God has a Blessed and Distinctive Plan for Our Lives

 

 

When we aren’t assured that God has a blessed plan for our life, we are burdened and become stressed control-freaks. Therefore, Jesus asks:

Matthew 6:27 “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”

We cannot find in ourselves the rest and peace for which we long. This attempt will only increase our stress. Peace can only be found in the omnipotent One who loves us and proved it by dying for us:

Matthew 11:28–30 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

This is why we need to know that God has a distinctive plan for each of us. He even has a plan for the nations:

For Israel: Jeremiah 29:11–14 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

And even for the other nations:  Acts 17:26–27 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.

Our Lord tells us that we belong to Him. If we are His (Isaiah 43:1; Galatians 2:20), we gradually learn that He will take care of us and has a distinctive and blessed plan each one. Consequently, we no longer have to be in control. We can leave the driving to Him:

Romans 8:28  And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Philippians 1:6  And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 

But does He care about the little things that matter to us and can cause us so much stress?

Matthew 10:29–31 “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

As long as He remains our #1 concern, we can be assured that our foot-steps are His and that we are living out His blessed plan for us:

Proverbs 16:9  The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

Psalm 37:23  The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way.

Proverbs 19:21  Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.

In this assured knowledge we find peace. Knowing that the Lord loves us, we can gladly  turn over our lives to His control and follow His Words:

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

He also promises to fulfill His plan including the length of our lives:

Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

Psalm 139:16  Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

Psalm 138:8  The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.

Consequently, I need not worry whether I will succeed or whether I have what it takes to do the job to which He calls me. Instead, I can rejoice in His love, protection and guidance:

Psalm 37:23-24 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand.

 

 He will embrace us for all eternity”

1 Corinthians 2:9  But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”

 

 2 Corinthians 4:16–18 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

 

With this growing assurance, Christ becomes our life’s purpose and joy as Paul had proclaimed:

Acts 20:24 “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”

 

The Psalmist Asaph had been tormented by what he observed. The unrighteous were thriving as he continued to struggle, but the Lord opened his understanding to His enduring love:

Psalm 73:26–28 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.

 

Christ has also become my refuge and comforter. Therefore, my greatest joy and hope is to grow closer to Him as I reside within His grasp.

 

 

 

 

Simon the Magician and His Beliefs

  There is always a cost when we believe wrongly. For example, “I deserve to be blessed.” Instead, God will humble the proud, like Simon the magician who had “believed”:

Acts 8:18-24 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”

 

What an indictment of Simon’s mistaken belief! What comes out of our mouth is an indication of what is in our heart. It is our delusional, narcissistic self-righteousness that underlies our belief that we are able to purchase or earn anything good from God? Instead, our Savior wants us to know that His mercy is His gift to us. Our belief in our righteousness and entitlement results in our alienation from the truth about ourselves and even from others including Christ. How does this happen? By placing out inflated self-esteem and our pleasures above God and His will:

 

Ephesians 4:17–19 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.

 

It starts with our hardened heart and will. According to Jesus, when we are centered on our own desires rather than God’s, we will love the darkness of self-deceit over the light of God’s truth. Consequently, we suppress any truthful thoughts that might interfere with our self-serving agenda, like the knowledge of God’s judgment upon us (Romans 1:32):

 

John 3:19–20 “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.”

 

Our love of the darkness enables us to pursue our desires without the exposing and inhibiting light of Christ’s truth. Consequently, our love of the comforting darkness will determine the ultimate fate as it had with the grandson of Herod “the great” who apparently hungered for increasingly greater positive affirmations.

 

He had been visited by an entourage of diplomats from Phoenicia who needed to buy grain from Israel and the reluctant Herod, but they understood how to win Herod over:

 

Acts 12:21–23 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.

 

Herod’s fate might appear to be an extreme example of the fate of all Who have devoted themselves to the lie and have hated the painful light of truth. However, it seems that perhaps all the kings of Judah and Israel (except for the kings of northern Israel who had been following an idolatrous religion) had been faithful to God until pride, self-deceit, success, money, and women got the best of them so that they proudly began to turn away from God. King Uzziah of Judah was the typical example of this. He was appointed king at the age of 16:

 

2 Chronicles 26:4–5 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God, and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.

 

2 Chronicles 26:16–19 But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the LORD his God and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. But Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the LORD who were men of valor, and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the LORD God.” Then Uzziah was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests in the house of the LORD, by the altar of incense.

