In the church, when we speak of pursuing God, seeking His face, or drawing near to Him, one of the challenges we run into is our concept, or rather misconception of who God is. There are some who would teach that because we are now in the New Covenant under grace with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, there is no need to pursue God as we already have Him.
While it is theologically true that we “have Him”, that doesn’t mean that all of us are experiencing all of God in every area of our lives. Any theological concept that is only understood in a vacuum, that is to say only in theory not in relationship, can easily lead us astray.
Let’s apply this concept to marriage. Hallelujah, my girlfriend agreed to marry me! We had a covenant ceremony called a wedding, and now we’re in a marriage relationship. Now I don’t have to seek her, I don’t have to pursue her or seek her face. Does this sound odd?
It does sound rather odd, because most of us never speak like this referring to our spouse. It is true that I don’t have to seek my wife in the sense that I lost her. I didn’t accidently leave her at the mall. It’s not like she ran off with a cowboy from Wyoming, and I have to go track her down. At the same time, just because we’re married does it mean it’s okay for me to stop pursuing her heart? Does it mean it’s okay for the romance to cease and for me to stop growing in my love, honor, and appreciation of her?
She would tell you, “No, it’s not okay!” (By the way, if I ever did leave her at the mall or if she ran off to Wyoming, I would chase her down in either circumstance.)
For those who would say that in the New Covenant, we already have it all in the finished work of the cross, I get it. I appreciate that. What we’re not talking about is seeking after God as someone who doesn’t know Him and is seeking to find salvation. We have discovered what true salvation in Christ alone is: by grace through faith.
Now having discovered true salvation in Christ, we are no longer seeking for salvation, rather we are seeking to know the God of our salvation even more. I no longer pursue my wife so she will marry me; we’re already married. I do pursue her to know her more and to love her better.
Here are some simple ways in which we can actively pursue the Lord:
1. Spending time in His Word
2. Inviting Him to speak to you while waiting on Him in stillness
3. Worshiping God for the wonder of who He is
How are you pursuing Him today? I'd love to hear about it in the comments.