sermon: 'What Do You Seek?'


Mark Schindler
Given 07-Mar-20; Sermon #1532A; 39 minutes

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The day before yesterday, Thursday, March 5th, 2020 was the 37th anniversary of one of the most beautiful early spring days in Chicago history. The high of a balmy 75 degree temperature stands as the highest temperature ever recorded on March 5th in Chicago. It was an absolutely beautiful Sabbath day outside, but it was an even nicer day within the walls of the Washington school that Sabbath afternoon as Nancy and I, along with four others, took another baby step toward the Kingdom of God. In a metal horse trough in the boys' locker room, adjacent to the school's gymnasium, we were all baptized into the body of Christ.

I can vividly remember like it was yesterday as each waited our turn to be buried in our covenant agreement with Jesus Christ. When it was my turn, Charles Heller, a local elder in the church, struggled to force my knees to stay under the water while John Ritenbaugh dunked me.

To us, on that day, we thought we had come to the fullness of understanding the length and the breadth and the depth of our commitment to following Jesus Christ at that time. To us, that day was the fulfillment of the time that began back in the mid-1970s when Nancy and I had only two children and we decided for their sake to become better Catholics. Within a very short period of time as we sought to become better Catholics, we realized the Catholic Church was not the place to be and we were headed in the wrong direction.

So in spite of a lifetime with our families in the Catholic Church, we sought to find God in a different direction. As our journey continued in that different direction, we sought to find what we thought we needed within all the different Christian denominations. Each seemed to have what we sought, but no one group had what we thought we were looking for to become better Christians. A curious side to this was a carefully cultivated and almost innate prejudice as we continued seeking what we thought we wanted. Even though the Catholic Church was wrong and we knew it, we could no longer be part of it. We could never be part of anything else because growing up, everyone was either a Catholic or a public and every other religious group fell into the public's category. As funny as that sounds, it was as embedded in my brain as someone who grows up indoctrinated into any kind of prejudice. We could find those who may have had what we thought we needed, but we could never be part of any group of publics.

By 1977 we discovered the Sabbath and we saw the folly of a world that had turned its back on the seventh day—God's seventh day Sabbath. So with our new perfect understanding in our pursuit of righteousness, we started keeping the seventh day Sabbath. Now, the only problem with that was that I was working a job where the seventh day of my work week was Wednesday. And so very foolishly, in retrospect, we started keeping a seventh day Sabbath on Wednesday. We had found a vital link in what we sought. Of course, this lasted about six months until we realized that the seventh day Sabbath was not an arbitrary day based on what was convenient for us, but what was the specific Word of God. Nancy and I both look back on that time with a certain amount of embarrassment while considering our older Brother Jesus Christ and our Father sitting in heaven, having a pretty good laugh over the foolish baby steps, just as we parents do when our children think they have come to the right conclusions, but are so far off base.

After those six months, when we realized our foolishness, we determined in order to continue to properly keep the seventh day, it had to be on Saturday, even if it meant losing my job, if we were to stay in line with God's will. Quite miraculously, the same week that we decided that we needed to keep the Sabbath on Saturday no matter what it costs, it just so happened the shift opened up that would give me the Saturdays off.

There are many other events, some obviously miraculous, that culminated on that beautiful March 5th, 1983 day, but probably the most miraculous that will always stay with me is when God drew us to Him through the Worldwide Church of God. God had miraculously removed that inbred Catholic/ public's prejudice so we could continue to seek Him in the way He wants even though we often foolishly get caught up in what we want instead of what He wants. We self-righteously sought to become better Catholics and in the process found out we could no longer be Catholics. We sought to self-righteously keep the Sabbath and we did on Wednesday until we realized we could no longer keep a Wednesday Sabbath. We sought to become better Christians, but it could only be on our terms apart from any other group of publics until God said, "Enough of this foolishness!" and miraculously opened our minds to wholeheartedly become part of the body of believers who faithfully follow those ministers who faithfully follow Jesus Christ as His gift to the church.

Well, what were we really seeking then? And what are we really seeking now? Please turn with me to John 1. Of course, here in the book of John, as we know, God uses the apostle John to present us with Jesus Christ as God in the flesh. We are going to start by reading John's powerful introduction that each of us already have etched in our brains. But it is good to remind ourselves at the beginning of this message, as we wind on toward the Passover in 32 days, just who it is that should be the focus of our election.

John 1:1-18 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through Him might believe. He was not the light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming in the into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.'" And of all of His fullness, we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

These verses declare absolutely the eternal existence of the Word who became Jesus Christ. And through the next few verses, we see John the Baptizer, as the type of Elijah, preaching repentance and declaring the advent of God in the flesh to be miraculously revealed by the Father.

