This week we are taking a shift from Back to the Basics to spend time focusing on this concept of pursuing God, or seeking His face. If you want this is a wrap up for Back to the Basics, as our conference was this last Saturday, and the beginning of my next series as I dig even deeper into this concept. The interest in this subject, though I have always been interested in it, was renewed with a Sunday School lesson I will be giving in a couple weeks on the topic of: Christians live to seek the Kingdom of God, that is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. This concept comes pretty much straight from the Westminster Catechism, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”
I have not been brought up in the reformed tradition, but I will mention some of my favorite theologians and preachers are from the reformed school of thought. That being said much of this concept and the following weeks will come from the John Piper book Desiring God. The main argument of his book is that as men we have a longing to be happy and that we find our greatest sense of happiness in God.
Modern Day Pharisees
Piper starts out his book by talking of his own experience, which is one many of us have probably faced. We try to isolate our Christian service from the sense of happiness and joy that performing such actions tend to create. We have the tendency to try to make anything religiously motivated into a duty that we have to endure rather than an opportunity that we can delight in done out of love for God. When you look at the time of Jesus this is pretty much how the religious leaders acted, they viewed the law as a duty they needed to follow rather than an expression of love for God. They took the heart out of worship and made it into a checklist that one needs to follow.
The Rocks Cry Out
When I read about this the first thing that came to mind was when Jesus was entering into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday stated that if the people praising Him didn’t then the rocks would cry out. In other words all of creation takes such enjoyment in God that if we don’t express our love and enjoyment in God through our praise and worship creation will. As modern day Christians some of us have fallen into the tendency as expressed by the ancient pharisees that our praise and worship need to be separated from our sense of enjoyment and happiness. Next time we will look further into how we are to fine our happiness and enjoyment in God.
