Spirit of Grace Ministries
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Spirit of Grace Ministries
-- Feeding Jesus' sheep
-- Equipping His servants
-- Proclaiming His Gospel

Who will find you?

Cat hiding

by Dennis Pollock

The Bible reveals that there are two different searches going on in the earth simultaneously and continually. Both God and the devil are searching for men and women. As you might expect, their intentions are quite different. Every day men and women are being found by one or the other. Upon being discovered their lives are totally transformed, in some cases for the better and in others for the worse. The great question we must ponder is this: "Who will find me?"

In the book of Job we learn something profound about the nature of the evil one, known as Satan. The Scriptures tell us that there was a day when "the sons of God" (most likely angels) came to present themselves before the Lord, but Satan also came among them. When God asked Satan where he had been, his reply was, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."

Satan is a roamer! He loves to range our planet, observing, searching, deceiving, and causing as much mischief as he possibly can. No doubt there are many of his underlings, the demons, who also follow this pattern. It may seem strange to us at first to consider that there is an invisible realm that runs parallel with our visible realm, and there are spirits that roam through the earth, searching for opportunities to influence humanity according to their own malicious desires.

In his first epistle, Peter gives us a little more insight about what the devil is up to, as he writes, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." Now we see why it is that Satan goes to and fro throughout the earth. He is looking for people to destroy. While most of us take pleasure in innocent things like meals with friends, a round of golf, a beautiful sunset, or a good book, this malicious spirit finds his greatest joy in bringing misery and ruin to men and women. Jesus tells us, "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy" (John 10:10).

Reason to be serious

We have an enemy! There are unseen spirits that would like nothing more than to destroy our health, our marriages, split our families through bitterness, and bring us to an early grave. It is entirely possible that you are being watched at this very moment by cruel spirits as they look into your life for an opening through which they may work their destructive schemes. It is because of this that Peter begins his admonition with the words: "Be sober, be vigilant…" To be sober is to take life seriously, to live with the knowledge that this world is a dangerous place and we must watch for attacks by the enemy of our souls.

There is a terrible tragedy that we hear about fairly regularly – two children find a loaded gun in their house. They play with it in innocence, never realizing its deadly potential. Suddenly the gun goes off and one of the children is killed. Life is kind of like that loaded gun. It is dangerous, it can be deadly, and people who don't take their life and choices seriously will sooner or later pay a terrible price. We must, in the words of Peter, be sober and vigilant. This is one of the pre-requisites for church leadership. Paul tells Timothy, "a bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded…" (1 Timothy 3:2). The word that relates so closely to a sober-mindedness is watch. It speaks of alertness and awareness of the dangers around us. One of Jesus most common exhortations to His disciples was to "watch and pray." Why this emphasis upon watching? Because we have an adversary who roams through the earth, looking for people whose guard is down, that he may bring terrible destruction upon them.

The primary means by which Satan and his imps devour their prey is by what the Bible refers to as a snare. A snare in Bible times was a trap for catching birds or animals, typically having a noose made of wire or cord. Most animals and birds have excellent eyesight and a great sense of smell. They are not at easy to sneak up on by us clumsy, noisy humans. But they don't seem to pay much attention to these tiny loops of cord. They run happily through the woods blissfully ignorant of the dangerous snare that lies in their path. Suddenly they are caught. They naturally struggle ferociously, but the odd thing about a snare is that the more the animal struggles, the tighter the noose becomes.

Satan and his demons are excellent trappers. The snares they set are hard to see but deadly in their ability to enslave and destroy. Every day that passes, new batches of Bible-believing, church-going, praise CD-listening Christians get caught in the snare of adultery.  They don't plan to, of course. In fact had they been told they would end up there a year previously they would never have believed it. And it started so innocently: a little harmless flirting, a complement that went a hair too far, sharing personal things that got just a bit too personal. Suddenly they are in bed together doing something they never in their wildest dreams thought they would do. Homes are wrecked, children are scarred, and years of happy memories are wiped out as another unsuspecting man or woman falls prey to a snare meticulously prepared uniquely for them by the evil one.

This is Satan's quest. This is the purpose for which he and his demons roam the earth. And he is good at it! He is smarter than any of us, and has been around a long time perfecting his craft. But he is not always successful. The great roadblock which stops Satan in his tracks is Jesus Christ. Where he finds Christ at work in a life, and a believer who actively looks to Jesus as the Keeper of his soul, Satan moves on looking for easier targets. We may be no match for the evil one, but he is no match for the Savior, the One who said to the Father, "Those You have given Me I have kept…" (John 17:12). 

