JEREMIAH 29:13 – You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

THEME OF THE DAY. HOW DESIROUS OF CHRIST ARE WE? Do we grasp what is in today’s scripture? Go slow and ponder what God is saying. He is giving us a great promise leading to the greatest experience any human being may have; knowing and enjoying Him. It is the reason for our existence both as created beings and saved beings. It is to have and pursue eternal life, not defined by duration, but as our Lord Jesus stated, “When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:1-3). Again, ponder this . . . God invites us to know Him, enjoy Him, love Him, and walk with Him, now and forever. Does that thrill our souls? Does that warm our hearts? Does that put a “spiritual step” into our daily lives?” But more importantly, are we grasping the privilege God has given to us? But there is a catch, yes, a condition even.

I have yet to meet a Christian who when asked, “Do you love the Lord?” responds with a follow-up question, “Are you seeking the Lord?” Those are not really separate questions. In fact, the latter answers the former. Christians cannot say, “I love You, Lord” and then not be diligently seeking the Lord. Simply a contradiction and a self-deception. But let’s get back to the condition God places upon us. He said, “You will find me, know me, and experience me when you do so with all your heart.” The phrase “all your heart” isn’t about some syrupy, emotional feeling toward God. Emotions matter, but in the Bible, the heart means our whole being – affections, mind, and will. So God is telling us, “If you really want to know me, then you must be seeking me with your entire being; your affections, your mind and your will. It will take all of you. You must be ‘all in’ with me if you want to know me.” And here is where we find many Christians still spiritual infants and lacking a progressive, joy-filled walk with the Lord Jesus. They simply don’t meet the condition God makes if we are to know Him – a whole-hearted seeking. Now that is not a critical judgment, but an observation and confession. This is hard work. This is holy work. This is self-disciplined work. This is a work that cannot be done by cutting spiritual corners or being lazy. No spiritually lazy, undisciplined Christian will experience God. They may know about God, but they won’t walk in the reality of knowing God.

So, how can we meet the condition God places upon us if we want to really know Him? There is a lot that could be said toward this end, but let me offer three. First, two resources; the Old Testament book of Proverbs, chapter two, verses one through five. These verses define what it takes to seek the Lord. Another place is an excellent book written by Donald S. Whitney titled, “Simplify Your Spiritual Life.” It is really good. The third thing and really the most important if we are going to start down the path of spiritual discipline to meet the condition God places upon us to know Him. It is desire. We must come to the point in our lives that knowing God is the most important thing in life and our greatest desire. If it is, we will seek Him with a whole heart. If the desire is lacking so will be the pursuit. And the best place to start for this desire is on our knees asking God to give it to us! He will. That is why He created and then saved us.

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me for the way too many times I allow spiritual laziness keep me from seeking You.”

QUOTE: “Christ will be had and enjoyed not by the lazy Christian but by the diligent Christian.”