I WANT TO KNOW HIM | DAILY DEVOTION | Pastor Chad Veach

0:00 Hey, what's going on, everybody? Thank you so much for joining us for this week's message from Zoe Church. We are in a series we started last Sunday called Daily Devotion out of Luke 9, verse 23. We're going to jump in in just a moment, but I want to thank every person that likes and subscribes to our podcast. Thank you for posting and sharing the messages on social media, inviting people into our community, inviting people along the faith journey with us. Also, if you'd like to give today, go to our website and you can give there whether you want to give digitally or you want to give stock, crypto, however you'd like to give today in your tithes and offerings, go there to the website. But let's jump into this week's message called I Want to Know Him. Go in your Bible to Luke chapter 9. Luke chapter 9, go there in your Bible.

0:52 We started a new series last Sunday called Daily Devotion. And we're trying to follow God not just on Sundays, but we're just as passionate about Jesus Monday through Saturday. So the same energy we bring in Sunday is the same energy we're trying to bring Monday through Saturday in following God. In other words, we're not weekly devoted. We are what? Daily devoted. There you go. Luke chapter 9, verse 23. Look in your Bible. It says, then Jesus said to them all, whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves. Let me just pause right there. 21 days of prayer and fasting. What are we doing for 21 days? We are denying ourself. Did I already tell you what I'm fasting and praying for 21 days? Did I tell you this? I'm fasting and praying for 21 days.

1:45 Sugar, like treats, and bread. The two things I crave every day. next Sunday night at 11 p.m. I'm going to need your prayers because my body's just going to want to float to McDonald's to get a McFlurry. So it says, deny themselves and take up their cross. How often? Daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life must lose their life. But whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it if somebody in LA gains the whole world, but they lose their soul. Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the son of man will be ashamed of them when he comes in glory and in the glory of the father and of the holy angels. I wanna preach a message today. Write down the title. It's called, I want to know him. I want to know God.

2:39 That is our prayer at Zilloway. We want to know him. We don't wanna know about God. We want to know God. and by the way all of this desire this pursuit comes from the reality that God first chased me there's a book that I love by a guy named Pastor Tommy Tenney Pastor Tommy Tenney wrote a book called God Chasers what a title God Chasers and it's this idea that for 21 days we're going to chase we're going to pursue God but the only reason why we are desiring or pursuing God is because anybody thankful that God first pursued me? Let me just encourage you today. You didn't find God. God found you. And God didn't find you when you were in church praising the Lord, looking good on a Sunday. God found you in your worst place. God found you when you were broken, when you were addicted. God found you in your depression.

3:32 God found you when you were suicidal. God found you when you were lost and rebellious. Anybody thankful today that the Bible says before we love Christ? Oh, come on, Zoe. Christ first loved us. The Bible says God left the 99 that were in the church to go find you when you were away, when you were lost. And I'm thankful today because now I can pursue God because I'm realizing God once pursued me. And in his love and his grace, he found me. Come on. He pulled me out of that pit, set my feet upon a rock, put a new song in my mouth. I'm going to seek God, not just for 21 days. I'm going to seek God all the days of my life. Come on, everybody clap and praise the Lord.

4:17 Come on, where did God chases that today? I'm going to seek God. Watch what Paul, the apostle says, Philippians chapter three. He says, I want to know Christ. and I want to experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to know God. I want it all that I might know him. I don't want to know some stats in his bio. I want to know the Lord. I don't want to know about God. I want to know God. And that's our prayer during 21 days of prayer and fasting. That's our prayer in our daily devoted life is that I'm denying myself. Why? Because I'm picking up my cross, that ego, that agenda, that dream, and I'm going to follow God heart and soul. I'm going to follow God with everything I got. The world, no, no, I'm going to lose the world and gain my soul. I'm going to lose the world and gain eternity. Why? Because nothing compares to the, to the personal relationship I have with Jesus. Let me encourage you today. God didn't invite you into a religion. God invited you into a relationship, a relationship with God will change your life. Religious duties will not. We don't serve the God of behavior modification.

5:28 we serve the God of life transformation. God wants to change you. in other words, God loves you just the way you are today. He just loves you way too much to leave you that way. God's going to mold you and shape you and change you and rearrange you. And as you pursue God, remember you become what you behold, whatever you worship, you're going to become more like. So I want to know God. And I'm telling you the greatest way to get to know God is through the reading of the scriptures. The greatest way to understand what God's about and what God's against is through the Bible. Let me just say it this way. God speaks loudest and clearest through his word. This is God's voice in ink.

