What does it mean to seek His face?

Journal entry from 

January 11 -16, 2016

Worship: Can I Accent (I’m Coming Up The Mountain) by Matt Redman

Can I ascend the hill of the Lord?
Can I stand in that holy place?
There to approach the glory of my God;
Come towards to seek your face.
Purify my heart and purify my hands.
For I know it is on holy ground I'll stand.

I'm coming up the mountain, Lord;
I'm seeking you and you alone.
I know that I will be transformed,
My heart unveiled before you.
I'm longing for your presence, Lord;
Envelop me within the cloud.
I'm coming up the mountain, Lord,
My heart unveiled before you,
I will come.

I'm coming to worship,
I'm coming to bow down,
I'm coming to meet with you.

Lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/m/matt_redman/im_coming_up_the_mountain_lyrics.html

Video:  https://youtu.be/zDca7estt44

Witness:

This journal entry has taken several days to finish. I have battled sleep deprivation and even now was going to skip another day so I could rest. I also was stressing over the lack of accomplishing the mundane things I do in life, such as emptying the dishwasher. Yet, I encouraged myself and told myself that I need not stress over these things. I can work on the journal a little or a lot. I just must not give up on it or give in to my feelings and not enter anything at all. Perhaps I may only sing one day and witness the next and on the third day get into the WORD.

Sometimes it takes some time to bring about something good. I have been cooking beans in a crockpot for several days now and they are finally soft enough to be edible and I have added a portion of them to some chile I made, enhancing the taste of the chile. With what I had leftover I made some baked beans. So, it may be that I take several days to finish a journal entry, but in the end, it will be worth it and who knows what will overflow from what is leftover.  

WORD:

Ps 24:1-6 24 The earth is the LORD 's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters . 3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.                                                                            SELAH NIV

Ps 24:1-6 The King of Glory A Psalm of David. 24 The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. 3 Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false  and does not swear deceitfully. 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob.                                                                                                                                                                                                Selah ESV

I have already shared that the word “generation” in this passage refers to the character of the worshipers described in verses 3-4. They are here described as those who seek His face. What does it mean to seek His face? Perhaps it can be summed up in this simple 3-point outline.

           

Seeking God’s face means:

I.                    Seeking His divine presence

II.                 Seeking His divine favor

III.               Seeking His divine direction

I. Seeking His divine presence:

The basic meaning with reference to God is His presence. Unger says this about the word: 

FACE. There is nothing peculiar in the use of this word in Scripture, except with reference to God. Applied to God, it denotes His presence. In such phrases as seeing the Lord "face to face," "the face of the Lord is against evildoers," it is evidently all one with God's manifested presence.

(from The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright © 1988.)

The opposite of seeking His presence or face would be to hide from His face as Adam and Eve did from God in the garden of Eden. 

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 

Gen 3:8 ESV

 The word translated "presence" in this verse is the Hebrew word paniym, which literally means face.)

II. Seeking His divine favor:

There are reasons for wanting to be in someone’s presence. To desire to be in God’s presence is to seek after His favor. We see this in verses like Psalm 67:1, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us,” NIV. The favor sought or given is manifold including Peace (Numbers 6:24-26); victory (Palm 44:3); strength (Psalm 105:4); forgiveness and healing (2 Chronicles 7:14).

The opposite of seeking favor is seen in the expression “turn their face from”. A helpful discussion is found in ISBE’s:

The range of emotions reflected in facial expressions includes determination (harden or "set" the face; cf. Isa 50:7; Jer 5:3; 42:17; Ezek 3:8; Luke 9:51); indifference, contempt, or rejection ("turn away the face," e.g., 2 Chron 29:6); friendship or gracious favor (the face "shines" upon someone, e.g., Num 6:25); displeasure ("hide the face," e.g., Ps 102:2; Ezek 39:23); and hostility ("set the face against," e.g., Jer 21:10).

(from International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, revised edition, Copyright © 1979 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved.)

The idea of turning away one’s face or hardening one’s face can refer to both God and man. May we never find God turning His face away in displeasure, nor allow life’s circumstances to cause us to turn our face from Him.

III. Seeking His divine direction:

Scripture also uses this phrase or refers to a part of the face's anatomy to speak of God giving direction to His people. So, we read in Psalm 32:8:

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye. NIV   

Being taught of the LORD is found in the same context as seeking God’s face. The Psalmist in Psalm 27:8-11 declares:

9 Do not hide your face from me,

do not turn your servant away in anger;

you have been my helper.

Do not reject me or forsake me,

O God my Savior. 

10 Though my father and mother forsake me,

the Lord will receive me. 

11 Teach me your way, O Lord;

lead me in a straight path

because of my oppressors. 

Ps 27:9-11 NIV

To hide from His guiding eye is to run from His will. To run from His presence is to seek to escape doing God’s will. This is what Jonah sought to do and we know how that ended up. We learn from scripture that in the end, we can never escape His presence. The Psalmist found that out. Look what He declares:

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence? 

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 

Ps 139:7-8 NIV

Here the Psalmist declared he could never be out of God’s presence and the word’s that follow this passage are the words all true seekers will declare:

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

if I settle on the far side of the sea, 

10 even there your hand will guide me,

your right hand will hold me fast. 

Ps 139:9-10 NIV

 

        Come Blessed Ones

O’ come blessed ones -  come seek His face

And be ye filled with the glory of His grace

Though time and terror may seek to displace

Let us continue to run the “set before us” race

And when our time on earth doth end its pace

We shall enter into our “prepared for us” place