 

If we are honest with ourselves, we know that we are all susceptible to these temptations but deceive ourselves that we are above these, especially when it comes to self-glorification and trusting in ourselves:

 

1 Corinthians 10:12 anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

 

Temptations often come in incremental steps. Love of the comforting darkness often comes in the disguise of self-trust instead of God-trust:

 

Proverbs 3:5–8 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.

 

How does God reverse self-trust, arrogance, self-righteousness, and the blinding pride? He prunes us back (John 15:4:1-2). Inevitably, this process will be painful—no pain , no gain:

 

2 Corinthians 4:8-11 “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

 

Must we be continually humbled? Even Paul, who had been greatly humbled through the hardships he had to endure required additional humbling to keep him from pride because of the many revelations he had been receiving. Therefore, God allowed him to be afflicted by Satan. Paul prayed for deliverance, but God refused to heal him:

2 Corinthians 12:8–10 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

 

Blessings come to the humble. Therefore he even boasted in his afflictions to affirm that they are blessings in disguise. Jesus’ Beatitudes also highlight the necessity for humility:

 

Matthew 5:3–5 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

 

Without the discipline, the painful pruning of the Lord, we are sure to go the way of Herod and Uzziah: Hebrews 12:5–6  And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

 

James 1:2–4 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

 

Consequently we should regard our humbling hardships as a gift!  Instead, if we choose the darkness of self-deceit, we are self-condemned:

 

Revelation 6:15–17 Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath.

 

Why is the face of Christ so terrifying? Is it possible that, instead of suffering from a low self-esteem, we suffer from a narcissistic addiction to a high self-esteem, which requires constant feeding and dreads exposure to the light of Christ? Is the final judgment a self-condemnation, the ultimate escape from the light, the truth about our need for the One we hate! Perhaps we too are Simon and believe that our “goodness,” money, or accomplishments entitle us?

God’s Work on King Nebuchadnezzar

 

 

  

 

Our beliefs determine our attitudes, behaviors, and even how we treat others. King Nebuchadnezzar had a disturbing dream. He called upon the Israelite Daniel to interpret it for him. It turned out to be bad news. The king would go crazy for seven years and would become convinced that he was a cow:

 

Daniel 4:24–26 “It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed (returned)  to you from the time that you know that Heaven rules.”

 

This was all about knowing that God ruled and not the king:

 

Daniel 4:29–32 At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and the king answered and said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox…

 

We love to think highly of ourselves. It feels good. However, it is perhaps the greatest of all addictions. We are always need of more positive affirmations, increasingly so! Psychotherapy capitalizes on this lustful addiction. Its governing light is “unconditional positive regard”(UPR). This requires the therapist to continually serve up positive affirmations to her client. Of course, this drug will encourage clients to feel good about themselves and to come back for more. However, their product is not fundamentally about truth (self-knowledge) but a drug to enable them to feel good about themselves, even though this lust is insatiable. It is a religion that sells, even at an exorbitant price.

During my undergraduate degree in social work, I did my fieldwork at a community mental health center. I got to sit in on therapy sessions and also on briefing sessions during which the therapists would discuss their cases. I was stunned by the differing mood and perspective between the two meetings. During the therapy sessions, UPR reigned supreme in direct contrast to the briefing sessions where laughter, sometimes directed at their clients, often prevailed. One therapist asked, “Do your find that our techniques are effective at home with our wives?”  They all laughed in agreement that they did not work. I found this quite revealing. What then does work?

 

Daniel 4:34–36 At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?” At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me…for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

 

Nebuchadnezzar was grateful to be humbled and his eyes opened to the truth—God reigned and not the king. He even proclaimed that we are accounted as nothing, a mere helpless speck in the universe. Jesus often echoed the same message: John15:5 “apart from me you can do nothing.” We find this same message throughout the Scriptures:

 

2 Corinthians 3:5–6 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant…

 

Isaiah 40:17, 22-23 All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness…It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.

 

Galatians 6:3 For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

 

Was the Apostle Paul self-confident? 1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.

