What Pleases God: Believing in Him, and Coming to Him

"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." (Hebrews 11:6)

This morning, I was meditating on a very powerful question, and a very powerful truth.

"How can I please God?"

Why? Because He so pleases me! He has ravished my heart in a way that is just unprecedented in my Christian walk.

"Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck." (Songs 4:9)

Before, I did not think that He was present unless I was thinking about Him, manifesting Him through my efforts, my thought-life. Such a drain, such a burden that was for me!'

He is actively loving us, and in fact our Loving Father has been loving us when we weren't even paying attention!

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

and

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

and also

"9In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1 John 4:9-10)

And of course:

"Herein is love perfected among us, that we may boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)

God our Father sees us just like Jesus, for we are in Christ (Ephesians 1:6) and Christ is in us!(Colossians 1:27)

I could not help sharing how much He loves us - how much He loves me!

So, I am so brimming over with His love, I ask "God, how can I please you?"

Then Hebrews 11:6 came to mind.

"Without faith, it is impossible to please God."

We have to have faith -- We have to believe in Him:

"This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

Now, we need to believe that He exists.

We also need to believe that God is a rewarder. Indeed, He wants to provide more good to those who diligently seek Him.

What does that mean? I struggled with that phrase for a long time. Was I supposed to "look for God"? I mean, is He not everywhere, and ever-present? Does He not comfort us with "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee"? (Hebrews 13:5)

There is another verse which talks about seeking God's face, too:

"When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek." (Psalm 27:8)

What does "seek His face" mean? Many commentaries render this Hebraism to mean "Seek His presence." Well, waht is that supposed to mean? Once again, is He not ever-present, ever-available?

Then I read the New Living Translation of Psalm 27:8:

"8My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”

And my heart responds, “LORD, I am coming.”

"Seek His Face" means "pray to Him", or "come talk to Him."

God rewards us when we come to Him, when we pray to Him, when we talk to Him!

That is exactly what God was looking for when He had created Adam and Eve to begin with! He wanted us to come to Him, to fellowship with Him, to depend on Him!

In Hebrews 11;6, we read "He that cometh to Him ..."

In this verse "come" is literally "proserchomai". Here is the full exposition on this Greek word:

proserchomai: to approach, to draw near

Original Word: προσέρχομαι

Part of Speech: Verb

Transliteration: proserchomai

Phonetic Spelling: (pros-er'-khom-ahee)

Definition: to approach, to draw near

Usage: I come up to, come to, come near (to), approach, consent (to).

This verse made me think of Genesis 45:4, in which Joseph invites his brothers "Draw near to me."

But this verb "draw near" ("Nagash" in Hebrew) appears sooner than that in the Old Testament:

"And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?" (Genesis 18:23)

In the first mention of "Draw near", Abraham comes to God asking Him to spare the righteous in the city of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Notice that Abraham believes that God exists, and that God is a rewarder of those who seek Him. God answered Abraham's prayers every time he asked.

Would that Abraham had asked "If there is ONE righteous, will you spare the city for that one?"

At any rate, what pleases God?

That we believe He exists, and that we come to Him! That we ask from Him, that we come to Him, toalk to Him, call on Him in time of need!

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 14:6)

God wants us to come to Him.

God wants us to depend on Him.

That's what pleases Him -- Not what we can do for Him, but that we let Him do for us!

God Allows Delays That We May Believe on Him

"And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him." (John 11:15)

Do we really believe that He holds everything together in our lives?

Or when things get really tough, are we going to fall back into panicking, fretting, and then trying to fix and micromanage our circumstances?

Will we run to Jesus our High Priest forever in our time of need? Or do we continue to trust in our own efforts?

It's essential for us to take God at His Word, not to take God at His Word when circumstances are lining up our way, too.

John 11 is a quintessential account to show us how God uses delays.

Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, was sick.

It was clear that He loved them, and Jesus loved them enough that he waited two more days before going to visit them again.

Why did Jesus wait?

"When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby." (John 11:4)

Jesus did not come to help us in the midst of our up and coming troubles only.

He came that we would believe on Him, that we would see the never-ending glory of His Father!

A number of times throughout the 11th chapter in the Gospel of John, Jesus cites how He wants His followers to believe on Him:

"And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him." (John 11:15)

We need to believe that Jesus is not just the Lord of the storms. He is not just the Good Shepherd, the Bread of Life, and He is not just the Word made Flesh.

He is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25).

Are you facing a dead situation in your life? Does the current circumstances in your way seem to suggest that there is no hope for your situation?

You need to see Jesus as not just a provider and protector, but as The Resurrection and the Life!

God allows these delays that we may believe on Him for all things, to see Him as everything that we need:

"25Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 26And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? 27She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world." (John 11:25-27)

The word "believe" appears four times in the above passage. Faith means a lot to God, and He wants us to believe on His Son!

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

When Martha resists removing the stone on her brother Lazarus' grave, Jesus responds:

"40Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?" (John 11:40)

Then in His prayer, Jesus says:

"42And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me."

The crowds, the public, the news agents of Jesus' day already knew that Jesus could heal people from their sicknesses and diseases.

But was He really God? Could he really overcome death? 

Yes, He is, and yes He did.

And many others believed on Him, too:

"Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him." (John 11:45)

God is not just interested in our temporary peace and prosperity.

