Treasure Seeker
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. (Isaiah 55:6 NIV)
The Treasure Hunter
You may think this treasure hunter is at the start of his journey, but he’s not. Long before he lit the lamp and crawled into this particular cave, he was already working hard. Studying the map for hours. Researching historical and geographical data to pinpoint where to find the cave’s entrance. Gathering together the tools he would need—the pickax, the lamp, the rope and the items in his backpack.
He also cleared his schedule. Because treasure seeking takes a lot of time. It can be very frustrating. Sometimes the desired object remains stubbornly lost. Maps get misinterpreted. Local geography changes over time. Rivers dry up. Or torrential rains erode the landscape.
This man could put in years of hard work and find nothing.
We need make sure the treasure we seek is worth the effort and actively seeking God will always bear good fruit.
Puzzling Verses
These verses puzzle me; I don’t have the spiritual insight I need o teach on them. But all three Scripture passages say the same thing,
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. (Isaiah 55:6 NIV
Sow righteousness for yourselves,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord,
until he comes
and showers his righteousness on you. (Hosea 10:12 NIV)
When they go with their flocks and herds to seek the Lord, they will not find him; he has withdrawn himself from them. (Hosea 5:6 NIV)
Digging in Hosea 5 a little deeper, helped me to understand. Here’s another verse which explains why God cannot be found by them.
“Their deeds do not permit them
to return to their God.
A spirit of prostitution is in their heart;
they do not acknowledge the Lord. (Hosea 5:4)
Prostitution, when applied to God’s people, means the Israelites had become guilty of worshipping idols and bowing down to false gods. They could no longer call upon the one true God and have Him answer because many of the Jews had damaged that relationship beyond repair.
The Spiritual Point
“Seek the Lord” is a command throughout the Scriptures, and there are many ways to seek Him.
- Personal times of praise and worship.
- Asking the Holy Spirit to speak to you each day, before you read different portions of the Bible.
- Extended times of prayer, mixed with praise and thanksgiving.
- Sitting silently before the Lord—that’s a hard one for me!
- If you have the gift of tongues, use it often.
It doesn’t matter how we each seek the Lord, but we each need to do it more and more. Because He is the ultimate Treasure.
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6 NIV)
