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Seek God With Diligent Effort: A Key to Establishing a Close Relationship With Him

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Seek God With Diligent Effort

A Key to Establishing a Close Relationship With Him

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Seek God With Diligent Effort: A Key to Establishing a Close Relationship With Him

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Dan Salcedo reflects on the passage, “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him,” (Hebrews 11:6) and explains that the use of prayer, Bible study, meditation and occasional fasting should result in a close relationship with God our Father through Jesus Christ our Lord, Savior and High Priest. The use of God’s Holy Spirit to guide our thinking about God will produce Spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:22) that will help us to develop a spiritual image of His likeness and His character, and expand our love for Him and our fellow man. Seeking God continually in this life will help prepare us to be Co-heirs with Jesus Christ in the coming Kingdom of God.

Sermon Notes

 The word “SEEK” in the Bible is an important word and is used many times in several ways throughout the Bible.  God uses it to direct and also encourage people to seek Him and receive blessings and learn about Him and to repent of their wrongful way of living.

The following are some examples:

 

Deuteronomy 4:29  But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

 

2 Chronicles 7:14 if My people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Isaiah 55:6  Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near.

Jeremiah 29:13
You will seek me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

As God’s people, God expects us to seek Him continually in our daily walk with Him.  We need His guidance and presence with us continually.  We need to live lives that are close to Him.  We need to have close relationships continually with our loving Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ as we strive to live by faith

Question:  How can a Christian, who has been given the gift of God’s Holy Spirit,                            establish a close relationship with the Eternal God of the Universe?  

The Answer: Seeking God with diligent effort as stated in Hebrews 11:6.

 

SPS: The message today will give us the importance of seeking God with a diligent effort in order to develop and keep a close relationship with Him and our Lord and  Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ.

 

         What does it mean to “Seek God”?

 

We are to seek God by learning about who He is; what He wants us to learn in order to build a close relationship and develop His spiritual Character and obey His commandments; loving Him with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength. 

 

We are to examine our selves regularly (Galatians 6:4) to make sure we do not become lukewarm Christians as very clearly informed by Jesus Christ in Revelation 3:14-20. 

 

We are to be zealous, active Christians committed to living Spirit-filled lives.  Seeking God includes striving to live by the example given to us by Jesus Christ, our Savior, Lord, and High Priest!  Seeking God will help us to develop a close relationship with God and Jesus Christ.

 

There are REWARDS for seeking God with diligent effort

 

In the faith chapter, Hebrews 11:6 the importance of faith is explained and made clear.

 

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

 

“Rewarder” -  what does this mean?  What is the reward?  In other words, what do we receive if we seek God?  Not only seek God, but also diligently seek God? 

 

One can understand that God will reward us in this life with His kindness, His love, His blessings, His protection, and many other rewards IF we diligently SEEK Him, which would include walking by faith in His promises to us. 

 

Walking by faith includes effort, works, doing something, taking action.  The development of living by faith does not just simply happen.  Each individual has his part in its development.   Seeking God with diligence should be a practical, basic function for us as children of God! 

 

Remember, God looks at the heart.  Are we committed Christians preparing to serve in God’s Kingdom? God will reward us with eternal life in His Kingdom as His Spirit Born Children.

 

                           What does the word, “diligently” mean?

 

“Showing persistent and hard-working effort in doing something.”

Working industriously; being reliable; enthusiastic; zealous, consistent

Not lazy, not procrastination, not apathy. Developing an active mind that focuses on how to live, according to God’s standards of living. 

Being zealous. 

Read Revelation 3:14-20-  Christ’s admonition to the Laodicean church to be zealous Christians and to repent of being lukewarm- neither cold nor hot.

 

The Example of Jesus Christ

 

John 5:30  “I can of myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.”

 

Seeking God with diligence includes seeking His will in our day-to-day decisions because godly character will be developed in us!  We want to develop the spiritual image of God. We want to know His will for our lives!  Our chief example, Jesus Christ, sought the will of God the Father:

 

We should understand that Hebrews 11:6 is focused on those who are God’s people; those who have, or are being called by God to understand His great Plan, have received the gift of His Holy Spirit, and those who are in the process of conversion and are beginning the walk of living by faith. 

