This is the second part of last week’s post and the fifth part of our ongoing THE CHASERS series. It’s been a tremendous blessing already. Glory to GOD. Please refer to out previous posts in this series so that you can also be blessed.

My purpose today is to urge the average believer to go after the Lord with all his heart. To pursue the Lord Himself as the ultimate possession in this life. The Apostle Paul stated passionately, “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians‬ ‭3:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬‬‬‬‬
There is an upward call of God in Christ Jesus. A place where the Lord says “come up hither”. A place that is not normally experienced by anyone but only those who are willing to a pay price or to sacrifice to go.

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Apostle Paul

Philippians‬ ‭3:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬‬‬‬‬

God conceals or hides valuable things from plain sight to prevent just anyone from getting their hands on it. He hides truth in parables so that those with His mind can find it. He hides precious minerals in the belly of the earth such that one has to dig deep to find them. The prestige and value of gold is based on its scarcity and its unavailability. When it becomes readily available like the dust on the ground, it loses its value. It does not lose its usefulness but it loses its preciousness. The glory that is given to a scientist who discovers a truth long hidden is so much that hundreds of generations after him will hear of his discovery. Why? Because it is the glory of kings to search things out.

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.

King Solomon

Proverbs‬ ‭25:2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬

God is a multidimensional God. This means He is many-sided, He is many-folded. He is endless and timeless. Therefore, when we come into the kingdom through believe in Jesus Christ, we begin to know a side of God. He teaches us a side of Him. For example, you may begin to know Him as God my Father. But later, He will begin to reveal to you about His Lordship over your life. He is not just your Father, He is also your Lord. It is not a contradiction but an addition of His Personality.

I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name LORD I was not known to them.

God
Exodus‬ ‭6:3‬ ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬

God revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as Almighty but in the time of the Exodus, He begins to reveal Himself as Jehovah. It was not a different person but one and the same God. The point is, there is a deeper side of God that we have not come to know yet. A part that is beyond us. But praise be to God that we can know it. From Proverbs 25:2, we see that the Lord conceals so that we can search it out. It is the drawing and luring of us to come after Him. The Lord delights in a willful chase of a man whose heart is after Him. The joy is in our catching Him.

As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?

King David

Psalms‬ ‭42:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬

This is the song of a man whose heart yearns after God. The Psalmist has recognized for whom his heart longs for and weeps, desiring strongly, for Him. Brothers and sisters, if you do not feel any desire whatsoever for God, if there is no drive in your heart to follow hard after God, ask Him. One of my favorite scriptures says “for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” Philippians‬ ‭2:13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬
Ask The Lord to put the willingness in your heart to desire Him more and more.

THE OBJECT OF OUR PURSUIT
As previously discussed, a Chase is valid only with an object of pursuit. Without that element, there is only a purposeless run – a chasing of the wind. Paul in His writings declared the object of His Pursuit, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,” Philippians‬ ‭3:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬

that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,

Apostle Paul

Philippians‬ ‭3:10‬ ‭NKJV

The Object of Our Pursuit is to know God – to search into His inward parts just as He searches into ours. No matter the height of our christian walk or the level of maturity we believe we have attained in the Lord, there is still an upward call – a deeper digging. Was Abraham not referred to as the Friend of God and the one God conferred with in decision making? Yet He didn’t know that God was also called Jehovah, neither did He know Him as a Father. We are so privilege to have the opportunity to know several dimensions of God but brothers, let’s go deeper!

THE SEARCHING OF THE DEEP
The search into the deep parts of God is fruitless without the Holy Spirit. The very Spirit of GOD. He is God Himself living in my mortal body – Praise God. He is the one who “…searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.” I Corinthians‬ ‭2:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The Holy Spirit has access into all things including the archives of God. Without Him, the chase of God cannot be accomplished. He is the light that shines on our path to show the way and the one who straightens our path for a smoother run. Jesus said of Him, He “…will guide you into all truth…” (John‬ ‭16:13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬) and He is given to us as our access into the deep things of God.‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

In our quest to search out the deep things of God, we need to learn how to collaborate with and engage the Holy Spirit. Two of the most effective ways are;

