A Message On Seeking One Lord

If you will turn to Hebrews 11,
verse 6. That scripture I read from the
book of Acts a moment ago said that men should seek the Lord,
that they should seek the Lord. And then here in Hebrews 11,
verse 6, the apostle writes, but without faith it is impossible
to please God. For he that cometh to God must
believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek him." He is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek him. Now what people want, what they
really want, they seek. Is that not true? If a person wants wealth, success,
he wants to be good at some vocation, he diligently seeks that. He
gives time and effort and study to attain that goal. I was watching
the baseball game. around suppertime last night,
Atlanta baseball game. And they had a rain delay. And they announced they were
going to have a program on a look at the greats, the great baseball
players. And so they announced they were
going to talk about Ted Williams. But I've always thought he was
the greatest baseball player who ever lived. greatest hitter,
Ted Williams. And he came on, and this man,
Tim McCarver, was interviewing him. And he said to Ted Williams,
he said, how did you become such a great, great, great hitter? There was no hitter like him. And he said, I lived a block
and a half from the baseball field in California. And I went out there every morning
and stayed all day hitting baseball. He said I determined that I was
going to be the best hitter that ever lived. I made up my mind. And I worked at it. But that's
what I'm talking about. Some of you men have been very
successful, ladies too, in your vocation, in your profession.
You rise up early. You go all day. You work hard.
Some of you have studied and worked hard from morning till
evening. I know something about that.
I've worked hard at the ministry. I still work hard. I work very,
very hard. Long hours. I never come into
the pulpit unprepared. I want to do my best, don't you? We diligently seek that. And
you know, if a person wants help, I found this out, that if a person
wants help, good health and healing, he seeks it. Some of you read
books on good health. I can get a little cold and I
can get a lot of advice out there. Believe it or not, I was standing
at the door one Sunday morning, I had a bad cold, and different
people were coming by telling me what to do about it. Some
said drink orange juice, some said take 15 or 20 vitamin C's,
and some said go to a chiropractor, and some One dear person came
out and said, now I'll tell you how to get rid of that cold.
I said, how? He said, take a teaspoon and fill it full of black pepper.
And hold your nose and swallow that black pepper. But, he said,
don't breathe. Don't sneeze. I said, thank you. Go on home. But we read books,
and we go to doctors and clinics, we take vitamins, we take allergy
shots, we're careful about our diet. Some of you are driving
me up a wall with your diets, you know. But what are you doing?
You're seeking good health. And that's all right. But you
want something, and you're seeking it. Is that right? Giving yourself
to it. I mean, you're careful. I wish
we were as careful about these souls as we are these bodies.
just one half. And if a person wants love and
companionship, you see somebody fall in love with a person, they
want to marry them, they want their fellowship or favor or
love, they're constantly calling them or constantly writing them
or constantly around them, just pressuring them. They diligently
seek it. And what I'm saying is this.
I'm saying if a person really wants to know the living God,
I'm not talking about the God of present-day religion. We get
religion today like we do everything else, instant. We have instant
coffee, instant tea, and instant religion. You come down the aisle
and say what the preacher says, and you're fixed up for eternity.
