Title: Find and you will live
Contents Base text style="MARGIN-LEFT: 160pt; LAYOUT-GRID-MODE: char; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; MARGIN-RIGHT: 100pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center">Find, and you will live (Amos 5:4) -8)
Dear saints, I pray that the spiritual grace and blessings of our Lord will fill you and your families this morning as well. Verse 4, “Seek me, and you will live.” Verse 6, “Seek the Lord, and you will live.” The joint translation translates as “Do you want to live, seek me, and will you live? Seek the Lord.” These are the words of God by sending the prophet Hosea to the people of Israel who are in the midst of famine, disease, war, and natural disasters. This morning, while examining the text of the text, I would like to share the sermon with the title of “Seek and you will live.”
I. don't do it
In verse 5 of the text, there are three things that those who seek God must not do. Do not seek Bethel, do not enter Gilgal, do not go out to Beersheba.
Second, do not enter Gilgal. When Joshua crossed the Jordan River and conquered the land of Canaan, he used Gilgal as his base of operation. The prophet Samuel anointed Saul in Gilgal and made him king over Israel. So this Gilgal became the military center of Israel and also the political center. This Gilgal is a symbol of world power. Gilgal means to be led away. “Do not go into Gilgal” means not to be led into the world. It also means to compromise and rely on it. Do not compromise with the world and do not depend on the world. Dear all! I pray that you will become a saint who does not become too engrossed in the world, does not compromise with injustice, does not become a fool who depends on worldly things, but only depends on God and seeks God.
Third, do not go out to Beersheba. Beer means well or spring, and Sheba means oath. Beersheba is a symbol of wealth and pleasure. People need material things to live in this world. But we must not forsake God because of material things. Those who believe in Jesus will live happily in this world. However, we must not forget God because we are intoxicated with the pleasures of the world. Wealth is also a blessing from God. But you must not love this riches more than God. This means that we should not turn our backs on God and pretend to be God because of riches and the pleasures of the world. This is not to say that the life of faith should not be neglected. The more wealth you have and the more peaceful your life, the better you should serve God. Dear all! I hope you will not be swayed by wealth. I hope you don't get carried away by the pleasures of the world. I pray that you will become saints who always seek God with a sober heart.
II. seek God
Do not serve idols. Don't depend on the world. Don't fall for the world. This is the passive side of those who seek God. Now I'm telling you to actively seek it out. Then how do we find God?
First, we must find it with our whole body and mind. find the body The joint translation of the word translated ‘Come to me’. It is said that the Israelites did not return to God even if they suffered famine, famine, calamity, disease, war, or natural disaster. (Amos 4) He tells us to return as the prodigal son. We came to God this morning to worship. I came to the chapel in my body. You must come out to the Lord's house and worship on Sunday. Find it again by heart. Only the body is in the chapel and the mind must not be elsewhere. If you seek God with all your heart, God will find you. (Jeremiah 13:13) Beloved! May you seek God with all your heart. I pray that you will become a blessed saint who meets God.
Second, since we learn the Word, we must find it. Hosea 14:2 says, “Take the word and return to the LORD.” To seek means to learn, to explore. To seek God means to study, study, and explore the Word of God to find the will of God and to strive to live according to His will. In particular, the worship time is a time to listen and learn the Word of God. It's time to meet God. Saints! I pray that you will become a saint who learns the word of God diligently and that you will receive the blessing of meeting God in the word.
Third, we must seek it because we pray. Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” All of these words refer to prayer. Seek, pray, and you will find. It is God's promise that you will find God. So how should we pray? We must pray with a desperate heart (Psalm 42:1) We must pray with earnestness (Proverbs 8:17) We must pray with a cry (Psalm 107:6) When we pray with a desperate heart and earnest heart, we must cry out naturally. will pray. The saying “Seek me and you will live” means that you will be saved from tribulation and live a physical life. The soul is regenerated and lives a new life of grace. You will live an eternal and glorious life in heaven. It means to live a blessed life in this life and in the life to come.
Dear all! God tells the people of Israel to seek God in difficult times in the day of tribulation. then live Blessings in spirit and body He tells us to live a blessed life in this life and in the life to come. Everyone! I hope that you will become a saint who seeks God in difficult times. Congratulations on getting your problem resolved. I wish you the best of luck both physically and spiritually.