 

 

 Example of the prophet Amos

 

The prophet Amos was given prophetic messages regarding what would happen to Israel and nations in the future. 

 

Amos 5:4  “For thus says the LORD unto the house of Israel, SEEK you me, and you shall live.”

 

Instead of simply applying this command to the nation of Israel, let us think about "the Israel of God." which is His Church, which includes us, brethren

 

Amos 5:14   Seek good, and not evil, that you may live: and so the LORD, the God of, shall be with you, as you have spoken.

 

As God’s people, we are commanded to seek God“Seek” in this chapter does not indicate that we, God’s people, are to search for something that is lost.  God has already selected us as His called out ones, His people.  He has invited us into a special relationship with Him.  Since we already know where God is, we do not need to seek Him in terms of searching Him as if He is lost. 

 

 

To seek God means, as the Expositor's Dictionary says, "To turn to Him in trust and confidence."

 

Barnes Notes says: "It does not mean to seek to get something from Him, but rather to seek God for  “what He is in Himself." 

 

"What He is in Himself" is another way of describing, "seeking” to be in the image of God.  If we do this, we will live forever, like Him.  We seek Him to be like Him. We seek Him to build our relationship with Him.  We seek Him to prepare for the coming Kingdom.

 

The commentaries describe that both "seek” and “Him” are in the imperative. In other words it is a command to be diligent, fervent, and persevering in following through by "seeking."

 

We are to develop a close relationship with God

 

Our loving God, the creator of this universe is unique!  There is no one who can compare to Him!  Yet, we are commanded to seek Him; to know Him.  Our loving God wants His people, whom He has called into the Body of Jesus Christ – His Church - to develop a close relationship with Him.

 

Why?  Because we have been made in His image physically. 

 

We, as human beings, who have been given His Holy Spirit, are to grow spiritually in our relationship, understanding, and knowledge of Him so that someday God will change us into His Spiritual Image- His Spirit born Children at the First Resurrection. The gift of Eternal Life. How can we do this?  By seeking Him continuously.  By focusing on developing a close relationship with Him through our loving Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ.   We must never take our loving God for granted. 

 

The development of this relationship will take a lifetime!  It just does not happen overnight.  Each one of us is in different stages of our relationship with our loving God.

 

God’s intelligence, His personality, His character is so immense, so great, so enormous, that it takes time, a great extent of time, to begin to really learn and understand even the basic concepts about Him.  It is a lifetime journey, of course.

 

Yet, we are commanded to continue to seek God, to strive to learn more and more about Him; to draw close to Him, to be sensitive in making sure that we are obeying His commandments, to love Him with all of our hearts, mind, soul, and strength, as we live our lives each day.

 

 

Access to God our Father through Jesus Christ

 

John 14:6  “I am the way, the truth, and the life; No one can come to the Father except through Me.”

 

Jesus Christ is our Savior, our High Priest, and our coming king!  We have access to God the Father through Him.  We can develop His mind in us through God’s

Holy Spirit.

 

Jesus Christ is our Merciful High Priest

 

Hebrews 2:17  “Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.  For in that He himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.”

 

Commentator William Barclay states: Barclay comments: "He came as a man; he came seeing things with men's eyes, feeling things with men's feelings, thinking things with men's minds. God knows what life is like, because God came right inside life"

 

Jesus Christ knows our weaknesses as human beings and can extend His mercy to us, as our High Priest.  He is not distant from us but cares for us with His great love. 

 

Jesus Christ, our High Priest “Passed into the heavens”

 

Hebrews 4:14-15  “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.  V 15 For we do not have a high Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.  V 16  “let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

 

What does “Passed into the heavens” mean?

 

These “heavens” (Acts 1-When Jesus was lifted up into heaven) symbolized the ‘veil” which our High Priest, Jesus Christ, passed through into the heaven of heavens, the immediate presence of God, just as the Levitical high priest passed through the veil   into the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement.  Jesus Christ, our High Priest today sits at the right hand of God the Father.  We have access to God the Father through Him, our High Priest.