I'm not talking about that at all. But if a person wants to
know the living God, If a person really has an interest in the
riches of his grace, the riches of his grace, the healing of
our souls, and the fellowship and favor and love of God, the
marriage of the Lamb, if we were really interested in knowing
the living God, then we would seek him. Is that right? We would seek him. The woman
with the issue of blood did. Now, she had spent everything
she had on positions and was none better. But she knew if
she could get to Christ, she said, if I can just touch his
garment, I'll be made whole. And that poor woman crawled on
her hands and knees through the crowd of people to get to Christ. She diligently sought him. Blind
Bartimaeus, sitting by the wayside, when Christ came by, he just
kept crying, and people tried to discourage him. They tried
to get him to be quiet, but he wouldn't be quiet. The man was
blind. The man was blind. He wanted
to see. Oh, God that I may see. The Ethiopian eunuch. Do you
know how far that man journeyed from Ethiopia to Jerusalem? And
he went by chariot, he went by chariot from Ethiopia to Jerusalem
to seek the Lord. He went through all the ritualism
and ceremonialism of the Jewish feast days in Jerusalem trying
to find the living God. And the men of Macedonia, what
did Paul say? They appeared to me in a vision
and the men of Macedonia said, won't you come over and help
us? Please come and help us. And did not our Lord say, Seek
ye first and foremost the kingdom of God? And all these things
will be added to you. He said, What shall I eat? What shall I drink? What shall
I wear? These are the things that the Gentiles, the heathens,
seek. But seek ye first, first and foremost, the kingdom of
God and His righteousness, His redemption. And these other things
will be added to you. David said, I'm old. I've been
young. I've never seen God's seed forsaken. I've never seen
God's seed begging bread. Seek the Lord. Seek the giver
and you'll have the gifts. I found an old hymn that said,
Seek ye first, not earthly pleasure, fading joy, failing treasure. Seek the love that knows no measure. Seek ye first, God's kingdom. Seek ye first God's peace and
blessings. You have all, if dispossessing,
come, your need and sin confessing. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God. Seek ye first, and then when
forgiven, pardoned, made an heir of heaven, all your life to him
will be given. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God. Seek ye first on him relying,
his grace is sure, all your needs supplying, glory is purchased
by his dying, so seek ye first the kingdom of God. I say to
the children here, young people, seek the Lord. How old must a
person be to believe God, do you know? Is the church right
now having a little difficulty about baptizing a young boy 9
or 10 years of age? I don't see what the problem
is. Something in the words say that a young man 9 or 10 can't
know God? Turn to Jeremiah. Let's see what
God says about that. Jeremiah chapter 1. Jeremiah
chapter 1. You children, seek the Lord.
You don't have to be a theologian to know God. You don't have to
know all the doctrines of the Bible to love God. You children
here are capable of loving your parents, aren't you? Well, are
you not capable of loving God? You children here are capable
of depending on your parents to meet your need. Are you not
then capable of depending on Christ to meet your need? It's
the same thing. He said, if you being evil know
how to give good things to your children, how much more shall
your father give good things to them that believe him? If
your son asked for bread, would you give him a stone? If he asked
for meat, would you give him a serpent? You see what I'm saying? You can trust your parents, you
can trust God, if you believe God. Jeremiah 1, listen to this,
verse 5 through 7. Before I formed thee in the belly,
I knew thee. And before you came out of your
mother's womb, I sanctified thee, I ordained thee a prophet unto
the nations. Then said I, O Lord God, I can't
speak, I'm a child. But the Lord said, Say not, I'm
a child. Thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee. And you
know what he said to Timothy one time? He said, Let no man
despise thy youth. I tell you, gray hair doesn't
have a corner on God. That's exactly right. In fact,
our Lord Jesus Christ was sitting one day, and you can read it,
I won't turn to Matthew 19, but he was sitting there and speaking
and blessing the people, and some ladies brought their children.
And the disciples, remind me of some of the Reformed elders
today, they said, get those kids out of here. He doesn't have
time for those kids. What can kids know? What can
children know? Get those children out. Put them
back in the back somewhere while us old folks worship God. And
boy, our Lord rebuked them, didn't he? He said, you suffer these
little children to come to me, and don't you forbid them, for
such is the kingdom of God. And except you be converted and
become like a little child, you won't enter the kingdom of God.
Is that not what he said? So I say to our boys and girls,
you seek the Lord. You seek the Lord. And I've said
it so often to you, you walk in the light God gives you, and
he'll give you more light. And if you come to this pastor
and say, I'm trusting Christ, I believe Christ, I'm resting
in him, I'm a sinner saved by his grace, I want to confess
him. We'll confess him, young person. I can't see people's hearts.
I can't see it, people's hearts. There may be a child come to
me who really knows God. There may be an older person
like Demas. So I don't know, Ron. But I say,
children, seek the Lord. And you who teach these children's
classes, you encourage them to close with Christ. Not pressure
them now. I refuse to do that. Not pressure
them. Not pressure them. Not talk far
of them. Not say, honey, isn't it about time you joined the
church? That's an abomination. But as God works in their hearts,
you encourage them. Don't discourage them. God forbid
that I should shoo any child away from the Master. Isn't that
right? And I see the sinners, you seek
the Lord. There are people sitting around here in this congregation
whose, it's just, your whole, your life has been a life of
confusion and trouble and trial and conflict. Well, I tell you,
Christ died for the ungodly. Christ died for sinners. He delights
to show mercy. If thou, Lord, shouldest mark
iniquity, who would stand? Would you? But thank God there's
forgiveness with him. Let not conscience make you linger,
nor fitness fondly dream. All the fitness God requires
is to feel your need of him. And I'll tell you this, I speak
this word of encouragement to all who you look back and see
just, you know, some folks look back over their lives and feel
quite proud of them, and they are in trouble. But some folks
can look back over their lives and be real downcast because
of it. Well, you're the very fella Christ
came to save. The very fella. The very person.
