John 3:16(NLT) is probably the most well-known verse in the Bible. It states, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” Some people believe that this verse means that everyone in the world is a child of God, but that isn’t at all what this excellent verse communicates. It starts out telling us that God loves the world. This is extraordinarily profound, because the nature of God is wrapped up in those words. He loves! It’s just that simple. And not only does He put His love in action, LOVE is who He is. 1John 4:8 says that if you and I do not love people through the love of God, then we don’t know God, because God IS love. This is good news indeed, but there’s something else that we must know as well; even though God loves everyone, it doesn’t mean that everyone loves Him.
One of the notions many of us are born with is that we can do whatever we want, when we want. On the very positive side of this spectrum, we are taught we can achieve any goal we set our minds to, and we can become the greatest person we aspire to become. The negative side of this coin is the choice to walk around this earth with no real sense of purpose or destiny. We get to choose, but whether we choose positive, negative, or something in between, the engine that drives all of it is our human will. We get to decide who we are going to be, and we also must accept the reality that there are going to be consequences for these choices.
Ephesians 1:4 tells us that God chose us in Him before the world was founded. This is mind blowing information. One of the reasons that God tells us this is so that we will not choose a negative path—a path where we wonder aimlessly, not knowing who we are or why we were born. This verse goes on to tell us that God’s goal for us is that we will be holy and without blame through His love. Again, this is God’s desire, and He’s given us this information so that our lives will be purpose driven. His goal for all of us is the absolute best that can be achieved, but all of us will not want to pursue God’s goal. As a matter of fact, there are more individuals that will chose not to fulfill God’s purpose and goal than those who will.
There were times in my life, especially when I was trying to figure out my major in college and even choosing a college, that I really didn’t have a clue. I didn’t know what I really wanted to do or what was going to make me happy. I found out very quickly that doing anything I wanted or being any one I wanted to be was nowhere near as easy as I had thought. I loved the idea of securing the bag and having plenty of coins in my pocket, but the truth was that my options and opportunities were not as vast as others. When this became clear to me, I kind of panicked. This is when I began to pray to the Lord for direction, and He heard my prayer.
God chose us long before we entered our mother’s wombs. He knows the path in life we’re supposed to take, and He’ll place our feet squarely on this path if we will allow Him. He will not force us to pursue His agenda for our lives. He’s given us free-will and we get to choose, but we can’t expect to stay on the path to God’s blessings if we make decisions and choices that lead us away from it. Jesus Christ made it very clear to Nicodemus in John 3:3(NLT), “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” In verse 6 he said, “Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.” Because of what Christ accomplished for us on the cross, if we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, God will regenerate our human spirits through the Holy Spirit. Then, if we continue to pray and ask God for help, the Holy Spirit will guide us through life so that our decisions are pleasing to God. Jesus tells us this in John 3:21(NLT), where he says, “But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”
The distinctive quality about God’s children is that we pursue the things that are important to Him. Success means nothing without pleasing God, and it can’t be achieved without His help. There is nothing that compares to the confidence of knowing who you were created to be and then walking in the truth of it every day. So, the most life-affirming thing that any of us can do is to find out what God expects from us and then respond to it. All the joy, peace, love, and faith that we need to live a fulfilling life is contained within God’s plan for us, and it will unfold as we make what He wants the central focus of our existences.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Pursuing God’s Goal for Our Lives”, written for victoryinjesuschrist.life© 2019. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
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