 

Consequently, we give thanks even for our fruitful labors. Jesus therefore taught that boasting was not only inappropriate but also harmful:

 

Luke 18:9–14 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

 

In Jesus’ estimation the “sinner” had been humbled and self-aware of his need. Consequently, he was positioned to receive Jesus’ blessings. How do we humble ourselves? We can’t! It’s just too painful. God must do the heavy lifting”:

 

2 Corinthians 4:8–11 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

 

While we Christians long to be Christ-like, we are often not prepared for the price we will have to pay. The Apostle Paul would have to suffer through many humbling experiences to become the man that our Lord requires:

 

Acts 9:15–16 But the Lord said to him [Annanias], “Go, for he [Paul] is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

 

Because of the many revelations he had experienced and the temptation to boast about them, God allowed Satan to afflict him with a “thorn in his flesh,” and He even refused to heal him:

 

2 Corinthians 12:9–10 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

 

Interestingly, there is great strength and wisdom in humility as we also find in a Roman commander:

 

Matthew 8:8–10 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.”

 

By today’s standards, to regard ourselves as “unworthy” is to appear to have a serious mental disorder. Instead, today’s “wisdom” requires us to grow in self-esteem and to regard suffering as a curse to be rejected. This “wisdom” fails to find anything beneficial in suffering and weakness:

 

Romans 5:3–4 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…

 

In contrast, market-driven psychotherapy regards suffering and humility as a curse. Its very promise of “wellness” is pitted against the belief that these are beneficial and necessary for growth and self-awareness.

 

 

 

 

 

A Defense of Christian Zionism

Zionism is no more than the belief that the Jews have a right to live in peace in their homeland like any other nation. Christian Zionists (CZs) would agree with this. However, some are wrongly claiming that they are violating the Bible. However, the Bible teaches the very opposite thing:

 

·       God promised the land to Abraham and the Israelites:  Genesis 17:8 “And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” Therefore, to hate Israel and to want to see it destroyed is to hate God and His eternal plan for Israel.

 

·       Even though the majority of Jews have been unfaithful to their God, He remains faithful: Romans 3:3 What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? (Certainly not!)

 

·       To harm Israel is to harm His chosen people: Deuteronomy 32:43 “Rejoice with him, O heavens; bow down to him, all gods, for he avenges the blood of his children and takes vengeance on his adversaries. He repays those who hate him and cleanses his people’s land.”

 

·       We are to pray for the peace of Israel: Psalm 122:6–9 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you! Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!” For my brothers and companions’ sake I will say, “Peace be within you!” For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good. (To claim that there is something wrong with this is to oppose God’s Word.)

 

·       Even though in rebellion against God, they remain God's people: Romans 11:25–29 “Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”; “and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” (It is mis-representing God to claim that He is finished with His Chosen people.)

 

·       God will not always be angry with His Chosen People: Psalm 85:1–3 LORD, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.

 

·       Those who bless Israel shall be blessed: Numbers 24:9 “Blessed are those who bless you, and cursed are those who curse you.” (CZs seek to align with God’s plans for Israel.) 

·       God talks this way about no other people group. To love God is to love Israel: Jeremiah 31:3–4 …”I [God] have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel!” (We should rejoice in the faithfulness of God and not complain against it.)

 

·       Jesus and all the Apostles had been Jews. Consequently, we are indebted to the Jewish people, with whom we will one day be one.

 

·       Christians are Israel's best and perhaps only friends. Israel needs our support. Why then are others trying to interfere with this relationship?

 

There are also numerous non-Biblical reasons to favor CZ:

 

·       Genocide is a continuing reality for this sign-people. Shouldn't we be concerned? It is the just thing to do. Israel is the only nation in the world whose very existence is challenged. Wouldn’t we be outraged by a worldwide movement to destroy Zambia?

 

·       The world is against Israel. The UN has censured Israel twice as many times as it has censured all the other nations put together.

 

·       Israel is an important ally of the USA. Israel supplies our country with intelligence and innovations. It is also the only democracy in their corner of the world, one that also shares Western values.

 

·       God had made an enduring promise to Israel about the land they now occupy. This promise is supported by the fact that the UN had voted to partition the land, thereby providing the Jewish state of Israel a legal and consensual foundation.

 

Christians who hate Jews and oppose Israel’s right to exist fail to realize that they have allied themselves with Satan:

 

Revelation 12:13–17  NLT “When the dragon [Satan] realized that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman [Israel] who had given birth to the male child [Jesus]. But she was given two wings like those of a great eagle so she could fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness. There she would be cared for and protected from the dragon for a time, time, and half a time. Then the dragon tried to drown the woman with a flood of water that flowed from his mouth. But the earth helped her by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that gushed out from the mouth of the dragon. And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus.

Jews and Christians have a common destiny, and, as God’s peoples, both are hated by Satan.