If you are reading this, then know that God has called you. Many of you have already answered the call, and are walking in God’s purpose for your life. But, far more are unsure of the reason they even exist. I have told you before that you are created to glorify God our Creator. He has a specific plan and purpose in store for each of His creations, and the Bible says it is better than we can ask or imagine. Jeremiah 29:11 and Ephesians 3:20. It also says:
“And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose.” — Romans 8:28 ESV
Notice that verse is conditional. Besides being one of the most quoted Bible verses, people usually leave off the latter half and recite the first part, taking it out of context. “God works everything out for good.” It’s a great consolation and encouragement when things are not going according to one’s plan, but that doesn’t make it true. God promises to work everything out for good when you are called according to “His” purpose. That requires the unspoken understanding that you have answered the call and are “walking in that purpose”.
I have previously established in my last blog that God doesn’t want any to perish (not receive eternal life), and that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. God is quick to save those who answer His call through faith in Christ Jesus by giving each one of us a measure of His Spirit. This “Holy Spirit” now dwelling in us convicts us of all unrighteousness, so that we are able to be reconciled back to Father God. Jesus, by His Spirit, through the blood He shed on the cross, becomes our righteousness. Then, we begin to desire the things of God, namely “reading His Word” so we can understand what it takes to be called according to His purpose.
The Call to Love
The first commandment God gave is the most important, in spite of the many commandments in the law to help mankind from sinning. In fact, the purpose of the law was to show man his sin. God knew it would be impossible for us to keep all the commandments. That’s why He had a plan, which was sending Jesus to redeem us from the curse of the law. That “most important” commandment says to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and have “no strange gods” before Him. Jesus said the second most important commandment was to love people. So that’s it, love God, love people, this sums up all the law.
To love God in the way He desires, you must acknowledge His sovereignty; He is Lord of all. Without Him, you would not exist. You must desire to please Him; therefore, come to know what pleases Him. And that brings us back to His commandment about love. Here is “love” defined in the Bible:
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” — 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ESV
Being called according to God’s purpose is following Jesus. And He says that if you love Him, you will obey Him and love people. That is what Jesus did! He laid down His life for the sake of people. Likewise, we are called to put others before ourself. Sometimes, that’s a tough one. People think they’re loving God and others until they have to sacrifice their own plans to be obedient to God’s Word.
But God knows our needs and deepest desires, and when we trust Him, He quickly comes through. Now, quick in God’s timing is not necessarily quick according to ours. God’s word says “A day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day”. (2 Peter 3:8 b) Try wrapping your mind around that, and “quick” takes on new meaning. Desiring something so bad that you’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen in “your time” is putting yourself first. In fact, you will probably miss the mark of “God’s plan”. When we trust God’s timing for things, all sorts of miracles can happen. But, when we force our way and our timing, we may discover that what we desired isn’t all that we hoped it would be.
Case in point
Years ago, I wanted my own hair salon so badly, I did everything in my power to make it happen. I was a Christian sold on Jesus because he had blessed me with miraculous answers to prayer as a new believer. In praying for my own hair salon, I focused on this scripture (completely out of context) , “Whatever you ask in My name, I will do that”. (John 14:13-17 full context) I believed with all my heart that God would give me the desire of my heart, “my own hair salon’’. What I did not realize was that I was desiring the salon more than God and His plan and timing. The salon had become the idol, the strange god I had been worshipping.
Anyway, soon after that my father passed away and I received an inheritance that would cover the cost of the salon. My husband had asked me to wait. He thought things were moving far too quickly for his comfort. But, I wanted it so badly, that I rationalized God had given it to me through my father’s inheritance. To make a long story shorter, I did not listen to my husband and went ahead with the purchase.
The day I closed the deal, I walked into the salon with celebratory champagne for the staff. Unfortunately, there was nothing to celebrate! You see that staff, the core of the business (who previously seemed excited about the new transition), in fact, were not. When I arrived, they all gave notice that they were leaving to work in the new salon just built in the shopping center up the road. Apparently, the man I had bought the salon from knew this, and had threatened them to stay until the deal was closed, or he would have fired them before the other salon was ready. Man, did I feel duped!
There is a lot more to the lessons I learned from that experience, both about business and about God. The desire of my heart turned out to be a big disappointment. And I realized I had not been obedient to all that God had commanded, and I had focused on what I wanted, and in my timeframe. I also dishonored my husband’s authority through my impatience. Both of those do not fit in with that definition of love from first Corinthians chapter 13. I missed out on God’s plan for promised blessings through obedience. For it is written:
“And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil.” — Deuteronomy 11:13-14 ESV
(Check out my blog “The Glory of God” for a deeper understanding on the hidden meanings behind the grain, the wine and the oil, in the section on the Sacrificial System.) As far as the rest of the verse, God promises the rains to bring the harvest. This was literal for the Israelites at the time because it was what they depended on for their livelihood. However, it has a symbolic application to our needs and desires today.
In the “proper season”, my hair salon could have produced a better “harvest”, had I been obedient to God’s Word regarding idols and love. I had set myself up as god on the throne of my life and got what I desired, until the Lord humbled me, and I sought Him more intimately. That required going deeper into His Word and applying it to my life.
In summary, this is what it means to walk in God’s purpose. And that is what I am doing today. God has called me to write about the importance of reading, knowing and believing His Word, the Bible. Maybe you have already figured that out after following me through the last five years and 75 blogs. Thank you for your faithfulness. May God bless you all. Please pass it on.
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