John 1:29-35 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.' I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water." And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God." Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God."

Please consider all this within what John Ritenbaugh has said in his Bible study on the book of John as cited from "John, Part One." John said,

Part of understanding the book of John is that John presented Jesus as reality. He is reality. This is what we are aiming for that. He is reality. John 1:9, "That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world." The word "true" appears there as the fourth word. "Real" is actually more descriptive. It comes closer to getting at what John was driving at. Jesus was the real light, as compared to the light that we are able to see. Another one is in John 6. This just gives you an overview. John 6:32, "And Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true [real] bread from heaven.'"

The manna who was only a type, only a symbol. When they ate it, they needed to eat it again. But the Word of God is reality that leads to eternal life, which is real life, because physical life is only a shadow of what is coming. Just like the holy days are called in the Colossians 2 shadows. The holy days are shadows. They are not the reality. They are shadows of what is coming, or what has been (in the case of Passover). That has been fulfilled—the reality has occurred. All the sacrifices that were typical of Christ were shadows of what was coming. The reality occurred when Christ died on the stake.

Brethren, there is a point to this long introduction leading off with the personal journey that Nancy and I started on many years ago, led by God but with so many of our own foolish twists and turns. Then we took a closer look at the One who is the reality at the center of the calling of us all, because there is something very important I believe we may just overlook in these last 32 days leading up to Passover as we examine ourselves. And it is important to see it, as mentioned already.

The book of John is the presentation of Jesus Christ as God in the flesh and the real guiding Light. Therefore, we need to carefully note everything He says and does. As the apostle John wrote at the end of the book in verse 25 of chapter 21, he said, "And there are also many things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world could not contain the books that would be written. Amen." There are no words that are wasted in this book that you have on your laps or on your desk in front of you. And they are perfectly placed for our understanding.

So with this in mind, let us read four more verses from John 1.

John 1:37-42 The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?" They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), "where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour). One of the two who had heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, to Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas."

It is important for us to consider today in accord with the principle of the law of first mention, that the first words recorded by John the apostle of Jesus Christ and God in the flesh, following his expansive presentation of Him as God, is the question intended for every one of us. "What do you seek?" With the first four words recorded by John from God in the flesh to those called by the Father to His Son, in this instance, it was Andrew and probably the apostle John himself, Jesus Christ puts forth one of the most important questions a follower of Jesus Christ must ask himself every day for the rest of his life. Are we really looking for what God wants of those called by the Father to His Son? Or are we continuing to seek merely what we want?

This may seem to be a no-brainer to each one of us until we begin to dig deeply into what is motivating us and just what do we really seek. As we approach the Passover and we examine ourselves and the commitment we have made to the relationship that we have been graciously given with the Creator of the universe at the express invitation of the Father, we need to seriously dig deep and ask ourselves, just what is it we seek? And does it really line up with God's will?

These fellows, Andrew and John, were almost tongue-tied in responding to Jesus' question even though they had been drawn to Him by the Father and they believed this was the Messiah and someone very unique. They had not carefully considered and were not ready to give a thoughtful answer.

What about us? Are we ready to answer God thoughtfully, correctly, and with the outgoing concern for others having grown in grace and knowledge from experiencing a thought provoking relationship with the God of the universe, our God of creation, or are we still where we were when the Father called us to His Son, myopically seeking Him from our own narrow point of view?

The word translated as "you seek" in New King James or "seek ye" in the King James, is number 2212 in Strong's, is dzateo. It means to seek literally or figuratively, specifically by Hebraism, to worship God, or in a bad sense, to plot against life. The word is used 117 times throughout the New Testament in a variety of ways, both literally and figuratively, either good or bad, in seeking to worship God or in plotting against Him. The Louw and Nida Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament states concerning this word, "It means to desire to have or experience something with the probable implication of making an attempt to realize one's desire."

Brethren, in our self-examination, we need to be asking ourselves, are we making an attempt to realize our desire that is in line with God's purpose for us within the body? Or is it still as it was when we were first called, more self-serving.

As God called most of us, He used a hook baited with the proclivities, events, and circumstances of our lives. Perhaps it was a desire to become better at what we were already were doing. Perhaps it was driving interest to prophecy. Perhaps it was a desire to escape the violence of a world gone mad. Perhaps it was a desire to be healed. Perhaps it was a desire to learn and satisfy our own curiosity. Maybe it was a desire just to ride the coattails of someone else's success. Whatever it was, we need to make sure we are not staying at that level in our conversion or we will never be where we need to be in our covenant agreement with Jesus Christ, to live as He lives with the constant outgoing concern of others in service of our God.