 

  Jesus Christ, our High Priest

 

 When Jesus Christ, our High Priest, left earth and ascended into the heavens, He left the people at large and also left his disciples by ascending up through the visible heavens, the clouds, as a veil, screening him from their sight. (Acts 1) He passed through the heavens, the clouds hid Him from the view of the people who watched Him go, and He traveled into the presence of Almighty God, our Father (the Throne room - the Holy Of Holies) and instantly became our High Priest and Intercessor.

 

 PRAYER- Seek and Communication with God (1)

 

The development of our prayer life should be continually increasing!  We should recognize that God expects us to talk to Him through prayer.  We are expected to pray to cultivate our relationship with God.   He listens to us.  He hears us.  Prayer is a key to seeking God; a key to communicating and fellowshipping with our loving God, our Father, and Jesus Christ, our Savior and High Priest.

 

PRAYER – Seek & Communicate with God (2)

 

How is our prayer life? We must hunger and thirst for more of God’s righteousness and strive to live our lives closer and closer to Him.

 

The way we live should reflect the attitude and approach of Jesus Christ.  We cannot make it into the Kingdom on our own.  It is a gift from God.  That is where our seeking God and developing a bond, a friendship, a strong desire to know more and more about the likeness of God should be a part of our lives.  We are expected to pray, to seek, to think about God and His Ways throughout each day.   

 

God called each one of us for a purpose.  We are loved deeply by God our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ our Savior.  They want us to become like Them, spirit beings –members of the God Family!

 

They want us to love Them in return, with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength. They want us to seek Them, communicate with Them, to fellowship with them. 

 

Communicating and fellowshipping with Them involves complete submission to obeying the Commandments of God.

 

PRAYER is an important Key in seeking God

 

Psalm 63:1-4  

 

1 O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.

 

2 So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory.  3 Because Your loving kindness is better than life, My lips shall praise You. 4 Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.

 

We can easily see the importance of prayer as we seek God.  We can easily see that prayer will help us to develop the character of God in us.  In other words to become more and more like our loving God!

 

 

          The Example of David

 

The example by David in Psalm 63:1-4 who prayed "Early will I seek You " denotes that seeking God through prayer early in the morning allows us to start the day fresh when we begin our communication with God.

 

Notice the language that David uses in his yearning or longing for God.  He compares it to a parched desert soil that is craving for water.

 

David also looked for God while he worshiped at the Tabernacle.  We can see that when come together in a holy convocation, our thoughts and silent prayers should be focused on drawing close to God, communicating with Him, involved actively in the listening of the messages, singing with purpose during the congregational singing.

 

David recognizes that the presence of God in his life is more precious than life itself without God.   It is obvious that David was close to God.  He knew God and loved Him dearly.  And God knew him!  David was not embarrassed or afraid to let others know. David sought God and communicated with Him. 

 

   Prayer - Seek and Communicate with God

 

Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to those who  love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

 

As we seek and communicate with God in our prayers,  we can thank Him that we know that He loves us and that we love Him and are striving to obey and serve Him.  We can thank Him for the hope of eternal life that He has promised.  We can ask Him for His continued help in guiding and protecting us during our physical lives and that we want to very much be in His Kingdom.  We can use this verse continually as we live our lives walking by faith in Him and our Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ. 

 

God knew David and He knows us

There was no question that David and God had a close relationship with one another.  God knew David and He knows us!  Can we grasp that?  The everlasting God of this universe has personally called us out of the billions of people on this earth to understand who He is, who Jesus Christ is, and to understand His wonderful Plan of Salvation for Mankind!  Yes, God knows us.  However, He wants us to be motivated to focus on really knowing Him, as we prepare for the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ back to this earth, to begin the establishment of God’s Kingdom here on earth. 

 

Use the Holy Spirit to guide our relationship with God

 

God’s Holy Spirit helps us to develop our relationship with God, which includes living by faith.  This will help us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ. 

 

John 16:13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He (It) will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

 

Notice that we are guided, not forced.  The choice is ours.  Jesus Christ leads us and guides us, if we allow Him to do that. No person can understand the whole truth of God, unless he/she has been given the gift of God’s Spirit and is led by His Spirit.

           

The Holy Spirit of God

 

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a Spirit of Fear but of power and of love, and of a sound mind.