That's right. You look through the Bible. You
look through the Bible. Our Lord old Nicodemus came to
the Lord. He's proud of his life. He was
a Pharisee. He was a religious man. He was
a moralist. He was a teacher of the scriptures. And he wanted
to debate with God. He wanted to discuss theological
issues. And our Lord just sent him away
and said, you've got to be born again. You're not going to understand
what I'm talking about. If I've told you earthly things and you
can't comprehend them, how would you handle heavenly things? Why
don't you just go your way? That's exactly what he was saying.
But in the next chapter, he came to a woman who'd been married
five times and was at that time living with a man who was not
her husband. And you know, he sat down on that wheel and talked
to her. Talked to her about living water, talked to her about God's
grace, talked to her about worshiping God. That's one of the longest
conversations he had with anybody, was that woman at the well. And
she went away rejoicing. That's right. And then you can
go through the Bible, you can see that, how the Lord went down
to the land of the Gadarenes, and how the one man there that
you wouldn't expect God to save is the one he saved. That went
out in the tombs. The fellow that was all confused and troubled. And my Lord left him clothed
in his right mind, and the rest of those religious folks ran
him out of town. He went to the cross of Calvary. And whom did
he call there? A thief. A thief. You can go through the Word and
find that. I say, let not conscience make you linger. Seek the Lord.
Children, seek the Lord. Older folks, seek the Lord. Young
men, seek the Lord. Let me ask you this. What shall
it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your soul? What if you have good health?
You go out jogging and you play tennis and you do all these things
and you got the good health and all these things, but it's just
a short time. What if you are the best at your
business? What if you have the biggest
house on the block? What if you have all the money? What if everything
you touch turns to gold? It'd be a whole lot better if
God had turned your heart around. A whole lot better. I tell you, Godliness with contentment
is great gain. That's exactly right. And everything,
I know, everything in this United States is bigger and better and
greater and finer and all this foolishness, but we need to come
back to the simplicity of Christ, the simple things. We're all,
I tell you, too much taken up with it, too much materialism.
Too much, what shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world,
the world's honor, the world's materialism, the world's fame,
the world's glory, the world's friendship, and lose his soul? But seek the Lord. And I say
to the old people here, seek the Lord. The dying thief did.
Seek the Lord. Seek the Lord. Two questions. The first question is this. What
is it to seek the Lord? I'm going to be very plain and
simple. What is it to seek the Lord? Well, number one, I know
this. To seek the Lord is to discover
that I need the Lord. I'm not going to seek the Lord
until I discover I need the Lord. A man doesn't seek what he already
has. Huh? Our Lord said the well do
not need a physician. They don't seek a physician.
Who seeks a physician? Sick people. Well, who seeks
the Lord? Sinners. That's right. Our sins have separated us from
God. And to seek the Lord, the first
thing we discover is we do not have God. We may have religion.
We may have a God. We may have a system of theology. a tradition handed down to us
from someone else. But by nature, we do not have
God. And those who seek the Lord, who genuinely seek the Lord,
do so because they're aware they need the Lord. They're aware
of their sin, they're aware of their need, they're aware of
their emptiness. Something's missing. Someone's missing. Actually, the vital issue and
person's missing. David said in Psalm 51, Have
mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness, blot out
my transgressions. Here's the second thing. What
is it to seek the Lord? It's to discover that I do not
have the Lord, that I need him. Secondly, to seek the Lord is
to sincerely and really desire his presence, his favor, and
a living union with him. You see, there were people who
came to him in the New Testament, but they were interested in healing,
not in him. You remember that in John chapter
2? When they saw the miracles which he did, many believed on
him. But he did not commit himself to them because he knew their
hearts. It was not Christ they wanted, it was the benefits.
It was the healing. I detect that in much religion
today. It's not really God, the living
God. It's not really Christ that people
want. It's that healing of the body. That's the reason they
emphasize this healing of the body, this two cars in every
garage and financial success and healing of the body. That's
what these preachers are majoring on because that's what people
are interested in. Another group came to Christ and he said, I
know why you're following me. You're following me for the loaves
and fishes. The Jews wanted a kingdom. When he rode into Jerusalem on
the donkey, they started taking their clothes off and throwing
them in front of him and throwing palm branches and they said,
hail him that cometh in the name of the Lord, hail the new king.
