Proverbs 8:17 – Seek Me Early – Bible study

Pro 8:17 Seek Me Early I want to speak to Christians this evening. If you are here and are not a Christian, please stay; but much of what I say may be beyond you tonight. Let me give you some background on me. I did not get saved until I was 16 years old. I was in church a few times before that, but basically I did not hear a gospel presentation at all until I was around 14 years old. The first time I heard the gospel, I prayed the sinners prayer. I did not get saved because I did not repent, but the first time I heard the gospel I knew I didnt want to go to hell and was glad to hear there was a way out. It would be another 2 years, when I was 16, before I would come under conviction would be saved. It would be another 2 years, 18 years old) before I would grow enough in the Lord that I comprehend His calling for my life and at least 2 more years (20 years old) before I could learn enough Bible to even begin to do what God called me to do. Thats a lot of wasted years. I want to help you this morning by keeping you from wasting not only your whole life but any part of it. Please listen. I. God has created you with a definite purpose. Jer 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Isa 49:5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant Ga 1:15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mothers womb, and called me by his grace, A. God does not make junk, spare parts, or tools for the devil. B. If you exists, God created you for a purpose, to do something for Him. You are the only one who can accomplish that purpose. C. If you are alive, I dont think you have missed that purpose. 1. I suspect when God is finished with you, you go home. 2. If you feel like you might have missed your purpose, work harder to find and to fulfill it. II. So the question is not is there a purpose for your life, the question is will you find the purpose for your life? A. The answer to this question is solely up to you. 1. The Bible promises that if you seek God, you will find Him. Jeremiah 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. Deut 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul. Acts 17:27 That they (mankind) should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 2. God delights in people looking for Him. It is rare and so God will respond. 2Ch 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. B. How do I seek Him? 1. There are behavior you can do. a. Seek Him by loving Him. Ps 91:14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. b. Seek Him by obeying Him. Joh 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. c. Seek Him where He is. Isa 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: (1) I know people believe they can find God on the river, in the deer stand, and even in the shopping malls; but the only way you are going to find God in those places is IF YOU TOOK HIM WITH YOU. (2) Go to a church where people are getting saved. (3) Go to the Bible and to the prayer closet. 2. There is a time you can follow. a. Seek Him early. (1) See the text. (2) Some think this verse means to seek God the first thing in the morning. That may be an application. (3) However, I believe it means to seek God early in life. (4) Parents, we have a lot to do with that. (5) Some of Gods greatest servants started when they were young. (John the Baptist, Samuel, John Mark, Timothy) (6) For some, that is no longer possible; but God has another time for us to follow. b. Seek Him before you seek all the other things in life. Mt 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. c. Seek Him with a proper vessel. III. What kind of vessel is God looking for? I am not trying to cause any problems. These are Bible truths that offend many, but they are still Bible truths. A. God is looking for a clean vessel. 1Cor 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are Gods. 1. Our bodies are not our own. When God purchased us, He purchased us lot, stock, and barrel. 2. Understand, there is nothing about the flesh that impresses God. (beauty, strength, intellect, youth) 3. God is telling in this verse that the body is His. a. It is the temple where the Holy Ghost abides. b. Does God care about how the temple looks? Go back and study the Old Testament. He wants the temple to be a place that pleases Him and what pleases Him may not be what pleases us. 4. How can we keep our body clean? Let me give you some verses. a. \#Lev 19:28\ Dont add tattoos or cuttings to your body. If God wanted them on there, He would have put them there. God made the body and then said it is good. b. \#Deut 22:5\ Dont cross dress. Is it right for a man to wear a dress and hose? Why? Because it is a man wearing the wrong sexs cloths. Men are supposed to wear mens cloths and ladies are supposed to wear ladies. Each sex should dress to show what God made them to be. c. \#1Tim 2:9-10\ Dress modestly. Do not rely on glitz and bling for beauty. Dress simply and let your spirit manifest your beauty. B. God is looking for a pure vessel. 1Ti 4:12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. 1. The last verse spoke of the body. This verse the spirit. 2. The last tells us to keep the world off and out of the body. This one to keep sin off of and out of the spirit. 3. Lets get rid of the jealousy, laziness, shiftlessness, angeranything that is sinful, cut it loose. 1Pe 2:1 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, C. God is looking for a devoted vessel. Re 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. D. God is looking for disciplined vessel. Learn how to obey God. Joh 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 1Cor 4:2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 1. That does not mean God is expecting perfection. None of us can be perfect. 2. But lets keep trying and lets make a few strides. E. God is looking for a spiritual vessel. Ga 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Ga 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 1. To walk in the Spirit is not just be conscious of the Spirit. 2. To walk in the Spirit is to choose spiritual over carnal. 3. To walk in the Spirit is to be in prayer and obedience to Him at all times. I cannot tell you what God will do with you, but whatever God does with you is not your concern. Your concern is to be the vessel that God can use. You present Him the vessel and God will use you.