Twice in Psalm 27, we read words concerning seeking the Lord. Verse 4, "One thing I have desired of the LORD, that I will seek; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple." In verse 8, we read of David responding to God's direction to him, "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD, I will seek.'"
This is an old testament preamble to Jesus letting his disciples know there is only one thing they need to seek. We find Jesus' words in Matthew 6:33 after letting the disciples know they do not need to worry about their basic needs; the God who feeds the birds and clothes the flowers will care for them. "But seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you." Jesus commands them to seek his kingdom while making the seeking their responsibility.
There are a plethora of worship songs that communicate how God pursues us. That is not communicated in Scripture. What we read more accurately is how God has made Himself available. From Old Testament to the New, God has commanded people to seek Him while He can be found, directed people to meet with Him, and instructed worship in His presence. (Isaiah 55:6-7, Deuteronomy 5:22-27, and Psalm 65:4) are a small example of God's availability and direction for us to pursue Him.
Psalm 27 is David's example of how desperately we should desire to respond to God's availability by seeking Him. David wanted to dwell in the house of the LORD. In other words, he wanted to luxuriate in God's presence. To dwell in God's presence is to live in His Light. It is to know Him as our Salvation. David connects what the constant presence of God affords us. Verse 4 continues, "... For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall see me high upon a rock." This confidence in God comes when we know we live in unbroken fellowship before Him.
Deuteronomy 28 is a chapter where God lays out the conditions for Israel to experience the Covenant from Him. His Covenant from Exodus 19 through Deuteronomy was always based on "if" and "then." If they chose to obey, they could live confidently in His Light, Salvation, and as a Stronghold toward them. If they decided disobedience, there would be no confidence for His peace and shelter. David was living in unbroken fellowship while experiencing hard times, He concluded he was experiencing God's care in these same difficulties. He also knew no matter what he'd face, as long as he chose to "seek to dwell in the house of the LORD..." in his heart, he'd hear the call of the LORD, "Seek My face." This is a reciprocal relationship.
How do we keep in Unbroken Fellowship with God:
James 4:8 "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." This is the same reality we see from David in Psalm 27. James delineates the details of how this looks in our lives. He says, "Cleanse your hands and purify your hearts."
In every place in Scripture where we see God requiring us to draw near or seek His face, there is also the demand for a humble and repentant heart. David is an example of this reality. After his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder plot of her husband, we can read in Psalm 32 the physiological and psychological impact of sin. In Psalm 32, David begins, "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered." If you read all David experienced as he attempted to hide his sin, you would understand why he would exult, "Blessed!" After repentance, there was the experience of freedom, or God's grace filling his life. There was joy in the happiness he would experience again. This is despite his circumstances. He was right with God again. His relationship with God was unbroken fellowship. Sin no longer hindered their communion.
2. Psalm 119:15 "I will meditate on Your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways." David's Psalm goes through everything that his life has faced. He mentions enemies and foes. Armies and also the wicked coming against him. Sadly, he later in the Psalm opines, "When my father and my mother forsake me..." It is easy to conclude David had two choices. One was to fix his eyes on his circumstances, and the second was to seek the LORD. He had nothing to sink his confidence in as far as the world was concerned.
You may ask, "How do I do this when my circumstances are less complicated than David's? Also, my family relationships are not so precarious?" Easier times in our life may draw our confidence away from The Lord. We can grow comfortable in ourselves. I would turn your attention to the writer of Hebrews. Chapter 12:2, he writes, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfected of our faith..." As we practice fixing our eyes on Jesus during easier times of life, the more organic it becomes to seek Him when life becomes tumultuous. And we know no one gets away with easy living forever.
While focusing on Jesus, we are commanded to "present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God," Romans12:1b-2. David was confident in the God who was his Light, Salvation, and Stronghold. This relationship was forged through many fires. David had experienced and was delivered by the power of God often. He presented himself to God to be used however God chose. While caring for sheep, he rescued them from a bear and a lion. He gave credit to God for those victories. Israel attributed massive amounts of war victories to David. Again David worshipped God for these defeats at his hand. David fixed his eyes and presented his body as holy and acceptable to God. He was transformed by the knowledge of God and through an experiential relationship. He knew from where his hope came. He wanted to live in this hope, and it was found in Israel's God. He was David's God.
When David says, "One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life..." This desire was not new for David. He was already experiencing this. He reminded himself of what had kept him in an unbroken fellowship and what would keep him in this relationship. It was as if there was this ongoing dialogue between him and God. He said what he desired, and God would, in turn, remind David's heart to seek Him. "When you said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, Lord, I will see.'"
I'd be remiss if I did not touch on what David says next, verse 8, "Do not hide Your face from me; Do not turn Your face from me." Being reminded of intentionally living before the Lord as His holy people is necessary. We have the Spirit of God living in us and helping us live unto the Lord. Yet, we still have the choice to sin against God. I mentioned Deuteronomy 28 earlier in this devotion. If you go through the 68 verses of this chapter, God is very serious about obedience from His children. He also lays out the consequences of disobedience. Reading Psalm 27 it would not be so out of perspective to consider that the Deuteronomy verses might have been at the forefront of David's mind. He desperately reminded himself to seek the LORD because he understood how easy it would be to abandon God and live in disobedience.
Let's read a few verses where God addresses those who cherish sin in their hearts instead of seeking God. Psalm 66 speaks from a relationship with God, so a child of God, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the LORD will not hear..." Also, Isaiah 59:2 "... your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you; So that He will not hear." I can hear you now challenging me. "That's Old Testament!" Well then, let's go to the New Testament. 1 John 3:7-9 speaks of cherishing sin in our hearts, "...let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil... Whoever has been born of God does not sin." This is not about stumbling, which we all do. This is the same thing David wants to avoid. Living in such a way that God will not hear even those who say they are His children. Cherishing sin in our lives will have different consequences today than what we read for Israel in Deuteronomy 28, yet severe consequences exist. This is not accidental or struggling behavior that David is addressing. This is purposed and unrelenting lives of sinful behavior.
You know you are not living this way if sinning matters to you. If you run to the truth like 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." You also know you have not cherished sin in your heart if you can fully and honestly say with David, "My heart said, Your face I will seek." You don't just say it; you pursue a life that practices those words. Here is the same truth in the New Testament, Colossians 3:23-24, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." These verses seem to sum up David's desire to seek the Lord. He did not let anything thwart his mission. When he planned an adulterous relationship and plotted murder, he experienced what he did not want: God turned His face away. We do learn something about God's faithfulness in that. God's love is so deep for His children. In David's case, He directed a prophet, Nathan, to make him confront his sin. David repents and regains unbroken fellowship again. You will notice God's goal was David's repentance. At this point of sin, nothing else matters. Repentance is the only thing that can bring us back into fellowship with God.
One last point, 2 Peter 3 of God says, "He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." David's relationship was with this God. Our relationship is with this same God through His Son. Who would have thought it takes understanding all of this to know we mean it when we say we want to seek the Lord as David desired? We must seek God, His way, in Spirit and Truth. That is why it is God's invitation, "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, Lord, I will seek.'" We need to know what we are getting ourselves into. An intimate, unbroken fellowship with The True and Living, I Am! Are you in?
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