God Has a Plan for You

If you know Jesus as a Savior, have become a Christian and committed your life to Jesus Christ; you are called by God to do something specific for God. There's something special in this life for everyone, and if you've never committed your life to Jesus Christ, you can do that here now and each one of us will know we have a destiny and purpose.

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Let's start by reading from 2 Timothy 1:8-9. A bit of background: From his own incarceration in a Roman jail, the apostle Paul was able to encourage and remind Timothy (and us as well), that a life dedicated to Jesus would mean that he'd endure sufferings like our Lord did. (Let's read)

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Now let's focus on the 9th verse beginning with the last word from previous verse 'God', who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, (NKJV)

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So with that in mind, are you ready to surrender to God's will for your life? If Yes, let's watch God do amazing things in your life.

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Every Christian should devote themselves to God, like how an athlete chooses what takes priority in life; what they eat, the amount of exercise and practice they commit to and the people they surround themselves around. These are few things they focus on in order to achieve to be the fastest runner, or highest jumper, or whatever particular area of excellence they are skilled in. Athletes cannot afford to end up a couch potato by watching Netflix all day or else, they'd lose the muscles, skills, talent, contracts and fans; therefore let's look at our own lives and ask yourself, what areas could we do some shifting in order to give our time effectively getting close to God.

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Every one of you have inherited the task of representing Christ on Earth, therefore we should give the same kind of priority that an athlete does but as an Ambassador for Jesus. When we look at what Paul says about, He has called us with a holy calling, not according to our works.  This doesn't depend on our own ability, our level of education, whether we have the right kind of personality, or our social status. If you are seeking a job in the world those are the kind of things people would quiz you about but when it comes to your calling in God, it's not based on those factors, it's not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.

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Do you realize that God has a purpose for every one of you; a special distinctive purpose. (To read, Ephesians 1:1-14)

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...For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

( Ephesians 1:4-6)

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...For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

( Ephesians 1:4-6)

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Isn’t that amazing that before the world was ever created, God foreknew us, he knew us in advance, he chose us, he predestined us (he settled in advance the destiny of our lives) and then in time he called us.

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1 Corinthians 1:9 says, God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

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1 John 1:3 ... and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

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Notice how it says, we’re called into fellowship, in our Christian life, this is something we should be aiming for. One of God’s purposes in our lives is fellowship, first with God and then with one another, and if we are aimed at that, God is faithful to achieve his purposes.

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On Sundays after the Worship service, at Parkway Bible Church,  it’s great that they have both the Welcoming Greeting Team and Coffee Time in the gym because not only do people get to come listen to a worship service shared by Pastor Mitch, but they also achieve fellowship which displays “A place to Connect and Belong” as really you can’t fellowship with people when sitting in the sanctuary with the back of somebody else’s neck or head. As well, groups and events whether within church, such as our Bible Scrapbook, Christmas potlucks, or outside church where God has placed you with people that only you can reach like, coworkers, clients, students, friends, family and more are other opportunities of face-to-face fellowship where we can achieve fellowship, share our own testimony and tell people about Jesus’ love.  When fellowship becomes our objective, we are in line with God’s purpose and then we truly experience God’s faithfulness.

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1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says, May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

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God’s purpose is to make us holy, holy in spirit, holy in body, holy in soul (our emotions and thoughts)

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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.

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We are His masterpiece; we need to begin to see ourselves this way. You can no longer say stuff like, I am not good enough or I can’t do much because when you criticize yourself, as a Christian, you’re criticizing God’s artistic achievements. Praise God we are not just called to just sit in church buildings; we’re called to do good things for God and he has prepared them in advance. You don’t have to write the scenario for your own life, because if you do, lets admit it, it will be a disaster, what you have to do is find the scenario God has written for you and act it out.

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Romans 8:28-29 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,  

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How important is it to God for us to tell people the simple truth, that there was a man called Jesus who died and rose from the dead? Once we have done our part by sharing that information, what they do about it is their responsibility but it’s our responsibility to tell them.

Now it’s time to take our calling seriously by devoting our time, energy, mind (what we read and watch) and prayers to fulfil God’s plan for us.

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If you want to be more spiritual in your life, just exchange two things: the amount of time you spend in front of the television/phone and the amount of time you spend with the bible; change them over and you will be surprised how spiritual you’ll be. You can’t sow to the flesh and expect to reap from the spirit. Whatever we sow, we reap.

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Galatians 6:7-9 ... A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

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Let us end by reading Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and the perfecter of faith.

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Homework/Study:

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1) You need to discover your calling; how do you discover your calling?

<> Read Romans 12:1-2  A Living Sacrifice:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.

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<> Read Romans 12:12-16 - Humble Service in the Body of Christ:

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

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2) You need to prepare your calling:

 <>Read 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

The Need for Self-Discipline:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

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3) Stay within your calling:

<> Read Proverbs 27:8: Like a bird that flees its nest is anyone who flees from home.

<> Read 2 Corinthians 10:13

Paul’s Defense of His Ministry:

We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the sphere of service God himself assigned to us, a sphere that also includes you.

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Prayer (Psalm 25:4-5)

Show me your ways, Lord,

Teach me your paths.

Guide me in your truth and teach me,

For you are God my Savior,

And my hope is in you all day long.

Heavenly Father, the only accurate guide to life

Please help me know your will more completely

I want to live for you and please you

I want others to know my commitment to you

Not just through the words I speak

But also through character and how I carry myself with others

I want my life to demonstrate that you are guiding me

In Jesus name, we pray Amen

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