When god plays Hide And Seek
Job 23:8-10
8 Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: 9 On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: 10 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
I. Introduction
A. Children have a most unique way of entertaining themselves
1. In spite of all the toys and technology available to them, they still find pleasure in simple games:
a. “Tag”
b. “Simon says”
c. “Red Light, Green Light”.
d. But perhaps no other game is as well-known among children of every generation as the game we call “Hide and Seek”.
i. Even an infant will giggle with delight when playing “peek-a-boo”.
B. But when GOD tries to play “Hide & Seek” however, it seems to lose all the fun!
1. The reason is simple:
a. He’s a good “Hider”!
II. Background
A. Job was a man who faithfully served GOD.
1. Job 1:1,5 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. 5 And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.
2. God’s “Hide & Seek” was NOT a punishment!
a. The devil would have you to believe that GOD hides from you because He’s either mad at, or ashamed of, you.
3. God’s hiding was simply the result of a challenge from Satan.
a. God’s answer to Satan’s challenge began the game of “Hide & Seek” from Job.
b. But you see, God’s confidence in His servant said, “I may hide, but Job will never give up seeking!”
4. It may seem to you that God is playing “Hide & Seek” from you, but don’t let the devil convince you that God is mad at you for something you’ve done, or that He’s embarrassed by your actions.
a. You’ve heard me say this before, but allow me to repeat:
i. “Nothing I can do will make God love me any more, and nothing I do will make God love me any less.”
b. It is absolutely imperative that we understand that God’s Love is perfect and unconditional.
III. Where to look?
A. Nothing can be more frustrating than looking hopelessly for that missing item.
1. You KNOW you put it there, but “someone” must have come along and moved it!
a. The older I get, the more I find that people move things from where I put them!
B. “Behold I go forward…”
1. The first place to look is in the most logical place to find Him: forward.
a. We start praying more
b. We start fasting
c. We start reading our Bible more
d. We move FORWARD in our attempt to draw near to God.
2. “…but He is not there.”
a. Did you realize that this is the ONLY direction that Job flatly stated “He is NOT” ?
i. Study it out---in the other three directions, Job says “I can’t find Him.”
a. Backward – “I cannot perceive Him”
b. On the left – “I cannot behold Him”
c. On the right – “I cannot see Him”
ii. But Job realized that if God is anywhere to be found, He’s not out there leaving me behind!
b. What are you saying, pastor? Simply this:
i. You may have tried everything within your human power to find God, to draw close to God, to make connections with God, all to seem hopeless.
ii. The reason is simply because “He is not there”!
a. My God is a God of invitations; He’s not a God that runs away and leaves me falling behind because I can’t keep up!
C. “…and backward, but I cannot perceive Him.”
1. You’ll never find Him going in this direction.
a. To the Jew, this meant facing the West, as “forward” always signified toward the Eastern sky.
b. You can look for Him in the sunrise as well as in the sunset, but He’s still playing “Hide & Seek”.
D. “On the left hand, where He doth work…”
1. Job looks again in a direction where He has known God to “work” in the past.
a. How many times have I returned to the place, whether a physical location, or someplace in my spirit, where I knew that God had visited me in the past…only to discover that He’s not there.
2. “…but I cannot behold Him.”
E. “He hideth himself on the right hand…”
1. The “right hand” was considered the South;
a. This was a region that, in Job’s time, was vastly unknown and unexplored.
b. It contained the Arabian deserts, and beyond that, the uncharted seas of which the Hebrews had only heard.
i. Job looked even in the direction of places he had never before explored.
ii. He tried things he’d never tried.
iii. He’s desperate in his search for God.
2. “…that I cannot see him.”
a. And still, after all this seeking, God remains hidden in this spiritual “Hide & Seek”.
IV. Conclusion
A. “But he knoweth the way that I take…”
1. Herein lies the secret to God’s game of “Hide & Seek”, my friend.
a. It’s not always about me finding Him.
i. I understand that scripture tells us that we’ll find Him when we seek Him with all our heart.
ii. I understand the scriptures tell us to pursue after Him.
iii. I realize the scripture tells us “Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst…for they shall be filled.”
iv. But it’s not always about me finding Him.
b. Sometimes, it’s about me realizing that, even though I’ve done everything in my power to find Him, all to no avail…
2. He knows where I am.
a. The secret, my friend, is that five-letter word that we discussed so recently: TRUST.
V. Close
A. When God plays “Hide & Seek”, it can be so frustrating.
1. I’ve seen children get frustrated, angry, even cry because their playmates were too well-hidden.
2. I’ve experienced the frustration of searching for something that I was almost certain should be in a particular place.
3. And more importantly, I’ve known the desperation of seeking a God who had hidden Himself from me so well that I could not find Him.
B. It is in these times, and in these moments, that I have to take comfort in the fact that:
1. God is not hiding because He’s angry with me.
2. He is not hiding because He’s ashamed of me.
3. He understands that I am desperate in my attempt to find Him.
4. And He knows exactly where I am at.
C. Allow me to use a personal illustration in closing:
1. I recently told a minister friend that I knew God would answer me because, I said, “I’m seeking His face.”
a. You see, I may not have the answer right now, and right now it may seem hopeless and helpless, and I may not be sure which way to turn.
2. But He knows exactly where I’m at…and when the time is right, and I have proved my trust in Him,
a. I will see His Face.
b. I will behold His Glory.
c. I will stand in His Presence and feel His anointing.
D. And when it comes to my walk with God that is what the game of “Hide & Seek” is all about!
