God is the God of purpose, who does NOT randomly interact with mankind on a whim. All that He is and does has design, reason and intent, and this includes you and I. No-one escapes the Lord’s attention, especially those who try to ignore or deny Him.
Lives for thought
The Lord speaking through Moses, informed obstinate Pharaoh; “for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth” (Exodus 9:16). Even wicked Pharaoh was used by God to put on display His character. And didn’t Pharaoh do a spectacular job of it? The more determined and rebellious Pharaoh became against God, the more he drew everyone’s attention to the Lord’s even greater determination and remarkable power.
Likewise, King David, “after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep…” (Acts 13:36). David, like us, wasn’t a random accident who served no purpose other than pleasure and self-fulfillment. Each person has a God ordained purpose to uniquely fulfil during their allotted time in history.
Consider what “you have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful” (James 5:11). Job’s complex life with all his suffering and blessings expose humanity to the merciful character of God through the extremities of life. Life is not just about fun, although fun is OK. Life is to be an array of experiences lived through the lens of Jesus Christ for the acknowledgement and expression of God’s character. This is what we mean when we say, ‘we live for the glory of God.’
Then there’s Barnabas, who exhorted the Church in Antioch “to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose” (Acts 11:23). There is no short-term test-drive thinking here. You don’t add Christ to your existing beliefs for the purpose of evaluating His performance. The deceptive feelings of your heart in this matter will always lead you away from Christ.
Your highest thoughts
However, your highest attention should be given to the reason Jesus Christ came and lived. Shortly before He was crucified for your sin He prayed; “Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name” (John 12:27-28). Christ was compelled to come to earth in His period of history for the single minded purpose of Glorifying His heavenly Father. This He did through crucifixion; dying your death in order that the Father’s justice against your sin could be satisfied. Faith in the substitutional death of Jesus permits peace from God to be dispatched into your heart and life (Romans 3:21-26).
You see, to know Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Saviour, is to know why you were born and what your purpose in life is. This realisation is what enabled the apostle Paul to say; “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Christ was His daily reason for living, and physical death served simply as the doorway to the eternal benefit of being in the presence of Christ in Heaven. This is the wonderful hope believers have in Christ.
An authentic surrendered relationship with the Lord Jesus gives purpose and significance forever. However, the sin of living independent of Christ will rob you of understanding your design, purpose, and hope of eternal life.
Today, I encourage you to live for Christ’s purpose through your faith and life.