[PLATE/CAPTION: He did not listen to his dad. He went On Stage to miss out]

Understanding God’s purpose for your life:

At the LORD’s command they encamped, and at the LORD’s command they set out. They obeyed the LORD’s order, in accordance with his command through Moses. – NUMBERS 9.23

The Israelites travelled and camped as God guided. When you follow God’s guidance, youknow you are where God wants you, whether you’re moving or staying in one place. You are physically somewhere right now? Instead of praying, “God, what do you want me to do next?” ask, “God, what do you want me to do while I’m right here?” Direction from God is not just for your next big move. He has a purpose in placing you where you are right now. Begin to understand God’s purpose for your life by discovering what he wants you to do now!

Moses also said to Korah, “Now listen, you Levites! Isn’t it enough for you that God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the LORD’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too. – NUMBERS 16.8-10

Moses saw through their charge to their true motivation – some of the Levites wanted the power of the priesthood. Like Korah, we often desire the special qualities God has given others. Korah had significant, worthwhile abilities and responsibilities of his own. In the end, however, his ambition for more caused him to lose everything. Inappropriate ambition is greed in disguise. Concentrate on finding the special purpose God has for you.

These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the desert east of the Jordan – that is, in the Arabah – opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth and Dizahab. (It takes eleven days to go from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by the Mount Seir road.) – DEUTERONOMY 1.1-2

The Israelites spent 40 years on a journey that should have lasted 11 days. It wasn’t distance that stood between them and the promised land. It was the condition of their hearts. God’s purpose went deeper than simply transporting a huge group of people to a new land. He was preparing them to live in obedience to him once they arrived. What good was the promise land if the Israelites were just as wicked as the nations already living there? The journey was a painful but necessary part of their preparation. Through it God taught the Israelites who he was: the living God, the Leader of their nation. He also taught them who they were: people who were fallen, sinful, prone to rebellion and doubt. He gave his rebellious people the law to help them understand how to relate to God and to other people. Your spiritual pilgrimage may be lengthy, and you may face pain, discouragement, and difficulties. But remember that God isn’t just trying to keep you alive. He wants to prepare you to live in service and devotion to him.

How we lost sight of ours:

And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey him.” On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he drew up for them decrees and laws. And Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak near the holy place of the LORD. – JOSHUA 24.24-26

The covenant between Israel and God was that the people would worship and obey the Lord alone. Their purpose was to become a holy nation that would influence the rest of the world for God. The conquest of Canaan was a means to achieve this purpose; but Israel became preoccupied with the land and lost sight of the Lord God.

The same can happen in our lives. We can spend so much time on the means that we forget the end – to glorify God. Churches may make this mistake as well. For example, the congregation may pour all of its energies into a new building extension, only to become self-satisfied or fearful of letting certain groups use it. If this happens, they have focused on the building and lost sight of its purpose – to bring others to God.

God is directing our lives for a purpose:

“The LORD bless him!” Naomi said to her daughter-in-law. “He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead.” She added, “That man is our close relative; he is one of our kinsman-redeemers.” – RUTH 2.20

Though Ruth may not have always recognised God’s guidance, he had been with her every step of the way. She went to glean and “just happened” to end up in the field owned by Boaz who “just happened” to be a close relative. This was more than mere coincidence. As you go about your daily tasks, God is working in your life in ways you may not even notice. We must not close the door on what God can do. Events do not occur by luck or coincidence. We should have faith that God is directing our lives for his purpose.

God has put you where you are for a purpose:

..he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” – ESTHER 4.13-14

After the decree to kill the Jews was given, Mordecai and Esther could have despaired, decided to save only themselves, or just waited for God’s intervention. Instead, they saw that God had placed them in their positions for a purpose, so they seized the moment and acted. When it is within our reach to save others, we must do so. In a life-threatening situation, don’t withdraw, behave selfishly, wallow in despair, or wait for God to fix everything. Instead, ask God for his direction, and act! God may have placed you where you are “for such a time as this”.

Suffering does not destroy life’s purpose:

Why is life given to a man

whose way is hidden,

whom God has hedged in?