6:17 And I'll tell you at Zoe Church, we love worship, we love prayer, but we love the Bible. Any Bible believers in the house today? We believe every word. In fact, we don't need to add to it. We don't need to subtract from it. The law of the Lord is perfect. I'm banking my life not on what a podcaster says. I'm banking my life on what God says. I'm not building my life on the opinion of man. I'm building my life on the opinion of God. The more we open this thing, the more we're going to understand what God's about. I'm going to give you three things today. Write down number one. We want to know God. And to know God, you got to know the Bible. You got to know the word. You got to know the more I read, the more I know God. I don't know about him. I know Kim. The other day I was, any podcast listeners in the house, you listen to a podcast or two. There's a podcast I listen to a lot and I listen to, and I feel like I know these people. I feel like I know them, but I do not know them.

7:20 and so I was at a golf course and the guy that I listened to a lot he was like three people away from me and he was hitting golf balls and I looked over at him and I was like oh wow I feel like such a creep because like I know so much about you and he's like swinging and I'm like hey hi nice swing and I went by and I was like such a fan man such a fan. I didn't know what to say. I was just like, such a fan. Like this face makes you not creepy, such a fan. No, you're still creepy, man.

8:03 And I was just, I was just walking away thinking, I know about him, but I don't know him. When I read the Bible, this is the only book where the author comes to sit with me to teach me what he's trying to say in these pages. And when I read the Bible, I know God because I'm in a relationship with God. And the more I understand what he's about and what he's not about, the more I grow closer to God. See, this is not about knowing about him. This is about personally actually knowing who God is in your life. Come on, clap if you wanna get to know the Lord. there's this tragic thing in the Bible. It says that one generation knew him and then the next generation didn't know him. One generation served him and the next generation didn't serve him. My passion is that I would know God so much that I would teach my children what it means to know the Lord. Do you know what it's like for me as a sports fan to have to answer the questions? My guy's like, dad, who is Barry Sanders? I'm like, wait, what did you just say? Barry Sanders, the best running back in the history of the NFL? Let me tell you. The other day, my son was like, Dad, who's Hakeem Elisha won? I was like, oh my gosh. See, they don't know who these guys are. It's my job to teach my kids about Noah and David and Moses and Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

9:24 Come on. It's my job to teach them about Jonah, but it's my job. Come on, Zoe. It's my job to teach them about Jesus. And the more I know him, the more I want others to know him. I get passionate about knowing. Hosea chapter six, watch this. Let us know. Let us press on to know the Lord. See, I'm removing the idols. I'm removing the distraction. I'm removing the vices. And I'm saying all that stuff, bread, sugar, get out my way. I've got to, I got to press on to know the Lord. I want to know God. And that's why I'm praying 21 days of prayer and fasting. Join us tomorrow at 6 30. Join us Thursday at 10 a.m. Join us August 19th for heart and soul. Why? Because we're pressing on to know the Lord. I want to know God. I don't want to know about God. I want to have a personal relationship with God. And I want more than anything, I want to know who God is. Jeremiah 29 13, and you will seek me and you will find me when you search for me with all your heart and soul. When you search for me with all your heart. In other words, I don't read my Bible so I can get up and go, yep, was religious today. Check the religious box, read it. Yep, I was, yeah, I read it. Yep, I'm religious. I'm Christian. I'm holy. I read the Bible. No, no, no. I'm trying to know God with all my heart. I am searching for, have you ever lost something in your house and searched for it with all your heart?

10:51 Who am I preaching to today? last night my seven and nine year old lost the remote control to our living room you have never seen such commitment in all your life my guys you know you're looking for something when your eyes get big and they came into my room they're like have you seen the remote to the living room tv and i was like my guys chill little bug guy come on man you need to fast and pray that came in again. Have you seen the remote? And lo and behold, the 11-year-old was hiding it in his sweats. Brotherhood. But they were searching. When was the last time you opened your Bible and looked for God? What is your will? What is your plan? What is your dream? What is your vision? Come on. I wish you'd take a second to search for God with all your heart.

