Articles
Devoted To Your Purpose
Spiritual Food For Spiritual Thought
“Your hearts therefore shall be wholly devoted to the Lord our God” I Kings 8:61
God created you on purpose and for a purpose. No human life is an accident. You were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). It is up to each of us to recognize our God-given purpose and exercise our free will to pursue that purpose. Unfortunately, most people seek their own path in life instead of that which has been laid out by God. If you are truly devoted to God, then will be devoted to your purpose.
You have a glorious purpose. Just as Jesus glorified the Father through submission to His will, you glorify God through obedience to His commandments (I Corinthians 6:20) You glorify God through your good works, which is one reason why Jesus redeemed us in the first place (Titus 2:14). When your obedience to God’s word is accompanied by good works, you reflect God’s glory as a faithful bearer of His image.
You have a merciful purpose. In Luke 6:36, Jesus said “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” Have you ever wondered why God has been merciful to you? For one, God is merciful because God is good, and God is love (I John 4:8). Beyond that, God is merciful so that you would be merciful to others. You need to show mercy if you want to receive God’s mercy (James 2:13). Mercy is demonstrated when you “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, (and) pray for those who abuse you” (Luke 6:27b-28).
You have an eternal purpose. God is eternal (Psalm 90), and you bear His image (Genesis 1:26-27). His intention is for you to live with Him in heaven forever. Your earthly body was intentionally created to be temporary so you would look forward to putting on your “heavenly dwelling” (II Corinthians 5:2). By giving you a spirit and creating you in His image, God created you to know there is something beyond this life (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Reaching heaven takes endurance (Romans 2:6-8) as we live with an understanding of our heavenly citizenship (Philippians 3:12-21).
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” I Peter 2:9-10
Life without God is dark. Left to yourself, you become your own god. That might be “fun” for a while, but it’s ultimately pointless. God gave you life for a reason. The best life you can live is one devoted to your God-given purpose.
