August 2, 2021
When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
~Psalms 27:8~
The Lord's face shines upon us as we become His. The more we seek Him the more it shines through us. His face produces peace that fills us, crushing any fear that may try to linger; "The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” (Numbers 6:26)
There is something truely euphoric about the Lord's face looking upon us. Let us seek after Him, asking to see Him each and everyday. We may not see Him with our physical eyes but we will grow in spiritual sight feeling His presence looking at us. The Lord desires us to search for Him and follow Him so that we can reflect His own beaming light within our own face. He tells us to seek Him and asks us to speak from our own heart the desires to truely see Him.
David's heart cried out for the Lord to show His face. As we turn away from our situations to look into the eyes of Christ we begin to see all He has done for us. We begin to forget more about our own pain, for we will feel that He was willing to take them for us at Calvary. Seeking His face requires us to be vigilant in prayer, steadfast in worship and resilliant in faith.
"So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” (Genesis 32:30)
Who is the face of God? It is Jesus Christ. When we receive Jesus, we receive preserved life. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. We can praise God for bringing His face to earth and giving all of us the opportunity to seek Him each day and live!
Do our hearts cry out to seek the Lord each day? "Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face evermore!" (I Chronicles 16:11)
We can fall to our knees and pray for the Lord to make His manifest presence come to life in our bedrooms, our bathrooms, our backyards or inside our churches. By letting Him know it is His strength, His peace and His joy we need, He will answer our cries as we seek after Him. He is faithful to bring these gifts to us. Let us never cease from doing so. "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
(II Chronicles 7:14)
We see here what it means to truely seek the Lord's face. It means turning away from things which keep His face hidden from us. The wicked things of this world could be holding us back, the complaints we grumble against one another, or the idolatry in our own hearts. These things will keep us from the face of God. We need to humble ourselves, praying and seeking the Lord in purity. If we need to get rid of some things to do so, are we willing to do this for Him? It is interesting that in the old testament where God said; “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.”
(Exodus 33:20)
This was during the days of living in the law. Every man was riddled with sin and there was no permanent atonement for sin yet, for God could not look on man and see righteousness. No man could see God and live until His Son came into the picture. Now praise be to God that in order to live we must see His face, for that is our life and redemption! "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)
Christ gave Himself so that you and I could seek Him, find Him and live with Him! The Father now looks on us and sees His Son. We are the fragrance of Christ as we now abide in Him. How blessed we are that God can now show Himself to us and bring us true Shalom. His countenance will shine through us as we do and we will be able to share the love of Christ through our own face as others will see Him through us. They will notice the time we spend with Him as it will come through our own countenance, just as it did for Moses when he stepped off that mountain as God passed by him. Let us go away to be with Jesus alone for as long as possible, giving all of our time to Him, eliminating the things that may offend Him in the process; "And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness."
(Romans 6:18)
If we are not sure what those things may be, we can ask Him. Holy Spirit will convict us as we do, for He was sent to be with us so that we can seek the face of the Lord and align to that very image, while dying to our own flesh. Seek His face and live, we are all called to do so!
Prayer:
Gracious God, thank you for the ability to seek Your face and live! I know there was a time when I would of not been able to stand in Your presence but because of Your Son Jesus, I can openly worship, praise and pray for Your face each and everyday! Lead me Holy Spirit in how I can take on the Lord's countenance in my own life so that the people around me will see Him and glorify Him. I live because You live, I love because You loved me first. May all that I do be for the glory of God. I receive shalom today as I seek Your face. I pray for Your manifest presence to show to me so that I am filled with the joy of heaven. I bless this day and all that is in it in Jesus Name. Amen.