Experiencing the Power of God
God’s Power is for God’s Purposes – Part VI
Scripture Reading: Philippians 2:12-18
Key Verse: Philippians 2:13
for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
When talking about our purpose in life, we need the assurance of Psalms 138:8:
The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever–
do not forsake the work of your hands.
Most of us believers look back at some of the mistakes we have made and the sins we have committed and wonder if we can carry out God’s purposes in our life.
We may believe that God has forgiven us, but can He still use us as He first intended? The Psalmist David gives us the good news: yes, God fulfills His good purposes in our lives.
David had reasons to doubt this. Consider the mistakes he made and the sins he committed such as adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband. He sought forgiveness with tears and God assured him of His forgiveness.
We also read in Acts 13:22 NLT:
“But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom God said, ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after My own heart. He will do everything I want him to do.’”
Why would God say this about a man who sinned as he did?
The answer for David is the same as it is for all of us… God’s grace. Grace means “unmerited” favor. We receive favor from God that we simply cannot earn. No matter the sin. We all have sinned and came up short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
The Bible tells us that God is active in our lives, starting in our mother’s womb (Psalm139:13).
God saw you in the beginning of your life, sees you during the days of your life, and knows the moment you pass from this life. When God offered you His salvation, He knew every mistake you would make and every sin you would commit. That knowledge did not change God’s faithfulness to love you and fulfill His purpose in your life.
The Apostle Paul confirmed this in his second letter to Timothy:
If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny who He is. (2 Timothy 2:13)
Does this sound as good to you as it does to me? Just knowing that God is faithful even in the face of my failures is something that none of us should ever forget!
The Holy Spirit inspired the Psalmist David to remind us that the Lord will, indeed, fulfill His purposes in and through us. His steadfast love endures forever!
Only remember past mistakes and sins to stay humble before the Lord, praising Him regularly for His longsuffering for us. Beyond this, accept God’s forgiveness and move forward, allowing Him to complete His work and purpose in our lives.
The evil one does his best to throw our past in our face and rob us of our joy in the Lord. We can resist his lies and he will flee from us (James 4:7).
Father, I accept Your Grace and Forgiveness and praise You for it. I claim Your promise that You will complete Your purposes in me. In Jesus’s Name I pray, amen.