Destiny
(This is my story)Once upon a time there were two couples who were married on the same day, in the same town.
Neither couple knew the other.
Both couples had family and friends from all over who came to wish them blessings for their futures.
Both couples ate wedding cake and received wedding gifts.
Both brides threw their bouquets and they left with their groom to begin their honeymoon.
Both couple even chose the same honeymoon destination: a resort town in the Rocky Mountains called Estes park.
Both couples traveled the same windy canyon roads under the same sun toward Estes Park, full of hope and happiness.
But only one couple made it to the Park,
Had their honeymoon, and began their life together.
The other couple careened off the windy road while trying to avoid oncoming traffic.
The groom was killed in the accident that resulted.
It was over
The surviving couple is still together today. They have three children, they are happy where they live, and minister…
I ask the question
Why wasn’t it me who died…?
I believe each Christian has a destiny to fulfill
God has a plan for our lives
and as long as we walk in paths of righteousness for his namesake
we will have an opportunity to fulfill that plan.
Metaphorically, when we veer from the pathway set out before us chances are we are going to crash and burn, and never see the end of what God has planned for our lives.
This happens when Christians
¤ Fall into sin and form habits that are displeasing to the Lord.
¤ When Christians divorce - what could have been can never be
¤ When we stubbornly make our own answers to our problems
¤ When we seek satisfaction in the things of this world
¤ When we Put other things in first place over the Lordship of Christ
There is hope however; the beauty of Christ’s redemption is that when we walk in repentance He will give us a second chance.
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 3:1-3
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. [2] Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. [3] Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.
He knows we are not perfect,
he knows we might fail,
fall into sin,
even divorce
But does that mean that he has given up on us
By no means
Philip. 1:6
being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus
Some may ask
I don’t know what God’s plan is for my life
I Don’t know what destiny he has for me
Maybe you feel like you have followed God to a certain point and now you are not certain of the next step.
Let me show you the key to getting started on the path toward God’s destiny for your life.
Psalm 119:35
Direct me in the path of your commands,
for there I find delight.
I. First of all we need to realize Obedience to God is the path
There are many in scripture that knew their destination and the path they had to follow.
You and I may not have some great destiny to fulfill, but God does have a plan for us and no matter how great or small that plan is it will require obedience to God to fulfill it.
A. I think Jesus is our finest example of this point
Turn with me to
Luke 2:34-35
Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, [35] so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
Simeon revealed the destiny of Christ.
Christ Himself demonstrated what it took to fulfill that destiny
It would take a long time to demonstrate all the ways that Jesus walked in obedience…
So I have selected three
1. Jesus Began his ministry in OBEDIENCE and was baptised publically
Matthew 3:15
Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented.
2. He walked in Obedience and did only what the father commanded
John 12:50
I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say."
3. He died in obedience to save us all.
Philip. 2:5-8
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
[6] Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
[7] but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
[8] And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death--
even death on a cross!
B Likewise the scripture reveals that the path of our life should be a pathway of obedience.
None of has the same destiny to fulfill
But the only way to fulfill it is through obedience.
1. Obey his voice. Exodus 19:5 "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
2. Obey his Teaching John 14:15
"If you love me, you will obey what I command.
2 Cor. 10:5
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
4. Obeying the gospel. 2 Cor. 9:13
Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.
You may say fine I want to obey, I want to do his will, I want to follow the path God has for me
I want to be obedient
But you don’t feel secure in knowing that you are being obedient.
II. Secondly we need to realize the pathway of obedience to God begins with humility
Whether you have never taken that first step to follow God.
Whether you have been following him for years
Or Whether you have gotten off the path laid out before you
Humility is the Key to daily acknowledging your obedience to God
Being Humble means
Not proud,
nor boastful,
It means not trying to solve things on your own,
It means not trying to be obedient to the gospal in your own strength
Naaman is one of the best examples in scripture of what it means to learn humility before God
2 Kings 5:9-15
So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. [10] Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, "Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed."
[11] But Naaman went away angry and said, "I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. [12] Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?" So he turned and went off in a rage.
[13] Naaman’s servants went to him and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ’Wash and be cleansed’!" [14] So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.
[15] Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. Please accept now a gift from your servant."
Namaan was not required by God to dip in the river to humiliate him
But so that he could finally gain a true perspective on who he was before God
And Who God is And who is in control
The same is true for us
We must humble ourselves before God because our pride and shame and stubborness will keep us from Him and from our future with him.
Fontella Bass found it out
She grew up in the church singing gospel music, and serving the Lord. Eventually her marvelous voice led her into a singing career.
In 1965 her No. 1 R&B single "Rescue Me" placed her among the greatest.
But she was a one hit wonder.
Twenty-five years later Fontella was facing the lowest time of her life.
She was at the end of her roap.
She had no career to speak of and she had strayed far from the church.
She was broke, tired and cold: the only heat in her house came from the gas stove in the kitchen.
She had strayed far from the path God had laid out for her years before.
Then one day she humbled herself in prayer before God and asked God for a sign. She wanted to know if there was still a chance for her
All of a sudden on the TV she heard ... ‘Rescue Me.’ " She was unaware that American Express had been using her song on a TV commercial.
She said "It was as if the Lord had stepped right into my world!"
"I looked around and got my back royalties. I started to go to church every Sunday.
" Now she is back singing. She has a new album,
But she believes the Lord has served her career best. "For so many years I tried doing it on my own, and it didn’t work," she says. "Then I took it out of my hands and turned it over to him, and now everything’s happening."
Conclusion:
Each of us has a future
A path before us
To find that path we must first humble ourselves
Then to stay on that path we must Be obedient,
but that is only possible through our humble acceptance of Gods help
Gods power
God’s Grace
Every day
Why me, Why Am I still alive today.
Because God has a plan for me.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Daddy your not obeying God…………….
