SEEKING TO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND GOD – Acts 17:26-28

He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might feel around for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist… (Acts 17:26-28) 

Are you seeking to know and understand God? Even though God is beyond human comprehension in many ways, He has revealed much of Himself in His Word. And as we search for Him in Scripture, we’ll grow in our understanding of His nature. This isn’t merely an academic pursuit since pursuing to know God and His will should impact every area of life. 

As fallen humans we seek happiness, fulfillment, success, etc. from a fallen world. Most of humanity does not seek the things that come from God and are fulfilled in Him because most cannot imagine that God can offer us any kind of pleasure or joy. 

Adam and Eve were deceived into wanting to be like God, so they ate the forbidden fruit, and the human race fell into sin and darkness and deception. And from that time on, humans have looked to anything and everything but to God for satisfaction and joy. 

The Lord seeked us first and gives us a desire to turn to Him and to be in a relationship with Him, and to come into His presence for fulfillment, strength and help. But before we can ever begin to seek him, God must do something first in our lives, because if left to ourselves, we would never seek the Lord. Romans 3:10-12 tells us that, “There is no righteous person, not even one; there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks out God; they have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, there is not even one.” 

Here are some examples of God reaching out to us first: 

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). 

Jesus said to Zaccheus, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham.  For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:9-10). 

And God said in Ezekiel, “As a shepherd cares for his flock on a day when he is among his scattered sheep, so I will care for My sheep and will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and gloomy day” (Ezekiel 34.12). 

So what does it mean to seek the Lord? It means to seek His presence, to desire a relationship with Him and to come to Him for help. 

When we seek the Lord to save us, we call upon him to forgive us and wash away our sins not because of anything we do but because of all that Jesus did. But even after Jesus saves us, we still need to seek Him on a regular basis. Jesus said: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8). 

Here are some other thoughts of what we need to ask and seek Him for in prayer: 

• Anxiousness: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6)
• Guidance: I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. (Psalm 32:8)
• Joy: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13)
• Peace: I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. (Psalm 34:4)
• Righteousness: But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their strength in time of trouble. (Psalm 37:39)
• Strength: Seek the LORD and His strength; seek His presence continually! (Psalm 105:4)
• Wisdom: If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. (James 1:5) 

Therefore an intimate relationship with God and the way we view Him transforms every area of life and affects the way we think, behave, and relate to other people. 

Knowing Him intimately transforms our natural tendency toward doubting and sinning. And as we desire to walk obediently before Him, with a pure heart instead of loving the world, we seek to please Him by loving His people unselfishly.  

Paul knew that knowing the Lord was so important that he made it the primary pursuit of his life when he wrote to the church at Philippi. “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them mere rubbish, so that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8-9). Could that be said of you? 

God’s humble, obedient children want Jesus to be the center of attention, and their deep desire is that others will see Jesus, high, Holy and lifted up, because Jesus said; “when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32). 

Our self efforts soon fail, but knowledge of God renews us from the inside out, so reach out to the Lord with your whole heart, trusting and obeying Him, and He will manifest His presence, enabling you to be steadfast and fearless for His honor and glory. 

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