Divine Search 

Hiding boySatan is not the only one out looking for men and women; God is doing it as well, but for an entirely different purpose. It is most enlightening to do a study of the "eyes of the Lord" as they appear in the Scriptures. In Zechariah 4, Zechariah sees a vision of seven lamps and he is told that "They are the eyes of the LORD, which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth." (NKJV) The NET version says these eyes "constantly range across the whole earth." The King James version says they "run to and fro through the whole earth." God has some busy eyes! They are on a constant search. And what are they looking for? We find the answer in 2 Chronicles: "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him" (2 Chronicles 16:9). This is a powerful truth that can transform your life: God's eyes are constantly searching throughout the earth for men and women whose hearts are devoted to Him in Christ Jesus. His purpose is to show Himself strong in their lives: to bless, to strengthen, to use for His glory, to defend, and to uphold. God is eagerly looking for men and women through whom He may be glorified and demonstrate His mighty power.

God has very good eyesight. He can see people in hidden, obscure places that are overlooked by everyone else. One such individual was a young shepherd boy named David. When king Saul offended the Lord, he was told by the prophet Samuel that his kingdom would not continue, for "The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart." We often think about how important it is for us to seek the Lord, and we are right. But we don't always recognize that God does some seeking of his own. He seeks out men and women He can use for His glory. In Psalms we read, "He also chose David His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds" (Psalm 78:70). In another place we read, "I have found My servant David…" (Psalm 89:20).

As David watched over his father's sheep, singing praises to God and wondering about his future, he had no idea Someone was watching him. Those marvelous eyes of the Lord had alighted upon this ruddy, youthful shepherd boy and they liked what they saw. God must have said to Himself, "This one will do," and sent Samuel to his house. When the old prophet anointed him with oil, we read "and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward" (1 Samuel 16:13). The rest is history.

Another individual those piercing, penetrating eyes of the Lord lit upon was a young Jewish woman, probably a teen, named Mary. By today's standards Mary would not be considered cool. Had she lived in our times she wouldn't have been found sitting at the cool kids' table in the high school lunchroom. She didn't curse, she studied the Scriptures, and she was a virgin. I doubt she was planning to become famous or accomplish great things. She just knew that she loved the Lord, and was available for whatever He might want of her. But as she went about her simple life, those magnificent eyes of her Creator gazed upon her. They noted her purity, her simplicity of heart, and her deep respect for the Scriptures. Again, God must have said to Himself, 'This one will do." The angel Gabriel was dispatched to inform her that God had big plans for her. The angel greeted her with the greatest compliment that has ever been given to any man or woman: "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you…" Although what the angel told her seemed beyond comprehension, this devout Jewish young lady replied meekly, "Let it be to me according to your word." A little village girl became mother to God.

The God who sees

The Bible tells us, "The ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord and He ponders all his paths" (Proverbs 5:21). Hagar called God "the God who sees." In Ezekiel God declares He sought for a man to stand in the gap before Him on behalf of Israel, but could find no one. He still seeks men and women today. The penetrating, all-seeing eyes of the Lord roam across the earth continually looking for men and women devoted to Him and trusting fully in His Son Jesus Christ. When the Father sees Jesus Christ His Son, He is satisfied. As we abide in Jesus, and He abides in us, we find God able and willing to show Himself strong on our behalf. When He finds such an abider He will move heaven and earth in order to act on their behalf.

Just as no evil can be hidden from His piercing gaze, neither can the devoted heart be hidden from Him, regardless of how lowly their circumstances. It is said that eagles can see a rabbit moving on the earth from a mile high. They have tremendous eyesight. But God's is infinitely better. He can spot unnoticed people quietly and faithfully serving Him in obscure places where they are hardly noticed by anyone else. His sharp eyes peer through the mansions of the rich and famous, and the tiny little apartments of the poor and unknown. He looks for devotion; He looks for purity of heart; He looks for men and women utterly abandoned to Jesus.

In the world we have public relations people, promoters, marketers, and agents, whose job it is to make their clients look good and rise to great heights. But in Christ we are not concerned with looking good. And any PR work that needs doing will be best done by the greatest PR person in the world: the Holy Spirit. If you have a desire for the Lord to use you, but it seems nobody even notices you – soak your mind and your heart in God's word, focus your faith on Jesus Christ as you abide in Him, and take advantage of any ministry opportunities you can find, even if it is only sweeping the church or passing out tracks in your neighborhood. Draw near to God. He can find you, even if you're in the most hidden place. He has very good eyesight! 




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