God is a rewarder of those who seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). This promise is foundational to a life of faith. As believers, we CANNOT please God without BELIEVING that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. But why does it sometimes seem like God doesnt want to be pleased, that He ignores those who are seeking Him and they are left without any reward for their efforts?
I have seen many people sincerely seek The Lord hoping, wishing, wanting Him to be true to His word, yet their efforts come up fruitless. Typically they conclude, first, that God is not a rewarder of those who seek Him. That He is distant, and uninvolved, that He reserves reward only for a chosen few and that He does not make Himself freely available to any who seek Him. They no longer hope in God, they no longer believe that in an instant God can change everything, that an encounter can transform their lives. Hopelessness leads to despair, and despair inevitably leads to the death of faith. Not only is God not a rewarder of those who seek Him, He simply is not.
Why does God allow so many people to fall away? Even the phrase "fall away" indicates they were once seeking and have for some reason or another given up on their pursuits. Is God not faithful? Is He not a rewarder of those who seek Him? Does He not reveal himself to any who come to Him?
In Deuteronomy God promises that "if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him" (Deuteronomy 4:29a). I think that often people hear promises like this over and over again and it only leads to more frustration and condemnation as their pursuits continue to come up empty. They dont find the breakthrough they are looking for, they dont experience the transformation they need, they dont find the God they seek. But there is a condition to the promise of God. There is a reason that not all who seek Him find Him. God is found "if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul." (Deuteronomy 4:29b)
Similarly, the prophet Jeremiah assures God's people that God has plans to prosper them and not to harm them, to give them a hope and a future. This powerful and encouraging promise is followed by the invitation to call on the name of The Lord and pray to Him and the encouragement that "you will seek Me and find Me" BUT only "when you seek Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).
We often ascribe value to something based on how difficult it was to obtain. A large part of our rejoicing over accomplishments lies in our reflection of the trials and difficulties we had to overcome to get there. Graduation day and receiving your diploma would not nearly be as sweet were it not for the numerous late nights, the endless studying, and the thousands of dollars paid. We cherish our education because we deem it worthy of all our efforts and sacrifices. No good and worthwhile thing comes easily.
We admire talented inviduals because we recognize the countless hours that they have put into their craft. But no matter how much we desire to be like them we will never even come close if we arent willing to put in the effort and time. The effort in perfecting a craft is often what makes a person great--even more so than the talent they were initially given. Every professional athlete is immensely talented. And every player would rather be an all star than a bench warming scrub. But talent and desire alone are not enough to propel someone to superstardom. In fact, it is often the players to whom the game comes too easily that disappoint and never fulfill their potential.
Perhaps God is being gracious to us by not rewarding our halfhearted pursuits. Perhaps He knows that it would destroy us if He were to reveal Himself to us when we seek Him casually. The kingdom of God is like a treasure buried in a field. God has placed treasure in every person's life regardless of their upbringing or background. But will we put our hope in the fact that the treasure is there and will we seek it with all our heart? If we truly devote ourselves to finding that treasure, if we persevere and endure obstacles and trials, our enjoyment of the treasure will be made full. We will recognize the immense value of the treasure and will by no means throw it away. In fact, we will sell everything we have in order to buy the field in which we found it. The act of selling all we have and buying the field is Kingdom living. We will live in such a manner if we recognize the inherent value of the treasure God has given us. And the degree to which we recognize value is dependent on how hard we are willing to seek it.
God hides His face from casual observers out of His grace. He refuses to allow us to cheapen His glory or allow us to yield fruit in halfhearted, ill-conceived motives. "Acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you" (1 Chronicles 28:9)
I have seen many people sincerely seek The Lord hoping, wishing, wanting Him to be true to His word, yet their efforts come up fruitless. Typically they conclude, first, that God is not a rewarder of those who seek Him. That He is distant, and uninvolved, that He reserves reward only for a chosen few and that He does not make Himself freely available to any who seek Him. They no longer hope in God, they no longer believe that in an instant God can change everything, that an encounter can transform their lives. Hopelessness leads to despair, and despair inevitably leads to the death of faith. Not only is God not a rewarder of those who seek Him, He simply is not.
Why does God allow so many people to fall away? Even the phrase "fall away" indicates they were once seeking and have for some reason or another given up on their pursuits. Is God not faithful? Is He not a rewarder of those who seek Him? Does He not reveal himself to any who come to Him?
In Deuteronomy God promises that "if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him" (Deuteronomy 4:29a). I think that often people hear promises like this over and over again and it only leads to more frustration and condemnation as their pursuits continue to come up empty. They dont find the breakthrough they are looking for, they dont experience the transformation they need, they dont find the God they seek. But there is a condition to the promise of God. There is a reason that not all who seek Him find Him. God is found "if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul." (Deuteronomy 4:29b)
Similarly, the prophet Jeremiah assures God's people that God has plans to prosper them and not to harm them, to give them a hope and a future. This powerful and encouraging promise is followed by the invitation to call on the name of The Lord and pray to Him and the encouragement that "you will seek Me and find Me" BUT only "when you seek Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).
We often ascribe value to something based on how difficult it was to obtain. A large part of our rejoicing over accomplishments lies in our reflection of the trials and difficulties we had to overcome to get there. Graduation day and receiving your diploma would not nearly be as sweet were it not for the numerous late nights, the endless studying, and the thousands of dollars paid. We cherish our education because we deem it worthy of all our efforts and sacrifices. No good and worthwhile thing comes easily.
We admire talented inviduals because we recognize the countless hours that they have put into their craft. But no matter how much we desire to be like them we will never even come close if we arent willing to put in the effort and time. The effort in perfecting a craft is often what makes a person great--even more so than the talent they were initially given. Every professional athlete is immensely talented. And every player would rather be an all star than a bench warming scrub. But talent and desire alone are not enough to propel someone to superstardom. In fact, it is often the players to whom the game comes too easily that disappoint and never fulfill their potential.
Perhaps God is being gracious to us by not rewarding our halfhearted pursuits. Perhaps He knows that it would destroy us if He were to reveal Himself to us when we seek Him casually. The kingdom of God is like a treasure buried in a field. God has placed treasure in every person's life regardless of their upbringing or background. But will we put our hope in the fact that the treasure is there and will we seek it with all our heart? If we truly devote ourselves to finding that treasure, if we persevere and endure obstacles and trials, our enjoyment of the treasure will be made full. We will recognize the immense value of the treasure and will by no means throw it away. In fact, we will sell everything we have in order to buy the field in which we found it. The act of selling all we have and buying the field is Kingdom living. We will live in such a manner if we recognize the inherent value of the treasure God has given us. And the degree to which we recognize value is dependent on how hard we are willing to seek it.
God hides His face from casual observers out of His grace. He refuses to allow us to cheapen His glory or allow us to yield fruit in halfhearted, ill-conceived motives. "Acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you" (1 Chronicles 28:9)