11:51 we're not just reading it like read it did it zoe devo 10 years thank you jesus no i'm searching for the lord why because to know god you've got to know the word of god oh i love this next verse put it on the screen psalm 119 joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts. We are God chasers. We are pursuers of the Lord. We want to know God. We want to understand God. We want to hear from God. We want to follow God. I'm picking up that dumb old ego amigo cross. I'm denying my flesh and I'm following God, not every Sunday, but every day of my life. Give him a praise today. If that's your prayer, I want to know God and to know God, you've got to know his word. Write down number two today. Grow. To grow in God, you got to stay in his word. You got to just park in that thing. Just remain in that thing. Just stay in his word. I started reading the Bible in 1999, and I read the Bible this morning. I've just been parked up in that thing. I've been reading that thing, and it's always got something fresh.

13:06 It's always got something relevant. It's always got something for my life. It's always got something to say. Come on. God speaks loudest and clearest through his word. Oh, I love this. Look at second Peter 318, but continue to grow and increase in God's grace and intimacy with our Lord and our savior. But continue. The Bible didn't call you to get saved and stay stuck. The Bible called you to get saved and grow. And let me say this to a few people. Listen, hear me today. You may not be where you want to be, but thank God you're not where you used to be. Come on. I know there's a future and there's a dream, but can you give God 10 seconds of praise if he's brought you out of something? Come on, give him a shout of thanksgiving and worship. Come on, clap. If you can look back and see all the things God has brought you out of. I'm telling you, there is a vision. There is a future. There is a hope. There is a dream. There is a plan, but thank God you're not where you used to be. Do you remember what you used to dress like? She came in a Mazda left in a Honda. Thank God some of y'all got delivered. You may not be where you want to be, but I'm just looking back and going, man, when God found you, when God found you, you were in your broken place and God pulled you out of that pit. He said a new song in your mouth. He put something new in you.

14:31 And listen, God's been molding you and shaping you and changing you. You're not where you, God's got a plan, but you're not where you used to be. Why? What changed? God's word started to grow me. Put it on the screen. Growth takes training. Growth takes training.

14:55 And the last time I checked, none of us enjoy going to see a trainer. I don't know anybody in the church that's like, you know who I love. I just want to shout out real fast. Thank God for the person that makes me puke. And I just, I'm constantly sore in my hammies because of this person. I'm just so, no, no, we hate our trainer.

15:18 Sorry, you hate your trainer. I don't have a trainer, clearly. There's a guy in the church that he just got a trainer. How do you know someone has a trainer? They always talk about the trainer. This guy's always like, man, I got to go see my trainer. Man, I'm coming for my trainer. I'm like, okay, well, when do the results roll in, huh? He told me after the last service, because he was in the last service, I said his name, and he goes, man, the trainer told me 120 days, and you're going to see results. He's like, I think I need another 120. It is what it is. But growth takes, what's that word? Training, training, training. You know what God will do when you open up this thing? God will start to train you. He trained that attitude. He trained that rebellion. He trained that gossiping. He trained that laziness. He just trained you, trained you to look like a better Christian.

16:20 No, he trained you to look more like Jesus. He trained you to look like Jesus. More and more like Jesus. Look at this verse, Hebrews chapter five. It says it so well. Hebrews chapter five says, you have been believers so long now, it's like 10 years long. You ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God's word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk, it's still an infant and doesn't know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong. You don't want to know what God trains you in. This is the right thing to do. This is the right way to go. This is the right way to act. This is the right way to serve. And the more I get in this thing. It teaches me that's wrong. This is right. So I mature the more I read it and the more I grow in God. Listen, God doesn't want you to read this for information. He wants you to read this for transformation. Oh, come on. Clap if you believe it today. This book in cute is not just a book. It's the book. And when I read it, I don't get information. I get transformation.

17:51 God changes my attitude. God changes my thinking patterns. God changes my speech. God changes my relationship. God changes my integrity. God changes my motives. God changes my intentions. God changes my desires. Anybody down for the Holy Spirit to change one or two things? Oh, come on, praise him like you understand. We don't read it to get smart. We read it to get surgery. Romans chapter 12 put on the screen. I beseech you, therefore, my brothers and sisters of Zoe Church, to present your life as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing before God. This is your reasonable act of worship, and do not be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your 1, 2, 1. How does God change your life? He changes your thoughts.