                            

The Spirit of God produces a sound mind.  A sound mind means a mind that is stable and healthy.  God’s Spirit comes from the mind of God! Through God’s Holy Spirit, which is the mind of God, we can receive guidance and understand what God’s will is for us. God’s Holy Spirit gives us the ability, strength, motivation, determination, self-control, and faith to overcome our sins.

The importance of using God’s Holy Spirit

An individual who has been given God’s Spirit recognizes the importance of not focusing on self.  A person who has been given God’s Holy Spirit & does not use it in life, becomes self-centered and unbalanced! 

Pride begins to take hold of that individual and he cannot develop a sound and close relationship with God.   This person is not producing love toward God and toward man. As we develop in our Christian walk of living by faith, we will produce the fruit of the Spirit as written in Galatians 5:22:  Love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness goodness, faithfulness, meekness and self control.

 

   Comparison of relationships with people and with God

We get to know people by communicating with them.  We talk with people and listen as we communicate with them.  As we continue, they become our friends. 

As friendships develop the results are positive. The development of a close relationship with God, our Father, and Jesus Christ, our Savior is very important, because, once we receive God’s Holy Spirit of power, guidance, love, and a sound mind, we are expected to use his Holy Spirit in living our lives in order to expand and increase our relationship with God. 

 

A Relationship with God is Personal

 

Each one of us can draw close to God on an individual basis.  Our loving God, our Father, and Jesus Christ, our loving Savior and High Priest know each one of us on an individual basis.  Each one of us has unique characteristics, unique personalities, unique strengths and weaknesses. They know who we are.  We are commanded to come out of this World and NOT take part in its Way of living.  Our citizenship is  in heaven.  We are commanded to seek to know God the Father and Jesus Christ and develop close relationships with Them.    We are expected to be completely LOYAL to God and Jesus Christ in the way  that we live our lives.

 

A new creation when we receive God’s Holy Spirit

2 Corinthians 5:17;  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

 

The term, new creation implies that we are now spiritually changed.  We now have God’s Holy Spirit in us.  We are now being molded and changed into the full development of God’s spiritual image!  Do we understand that as physical human beings, we are now in God’s image, physically?  We are now to continue and grow into developing His Spiritual Image.  God expects us to seek Him, to draw close to Him, to do our part in striving to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  This continual spiritual development is a lifelong process.  It just does not happen overnight.  God does His part and will continue to do His part as this continual change occurs spiritually in us! 

 

We are expected to do our part

 

To seek Him, to love Him with all of our heart, our mind, and all of our strength

To put Him first in our lives;  To obey His commandments; To draw close to Him;

To develop our relationships with him through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, our high priest who is at the right hand of God!

 

When we were physically born, physical babies, we grew and developed into physical adults. Spiritually, we are still growing and developing.

 

Those of us who first received God’s Holy Spirit and repented of our past sins, accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, and committed our lives to loving, serving, and obeying God. We began the next stage of our journey to become born into spiritual beings, to eventually become like our older brother, our Lord, Savior, and High Priest, Jesus Christ, AND our loving and Eternal God, our Heavenly Father.   We understand that will occur for us at the first resurrection, at the return of Jesus Christ.  Our bodies will be changed from physical bodies, like we now have, into spiritual, celestial bodies, just like Jesus Christ and God our Heavenly Father.

 

   The Bible is the Word of God.  

 

The central focus of the Bible is Jesus Christ, as the Word.  Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life as written in

 

John 6:35.    “I am the Bread of Life.  He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”

 

Our Savior was born as a human being for a purpose, which was to reveal God the Father and the wonderful Plan of Salvation for mankind; why man was created. Continually, we God’s Plan through the Sabbath and His Holy Days, and increase our knowledge about the mind of God, His thoughts, His plan for mankind, His character, His thoughts, which all contribute to what His nature is.  We learn and more how to live and walk by faith. 

 

    Bible understanding helps us to think like God

 

Positive relationships and positive thoughts about others develops unity, harmony, and/or agreement. Positive thinking about God and Jesus Christ, through prayer and Bible Study, carries positive concepts about Them in our mind, and develops our relationship with Them. 

