Today, being the first Sunday of the year, we want to look at the mind of God for us in 2021. I have come to bring you out of Egypt and bring you into the Promised Land by impregnating you with the living seed – the Word of God, which is able to lift you out of poverty, sickness, disease, laziness, fear, depression, discouragement and frustration.
Prophet Elijah heard the voice of the Lord. In 1 Kings 17:9-16 God said to Prophet Elijah, “Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.”
2021 is a new season! It is your year of “UNCOMMON FAVOUR” and it is the first day of the best days of your life! And because of the uncommon favour of God upon your life this year, He has positioned and commanded ALL things to work in your favour.
But for you to experience God’s uncommon favour this year, you should have this attitude: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that (1) love God, to them who are (2) the called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28).
Who is a God lover? A God lover is anyone who has received God’s wonderful gift of eternal life and hates evil with passion. God lovers hate evil (Ps. 97:10).
Jesus said, “If you love Me obey My instructions” (Jn. 14:15). Romans 8:28 is the foundation stone of the workings of your destiny. Here are 5 great truths about this promise:
1. It is a definite promise. It says, “And we know….” What you know is important. Paul is saying that we know that every aspect of our lives is in the hand of God, and will be finally used by God not only to manifest His glory, but to work out our own ultimate blessing. We can know that God is completely in control of our lives. But we can’t know the details and what He is up to. God does not let you into the day to day experience.
The Bible says that we can know that all things work together for good according to God’s plan (Rom. 8:28). The more you know about what God has said in His Word about your future, the better you can prepare for whatever comes up in your future.
In most churches today, ignorance has been legitimized. But the truth is that it is what you know that is going to make a difference in your life. Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall MAKE you free” (Jn. 8:32).
2. It is a divine promise. “We know that God works……” (Rom. 8:28). We know that it is God that is involved in all of these. When the God of the universe tells you saying, “This is what I want you to know: I am for you, I am with you, I am working behind the scene for your own good.”
You can fully trust that promise because God fulfils all His promises. “For ALL the promises of God in Him (Christ) are yea, and in Him (Christ) Amen, unto the glory of God by us” (2 Cor. 1:20).
3. It is a definite promise. “And we know that “in all things….” (Rom. 8:28). For instance, God is not saying that it is good for you to break your leg. Rather, this verse is saying that God uses whatever you encounter in life to produce what He knows to be the very best for you.
Please understand that I am not saying that every bad thing is good. All I am saying is that God understands what is going on and He takes whatever happens to you in this world, and He weaves it together into a plan that is for your good and for His glory.
4. It is a dynamic promise. God is working all things together for your good (Rom. 8:28). Here is what happens: God takes the various things that happen to you, works on all together to produce an effect that is far greater than the effects of the sum of the individual components. It is God that causes the synergism to happen. He is the one stirring the mix.
5. It is a defined promise. All things work together for the absolute good of anyone that loves Him (Rom. 8:28). However, this promise does not apply absolutely to everyone.
There is are conditions that must be met before this promise can work for you. Notice that the verse says, “…to those who (1) love God, and to those that are (2) called according to His purpose…” (Rom. 8:28).
a) Those who love God. These are those Born Again believers who obey His instructions to the letter. Romans 8:28 which is a motivation for the New Year is for those that love God.
In Deuteronomy 7:9 God said, “Know therefore, that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations…”
“The Lord preserveth all them that love Him: but all the wicked will He destroy” (Ps. 145:20).
“…Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).
God knows whether you love Him or not. Those that love Him shall receive the crown of life (Jam. 1:12).
b) Those who are called according to His purpose. God calls us to Himself. You are here today because God has called you to Himself. Once you love God He will call you to Himself. God has a purpose for your life.
A question you need to ask yourself is this: Have I come up to the level where I could be called a lover of God?
Here is the truth: The incidents in your life are not co-incidental. God is up to something. He is using your setbacks to advance your spiritual maturity to a place where you could never have reached without them.
Are there examples in the Bible of people that went through terrible times and God used what they went through for their own good? Yes!
A typical example is Joseph: Joseph was thrown into a dry cistern by his brothers. Later his brothers sold him as a slave to the Midianite traders. In Egypt, the Midianite traders sold him to Potiphar. Due to the false accusations against him by Potiphar’s wife, Joseph was thrown into prison for 2 years. Finally he was summoned by Pharaoh to interpret his dreams, and when Joseph gave the correct interpretation, he was released from prison and promoted to serve as the number 2 man in the whole of Egypt.
When Joseph eventually met with his brothers, they were terrified thinking that Joseph will now revenge, but look at what Joseph said to them, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive” (Gen. 50:20).
No matter what was happening to Joseph, God was working behind the scene on his behalf for his own good. What God did for Joseph He will do for you.
In the midst of all the difficulties that the Jews were going through. God said, “For I know the thoughts (plans) that I think toward you, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an EXPECTED end” (Jer. 29:11).
When all the tough things are going on in your life, you may not understand it but you can know with certainty that God is at work, making all things to work together for your good.
Having meditated on these things, I came up with the conclusions that:
1. I am determined to trust God, come what may. God said, “…for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like Me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure: 11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth My counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it” (Isa. 46:9-11).
Here is my question for you: Are you going to trust God this year for whatever you need?
2. I am determined to be grateful. Because when you count your blessings, and name them one by one, it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
God wants to bless us. Yes! That is one thing that comes clear from Romans 8:28, because He worketh all things together for good. So if He wants to bless us, let us be calm trusting Him to do to as He has promised.
Conclusion: God is faithful. God can be trusted. You may not know what is going on but God is doing something behind the scene. You may not understand what is happening to you, but it is part of His plan. At the end of it all you will see that all things have worked together for your own good.
Watch out for the next edition of Good News from the Pulpit!
Your friend, I. I. MADUBUNYI (Head Pastor) Jan. 3rd, 2021
No comments:
Post a Comment