18:44 How does God change your life? He changes your stinking thinking. And you get in this book, you start reading, and you start flipping these pages, and you're like, yo, my bad. That one's on me. Because my mind was in the gutter. don't be conformed to the patterns of this world. I have watched people look more and more like the world per day that don't open up this book. And I have watched others that stay in the word be changed to look more and more like Jesus. Let me just say it this way. Choose your own adventure.

19:29 You don't read this for information. We read this for transformation. And God will change you to look more. And thank God he's not trying to make you look like your parents. Thank God he's not trying to make you look like your pastors. Thank God he's trying to make you look more like Jesus. Anybody want to look more and more like Jesus? Come on.

19:50 That's our prayer. That's our passion. That's our mission. That's our focus. We want to know him. I want to know what do you hate? What do you love? What are you against? What are you for? What moves your heart? What pleases you? What can little old me do for big old you? Is there anything in my life? And the more I open up the Bible, it shows me the difference between right and wrong, good and evil. And I'm trained in it. So I don't just know God. I know, I know God. And, and, and, and I'm not just growing like a little bit. I've seen some people study this book and they just grow leaps and bounds. How? Because God's word will change your life. Do you believe it today? Come on, clap one more time if you believe that. So if you want to know God, know the word of God. You want to grow in God, stay in God's word. Here's the third one, last one today. If you want to hear from God, open his word.

20:50 You want to hear from God. You want to hear. I heard someone say recently, if they don't hear from God in three days, if they go three days without hearing from God, they say something's wrong with them, not God. And I'll tell you, we open up this Zoe Devo and I read this thing every day and every day God's got something, just a little something for me, just a little truth, a little nugget. And I hear God talk to my heart. I hear God talk to my spirit. Some people are like, Pastor Chad, have you ever heard God? Have you ever heard God, like the audible voice of God? I don't know if I heard God, but I hear God. The Bible is God speaking straight to me. The Bible is God's voice in pen. And so I hear from God all the time. This is what God sounds like. This is what his character and his nature sound like. Have you ever talked to somebody and they were on FaceTime audio? You know that someone's on FaceTime audio if their phone don't work and they got to get on wifi. That's the only time someone's on face. Can I get an amen in the church? I was on FaceTime audio with a friend yesterday and he is in a coffee shop and we were talking for a while and then he was walking back to his house and I knew he left the coffee shop because it got all, you know, you could tell when you're not connected. And so I don't know if you're like this, I'm like this when I'm getting disconnected, I'm like, hello, hello, hello hello rich rich rich rich are you there rich rich rich check one two one two check one two one two three check one two hello rich rich rich oh hey there you are are you this way and then we got reconnected it's like oh there there there's my guy there you are but i wasn't gonna quit and then and then he was talking the whole time so he's like where did you leave off and i was like, I stopped hearing at this. He's like, got to go all the way back 60 seconds. That's a lot of words. But I'll tell you, when you get into God's word, it's God sitting with you and speaking to you, healing you, restoring you. Watch this next scripture. I love this verse in the book of

22:59 Romans. It says, faith comes from hearing and hearing from the word of God. Faith shows up like Amazon shows up at your doorstep through a delivery guy. Faith shows up at your doorstep through the word of God. When you read the word of God, faith will be right in your eardrum. Faith will be right in your spirit. And you might have opened up your book feeling down and discouraged and defeated, feeling like you're a nobody. You can do nothing. You can't break that curse. You can't break that sin pattern. When I read the Bible, it gives me faith. All of a sudden, I have faith for my family. I have faith for my future. I have faith for Los Angeles. I have faith for Zoet. Come on, clap if you have faith just listening to the Word of God today. and if you're struggling with your faith, I'd get the word of God in your eardrum. Come on, 21 days, get worship music playing in your house. Get worship music playing in your car.

23:57 Get the heart of God. Get the word of God, and the more I hear from heaven, God is saying to you and I, can you hear me now? My response is, I can hear you. You are for me, not against me. You've got a plan to prosper my life. You, come on. There are more people for me than against me. The Lord is my light and my salvation. The Lord is the strength and the stronghold of my life. Whom shall I fear?

