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The Face of God
Brian Mashburn
August 16, 2009
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The Face of God
"Seek his face always." - Psalm 105:4
The psalmist simplifies the whole of life with these words, does he not?
Are you hurting? Seek His face.
Are you discerning? Seek His face.
Are you hungry? Seek His face.
Are you sick? Seek His face.
Are you doing well? Seek His face.
Are you contented? Seek His face.
When you get up, when you lay down, when you work or play, when you are alone or with others...seek His face.
According to the psalmist, the appropriate time to seek God's face is, well...always.
And why not? According to scripture, the face of God is a source of joy (Job 33:26), satisfaction (Ps 17:15), and peace (Num 6:26). It is from the shine of His face that we receive His ways and His salvation (Ps 67:1-2). Seeing God face to face means carrying some serious authority among men (Num 12:7-8), and better than that, speaking face to face with God means friendship with Him (Ex 33:11).
But even with all of this good, there is a valid and scriptural reason for every human being to pause before taking the psalmist's advice.
You will die.
The psalmist had to know it, too. It was common knowledge among the Jews. After Moses asked to see God's glory, God told him directly, "You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." (Ex 33:20)
There is no way around it, friends. To pursue God's face is to pursue death.
But do not fear, because this is the kind of death that Paul spoke of when he said, "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Cor 5:17).
It is the kind of death that our hearts are longing for. The Psalmist puts words to this too in Ps 27:8 - "My heart says of you, 'Seek his face!' Your face, LORD, I will seek."
So let each of us be able to die saying confidently the words of Ps 119:58 - "I have sought your face with all my heart."