CENTRAL THOUGHT
As we remain yielded to the Lord, His glorious plans for our lives unfold like the sunflower at sunrise.
TEXT: JOSHUA 1:1-9
INTRODUCTION:
It is a certainty that the Lord has a good and purposeful plan for all of humanity, but the realization of this plan by the individual requires the cooperation and obedience. The plan is encapsuled in the work of redemption by which the Lord Jesus Christ took the place of the sinful man in an agonizing death on the cross. That sacrificial work is summarized in the all-too-popular verse of the Bible: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son: that whosoever believeth in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). When an individual accepts Christ and repents from the sin, the plan of God embedded in this work of Grace begins to unfold. At first, there is the experience of inner peace and profound joy which overtakes the burden that arises from sin. Then as we continue in a walk of obedience, other aspects of the plan of God begin to unfold. If it is in full-time Christian service, the Lord opens doors of ministry with excellent results. If it is in a profession or career or business, the opportunities come naturally, the Lord providing the required guidance. This is certainly in contrast to the frenzy many believers put themselves into in an attempt to fulfill the plan of God for their lives. This usually arises because we either want to outrun the Lord or out-maneuver others. Knowing the Lord has good plans for us could be the most refreshing thought, which will keep our minds at peace.
LESSON OBJECTIVES
- To know what God’s plan is for the believer.
- To know how God’s plan can be fulfilled in our lives.
- To know the roles of the believer in the fulfillment of God’s plans in his life.
- To know the place of “right timing” in the fulfillment of God’s plan.
- To know how to respond to situations that are seemingly contrary to
the plan of God for our lives.
BIBLE TRUTH:
QUESTION 1) WHAT DOES FULFILLING GOD’S PLAN FOR ONE’S LIFE MEAN?
Each one born into this world has a definite mission to fulfill on this earth. Because our God is omniscient, having a knowledge of our beginning and end, He has perfect knowledge of this mission each one of us is to fulfill. However, because we are finite, having knowledge of the now and a tiny bit of the future which God chooses to reveal to us, our comprehension of God’s plan for our lives is limited. Nevertheless, it is still possible to perfectly fulfill every plan that the Lord has for us. That comes from living a life of obedience-obedience to the Lord and His word. Essentially then, fulfilling God’s plan for one’s life means living in obedience to the Lord. It is important that we understand and appreciate this fact because many erroneously think that being successful (by whatever standard of measurement) in their endeavors is a fulfillment of God’s plan for their lives. One may be a successful businessman but may fall short of fulfilling God’s plan for his life, while one who, in obedience, does a missionary work in some remote lands with few converts may have actually fulfilled the plan of God. Obedience, therefore, is the very essence in fulfilling God’s plans for one’s life. When that exists, then there is a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction in all one’s endeavors, and this will be evident to all at the end of life’s journey.
QUESTION 2) WHO BRINGS TO REALITY THE PLAN OF GOD FOR OUR LIVES?
The plan of God for our lives is divine, and only a divine being can bring it into being. Thus, God is the only one who can bring into reality this divine plan. We need to recall. “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” (Philip.2:13)”. Not by might nor by power, but by the Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” Those who understand and appreciate this important fact that it is God alone who has the power to fulfill His plan in our lives, do always yield themselves to the Lord to work out His purposes. They free themselves of every human and worldly scheme of attempting to achieve a thing. They simply surrender to the Lord who works out His purposes. They know that there is God’s perfect timing for everything, and they would wait patiently for that timing. In the choice of career, they would wait patiently on the Lord; in the choice of a life-partner they are careful not to allow human feelings and outward prospects to rule their hearts.
In contrast, those who do not appreciate this fact run into delusion that everything ends and begins with them. For a while they have the impression that things are working out very well. However, it does not take too long before they are humbled by the Lord. Examples of men and women who think this way abound all about us. Human dictators are known to think this way, but their end usually sends a clear message: “man is not God”. Before you are forced to yield against your will to the Lord, is it not prudent to willingly yield to Him now by accepting Christ as your Lord and Savior?
QUESTION 3) IS THERE ANY ROLE TO BE PLAYED BY THE INDIVIDUAL IN FULFILLING THE PLAN OF GOD FOR HIS LIFE?
There is no work of Grace whose benefit to the individual would not require his input. For instance, the price of redemption has been fully paid, but its benefit to the individual does not come until he has appropriated by faith the work of redemption by the Lord Jesus Christ at calvary. To Joshua, the Lord promised: “I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses…As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you or forsake you”. (Joshua 1:3-5). The role Joshua was to play in fulfillment of this promise came immediately after the promise was given “Be strong and courageous (Josh.1:6); “Observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee (Josh.1:7). Acts of courage and inner strength were expected of Joshua because the Lord promised him of His unfailing presence and guidance. Joshua had no choice but to be courageous. We in contemporary times do not have any choice but to be courageous in all circumstances because of the ever-abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. (John 14:15, Heb.13:5). As with Joshua, obedience to the Word provides the key to fulfilling the plan of God for our lives. We look constantly into that perfect law of liberty and have the compass of our hearts in the right direction.
