Search for God with all your heart and He shall be found by you. Keep nothing back. Leave no space for other influences. Love Him will all that you’ve got. Matthew 22:37; Jeremiah 29:13

Speaker(s): Pastor Thomas Schaller
Sermon # 11370
6:30 PM on 11/19/2017

P. Schaller

How many love P. Scibelli over there? Amazing. Living legend. And so many here we love and appreciate. We cannot assume that everything will go well for us all our lives. It’s more inclined to think, oops! I cannot assume my church will always be here. I cannot assume P. Scibelli will always be alive. Not predicting anything except the obvious. I cannot assume my wife will always be healthy. I’m not thinking she’ll be sick but I cannot assume I’ll be alive tomorrow. Where are the guarantees? I cannot assume all our missionaries are doing well every day. I cannot assume a lot of things.

But this is something I want you to see with me from Mt. 22:37.

vs. 36. Master, which is the great commandment in the law? I’m not sure I’ll always have my health. I don’t know about the paycheck or social security or my children will be healthy and good in every way. I believe in those things but I cannot assume and just say this is not or this can never happen. It can.

I want you to see vs. 37. Jesus said thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, and mind.

vs. 37 that’s the great commandment. Love. With all your heart, mind, soul. Some years ago, I drew this picture of a man who had a thousand acres for sale. A thousand acre lot and he would sell 99 acres but wanted to keep one acre for himself. One acre was his. The reason why is because he wanted to have a foothold, a part of it. Then he could sue for access to it by getting a road that goes in to his one acre. We said this is what we have to be careful of in regard to our heart. I give God my heart but there is something I’m keeping for me. That’s my backup. That’s my life. I will die but not completely. I preserve for myself.

Like Rom 13. Make no provision for your flesh. Little boys mom said can’t go swimming and he put his swimming trunk in his knapsack. His mother said why doing that? He said you never know. What was he doing? Making a provision.

Our subject is prayer, Jer 29:13. You shall seek me and find me. Remember this morning we said when I lose something and I know what I’m looking for that’s one thing. But when I don’t know what I’m looking for. Or a philosopher is looking but doesn’t know what. Or someone traveling around the country and doesn’t know what he is looking for. Looking for meaning maybe. How could you have lost God? God I am seeking you; you know that I am. I’m saying my prayers to you. You know I am seeking for you, but then many I don’t know. I don’t find them. When you lost your car keys and looking for them, you know when you find them. I got them. I got my car keys, Mom. In our household when I ask my wife I’m looking for something she makes it clear she didn’t take it. I’m not saying you took it. I’m just needing help. I project that. I lost them and you’re part of the process! I lost my car keys and when I find them the search is over. When you love God with all your heart and mind and soul and all your strength you know what that is. You know what it is to be filled with the Spirit. God is loving you and you are loving him back. I’m not worried Lord. You are filling me with your Spirit. I don’t have any jealousy. I used to have but not anymore. You are filling me with your Spirit. Or I had problems with women or lying or self-seeking. Always looking for people to recognize me. When I lost it, I know what I have lost. When I found it, I know I found it. That’s this verse.

vs. 13. You shall seek me and you know what you’re looking for. It’s me. God. I found the piece of the puzzle we lost. I got the screw. It fits perfectly. I found it in the grass. I have found God. God has found me. God has given me his grace and love. I know your name and nature. Thank you God. Halleluiah. You know that feeling and what that means. When you’ve lost him I think it’s because of this. Lord, I have been going through the motions. Lord says I know. That acre you hold out. Becomes a foot hold, a body hold….

vs. 13. When you shall search for me with all your heart. Crazy. Can’t do that. All my heart. Isaac is too important to me. I can’t give him up. Give me your son. I’m 70 or 80 and worried about my health and future. You’re too worried about it. Yes, we are concerned. Please don’t misunderstand me. But the flesh substitutes and replaces God with myself. When I’m young, how will I get a paycheck, find a wife, a boyfriend? How do I figure this all out? You will seek him and find him when you search for him with all your heart. Best way for a woman to find a husband. And if you don’t, praise God. Halleluiah. Much of Greater Grace work has been done by incredible women giving all their heart to Christ and decided I’ll let God deal with that. If I have a husband of course I’ll take him, but I’m so happy you’re not running around trying to find one. You just go from one mess of trouble to another one. Get the trouble settled here on the board. Give him the whole enchilada. God, you can do this and do it your way. I’m not going to dress seductively to find a man or go on the internet and look high and low. If you do that, it’s your business. If you do, find a believer. Be not unequally yoked. What does it say?

vs. 13. You shall seek me, what’s the word? Find me. When you shall search for me. Do we search? I think you do. Do you know what it means to search? I get this restlessness. I know in my heart I’m searching. I want that. I find it. I find it. You find it. That’s my message tonight. That’s the end. Somehow I want to preach it all over again. That’s it. I found it in my life.

It happens with us as pastors and preachers. What you go through in your own life is what you bring to the pulpit. What you bring to the pulpit that resonates in your life resonates in the lives of others. I’m not able to master this thing. My heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. I can go through the motions and the Lord is gone. He’s here but regard to my life and heart, the whole thing called life nobody has it figured out. The moment you try to keep your life, preserve it somehow. I want to say something to all of us. With this little acre. Little green acres. When they get that acre and argue for another and they’re fighting and standing strong. They gave it to God but not really. They are presently there. They will not lose their life. The minute they are gone, they get into the whole thing. I don’t want to say but better thing for them would be told straight up, find God. Love him with all your heart. That’s the first and great commandment. Your problems out there it’s a swamp.

God loves you first. God gave his Son. Love God. How did you get so much joy? God. How find peace. J.C. How delivered form sin? Christ Jesus.

There are many houses people go to; frat house, crap house, whore house, sick house, orphan house, gambling house, out house. Could have added White House, too. You do not go to a house of ill repute but do not replace those houses with God’s house.

Be spiritual and find the Spirit of God fill you and satisfy you and build you up in the inner man. Love God with all you heart. I remember when dating my wife. I was so much in love. I was living in Finland and she was living here. I had a couple photos. I couldn’t believe how much I loved her. I didn’t want to live any longer without her. Sounds so dramatic! My wife is the only woman. All your heart. When you get married, you destroy all those pictures of those other people. Get rid of the scrap book. Any residual effects of anyone else in your life. I’m 100 percent with this woman.

Love is like that. Love is like that. Love with people is like that and love with God is like that. God wants us to love him with all your heart. Do it and you will find him and he will take care of you.

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