 

We must seek God through the study of His Word

 

The study would include asking God for His help in understanding the Bible, in order that we can communicate with Jesus Christ and God the Father, and be at one with them.  In order to study it correctly, we need the help of God through His Holy Spirit.

 

We should also make sure that we use important time to study and meditate on its teachings.   As we do that we should develop more and more close communication and relationships with God our Father and Jesus Christ our Savior and High Priest. 

 

Seeking Bible understanding helps us to think like God

 

Positive relationships and positive thoughts about others develop unity, harmony, and/or agreement. Positive thinking about God and Jesus Christ, through prayer and Bible Study carries positive concepts about Them in our mind, and develops our relationship with Them.  The more we develop our learning about Them, about Their plans for The Kingdom of God, the more we are going to know Them, AND the more our unity with Them and with one another, as brethren will continue to develop!

 

These thoughts are simply more reasons why the importance of constantly having an attitude and personality of diligently seeking Them is so necessary.   We will develop immensely our responsibilities of being at one with God!

 

           Bible Understanding-A key to seeking and knowing God

 

John 17:3 “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. “

 

Learn about the love, greatness, patience, love kindness, mercy, and majesty of God

Diligently seek Them through prayer, Bible Study, meditation, positive thoughts and occasional fasting, and living by faith. Seek to develop a oneness with Them in unity, harmony, and love, as They are one.

 

Study and seek to learn about God and Christ, and Their plans for The Kingdom of God

Learn about the ‘through the names that He has revealed to those with whom He worked through the ages.” (From the Fundamental Beliefs of the United Church of God)

Diligently seek Them through prayer, Bible Study, meditation, positive thoughts and occasional fasting, and living by faith. The above will develop our oneness with Them

 

    SEEK to be at one with God

 

John 17:11  “Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to you.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom you have given Me, that they may be ONE as We are.”

 

The more we meditate, think, and read God’s Word, the more we will grow and develop spiritually.  That is why reading and studying the Bible- the Word of God is so important for us to learn more and more God.  What a wonderful tool is the Bible!  We must never neglect using it. 

John 6:63  -- “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”

   Seek God and live by Faith

We are expected to draw close to God, to develop a close relationship with Him.  We are expected to expand this relationship to the point where we become very close to one another.  As we do this, we develop our love for God more and more.  Why?  Because we develop a unique and close friendship with Him.  We seek Him, as we continue to live by faith. 

  Humility helps us to think about God

 

Psalms 10:4  “The wicked in his proud countenance doe not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.

 

Notice a description of the “wicked” through the description of the word, “pride”, which is a description of a person who thinks so highly of himself that he is not seeking after God.  Actually, this person seldom even thinks about God. 

 

We recognize the importance of thinking about God.  God’s thoughts should become our thoughts.  We develop more and more the character, the nature of God, even though we are still physical.  How can we do this?

 

God has given us His Word to study and His Holy Spirit, which is the mind of Jesus Christ.  There are many scriptures regarding how we should be thinking and meditating as God thinks:  Philippians 4:8 is a good example.

 

Thinking about God – Humility (1)

 

Philippians 2:5   “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus”, who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross

 

In order for us to be unity, harmony, and or agreement with another person, we must certainly be thinking about them, which in turn, helps us to learn about them, and would build our relationship with that person.  We can certainly not develop a positive relationship with another person we never think about.

 

By the same token, the more we think about God and Jesus Christ, the more we read the Bible and carry the concepts about Them in our mind, the more we are going to develop our relationship with Them. 

 

  Thinking about God  - Humility (2)

 

Humility should be a very important part of our day-to-day living.  God will give us more and more of His Spirit so that we can draw closer and closer to Him and develop our interaction and communication, and trust in Him.  Along with that, we develop a strong desire to become more and more like our older brother Jesus Christ, filled with the Spirit of God. Loneliness is to be gotten rid of. We realize that we can no longer be loners.  We are now able to communicate with the Eternal God of this universe.  We have been called to communicate with God.  We cannot expect that we will mature as Christians by ourselves.  We are expected to develop our fellowship with God and with one another, our brethren.  As we do this, our love for God and our love for our brothers and neighbors should increase.   This chapter gives us much insight and understanding to what love is. 

