A Life of Purpose
A Life Worth Living • Sermon • Submitted
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Why Am I Here?
Why Am I Here?
That is a question each of us has asked ourselves.
Last week we began our study on what it means to have a life worth living.
In John 10:10, we read that Jesus came to give us a full life.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
A life that is worth living is a life with purpose, power, and passion or conviction.
Today we are looking at what it means to have a life of purpose.
Having a purpose
Having a purpose
It is important to know where we are going in life.
Advisors tell us to make a 10 year plan for our lives.
Our career
Where we will live
Our family situation
These are all good things.
But is a plan the same thing as a purpose?
No.
The plan is what and where you want to go.
The purpose is WHY you do it.
You can make your purpose to be achieving your life plan.
But will that really make you fulfilled in life?
There is a funny characteristic about having a purpose
Have you ever noticed that everything we own has a purpose?
Everything has a primary purpose, with possibly a secondary purpose.
Automobiles exist to provide transportation
They are also designed to appeal to different specific needs and tastes.
Clothing exists to protect the body against nature.
We build houses to give us safe places to live and rest.
The computer in the soundbooth was built to handle several functions, one of which is displaying this sermon that I prepared.
Some things simply serve the purpose of entertaining us or providing decoration.
So here is the funny thing—none of the things we own chose their purpose. Their purpose was determined by their creator.
So if we want to know our purpose, we need to talk to our creator.
The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.
Finding our purpose
Finding our purpose
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Here we can see one of the main purposes that we were created. We are the caretakers of this world. But is that the only reason we exist?
That makes it sound as though God loves this planet, and we were made to take care of it.
But it says that God created us in his image. Let's read more about our creation.
then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.
This passage is one of the few that speaks to me every time I read it.
The entire universe, including the stars, sun, moon, earth, and all the plants and animals were created simply with a spoken word.
But man was not created with simply a spoken word. God knelt on the ground, put his hands in the dust, and shaped us with his own hands. Then he put his lips to the dirt and breathed life into us, giving us souls.
As we read Genesis from chapters 1 to 3, we see that God spent a lot of time with Adam and Eve.
God created us in his image, giving us this earth as a place where he could come and spend time with us.
Our purpose, the reason we exist, is so God would have someone to love and who would love him.
And that is why sin is so horrible. It separates us from a holy God.
That is why the Bible is one story after another of how God worked to deal with the problem of sin so that we could be reunited with him.
We exist to be in relationship with God.
We exist to be in relationship with God.
This is why Solomon wrote in the book of Ecclesiastes that the pursuit of anything else in life is worthless.
The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.
Solomon tried finding meaning in so many things
Hard work
Studying philosophy and living wisely
Seeking pleasure and living foolishly
Doing good deeds and trying to bring social reform
None of these things proved fulfilling to Solomon.
It did not change the fact that there is sin in the world. Nothing he did would last forever.
What did Solomon ultimately decide?
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
In the book of Revelation, in chapter 21, we see the creation of New Heaven and New Earth, where there is no more sin. And what happens?
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.
This is everything that God wants concerning us. He wants to live with us and be with us!
So the only way to find our purpose in life is to be in right relationship with God.
So now we know the general purpose of all mankind. But what about each of us as individuals? What does this purpose mean for me?
Now I know that my purpose is to be in right relationship with God.
I have realized that my sin separates me from God.
I acknowledge that only Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection could pay the price for my sin and bring me into right relationship with God.
Therefore I have asked Jesus to forgive my sin and be the ruler of my life.
What now?
For those of us who are restored to God, we have been given a work to do.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
So as a Christian, our purpose is two parts:
Live in right relationship with God.
Help others come to Jesus so they can be restored to God.
Does this mean that we all are preachers or priests?
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.
Does this mean that we all have to become ordained and stand behind a pulpit? No.
Do not confuse your career choice with your purpose.
There are so many ways that you can fulfill your purpose, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing.
God has made each of us unique, with our own special talents, personalities, and interests.
When I realized God wanted me to be a missionary, I was so excited! He wired me to be a missionary. It is in my DNA. I LOVED serving in Croatia.
And then God called Zenetta, Clara, and me here to Perryville, and we love it.
But even before I was ever a missionary or a pastor, I was using my talents to share the gospel.
I volunteered at a youth center, sang and ministered in prisons and on the streets, and worked in my home church.
I know people who are afraid to fully commit their lives to God because they are afraid he will call them to do something they hate.
I have a dear friend, Michael. He asked Jesus to save him from his sins, but he never fully made Christ his Lord. Why?
Michael is an incredible musician, and he dreamed of traveling with some amazing band.
Michael was afraid that God would not let him live that dream.
We kind of drifted apart for awhile, but then I had a chance to visit with Michael.
He lived his dream.
Traveled with a rock band around the world.
He got to play a couple of his songs on television, and even got to act a small part on a cop show.
What did he have to say about all his experiences?
It's not what I thought it would be.
I'm lonely.
There has to be more to life than this.
Michael lived his dreams, but he never found his purpose.
And the thing is, I am convinced that the purpose God has for Michael would have brought opportunities for Michael to use his talents and interests in a way that far exceeded anything Michael could imagine for himself.
Now let’s get something clear here.
One of Satan's lies is that once we embrace our purpose, everything will go well for us.
I know missionaries and ministers who have gave up and quit because they had troubles when they arrived in their place of ministry.
They decided they must not have really been called by God to do this.
I say that I know I am called by God to be here. Sure there are problems sometimes. But I am not giving up, because I know God called me and my family to be here.
Do you want a life with purpose?
Recognize that you were created to love and honor God.
You are designed to live in a relationship with God, which means communicating with him personally.
You are also instructed by God to tell others and help them come into right relationship with God..
Realize that your talents, skills, interests, and even your personality are useful in glorifying God and sharing the gospel with others.
Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you how to fulfill your purpose where you are right now with what God has already given you.
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
He will also direct your path so that you will continue to fulfill your purpose throughout your life.
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.
Will you still have trouble? Of course. Will you still have times when you are down and everything seems to go wrong? Absolutely. But God created you with a special purpose, and that purpose is eternal. He made you so that he could love you and be loved by you. The God who formed you with his hand, who sent his only Son to die for you, and who created a special purpose just for you, will not abandon you.
You have a purpose.