Using Joseph’s life, we observe an individual who gladly accepted prison as God’s plan for his life, as long as he would not defile himself with Potiphar’s wife. For Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they accepted being thrown into the fiery furnace, provided they did not bow to the image of Nebuchadnezzar. These instances show that obedience to the Lord may not always bring about pleasant experiences, but the individual must go through those experiences in order to have the full package of the plan of God fulfilled in his life. Anyone who short-circuits these unpleasant experiences will never come into full realization of what the Lord has in store for him.
QUESTION 4) WHAT ARE ENTAILED IN THE PLAN OF GOD FOR THE BELIEVER?
The revelation that we have from 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”. -indicates that God has good plans for the believer. This truth cannot be disputed. We are truly the beloved of the Lord, and we occupy a very special place in the heart of God. We need to be extremely excited about this fact during every trial that we may be going through, that God has good plans for us.
That same passage says that God’s plans are to prosper His children. In other words, these plans are to promote our physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional well-being. Prosperity, which is wrongly viewed only in the context of a fat bank account, means wholesomeness in every area of our lives. A fat bank account and a thin or shrunk heart for God is a far cry from prosperity; God’s kind of prosperity uplifts every aspect of the life of the believer.
Those plans give us hope and a future when conditions all about us indicate despair and hopelessness. As believers, our lot is the exact opposite; we have hope of a better tomorrow, and above that, that Christ would one day come to gather us in His presence- it is the blessed hope of the church (Titus2:13). We not only have a hope, but we also have a glorious future. One issue that has taunted humans the most is the thought of the future. The devil knows this, and this is the reason he has many counterfeit avenues by which individuals can find out that the future holds for them. The counterfeits include reading one’s star in the newspaper or magazine, consulting native doctors and sorcerers, etc. These avenues only lead to despair. The believer does not need to fret about the future because the One who holds the future has fully incorporated him unto His plans for the future.
QUESTION 5) IS THERE A PLACE OF CORRECT TIMING IN THE FULFILMENT OF GOD’S PLANS?
Correct timing is very relevant in the fulfilment of God’s plans in one’s life. The life of David is a good example of this. A considerable number of years existed between when David was anointed as King by Samuel (1 Sam.16:13) and when he actually mounted the throne as king. (2 Sam.5:3). During these years, he had two opportunities of eliminating Saul who had mounted a nationwide manhunt for him, but he restrained himself from doing harm to Saul whom he saw as the Lord’s anointed. After Saul spent himself and was killed in battle with the Philistines, the right time came for David to be King. We cannot underestimate the sterling qualities that may have been developed in David during those trying years in the desert and caves. They certainly helped in making him a better and more understanding king.
Moses is another example. He was saved the error of believing that the deliverance of Israel would come by human strength through those trying experiences he had in the desert. It was only after he had been completely devoid of every confidence in self, that the Lord called him out of the burning bush. He certainly was a better leader after those “desert experiences” than he would have been if the call came immediately after he slew an Egyptian whom he buried in the sand.
These examples do shew us the need to wait for God’s time in our walk with Him. We need not be too slow to act when the Lord commands that we act, or too quick to so when He would want us to wait. We must allow Him to lead.
QUESTION 6) HOW DO WE RESPOND TO
SITUATIONS THAT ARE SEEMINGLY CONTRARY TO OUR PERCEIVED PLAN OF GOD FOR OUR LIVES?
The plan of God may not always bring about pleasant circumstances. The life of Joseph vividly brings this truth into focus. The Lord had revealed to Joseph through dreams that he would reign over his brothers, though he was second to the last child. (Gen.37:5-10). It appeared this plan would never materialize with his brothers conspiring and selling him into slavery. As a slave in Potiphar’s house, he maintained his integrity in not yielding his master’s wife’s overtures to him (Gen.39:12-13). A lie was then framed around him by Potiphar’s wife, and that resulted in his imprisonment-apparently further distanced away from the revelation he had through his dreams. But the Lord, in due season, lifted him up from prison to the position of Prime Minister over Egypt, and in that position came the manifestation of God’s plan- his brothers bowed down before him. Taking instruction from the life of Joseph, we need to persevere in all circumstances, trusting the Lord, walking in obedience to His word, never giving room to despair, and pressing on with unwavering faith. May we have this fully settled in our hearts: “DON’T EVER GIVE UP”.
DAILY LIVING APPLICATION:
God’s plans for our lives, which are splendidly good, are revealed to us under varied circumstances-through God’s word, dreams, visions, godly counsel, opportunities, circumstances, etc. We need not be bothered by how His will is revealed but focus more on living in obedience. That guarantees our not straying out of the perfect plan of God for our lives. A life of obedience would cause us to be actively involved in the Body of Christ, serving the brethren in humility, and exercising one’s gifts and talents to the praise of the Lord. As we do this, His glorious plans unfold.
MEMORY VERSE:
PHILIP.2:13
“For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure”.
DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE
MON: Being instructed in the will of God- Psalm 38:8-11. TUE: God’s plans revealed as we whole heartedly trust in Him- Psalm 37:1-5.
WED: God’s plans are not man’s- Isaiah 55:8-11.
THU: Dreams of life- Gen.37:5-10.
FRI: Dreams Fulfilled-Gen.45:1-7.
SAT: God’s plans for success- Joshua 1:1-9.