1. The Mystery Of Tongues: The gift of tongues has many benefits for the believer. As we speak in the unknown tongue, our spirit prays as given by the Holy Spirit. We climb up higher in the spirit as we speak in tongues. Our spirit is being built up and deriving capacity to be able to accommodate the things of God to be revealed in us. We magnify God in tongues and there’s this place of prayer where groanings are made in intercession (Romans 8: 26), praying the mind of God. We get to this place in prayer by spending a prolonged time in speaking in tongues. Spending time to build capacity in our spirits as a gymnast spends time building capacity into a muscle.
2. Cultivation Of The Presence Of God Through Worship: One of the common scriptures on praise is “But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.” (Psalms‬ ‭22:3‬ ‭NKJV‬‬) Worship ushers in the presence of God. It heightens our awareness of His person, His greatness and His power. ‬‬‬‬

To pursue God, determination is at its heart. It fuels discipline and self control. We must recognize the role they play and also identify some of the hindrances that may come our way and may try to drain us of our energies.

For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

Apostle Paul

Galatians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

• The Flesh: The flesh is an enemy of the believer’s growth. Paul said it this way, “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.” (Galatians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬) Therefore, remember that your flesh will not be happy as you embark on this chase. This is against its nature. It will fight you all the way. You will need wisdom and self control to overcome its temptations. When you want to spend time in prayer, do your best to avoid your bed or comfortable seats lest you fall asleep. A friend taught me to not even sit but to pace around, speak in a loud voice and throw my hands about. It may sound silly but it works. It keeps the flesh under control. You need to identify and avoid the temptations of the flesh specific to you.‬‬‬‬
• Distractions: Our world today is filled with distractions. Many of us are losing our ability to focus. For many of us, our mobile phones are the major culprits. Learn to put your phone on silent or airplane mode to avoid incoming calls and messages. You can set your notifications such that the phone will not show any messages. Then most importantly, you will need to constantly resist the urge to check your phone for new messages. Sometimes, it is just an urge to check the time only to find a plethora of messages awaiting reply. Just then, our focus is lost.

WHAT CHASING GOD LOOKS LIKE
The pursuit of God goes beyond our worship in our Sunday best in a tiled-floor room. It is beyond our daily devotional time with the Lord. These are but a stepping stone to build real intimacy with the Lord. Brothers and Sisters, let us not be left behind in this chase. Paul took the lead saying that, “I press on toward the goal…” Let us follow in his footsteps and those of others who have gone before us. There have been men who have laid all night before the Lord seeking His face in prayer. Others have stayed awake searching through scriptures and meditating through the night on His word. They are after the nuggets of gold hidden deep in the Word. There have been others who have embarked of prolonged periods of fast not for a blessing or a need but to kindle their fire for the Lord, to stir up the passion and to build the capacity to receive His mysteries. They are determined to know Him deeply and therefore forsake food to pursue God.
We too can go on personal retreats waiting before the Lord in prayer and worship. We too can spend sleepless nights in worship and in the study of the word. We too can spend a weekend in an isolated room communing with God.
You will begin to hear God clearly. Life as you know it will not be the same because the Holy spirit will become your partner. He will begin to show you things that you do not know and things that are too beautiful to describe. The supernatural will be a natural realm for you. This happened to the Apostle Paul who was so much naturally supernatural that he couldn’t identify whether what he experienced was a vision or happened bodily (2 Corinthians 12:2). Visions or physical happenings were the same to him because he had fully engaged the Holy Spirit. Light will begin to come to you as you read the Word and understanding will dawn in your heart. The word of God will no longer be white and black print but a living fiery word that speaks to you daily.

Let no one lie to you that it is not possible or that it is not realistic. It is. It is possible but it is possible to those who will decide to sacrifice for it. Yes you will need to sacrifice sleep, you would need to sacrifice precious time with friends and loved ones. You will definitely be ridiculed and misunderstood but we live our lives from the spirit outward. It will pay out and you will see the glory of searching out and chasing after God. It is not beyond us. We have the helper of Man! Brothers, let’s go deeper!!

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