Romans 10: But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”

A) We live in a complicated world that clouds the most basic and essential elements

Luke 17: Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

“… all that extra information isn’t actually an advantage at all; in fact, you need to know very little to find the underlying signature of a complex phenomenon………that extra information is more than useless. It’s harmful.” (Gladwell, Malcolm. Blink: The power of thinking without thinking. Back Bay Books, 2007.)

1) God made us creatures of instinct

2) In a complex world we are taught not to trust natural intuition

3) Result: We are robbed of that natural God given instinct called spiritual intuition

Psalm 19:1-4 1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. 3 They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. 4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

Romans 1:20 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

Psalm 139: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

B) The Word is near you

Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Matt 7:7-8 7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

James 4:8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

“You seek without what you have within”…and …”Now we must begin to abandon and give up our whole existence to God. We must do this from the strong and positive conviction that what happens every moment comes from His immediate will and permission and is exactly what our spiritual condition needs.” Smith, Steven. "Guyon, Madame (1648–1717).“ The Encyclopedia of Christian Civilization.

C) God is near to us in our brokenness

Psalm 34:18 The L ORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Isaiah 57:15 For this is what the high and exalted One says— he who lives forever, whose name is holy: “I live in a high and holy place, but also with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.

Matt 11:28 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Psalm 91:1-4 1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the L ORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.