For sighing comes to me instead of food;

my groans pour out like water.

What I feared has come upon me;

what I dreaded has happened to me.

I have no peace, no quietness;

I have no rest, but only turmoil. – JOB 3.23-26

Job had been careful not to worship material possessions but to worship God alone. Here he was overwhelmed by calamities that mocked his caution, and he complained about trials that came despite his right living. All the principles by which he had lived were crumbling, and Job began to lose his perspective. Trials and grief, whether temporary or enduring, do not destroy the real purpose of life. Life is not given merely for happiness and personal fulfilment, but for us to serve and honour God. The worth and meaning of life is not based on what we feel, but on the one reality no-one can take away – God’s love for us. Don’t assume that because God truly loves you, he will always prevent suffering. The opposite may be true. God’s love cannot be measured or limited by how great or how little we may suffer. Romans 8.38, 39 teaches us that nothing can separate us from God’s love.

Religious leaders lost sight of their real purpose:

But they shouted,   “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”

“Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.

“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered. – JOHN 19.15

The Jewish leaders were so desperate to get rid of Jesus that, despite their intense hatred for Rome, they shouted, “We have no king but Caesar.” How ironic that they feigned allegiance to Rome while rejecting their own Messiah! Their own words condemned them, for God was to be their only true King, and they had abandoned every trace of loyalty to him. The priests had truly lost their reasons for existence – instead of turning people to God, they claimed allegiance to Rome in order to kill their Messiah.

Fulfilling the purpose for which we were made:

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. – JOHN 1.3

When God created, he made something from nothing. Because we are created beings, we have no basis for pride. Remember that you exist only because God made you, and you have special gifts only because God gave them to you. With God you are something valuable and unique; apart from God you are nothing, and if you try to live without him, you will be abandoning the purpose for which you were made.

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. – ROMANS 8.29

God’s ultimate goal for us is to make us like Christ (1 John 3.2). As we become more and more like him, we discover our true selves, the persons we were created to be. How can we be conformed to Christ’s likeness? By reading and heeding the word, by studying his life on earth through the Gospels, by being filled with his Spirit, and by doing his work in the world.

Jesus’ purpose was to do God’s will:

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. – JOHN 6.37-38

Jesus did not work independently of God the Father, but in union with him. This should give us even more assurance of being welcomed into God’s presence and being protected by him. Jesus’ purpose was to do the will of God, not to satisfy Jesus’ human desires. When we follow Jesus, we should have the same purpose.

God’s purpose for all believers:

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfil every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 THESSALONIANS 1.11-12

Our “calling” from God, as Christians, is to become like Christ (Romans 8:29). This is a gradual, lifelong process that will be completed when we see Christ face to face (1 John 3:2). To be “worthy” of this calling means to want to do what is right and good (as Christ would). We’re not perfect yet, but we’re moving in that direction as God works in us.

The purpose of the Bible:

..so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. – 2 TIMOTHY 3.17

In our zeal for the truth of Scripture, we must never forget its purpose – to equip us to do good. We should not study God’s word simply to increase our knowledge or to prepare us to win arguments. We should study the Bible so that we will know how to do Christ’s work in the world. Our knowledge of God’s word is not useful unless it strengthens our faith and leads us to do good.

The whole Bible is God’s inspired word. Because it is inspired and trustworthy, we should read it and apply it to our lives. The Bible is our standard for testing everything else that claims to be true. It is our safeguard against false teaching and our source of guidance for how we should live. It is our only source of knowledge about how we can be saved. God wants to show you what is true and equip you to live for him. How much time do you spend in God’s word? Read it regularly to discover God’s truth and to become confident in your life and faith. Develop a plan for reading the whole Bible, not just the familiar passages.

How would you describe your purpose in life?

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness – TITUS 1.1

In one short phrase, Paul gives us insight into his reason for living. He calls himself a servant of God – that is, one who was committed to obeying God. This obedience led him to spend his life telling others about Christ. How would you describe your purpose in life? To what are you devoted? For more information on Paul, see his Profile in Acts 9.