Trying to find God

People often talk about “finding God” as though it is God who is lost. On the contrary. Jesus said, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). This illustration might help. If you are studying an inanimate object, you have to go to the object as the initiative lies fully on your side. If you are studying a wild animal in its natural environment, it will not come to you, but it can run away from you. A bit of the initiative lies on the animal’s side. Now, a step further. If you want to get to know a person, you will not get to know them if they are determined not to let you. You first have to win their trust and so on. In this relationship, initiative is equally divided. When it comes to “finding” God, the initiative lies fully on His side. If He does not reveal Himself, nothing you do will enable you to “find” Him. Luckily, He has revealed Himself to us. Not only in the Bible, but in all of creation. As Martin Luther said, “God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone, but on trees, and flowers, and clouds, and stars”.