What Does it Mean to Call on the Lord While He Is Near?

　　Isaiah 55:6 says, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.” From this passage of Scripture, the prophet Isaiah is warning the readers that they must call on the Lord while He is near.

　　Upon first glance of this verse, it can stir our minds to wonder what it means to seek the Lord while He can be found and to call on Him while he is near. Does this mean that after a certain era of history, God will no longer be able to be found and we won’t be able to draw near? Moreover, can we still seek out the Lord today?

　　

Calling for the Lord

During the time of Isaiah’s writing, Israel had been actively rebelling against the Lord and disobeying His commands. Rather than obeying the Lord and following Him with a heart of devotion, the Israelites opted to follow their own sinful desires.

　　The people of Israel had separated themselves from God because of their sin, rebellion, and disobedience. Through the statement, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near,” Isaiah was encouraging the people of Israel to place their hope in God now because there would be great trouble ahead of them in the land of exile.

　　At the time of Isaiah’s writing, the people had turned away from the Lord and were headed to exile shortly thereafter. Isaiah was warning Israel that now was the time for them to seek out the Lord in an earnest heart.

　　As a prophet, Isaiah shared information about the coming exile, the future Messiah, and the End Times. Even though Isaiah wrote to the specific people of Israel, we still need to seek out the Lord. God is not far from us as He is close to every person (Acts 17:17). He is not found in astrology, chakras, or other false belief systems.

　　God has revealed Himself in Creation and in the Bible. Most of all, He has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ as Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:1). Every person can find God now if they seek Him out in prayer, in the Bible, and accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Salvation is open to all (John 3:16-17).

　　God did not choose only a select number of people to be saved. Rather, God chose all people to be saved if only they would place faith in Him (1 Timothy 2:4). Therefore, all people can find the Lord in the present day if they only search out for Him.

　　

God Is Waiting for You to Draw Near

God does not try to hide from us as He is our Loving Father, and He desires to have a relationship with us. Due to the Fall of Man, our relationship with God has been severed and broken. It is only by placing faith in Christ that we can have a restored relationship with the Father (John 14:6).

　　In the future, God will no longer be able to be found. While this is a long time away, people still need to be mindful of this fact. After the seven-year Tribulation and the thousand-year reign of Christ, there will be no more opportunities to seek out God and place faith in Him.

　　When God creates the New Heaven and the New Earth, only believers will be able to dwell in this new creation. All unbelievers will be thrown into the Lake of Fire along with the devil, the antichrist, and the false prophet (Revelation 20:10, 21:8).

　　God is abounding in love, which is why He gives mankind so many chances to turn to Him. The seven-year Tribulation will be a time of despair, pain, and horror (Matthew 24:21). Even though it will be a very difficult time, people will still be able to place faith in Jesus and receive redemption.

　　In the same way, during the thousand-year reign of Christ, the people who exit the Tribulation will procreate and their children will have to decide whether or not they will place faith in Christ (Isaiah 65:20; Revelation 20:7-9).

　　Despite literally walking with Christ during the thousand-year reign of Christ, there will still be people who hold allegiance to the devil. Thus, God can still be found today as well as in the future up until the end of the Millennial Reign of Christ.

　　However, we only have the chance to come to know the Lord during our earthly lives. There are no second chances after we die. Once we pass away, our eternal destiny is already written in stone. As sad as it is, a person can only place faith in Christ while they are still alive.

　　Recommended

　　9 Ways the Bible Defines True Manliness

　　Once you die, you either go to heaven or hell based on whether or not you placed faith in Christ. Rather than growing afraid of this news, it should propel us to want to help others come to know Christ. It should be noted that we should never try to “scare” a person into placing faith in Christ.

　　When a person places faith in Christ, they have to genuinely accept His free gift of salvation by acknowledging they are a sinner in need of salvation and that by believing Jesus died for their sins, was buried, and rose again, they can be saved (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

　　A person should not accept Christ because they are just afraid of hell. Rather, a person should accept Christ because they love Him and are deeply grateful for His gift of salvation. Without Jesus, we would be lost in our sins and would be without redemption.

　　Prior to Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, salvation was only for the Jews. Gentiles were not by default part of God’s family unless they became part of Israel. Salvation has always been about faith in God; however, salvation became open to all people, including Gentiles, once Jesus died for the sins of the world.

　　Only by Jesus’ Name can anyone be saved as Acts 4:12 says, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (ESV). The Lord died for the sins of all because He eagerly desires for all people to come to know Him.

　　The Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are all God. Three distinct Persons, but One God. Each member of the Trinity deeply loves and cares about each person. God created each of us and He does not want any of us to die without knowingly placing faith in Him and obtaining redemption.

　　Throughout our lives, we will all have many chances to seek God out and to place faith in Him. Even creation itself attests to God’s glory and should cause a person to seek Him out. The Lord has revealed Himself in creation and in the Bible; however, it is up to us if we are going to place faith in Him.

　　

What Does This Mean?

God has given us free will, which means we have to make the conscious decision to accept Christ as our Savior and Lord. God is ready for you to find Him as He has never been hiding from you.

　　While Isaiah 55:6 was speaking to the people of Israel, the prophet’s words still apply to us today. All people can seek out the Lord today because He can still be found.

　　In the future events of eschatology, there will come a time that God will no longer be able to be found. As Christians in the modern-day, we need to turn our hearts to Him and accept His amazing free gift of salvation by placing faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).

　　Moreover, we need to share the gospel with our family and friends in order for them to come to accept Jesus too. God can be found by anyone if they have a genuine heart desire to come to know the Creator of their souls.

　　For further reading:

　　What Does it Mean to Seek God’s Face?

　　How Do We Seek First the Kingdom of God?

　　Why Are We Called to Draw Near to God?