"With their flocks and herds they shall go to seek the Lord, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn from them" (Hosea 5:6).
A few weeks ago, Josie (a precious granddaughter in Colorado Springs) wanted to play "hide and seek" in her large house. We did! And, Josie always found "Papa D." Yes, I hid, but I didn't make it too hard. My 11.5's were always sticking out under the curtain in some such way. She giggled when "I found you!" happened.
Frankly, I wanted her to find me.
Clearly, I could have made finding me impossible. I could have scooted out the back door, down the back deck steps, and jogged several blocks away. Had I done so, Josie would have had no idea that I had actually decided to run 1/2 mile away and was now at the back table in a coffee shop at the nearby strip mall. She could have looked all afternoon long and never found a trace of me anywhere.
Sometimes, God does this.
MOST OF THE TIME...
God wants to be found. Isaiah urged, "Seek the Lord, while He may be found; Call upon Him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon" (55:6-7).
Sounds like a good offer. And the store of grace is usually open 24-7, at noon or in the dead of night. "Draw near to God," James 4:8, "and He will draw near to you."
People like Nicodemus, Mary Magdala, Zaccheus, the centurion at the foot of the cross, the one thief hanging at Jesus' side -- all of these and millions more have discovered that God could be found (indeed wanted to be found!) if one would simply seek. "He is a God who rewards those who diligently seek Him," (Hebrews 11:6)
BUT NOT ALWAYS...AND NOT FOREVER
There comes a time when the opportunity for "finding God" closes. We know the experience. The coupon reads, "Valid through --/--/----" I've taken a great discount coupon into a store only to have the clerk smile and say, "Sorry, this offer has expired."
"They shall go seek the Lord, but they will not find Him" (Hosea 4:6). A generation of Abraham's descendants, 1200 years after Abraham, would go looking for God's big feet sticking out somewhere at the bottom of the dining room window curtains, and they would not be there. Nor behind the couch, nor under the bed frame. God had made himself--his restoring protecting grace and presence--unfindable.
Instead, Assyria would find them. Arriving in brutal force to slaughter and deport Ephraim (the northern kingdom and peoples of Israel). God had withdrawn from them. What indescribably desperate words.
TODAY...
Hey...you! Today, as far as I can tell from His Word, God himself can yet be found. Seek Him. If you don't know how, or where to look, ask someone you know who knows Christ. Go on a hunt together. Draw near to God. The curtain that used to hide Him was torn in two when His Son died for you (cf. Matthew 27:51).
And, when you find Him, be assured that He will delight in you...just like I delight in Josie Rae.
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