24:26 You get in the, you get in the Bible, you get into God's word. All of a sudden your faith starts to soar. Your faith starts to take another level. Why? I'd be careful what you listen to. Be careful what you put in your eardrum. Be careful of the company you keep because those things affect your spirit. When I get the word of God in my ear, all of a sudden it's like, I can do all things through Christ. That what? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, I'm going to accomplish what God has set for Zoe Church. I'm going to accomplish what God has put in my heart for my family. I'm going to do what God has called me to do. Why? Because I got the word in me. And when the word got in me and I opened his word, God started to speak truth into my heart. Amen to that. Look at this next scripture. I love this one so much. John chapter five, verse 39. You study the scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very scriptures that testify about me. We don't read the Bible so we can get puffed up and quote some verses. We read the Bible because the Bible points us straight to Jesus. And the more I read, the more I understand the love of Jesus. No height, no depth, no power, no principality, nor angel, nor demon can separate me from the love that is in Christ Jesus. And I can hear God whisper into my heart, Jesus loves you. Jesus chose you. Jesus died on the cross for your sins. Jesus has a plan for your life. And that's the God that I want to know. Amen. Worship team, come join me. Just a couple of thoughts to put on the screen. God's word is God's voice. It's how he leads, corrects, confirms, and speaks straight to your spirit. God's word is God's voice speaking straight to your life. And watch what it does. He leads you through his word. He corrects you through his word. He confirms and he speaks straight to your spirit. Put this next one up. When you open the

26:33 Bible, you're not just reading. I like that. Next time, tomorrow morning when you get up 630, join us on Zoom. After the Zoom or maybe before the Zoom, read your Zoe Devo. you're not just reading the bible what is it no it's god is breathing truth instruction and wisdom into you this is a powerful moment of your day all of a sudden i'm open this this book is alive and active it's not a dead book it's an alive book When I read it, God is instruction, wisdom, truth. Why? Because all throughout my day, I'm going to see and face lies. I'm going to see and experience the lies of the world, but I'm going to be able to walk in a dark world with the light with me.

27:34 Why? Because thy word is a light unto my path and a lamp unto my feet. I wish, I wish you could understand. I wish you could understand that one of the greatest gifts God's ever given you is this book right here. From Genesis to Revelation. It's chock full of wisdom and insight and revelation and knowledge and understanding. And it's a love story of God pursuing humanity. it's a love story of the savior of the universe laying down his life to die for the sins of the world this is not flippant or casual this is the what does it say on our bible it's the what bible holy bible why does it say holy because the word holy is set apart there's a lot of authors in the world there's a lot of books at barnes and nobles there's a lot of literature there's a lot of philosophers, but there is no book like the living, breathing word of God. And I'm just praying, I'm praying, I'm praying that you'd crack it open and you let God speak to you.

28:50 Know, grow, hear. If you want to know God, know the word. You want to grow in God, stay in the word if you want to hear from God open the word and I'll just say this if your Bible's messed up your life won't be have you heard that new song of that kid that says we got dust on our bibles brand new iphones no wonder why we feel this way no wonder why we feel this way because we have neglected our sustenance we have put on our shelves the thing that will bring me wisdom joy life truth clarity my prayer for our church is amen when we gather i love to worship anybody love worship i love to worship prayer thursday by the way thursday we set another record with the most amount of people that have ever been to thursday morning all church prayer and we keep setting a record every week Thank you.

30:00 We walked out into Thursday morning prayers and Julia went, Oh, we've been gone a while. We're going to worship. We're going to pray. But tomorrow when nobody's around, I pray you just crack it open.

30:21 Say a little prayer. Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. You might read tomorrow and be like, huh what makes no sense What? But there's going to be something that the Holy Spirit goes, whoo, that's for you. That one right there. That one's for you. That was what I need you to hear today. I met with you today so I could give this nugget, this revelation, this truth, so that today you can stand on my word. It's my prayer. It's my prayer. I want to know him. I want to know him. I do not read my Bible so I can look good in front of you. I read my Bible because I want to know God. I want to know him. I want to know. I want to know God. In fact, tomorrow morning, I'm going to pick up my cross. I'm going to deny myself. I'm going to follow him with all I got. And the way I'm going to follow him is I'm going to read my Bible.

31:15 This is the passion of our house, that we are Bible readers because we are Jesus followers. Come on, clap and thank the Lord. Come on, clap and thank the Lord. Come on, stand to your feet. Hey, again, thanks so much for listening to today's message. It means the world to us and our community. wherever you're joining us from. Thank you for being a part of the Zoe family. Again, like and subscribe wherever you're joining us from. Leave a comment if you have a moment. But we'll see you next week as we continue our series, Daily Devotion.