Just a thought as I was thinking about this right now, you know, Judas Iscariot means of knife. Suppose he was a band of followers of ones who wanted overthrow Rome. Perhaps he saw in Jesus Christ, the Messiah who was going to deliver them, but he never moved beyond this himself. And look what happened. He betrayed Jesus Christ.

Again, let us go back to John 6 and a good example of seeking God with only temporary personal satisfaction in mind.

John 6:1-2 After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberius. Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He had performed on those who were diseased.

Verses 3 through 21 then go on to describe the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, followed by Jesus walking on water through the turbulent seas to the apostles who were struggling to cross over the sea to the other side. But when He arrived, they were miraculously there. In verse 22 it says, "On the following day, when the people were standing on the other side of the sea that there was no boat." So it goes on to say that they saw Jesus Christ was not there, but He had gotten somehow to the other side.

John 6:25-36 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." They said to Him, 'What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe on Him whom He has sent."

Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will you perform then, that we may see and believe You? What work will you do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as in the it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always." And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet you do not believe."

And John Ritenbaugh in "Eating, How Good It Is, Part Four," wrote about these verses in John 6,

The day after feeding the 5,000 from one boy's lunch, as recorded in John 6, this miracle becomes the springboard for a lesson on where a Christian should go to receive the best spiritual nourishment for his mind. After Jesus perceives that the people seek Him out to be fed physically again, He knows that they do not properly understand what they had witnessed the day before. They do not understand the significance of the miracle in identifying Him as the Messiah, perceiving it merely as a means of getting food to fill their empty stomachs. There they are, hungry again.

In these verses, Jesus cautions His disciples about allowing the wrong focus to dominate their lives because it is so easily done.

Brethren, do we properly understand what God has done with each one of us in a variety of ways that may have been self-serving at the time, in order to bring us to Jesus Christ but with the intent of getting beyond those things and to do the work of God, believe on Him whom He has sent, and seeking Him for the truly right reasons that go far beyond our personal physical satisfaction? This takes a great deal of study, thought, prayer, and careful introspection to determine and critically answer Christ's interrogatory: What do you seek?

We are going to take a bit of a turn right now as we examine what it means to seek God from the Old Testament. I cannot say with certainty, but the scripture we are going to look at may very well have been on Christ's mind when He asked the question to John and Andrew, what do you seek? Those first recorded words in the book of John may have also, even though it sounded like they were kind of fumbling for an answer, been on the mind of Andrew and John when they responded to the Messiah, who John the Baptizer had declared to them.

Please turn with me to I Chronicles chapter 16. This is the incredibly awesome psalm of David for those who are called into the presence of God. Andrew and John realized they were in the presence of the Messiah. You are all very familiar with this psalm; we sing it quite often. But I want you to keep your focus here on those called now into the body of Christ rather than on Israel to whom it was written at the time. But into the body of Christ, those very few called now out of this world that is going crazy.

I Chronicles 16:1-4 So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. Then he distributed to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. And he appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the Lord God of Israel.

I Chronicles 16:7-36 On that day David first delivered this psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the Lord: Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; talk of all his wondrous works! Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord! Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face evermore!

Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth, O seed of Israel His servant, you children of Jacob, His chosen ones! He is the Lord our God; His judgments are in all the earth. Remember His covenant forever, the word which He commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant which He made with Abraham, and with the oath to Isaac, and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel for an everlasting covenant, saying, "To you I give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your inheritance," when you were few in number, indeed very few and strangers in it.

When they went from one nation to another, and from one kingdom to another people, He permitted no man to do them wrong; yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, saying, "Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm." Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is also to be feared among all gods. For all the gods of all the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Honor and majesty are before Him; strength and gladness are in His place. Give to the Lord glory and strength. Give to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth.

The world also is firmly established, it shall not be moved. Let the heavens rejoice, and the earth be glad; and let them say among the nations, "The Lord reigns." Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; let all the fields rejoice, and that is in it. Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth. Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. And say, "Save us, O God of our salvation; gather us together, and deliver us from the Gentiles, to give thanks to Your holy name, to triumph in Your praise." Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, "Amen!" and praised the Lord.

In verse 11, the major responsibility of those called into the covenant agreement with God, seek the Lord and His strength, seek His face continually. There are two different Hebrew words used here. The first "seek the Lord and His strength" is darash, number 1875 in Strong's. In defining this word, Vine's Expository Dictionary describes it this way. "It means to seek, inquire, consult, require, frequent. Occurring more than 160 times in the Old Testament. One of the most frequent uses of the word is the expression 'to inquire of God,' which sometimes indicates a private seeking of God in prayer for direction. And often it refers to the contacting of a prophet who would be the instrument of God's revelation."