He wants us to rest in Him in the face of any, of all setbacks, hardships, tragedies, difficulties.

He wants us to depend on Him for everything, for He is our life (Colossians 3:4)

How Do We Serve God? We Believe on Him!

"For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham his servant." (Psalm 105:42)

When I read this verse, a uestion came to mind:

"How did Abraham serve God?"

I mean, really, what did Abraham do for God that showed him to be a servant?

God invited Abraham to leave country, kith, and kin to a new land that He would give to Him:

"Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:'

"2And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

"3And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed." (Genesis 12: 1-3)

What was Abraham supposed to do? Trust God and go.

And he did not trust God perfectly, because he took his nephew Lot with him, even though he was to completely go away from his family--all of them (Lech Lecha).

So, again--how did Abraham serve God exactly?

Abraham believed Him!

"And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness." (Genesis 15:6)

How does God want us to live, anyway?

"Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." (Habakkuk 2:4)

We live by faith, the faith of the Son of God!

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)

So, How do we serve God today?

We believe on Him--just as He served God by believing Him:

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

We are all children of Abraham:

"And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." (Romans 3:29)

and

"Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all," (Romans 4:16)

That's what service to God comes to for us. What really can we do for Him of ourselves! We are called to believe on Him. and His life flows through us to do good works.

Just as Abraham trusted God to bless Him, to keep Him, and to ensure glory and honor for him and his descendants, which includes you and me!

He Protects Us, Even from Liars and Dividers in Our Midst

18Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.

I have been working in some very heavy, trying circumstanes.

All of us have to deal with the fact that there are men and women who will betray their trust, who will undermine our efforts subtily while pretending to be our friends.

First of all, we must remenber that our safety and security depends on Him who has been from the beginning (1 John 2: 15):

"In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)

And also

"10For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:" (Hebrews 8:10)

He is our protection!

Now, notice how John the Beloved takes on anti-Christs and other liars who come into the midst of the Body of Christ.

There are indeed many anti-Christs. There will be men and women who come into our ranks who do not believe what we believe.

Our faith is in Jesus!

That is what He asks all of us to do! That is the one work that matters!

"The is the work of God, that you believe on Him whom He hath sent" (John 6:29)

So, what happens when we who believe on Him stand true to His Word and trust Him?

Those who oppose Himself will go away.

Bad people who want to undermine the truth and the community of saints will soon be forced to reveal themselves. They won't stick around, they won't stand by, for they will not "continue with us."

Keep seeing Jesus, and He who is the Light of the World (John 8:12) will expose the darkness--even in our midst--to the light.

How Ruth Was Obedient: She Trusted in God's Favor

Ruth had everything going against her:

She was a woman.
She was a widow.
She was a Moabite, one of a select number of races cursed by God, and not open to receiving the blessings of God or entering the congregation of the Israelites until the 10th generation
She had no prospects or property
She had no family other than her mother-in-law, who had become embittered from great loss.

Yet instead of looking at what she did not have, she looked to Him who has everything:

"And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:" (Ruth 1:16)

Ruth had very little idea how good God would be to her!

"And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz. 2And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace." (Ruth 2: 1-2)

Notice that Ruth does not know about Boaz, but her loving God did!

"And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech." (Ruth 2:3)

Notice it says "her hap." She wasn't planning where to go. She had no idea that this field belong to any kind of a kinsman-redeemer.

As a Moabite, she would have no knowledge a "kinsman-redeemer" or what he is (would be?) in the first place.

Then Boaz, his kinsman-redeemer, and a picture of our Lord Jesus, said to Ruth:

"The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust." (Ruth 2:12)

What was Ruth's work?

Ruth and Boaz (Credit: Walking Together Ministries)

She believed in a God in whose eyes she would find favor!

Consider what Jesus, our heavenly Kinsman-Redeemer, to the Israelites of His day:

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

Today, we need to believe that because we believe in Jesus, we can trust that He covers for us, and will provide for us in every way, and exceed our asking!

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us" (Ephesians 3:20)

Consider also that under the New Covenant, we are called on to believe Him!

"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

11And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

12For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:10-12)

Faith: Not About Believing Him for Something, But Believing He Did Everything

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

For us today under the New Covenant, faith is not about agitating in our minds or speaking words at great length about the future.

It is not a supposition that good things will come to pass.

Faith is about Jesus, and believing that He accomplished all thing for us at the Cross.

Faith is trusting that Jesus accomplished has provided all thing for us.

"1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1)

The whole context of Hebrews 11 and the Hall of Faith is not about people getting stuff. It's not about hoping for better personal outcomes in their lives.

It's about the coming Messiah and the promise of deliverance from sin, and the enactment of the New Covenant.

8By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went." (Hebrews 11:8)

What did God say to Abram (before he became Abraham) that would bring him into the Promised Land?

"1Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

2And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

3And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed." (Genesis 12: 1-3)

We are blessed because of JESUS!

"6Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. 7Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. 8And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. 9So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham." (Galatians 3:6-9)

And who is the object of our faith?

JESUS!

"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." (Romans 10:9)

Faith is about believing in Jesus, and that through His death and resurrection, He has justified us, and has granted us His life!

When we believe on Him, we can the truth that He will take care of everything in our lives!

"31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? 32He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? 33Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. 34Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." (Romans 8: 31-34)