(Romans 3:10-12) As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
I am occasionally asked if Trinity Church is a “seeker sensitive church”, and I always respond enthusiastically that we are indeed such, but then immediately add that I would like the opportunity to define the term “seeker” from God’s Word.
According to Paul’s letter to the Romans there is not a single son-of-Adam or daughter-of-Eve that could legitimately be called a seeker of God. Note Paul’s use of the superlative, “There is none that seeketh after God.” Although we would very much like to flatter our race, and more specifically ourselves with the notion that we are all to some degree seeking after God and ultimate truth, God’s Word is painfully and contrarily clear on this score, “There is none that seeketh after God.”
But if that is the case (and it is) then how can Trinity Church be a seeker sensitive church? How can we truly we be mindful of, sensitive to, and catering to the tastes and desires of seekers if there are none? Well, although there are no seekers in the line of Adam, the Scriptures do identify One who truly seeks: the second Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen to what he says about himself and his mission in Luke’s Gospel: “This day is salvation come to this house… For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Jesus is the seeker, as are all who have been united to him by faith. But our seeking is the fruit of our union with Christ, not the cause of it. And so, regenerated by his Holy Spirit, we evidence our new life, not by kowtowing to the whims and fancies of men who hate God, but rather, by ordering ourselves, our worship and indeed our very lives according to the desires and dictates of him who saved us by his blood. For he sought us and bought us while we were yet sinners, and yet without the strength to pursue him (Romans 5:6ff).
3 comments:
Appreciate your blog. Follow it on Google Reader. Found "Stuff Christians Like" and Doug Wilson through your posts. In Re: today's post, do you think this verse is referencing believers only? There is such a tension in today's church--in foreign missions we often accommodate for cultural differences. I think that is the heart of "seeker" churches, though they don't always execute it well. Thanks for making us think.
Hebrews 11:6 (King James Version)
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.
Terri, thanks for your gracious comments. I heartily agree that both divine seeking and human seeking occur as a person is brought to salvation. The question is, which "seeking" begets the other? Does human seeking provoke divine seeking, or vice versa. I think the hymn-writer answered this question well when he penned, "I sought the Lord and afterward I knew, He moved my heart to seek Him seeking me. It was not I who found, O Savior true. No, I was found of Thee."
I am reminded of the woman at the well. He went around and through the "wrong side of the tracks" so to speak to seek her who wanted nothing to do with being sought. She thought she knew exactly what she wanted and was wrong in every sense. Great post, Gene. Keep 'er comin'!
the Welch's Miss Trinity Church!!
Jen
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