You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart(Jeremiah 29:13).
Throughout the Old Testament, we find that the Bible records many incidents of God appearing to people, speaking audibly to people, and in general revealing himself in very real ways.
The list seems endless of those with whom God interacted — Adam and Eve, Cain, Noah, Abraham, Jonah, Moses, Aaron and Miriam, Samuel, and Jeremiah, among others.
There are more than 2,000 references in the Old Testament using phrases such as “God said…” or “And God spoke to…” or “the word of the Lord came to…”
We see the examples after the Fall as early as Genesis 12:1:
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”
God spoke to Abraham other times, as well, including when God promised Abram the entire land of Canaan. (Genesis 13:14) But at least four other times God spoke to Abraham directly (Genesis 15, 18-19 and 21). Of course, his longest speech was clearly to Job.
God spoke to Moses several times, but perhaps the most notable and well-known is when God spoke to Moses out of a burning bush (Exodus 3:1-15).
Most would agree that if God appeared before us out of a burning bush, it would immediately answer the question “Does God exist?” and our faith would be strengthened.
Although many atheists/anti-theists might find some sort of bizarre explanation — perhaps accepting any explanation other than God.
If God is a bright light in a dark world…why is that light so hard to find today?
In his second letter to the church at Corinth, Paul said this: “For we live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
But what is faith? Is it absolute knowledge? Is it having heard the voice of God? Well, not necessarily.
I once read faith described this way:
Suppose you see me reach into my pocket and pull something out, hidden in my fist. I tell you it’s a quarter. I promise you it’s a quarter and that I’m not lying to you.
Being friends, you believe that I’m telling you the truth. You have faith that I have a quarter in my hand.
If I open my hand and show you the quarter, then your faith is now gone. It is no longer needed. You know the absolute truth — thus, faith is no longer necessary.
Faith is trusting what has not been seen. The author of Hebrews, at the start of the suitably nick-named Hall of Faith chapter describes faith this way:
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see (Hebrews 11:1).
It is important to note that many of the names were among those to whom God spoke, and yet still needed strong faith to trust God (Hebrews 11:17-19).
In other words, even after hearing God’s voice, even after hearing God’s promise that he would be the father of many nations, Abraham still needed faith in God’s Word.
He still needed to stay strong in reliance on that promise and trust that God had something else, something better in mind.
At the very end of the Hall of Faith chapter, the author says this about each one:
These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect (vv. 39-40).
None of them received what had been promised because God had something better planned.
Even though we don’t hear God’s voice — even though we don’t see God personally — he is far from hidden. God has, in fact, made himself known through a series of revelations that make it clear precisely who, and what, he is. Often referred to as God’s progressive revelation.
Certainly, creation itself remains powerful and undeniable evidence of the existence of God. Through the creation of the universe and the creation of life itself, man can see that God is all-powerful, sovereign, and eternal.
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse (Romans 1:20).
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands (Psalm 19:1)..
Then, God did indeed speak to those through whom he chose to communicate to all generations. He spoke to Adam and Eve in the Garden, then continued to deliver his word through a chosen few.
Throughout the Old Testament, God sent his Word to all of us, through the likes of Noah Moses, and Joshua on through to the prophets such as Elijah and Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and many more.
Through these, God performed many miracles and delivered his word to combat idolatry and to provide us with a straight line by which we could measure our crookedness.
Then, 400 years of seeming silence. Silence until Jesus came, performing miracles himself to prove he was indeed the Son of God. Through his resurrection, Jesus was the fulfillment of all the prophecies and all of the promises.
Jesus proved he was the promised Messiah in whom we could all place our trust. Our faith. After his resurrection, the apostles would continue to perform miracles so that people would believe Jesus was precisely who he claimed to be, and their faith in him would continue to grow.
Afterward, we were left with the words — the eyewitness testimonies — of the disciples of Jesus in the New Testament.
Finally, Pentecost. The indwelling of his Holy Spirit in us. The final step in God’s creative, progressive revelation — when his spirit took up residence in our hearts to teach us, to guide us, to lead us.
Each of us is now on this journey we call life — a journey on which we can choose many paths. The Lord has left us the freedom to choose the right path, the one that leads to him, or the wrong path, of which there are many.
Of course, God could make himself quite visible to all, in an overwhelming way to leave no choice but to worship. But that is now who he is. God treasures freedom and has given us the freedom to make that choice. The freedom to open our eyes — open our hearts — and seek him.
See, God does not compel people to come to him; he invites them to look for him. And when they do — when they seek him with their whole heart — he promises they will find him:
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).
God wants to help us grow closer. He knows our faith may be weak from time to time. He knows the cares of this life threaten to interfere with our relationship with him.
And just as we often do with our own children, he may use that pain to mold us, knowing it will lead to growth. Like any muscle, faith grows when it is exercised, not left inactive and dormant.
When Job was at his worst suffering, wondering where God was, he spoke these words:
And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?” (Job 26:14).
And when Elijah found himself in despair, running from Ahab and Jezebel, he sought to hear God (1 Kings 19:11-12).
The whisper. Barely audible.
In the Book of Esther, God is never mentioned, but his mighty hand is at work throughout and through Esther and Mordecai.
It is the psychology of human nature that we are molded by what we give our attention to. Whatever we focus on. When we focus on the trees, we might not see the forest.
When we focus on our challenges, our problems — “…all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life…” (1 John 2:16) we will have difficulty seeing, or hearing, God.
Yet, if we truly want to see who God is, we simply need to look at Jesus.
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation (Colossians 1:15).
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word (Hebrews 1:3).
We must keep our hearts and minds on him, through staying in his Word and staying close to him in prayer. We must have faith to know, to trust, that silence is not absence. Pain and suffering do not mean he’s not there or that he doesn’t care.
That pain and suffering — as well as the temptations we all experience — together contribute to bringing us closer to the Lord. They contribute to shaping us all the more, growing into the likeness of Jesus. They continue to help us see and hear God.
Let us remember that even in those times when it seems God is silent and invisible, he is always at work. Always bringing about his perfect plan. At those times when we expect to hear God in the wind or earthquake or fire, maybe we’re just looking in the wrong place.
We must keep our hearts open to hear him in the whisper.
For further reading:
How Do We Find Grace to Help Us in Our Time of Need?
Can the Lord Find Us When We Are Lost?
What Does it Mean to Find God?
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/pixdeluxe
Greg doesn’t pretend to be a pastor, a theologian, or a Bible expert, but offers the perspective of an everyday guy on the same journey as everyone else – in pursuit of truth.
Greg can be reached by email or on Facebook @ Greg Grandchamp - Author.