A few days later they were trying to crucify him. It wasn't Christ.
Christ in his true character, Christ in his redemptive work,
Christ on his redemptive mission that they wanted, they wanted
a kingdom, a Jewish kingdom. So what I'm saying to seek the
Lord is to really desire his presence, his favor, and a living
union with him. Paul said, oh, that I may win
Christ and be found in him, that I may know him and the power
of his resurrection. When the prodigal son came home, what was he seeking? Well, he
wasn't seeking honor or acclaim or position. He said, Father,
I'm not worthy to be called a son. Let me be a hired servant. But
what I'm looking for is your forgiveness and your fellowship. That's what I'm saying. We're
not seeking the Father's house, we're seeking the Father. We're
not seeking the gifts, we're seeking the giver. When a man seeks the Lord, he'll
seek the Lord. That's what I'm saying. He'll
desire to know the living God. Oh, that I may know him. Christ
said, you come unto me, and I'll give you rest. Look upon me,
and be ye saved. All the ends are there. Me. To
know God. Paul said, I know how to abound,
and I know how to be abased. Paul knew what it was to be popular,
and he knew what it was to be in prison. But in either place,
he knew him. Either place, he knew him. I've
learned in whatsoever state I am, whether with plenty or poverty.
It's not the plenty or poverty that makes the difference, it's
his presence. Content with beholding his face, my all to his pleasure
resign, no change of season or place would make any change in
my mind. While blessed with a sense of
his love, a palace, a toy would appear. And prisons would palaces
prove if Christ dwells with me there. That's what I'm saying,
is to seek him, him. And our whole religious philosophy
today, I'm sorry to say, I get real unhappy and real frustrated
and want to sometimes throw in the towel because I can't get
the ear of people. I'm not preaching a form. I'm
not preaching a denomination. I'm not preaching a law. I'm
not preaching a religious tradition. I'm trying to declare a living,
sovereign, almighty, eternal God who has reconciled the sinners
in Christ his Son. You see what I'm saying? Burn
this building down. Just burn it down. It won't make
any difference. Won't make any difference. Make
any difference whether we live on a desert island or live in
the middle of the tri-state area. God is God, and God's not worshipped
with men's hands, in temples and altars and shrines and crosses
and funny signs and all this sort of thing. God's worshipped
with the heart. It's to know Him. I want to know
God. I need Him. I need His mercy. I need His
love. I need His grace. I need His forgiveness. I need
Him. Him. And when we seek him, that's when we're going to find
him. He said, you'll seek me and find me when you search for
me with all your heart. And that's the third thing. To
seek the Lord is to be willing, to be accepted on his terms. People talk about give your heart
to the Lord. You make a decision. You accept Jesus as your personal
Savior. That's not my problem. I want
him to accept me. The issue is not me accepting
him. He's where he is. He's going to stay there. It
doesn't matter whether I accept him or not. It's not going to
change the situation. But it makes a lot of difference
if he accepts me. It makes a lot of difference.
He doesn't need cleansing. I do. He doesn't need accepting. I do. He doesn't need forgiving. I do. He hasn't been astray. I have. He didn't leave. I did. Do you see what I'm saying? It's just like the criminal coming
in to the judge and saying, I believe I'll accept a pardon. And the judge says, you'll accept
one if I give one, but I'm not giving them today. I want to
be accepted of him. I want to be justified. You see
what I'm saying? I wish we did. And what I'm saying
is we come to God. We seek God on his terms. Well, my daddy was a Baptist,
so I'll be one. That's bad reason. Well, my mother was Catholic,
so I'll be one of them. I just sat in the other, you
know. We're going to dictate the terms. I'll come, but not
that way. Well, I'm saying this, the old hymn writer said, nothing
in my hands I bring. Nothing, nothing, nil, zero. Simply that cross I cling. And
I say this, leave your religious tradition at the door. Just leave
it there. Well, I always thought, leave
it. Well, the way I was brought up, that's your problem was the
way you was brought up. He came from Adam. Well, I've always stood for the
old paths. Get off the old paths and get in the new covenant.
Those old paths never helped anybody. That's exactly right. I know what I'm talking about.
Leave your tradition at the door. Your creeds, your catechism,
your ceremonies, all you think you know, leave it at the door.