 

Thinking about God - Humility  (3)

 

Our thoughts throughout the day should increase in thinking about God.  We should live each day in an attitude of prayer without ceasing.  We should be growing in our love for God, our Savior Jesus Christ, and in our love for our fellow man, which should definitely include our brethren.  In other words, we should be growing in developing the spiritual nature of God through our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

 

Is the fruit of God’s Holy Spirit developing in us through the nine qualities mentioned in Galatians 5:22 Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, (patience,) kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, (gentleness) and self-control?   Do our thoughts include these qualities as we live our lives day to day?

We have physical features just like God does.  Once God called us and we repented, accepted the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who paid the death penalty and forgiveness for our sins, were baptized, given God’s gift of His Holy Spirit. We then were set apart or sanctified to grow and develop the Spiritual Image – the character of God!

 

We are to seek to know God – to develop more and more of His likeness; more of His nature;  We are to strive continually to draw near to Him, to develop a close relationship with Him through prayer, Bible Study, meditation, and occasional fasting. 

 

        Jesus Christ, our Example, came to do the Father’s will

 

John 8:28-29  “Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  V 29  “And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.”

 

    SEEK A Relationship with God Through Jesus Christ (1)

 

In John 15:11-13 Jesus explains to His disciples that they are His friends.  After all, they had spent 3 ½ years together and talked and communicated with one another on many occasions throughout those years

 

John 15:11-13 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

 

                   SEEK A Relationship with God Through Jesus Christ (2)

 

John 15:14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.

 

16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. 17 These things I command you, that you love one another.

 

        SEEK A Relationship with God Through Jesus Christ (3)

 

God the Father and Jesus Christ loved the disciples 

Love toward one another and love toward God.

There was communication between Jesus and His disciples

Continuing communication with God the Father through Jesus Christ

 

We can easily see that God the Father and Jesus Christ loved the disciples.  Jesus developed that relationship by expanding the importance of love toward one another and love toward God.  Jesus communicated with His disciples.  They communicated with Him.  They were friends.  As we read the gospels, the epistles, written by followers of Jesus when He was physically with them, we can see that they continued to communicate with Him and with God the Father. 

 

          SEEK A Relationship with God Through Jesus Christ (4)

.

We have the opportunity to communicate with our older brother and High Priest, Jesus Christ, and with our Heavenly Father.  Let us recognize the importance to continue our friendship and expanding our relationship with Them, by continuing to seek God, our Heavenly, Father, continuing to communicate with God, our Father, through our High Priest Jesus Christ, through prayer through the reading and studying of the Bible, and through meditation and occasional fasting. 

 

Let us make sure to stay focused on our calling, brethren and seek God with Diligent Effort.  Let us encourage one another.  God has called us into His Church.  We are brethren in His family here on earth.  Let us show one another love and kindness and zeal in serving God and one another with all of our hearts.

 

Colossians 3:1-4 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.  2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.  For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

 

Notice that the word seek, is an active word.  When we seek something, we are active.  We are doing something.  When we set our mind on things above, we are doing something.  We are thinking.  Our thoughts are about God and His way of living.  The more we focus on things above, the more we will be seeking God’s Way of living. This thinking will include examining ourselves to make sure we are thinking about God and living by faith, according to His will.

 

Notice Verse 4:  The promise that is given to us.  We will also appear with Jesus Christ in glory.  We will be resurrected and changed into spirit born children of God!  Members of His spiritual Family!

 

In conclusion: Let us now read the following scripture with  me:

 

Acts 15:15-17   ‘And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:  16 After this I will return And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down; I will rebuild its ruins, And I will set it up; 17 So that the REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK the LORD, Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name, Says the LORD who does all these things.’

 

We are so blessed to be given this tremendous opportunity to SEEK GOD AND DEVELOP A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM. Let us not take this opportunity for granted.  Let us not take our loving God and our Lord and Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ for granted.  We are all deeply loved by Them.  Let us all continue to live by faith.

 

Let us all learn to DILIGENTLY SEEK GOD and develop a close relationship with HIM in this life so that when we become spiritual members of the Family of God, we will be able to help the rest of mankind to do the same in the Kingdom of God!