Encountering God

Bro Koay Kheng Hin

All of us have different ideas on what encountering God is. When I was saved, I expected a dramatic encounter when I made the sinner's prayer but there was nothing.

When we encounter the Lord, there are two categories.
A dramatic encounter A non dramatic encounter

Whichever it is, it is not important. More important is whether we have
A superficial encounter or A substantial encounter

If you are a Christian, you have already encountered the Lord. And that encounter is constant and continuous. It is just whether you are aware of it.

In that encounter, is it superficial or spiritually substantial encounter?

Superficial Encounter
1. You are focused on the experience.
Example during the holy laughter movement, some were so caught up with the experience that when the movement passed, they continued to focus on the pass experience and continue pursuing it
2. Experience the Lord and the focus turned to us
Example, you asked for something and when the Lord answers, the focused is on the blessing.
3. The point of contact became the point of focus.
The manifestation of the encounter is not important.
It is the fruit. If the person encounter the Lord, the fruit of the Holy Spirit must prove the work of the Holy Spirit.

Substantial Encounter
1. A greater intimacy with God
2. The encounter is heavenly focused
3. Transformed into the holiness of God

Isaiah 6:1-8 Isaiah’s Commission 1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” 4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” 6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” 8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

Isaiah 6 is a passage that have often been studied and preached. There are very significant theology here but we will not focus on that.

We will cover this passage verse by verse.

v1 Isaiah served under King Uzziah. When he died, it became a crisis in Isaiah's ministry. He is probably thinking about his ministry and what will happen when a new king comes, and he was troubled. In that time, Isaiah turned his eyes to heaven. John 12:41. He saw Jesus high on the throne.

We are Christians and we are a people who must believe in the reality of heaven, the supernatural. Isaiah saw that reality.

v5 my eyes have seen the King Almighty seated on a throne. He shifted his eyes from the earthly King to the King of kings.

When you are in a time of need, look upward and have a heavenly focus. In Him alone you have the solution and a meaningful life. Today's focus is on the material. Materialism is not about how much you have or don't have. It is an issue of attitude. It is about never having enough.

We are the masters over our possession. Not the other way around. We are ready to give them up cheerfully and willingly for heaven. Isaiah saw the glory of God, seated in heaven. Isaiah had a dramatic encounter. We may not have the same experience, but we have eyes of faith to see. Like when Thomas needed to see Jesus to believe, yet the Lord said blessed is he who have not seen yet believe. We are able to believe because we have the Holy Spirit to quicken the word of God so that we see with spiritual eyes.

v2 the seraphims in humility called out "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty"
If we only look at the natural we won't see the supernatural. Christianity is a transcendence faith that lifts us above the ordinary. When we come into the presence of God, the greatest sin is pride. We must come to Him and bow before His holiness.

v5 Isaiah saw all this and what was his reaction. When he come before the Lord, he saw the woe in him. The unworthiness in him before the Lord almighty. Unclean lips because a prophet must have clean lips and unclean lips shows an unclean heart.

v6 This was a heavenly vision. The seraph took the live coal and touched his lips. The altar was a picture of sacrifice and fire. The sacrifice the atonement and the fire the Holy Spirit. Isaiah had to confess and the Lord forgave him. In forgiveness it is not only declared holy but made holy.

Before we can be commissioned, there is a place we must first be ministered to. Isaiah here tell us that before we can minister, we must be ministered to by the Lord. This is an important principal or we may not end well. God will work in you before he works through you. You cannot impart what you don't have or it will be of the flesh and you will burn out.

v8 After all this, God asked, Whom shall I send. Isaiah said "Send me".
I have never had a dramatic encounter with God, but it is real. I know it's real and I know He is seated on the throne and He is Holy Holy Holy. I know by the testimony of His word and the conviction by His Holy Spirit.

We are a people who serve a Holy God. It must be centred on Jesus and we must walk in that holiness. I do not teach justification without sanctification. If not it is only half the gospel.

We are called to behold the face of Jesus and the glory of God will reflect on us and we will grow from holiness to holiness to be like Him. It is then that out hands will bear spiritual fruits.

If our face is looking at the world but our hands towards heaven, we are wanting God to conform to the world, but if our heads are lifted towards heaven and our hands are towards the world, we are reflecting His holiness.

Godliness is when you carry the overpowering power of God that is Christ centred.

Men and women of God, when you come into His holy presence, come to Him a worm before God. When you come out in the spiritual authority as an eagle in the world.

Are you going to be an eagle before God and a worm before man or a worm before God and an eagle before men? Your choice.