Ask, Seek and Knock
“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Ps 14:1a) Prior to 2018, I was an unbelieving atheist, wandering through this world with a self-centered agenda, no matter how well I hid it. Then I heard about God’s existence, creation, and Jesus’ loving death to pay my sin debt, and I repented. This began a spiritual battle against sin that continues to this day, knowing full well the error of my ways and from whence they came.
The condition of our hearts is easy to understand as described in God’s Word. We are corrupted inside and out as both purveyors and victims of sin’s destruction. We rejected the God who made us and His perfect order through our free will, which was a gift from Him. As His image-bearers, we are not to confront victimization from the outside, but to first face the source of iniquity within ourselves. “They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.” (Ps. 14:1b)
Being confronted with our capacity for evil is uncomfortable, but it is the crowning of mercies beyond imagination. It is the Holy Spirit who opens our eyes to the infinite gap between our sin and His holiness, and shows us His ability to redeem and restore. Whether it is a brother or sister showing us the error of our ways or the truth of the Bible wrestling our hearts in private, God is continuing the work of redemption to make us more like Christ.
Pastor Dan illustrated in Sunday’s sermon that there is a righteous way and a wicked way to walk through life. The righteous way separates itself from outside influences of sin and continually calls upon the Lord to heal the wounds of sin from within. The other way serves only self, even performing righteous acts for selfish gain.
Through the wisdom of Psalm 14, we see an emphasis on the wicked as those who do not call upon the name of the Lord. I think of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount declaring that those who constantly ask, seek, and knock in faith will receive the forgiveness of sins and deliverance from evil that they’ve asked for in this model prayer. But the wicked have no true desire for such things, even if hiding among sheep, living as though God does not search the mind and heart.
The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.
(Ps 14:2)
The will of God that we pray for is this: that we seek Him for salvation and joy amidst the trials in the world and in our own hearts. I pray that by the power of the Holy Spirit we would call those who have turned aside from the true hope of Christ back to His wisdom and love. I pray that we would do so in humility, not through the lens of politics or philosophy, but through the understanding that we were once lost to the dread sway of sin as well and graciously saved by God.
I pray that we as the Church would ask, seek, and knock with more fervency and faith that God will accomplish His mighty and perfect purposes. I pray that we ask, seek, and knock for the healing of our hearts, and along the way that we rejoice and praise Him, knowing that Jesus Christ gave us the most wonderful gift: eternal life in His name, by His own sacrifice, so that we are restored to God’s perfect order.
Amen.
~ Alex Nicholson serve as Music Director and Social Media Coordinator at LIFE Fellowship.