to the place where the child and His mother Mary was. On finding the home where the child Jesus was, they went in to behold this King and bowed down in worship. Though Jesus and His mother Mary were there, the wise men only worshiped Jesus as they knew that He alone was the one worthy of their worship. The extraordinary star appeared to them to signify that Jesus was the King, the unique one who had come down from heaven. They also presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The treasures were those that they held dear, but they willingly opened them up and presented them to the King who was worthy of them all.
God protected the wise men
We read in Matthew 2:12, “Then they returned to their country by another road, since God had warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod.” (GNB)
King Herod when he heard earlier that the wise men were seeking for a new born king, he was totally agitated. History refers to King Herod as a man who was flustered and ruthless in his ways. He wanted to maintain his position at all cost. His only aim was to find out the exact location where this king was born so he could put him to death.
These wise men came seeking for Jesus, they undertook a laborious journey, found the king Jesus they were looking, gladly worshiped Him and offered their precious gifts to Him. For such men the protective cover of the Lord was over them, God warned them in a dream of impending danger from Herod and the Lord guided them back home safely by another route.
To those who seek the Lord sincerely, as we read in Psalm 27:4, the protection of the Lord as promised in Psalm 91 is assured for them.
Why did Jesus come into this world?
We read in Luke 19:10, “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." (GNB)
After Adam and Eve sinned at the beginning of creation, there was a huge gap that was created between sinful man and a holy God. Jesus came down into this world, taking the form of man simply to restore peace with man and reconcile man back to God. Here we see that the Son of Man came seeking after the lost. There are therefore two aspects of this seeking, one where man seeks after God and the other where God comes seeking after sinful man.
Jesus, the Son of Man came not only to seek, but also to save the lost. Let me explain what it means to be saved. The word of God declares that the wages of sin is death. For all the wrong that we do and the sins we commit, the consequence that should follow is that we should be sent to hell, which is a place of eternal damnation. However, God wanted to rescue man from this eternal destruction and that would not be possible until man’s sins are atoned for.
Jesus’ life when here on earth was a great challenge to the religious leaders in those days. They were so caught up with the outward forms of godliness and traditions that they did all they could to present themselves as a religious lot. They would never mingle with the so called sinful people and were constantly finding fault with others. Nonetheless, the sole reason Jesus came down to the earth was to save sinful man from the grips of sin and death. Therefore, Jesus always went seeking after all those people who were rejected and despised by others, extending His unconditional love and acceptance. There was perfect harmony with what Jesus taught and what He practiced.
Today one of the biggest challenges that we face is that people find it easy to teach, but find it extremely hard to follow what they teach. This dichotomy between word and deed unsettles and disturbs us.
Jesus sought after Zacchaeus
Luke 19 records the incident about a man named Zacchaeus. He was a prominent and wealthy man who was also the chief of the tax collectors. The tax collectors were generally looked down with disdain because they were employed by the Romans who ruled over the people of Israel as well. The public looked at these tax collectors as traitors and these tax collectors also had the ill-repute for procuring more taxes than they actually should. Since they amassed wealth through unethical means, they were also extremely wealthy.
Though Zacchaeus had a bad reputation in that town, deep inside him was the earnest desire to see Jesus. When he heard that Jesus would be coming through his home town of Jericho, Zacchaeus made all the necessary plans to get a glimpse of Jesus. Zacchaeus was short in stature and as Jesus was always surrounded by a huge crowd of people, it seemed impossible that Zacchaeus could even sight him. Zacchaeus must have been diffident to mingle with the crowd and hence he came up with a bright idea. He ran ahead and decided to climb onto a sycamore fig tree so he could have a good view of Jesus.
Isn’t it amazing that a man who held a prominent position actually took the effort to run and position himself on a tree to get a view of Jesus? Something about Jesus, His teachings, His deeds, the way He distinguished Himself from other religious leaders in those days must have impacted Zacchaeus for him to overcome so many hurdles. Just imagine this scene, as the crowds jostle around Jesus, engaging Him in their conversations, there is Zacchaeus hidden in a tree, sincerely seeking after Jesus.
We read in Luke 19:5, “When Jesus came to that place, he looked up and said to Zacchaeus, "Hurry down, Zacchaeus, because I must stay in your house today." (GNB)
As Jesus walked by that tree, he suddenly stopped and looked up at Zacchaeus. Jesus beckoned to Zacchaeus and called out his name. Jesus told Zacchaeus to hasten and come down from that tree, for Jesus had planned to stay in his house that day. Zacchaeus must have been astonished by this invitation, but this gesture by Jesus also shocked those who stood around Him as well. The crowds were bothered and murmured at the thought that Jesus had invited Himself into the house of a sinful man. Zacchaeus on the other hand must have been overjoyed and overwhelmed at the thought that Jesus not only knew his name, but was also willing to come home to fellowship with him. Zacchaeus came down in haste and began to walk with Jesus.
There is no record that Jesus preached to Zacchaeus or had a long discourse with him. Instead the very presence of Jesus was enough to bring transformation to the life of Zacchaeus. There was immediate repentance and Zacchaeus was willing to set right everything that was disorderly and deceitful. When Christ the light came into Zacchaeus’ home, all darkness and the deeds of darkness were dispelled from there. Zacchaeus decided to give half of his wealth to the poor and he also told Jesus that if he had cheated anyone by extracting more money on taxes, he would pay it back four times.
Isn’t it an astounding thought that the Lord knows each one of us by name? He knows everything about us and all that we are going through. If like Zacchaeus you have a yearning to know Jesus and are willing to overcome all hindrances, you will surely find Him. Maybe there are some who have this feeling if God would want to have anything to do with them. You may have messed up or done many things that are averse to God and His word. The story of Zacchaeus reminds such that if you have a real longing to know Jesus, He is calling out to you and is ready to come to your home too.
If you call on the Lord in sincerity, He will come into your homes and transform every situation. You can certainly experience the change that He alone can bring. If you are still stumbling in the dark, you must be willing to allow Jesus the true light to shine in your hearts. He alone can dismiss the darkness of sin from our hearts.
Zacchaeus was saved that day
We read in Luke 19:9, “Jesus said to him, "Salvation has come to this house today” (GNB)
These are the words of Jesus to Zacchaeus when he decided to set everything right in his life. If for some reason Zacchaeus did not seek Jesus as he did, and if he had continued in his sinful ways, craving only for money wanting to become wealthy using deceitful means, at the end of his life he would have had to face eternal separation from God in hell where there is only eternal torment. However, by inviting Jesus into his home, repenting of his sins and setting his life in order Zacchaeus was saved from eternal death and had the promise of life eternal with God.
It doesn’t really matter how sinful you have been or how unworthy you feel to come to the presence of God, here’s the good news. If we confess our sins, repent and ask God to forgive us He is willing to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Only the Lord Jesus can forgive us our sins. Our good deeds, pilgrimages or any other efforts to subject your body to hardships will not be able to save us. Jesus came into this world for this explicit purpose, to save us from our sins and to deliver us from eternal death that will separate us from God. When Jesus comes in there will be light and all darkness will be expelled. We will have the peace of God that passes all understanding resting inside us.
Let us join with the Psalmist and say as he said in Psalm 27:4, “One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” (NIV) If we seek the Lord with all our heart and we will surely find Him and His presence and peace will fill our lives and our homes.
Pastor Dixon
www.goodnewsfriends.net
Transcribed by Sis. Esther Collins