Brethren, what greater prophet to contact than Jesus Christ Himself. Vines continues,

At other times, this expression is found in connection with the use of the Urim and the Thummim by the high priest as he sought to discover the will of God by throwing off these sacred stones. Just what was involved is not clear, but it may be presumed that only yes or no questions could be answered by the manner in which these stones fell.

For the apostles in direct physical contact with Him and for us through the Scriptures under the direction of His Holy Spirit, we have access to much more than yes and no answers as we seek Him. Vines continues,

This word is often used to describe the seeking of the Lord and the sense of entering into a covenant relationship with Him. The prophets often used darash as they called the people to make an about face in their living and instead seek the Lord while He may be found, as it says in Isaiah 55:6.

The second, "seek his face continually" is baqash, Strong's number 1245. And again, from Vines,

It means to seek, search, consult. Theologically, this verb can be used to not only to seek a location before the Lord, to stand before Him in the Temple and seek to secure His blessing, but it also means, to use as a state of mind. But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord by God, thou shalt find Him. If you shall seek Him with all your heart and with all your souls, it says in Deuteronomy 4:29, in instances such as this where the verb is used in synonymous parallelism with darash, as it has been here, the two verbs have almost the same meaning.

Although the New King James translates I Chronicles 16:10 and 11 as "Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord! Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face evermore!" of all the translations that I read, I believe the paraphrased Message Bible in Contemporary English puts it best verse.

I Chronicles 16:10-14 (The Message Bible) Revel in his holy Name, God-seekers, be jubilant! Study God and his strength, seek his presence day and night. Remember all the wonders he performed, the miracles and the judgments that came out of his mouth. Seed of Israel his servant! Children of Jacob, his first choice! He is God, our God; wherever you go you come on his judgments and decisions.

As we go on toward the Passover with the careful examination God commands, are we diligently adding to our search? How often we may find ourselves stuck in the ruts of perhaps self-serving proclivities or the needs that God may have even used to draw us to Jesus Christ in the first place, but should no longer be the focus of what we seek. How hard are we working to seek a better relationship with Jesus Christ in seeking to study Him and His strength, seeking to be in the light of His presence day and night so we are able to one day say as He said, "[we] always do those things that are pleasing to the Father."

If we are not growing beyond the sometimes simple-minded, self-centered desires that may have drawn us to seek Him in the first place, we will not grow into the perfect man of outgoing concern for others in the stature and the fullness of Christ.

There is one more thing I would like us to note at the end of this message, as we seek to study Christ and His strength, seeking to be in His presence day and night through one more emphatic example of first mention. Just as the book of John presents Jesus Christ as God incarnate and the first words recorded from Him in that book are, what do you seek?, the book of Luke presents Jesus Christ as the ideal man. And we find another very significant first words from Him.

Luke 2:40-52 And the Child grew and became strong in the spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him. His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast. When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and His mother did not know it; but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a day's journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances. So when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him.

Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said, "Son, why have you done this thing to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously." And He said to them, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?" But they did not understand the statement which he spoke to them. Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with men.

We learn to live by every Word of God. And what we are seeing here is not some mischievously precocious child worrying his parents for no reason, but the very Son of God. Exactly 21 years before He would be completing His Father's business as a man, He shows us that our lifetime too must be devoted to seeking to be about our Father's business no matter what the cost would be down the road.

Brethren, let us all resolve diligently to diligently seek to put aside our often own sometimes foolish self-serving desires and seek to follow our Elder Brother's direction and correction in learning to be about our Father's business as outgoing concern for our brethren and all who come after us as we seek to please Him.

We will wrap up this message now with the words from the apostle Paul in chapter 15 of his letter to the Romans, and I will be reading it from the translation from the Amplified Bible.

Romans 15:1-7 (AMP) We who are strong [in our convictions and our robust faith] ought to bear with the failings and with the frailties and the tender scruples of the weak; [we ought to help carry the doubts and the qualms of others] and not to please ourselves. Let each one of us make it a practice to please (make happy) his neighbor for his good and for his welfare, to edify him [to strengthen him and build him with spiritually]. For Christ did not please Himself [gave no thought to His own interests]; but, as it is written, The reproaches and abuses of those who reproached and abused you fell on Me.

For whatsoever was thus written in former days was written for our instruction, that by [our steadfast and patient] endurance and the encouragement [drawn] from the Scriptures we might hold fast to and cherish hope. Now may the God who gives the power of patient endurance (steadfastness) and Who supplies encouragement, grant you to live in such mutual harmony and such full sympathy with one another, in accord with Jesus Christ, that together you may[unanimously] with united hearts and one voice, praise and glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah). Welcome and receive [to your hearts] one another, then, even as Christ has welcomed and received you, for the glory of God.

So we do always do what is pleasing to the Father.

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