He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to
the other side… —Mark 6:45
{CHAMBERS} “We
tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are
obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the
thought that our dreams of success are God’s purpose for us. In fact, His
purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us
toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of
whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and
reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the
process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself. […] Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me
to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and
unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose
of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular
finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see
“Him walking on the sea” with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but
simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see
“Him walking on the sea” (Mark 6:49). It is the process, not the outcome, that
is glorifying to God.[…] God’s purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk
on the storms of my life right now.”
{ELGIN} (Ephesians 2:10) “For we are God’s
handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in
advance for us to do.” What are those
good works? Certainly it is to bless the
lives of others … visiting the widows and orphans in their affliction (James 1:27). Most definitely it is to meet the needs of the
people around us. (Matthew 25: 37-40)
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry
and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a
stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see
you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell
you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of
mine, you did for me.’” But more than that,
our purpose is to bring glory to the Father.
It is known as the “chief end of man” – to glorify God and enjoy Him
forever. Our purpose is to let our light
shine in the midst of personal hardship and distress. The source of our light is our faith in Jesus
and the power of the Spirit in us. (2 Corinthians 4:8-10) “We are hard pressed on every side, but not
crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of
Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may
also be revealed in our body.”
Our
purpose is to know Jesus and make Him known.
(Romans 8:27-29) “ And
he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we
know that in all things God works for
the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his
Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sister. God uses life – the good and bad parts – to conform
us into the image of His Son. So the
world may know Him through our testimony.
That is why James wrote (James
1:2-3) “Consider it pure joy, my
brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know
that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” It is your perseverance
that is remarkable to a lost and dying world.
A world that faces the same things you do, but without the Hope that is
in you. And finally (1 Peter 3:14-15) “But even if you
should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats;
do not be frightened.” But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to
everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have."
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