And leave your righteousness and works at the door. What you've
done is filthy rags in God's sight if Christ doesn't make
them white as snow. Leave them at the door. Well,
I had one preacher stood in this pulpit and said, I'll tell you,
I've never tasted whiskey, never smoked a cigarette, and never
danced. And somebody back there said, praise the Lord. Just so full of self-righteousness,
it stinks. Leave it at the door. I'm telling
you, I'm just speaking plain this morning, leave your thoughts
at the door. Your thoughts are not my thoughts. Your ways are
not my ways. Leave it at the door. Leave everything.
Come naked, empty-handed, ignorant, as a child, broken, stripped,
before God, and come in Christ. Come in Christ. That's right.
Look into Him. Look into Him. Leave it at the door. Let me
show you a scripture, Romans 9. You've got to look at this.
This illustrates exactly what I'm saying. Romans 9. This illustrates exactly, exactly
what I'm saying. Romans 9, verse 30. Now, you've
got to see this. Romans 9, verse 30. Listen to
it. What then shall we say? What shall we say then? That
the Gentiles, I'm talking about the pagans, which followed not
after holiness, they followed not after righteousness. have
attained the righteousness. They've attained it. Even the
righteousness which is of faith. But Israel, which followed after
the law of righteousness, they had the tabernacle, the temples,
the ceremonies, the prophets, have not attained it. What's
going on here? Look at the next verse. Why?
Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the
works of the law. And they stumbled at the stumbling
See that? And that's what's happening right
here today, right here in the United States, in Ashland, Kentucky,
Boyd County. Boyd County is one of the most
religious places I've ever been. But the people, the people who
have no religion at all, are going to attain a righteousness
by looking to Christ. And all these religious folks
around here are going to miss it because they're trying to
attain that righteousness by their works. By their religion,
by their tradition. That's exactly right. They're
serving God. Now you listen to them. They're faithful to God.
They're serving God. They go to church. They're tired.
They pray. They fast. They do all these things. Been
doing it for years. And that's what the Jew said. Got a corner
on God. And missed Him. Oh yes, folks,
what is to seek the Lord? Is to know I need Him. And it's
to seek Him. Not somebody's version of him
or imagination or thoughts. Seek him, the living God. And
it's to be willing to be accepted on his terms. Now, if God's sovereign,
you better bow to him. If salvation is a gift of God,
then that's the way it'll come to you. If he'll show mercy on
whom he'll show mercy, then that's the way you're going to get mercy.
Now, you might as well face it. You're not believing it, it's
not going to change it. Is God on the throne? Then that's the
God you're going to deal with. That's just so. And then fourthly,
what is to seek the Lord? It's to be willing to part with
all that stand between me and a full fellowship with him. That's
just so. Not too many girls would marry
a fellow that had four or five other wives, would you? She said,
I'm going to be the only one you have or I'm not going to
be number three. That's right. Well, how do you think the Lord
of Glory is going to be number two or three or four with you?
You just think about that a little bit. I've got to have his favor,
his fellowship. I've got to hear and feed on
his word. I've got to be identified with his people and his gospel.
In other words, if I want Christ, I'm going to order my home life,
my social life, my companionship in such a way that I can walk
with Christ. That's exactly right. So be it,
so that I can walk with Christ. I'll tell you this, let me answer
the second question just in three or four minutes, but how do men
seek the Lord? That's why I seek him. How do
men seek him? Well, first of all, they seek
him, not the right form or order or right church, they're seeking
Christ. And then they seek him sincerely. I want you to turn
to Jeremiah 29. Now, this is something I have
a problem with, and I want to present it to you. Jeremiah 29. He says in Jeremiah
29, 13, And you shall seek me and find
me when you search for me with all your heart. And what I'm saying is this,
there's something radically wrong when too much time passes and
no peace is found. There's something wrong. It just
doesn't take God that long to save a fellow. The scripture said, blessed are
they that hunger and thirst for righteousness, they're going
to be filled. And this thing of Looking for
salvation for 10 years or 5 years or 4 years, I don't believe it
takes God that long to save a man who is sincere. Who is sincere. You know what I'm saying? I'm
saying this, I'm simply saying when you seek the Lord with all
your heart, he'll be found. And we seek him continually.
And you know the scripture says we seek him early. Early. That's not talking about early
morning, that means now. Behold, now is the accepted time.
Today is the day of salvation. Seek Him now. Seek Him now. Look to Christ. Look to Christ.

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A Message On Seeking One Lord

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