God's Purpose for You

By Bishop Keith A. Butler

In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.
Ephesians 1:11

Every one of you has a specific purpose that God placed you on this planet for. That purpose of God is not only the reason why you exist, but it should direct your entire life. It should direct every decision you make. It is the founding principle of all.

The word purpose means in this context, the reason for existence. Purpose is the basis for vision. Purpose is the reason for existence. It is the intention. It is the basis for vision. The Bible tells us that without a vision the people perish. The word vision means the execution of purpose. Vision is executing the plan to carry out the purpose.

Therefore, there may be people who have vision, but if they have the wrong purpose, their vision will be skewed. You must first find out what the purpose is before you attach vision to it.

There are two different purposes you face in your life-yours and Gods. There's the purpose you have for yourself, and then, there's God's purpose for you. The difference between the two is that typically your purpose is to please yourself. God's purpose is to enrich and please Him. Whether or not your life is going to then carry out His purpose or yours, or whether or not you're going to have His vision or yours, is going to depend on whether or not you are submitted to God.

In 1 Peter 4:1 says, Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin.

God expects you to carry out His purpose, and not your lust, or men's lust. Of course, we think about lust only in sexual terms, but actually the word lust means an "inordinate desire for." You can, lust after being able to use your talents and your abilities. You can lust after having to praise the men that come with that. You can lust after fame. You can lust after money. You can lust after attention. You can lust after sex. You can lust after all kinds of things. There is absolutely a contradiction between the lust of men and the purpose of God. They don't work together, and, if you're going to be someone who's going to carry out the purposes of God, you're going have to likewise arm yourself. You have to have the same intent as Jesus, and that is, you're going to have to make the decision that your flesh is not going to produce your vision, but rather God's purpose is going to produce your vision, and your flesh is going to carry out God's purpose. And when you do that, your flesh will feel like it's suffering at times.

The suffering in the flesh is not sickness, it is not disease, it's not poverty, it's not like the suffering in the flesh of the same that Jesus had. He already did that. The suffering of the flesh He's talking about, is that your flesh won't be allowed to do what it wants because it is going to follow your Spirit.

Your Spirit inside wants to follow the purpose of God, but your flesh wants to go the other way. The flesh wants to be gratified. When a person makes the decision to have God's purpose manifest in their life, then they have the right to go to God, and God will help them with their emotions, when that's necessary, and He'll help them with their decisions.

Prayer for Today

Father,
I want to follow Your purpose for me and not my own. I have made a decision to have Your purpose to be manifested in my life. In Jesus' name, Amen!

Selah: Think on These Things

• Proverbs 29:18
• Matthew 7:17