Got Purpose?

Last night we looked at Chapter 4 entitled PURPOSE.

To know God's purpose for us, we have to look into God's Word because this is God's communication to mankind.

As we read God's Word, we see that God has a desire for all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). We also see that God desires that once we are saved we be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29) and not be conformed to this world (Romans 12:2).

When God made Adam and Eve, He made them in His image (Genesis 1:26). This didn't mean they looked like God because God is a spirit, it means that man was made in God's image in the realm of personality, intellect, emotions, will, etc., so that there could be communion, fellowship, and cooperation between God and man. But when Adam and Eve sinned, this was changed. Man was still created in God's image, but the image now had been marred by sin. You and I still have the image of God, but it is marred, it has been messed up by sin.

However, God had a plan of redemption through Christ. Hebrews 1:3 tells us that Christ, the Son of God, was the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being. When we trust Christ as Savior we are born again, we go through a new birth. Stanford says, Our Heavenly Father is still carrying our His purpose of making man in His image. Although His original purpose is the same, His is not using the original man to bring about. All is now centered in the Last Adam, our Lord Jesus.

We have to understand that God's purpose for us is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. As this takes place, we will glorify the Lord through our lives. However, while we still live on this earth, we will never be completely conformed to the image of Christ in a perfect way. That cannot happen because we still have a sin nature. Only when we get to heaven and we receive our glorified bodies without a sin nature will the conforming process be complete. However, God still desires that we continually be conformed to the image of Christ while here on earth so that the life of Christ is what characterizes our lives.

How does this conforming process take place? Stanford says, God has a natural law in force to the effect that we are conformed to that on which we center our interest and love...If we are attracted to this present evil world, we become increasingly worldly; if we pamper and live for self, we become more and more self centered; but when we look to Jesus Christ, we become more and more like Him. This is so true as most of us know. This is why it is so important that we are reading and studying the Word of God. This is why the things of God need to be our interest and not the things of the world or ourself. We must make a conscience decision to focus on Christ, because when we are focused on Christ, our desire will be for Him rather than the things around us.

Many times God uses failure in our lives to conform us to the image of Christ. This is hard to comprehend. But failure teaches us that we cannot live this Christian life in our own strength and teaches us that we must depend on Christ, our Source for life. While we as humans do not like to fail, as Christians we need to see failure in our Christian life as a tool God can use to conform us to the image of Christ. This doesn't mean that we try to fail and say God is using this or that whowever fails the most is conformed the quickest. But when we do fail, we must understand that God can use this to grow us closer to Him.

I want to type this quote for you. It is somewhat lengthy, but very well said. It is by Norman Douty. "If I am to be like Him, then God in His grace must do it, and the sooner I come to recognize it the sooner I will be delivered from another form of bondage. Throw down every endeavor and say, I cannot do it, the more I try the farther I get from His likeness. What shall I do? Ah, the Holy Spirit says, You cannot do it; just withdraw; come out of it. You have been in the arena, you have been endeavoring, you are a failure, come out and sit down, and as you sit there behold Him, look at Him. Don't try to be like Him, just look at Him. Just be occupied with Him. Forget about trying to be like Him. Instead of letting that fill your mind and heart, let Him fill it. Just behold Him, look upon Him through the Word. Come to the Word for one purpose and that is to mee the Lord. Not to get your mind crammed full of things about the sacred Word, but come to it to meet the Lord. Make it be a medium, not of Biblical scholarship, but of fellowship with Christ. Behold the Lord."

God's purpose is to conform us to the image of Christ. Stop trying to do it yourself and allow Him to do it in you. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13).