Day 24

Our Purpose and Mission

In Life? Why Am I Here?

Roger and Eileen Himes

www.ThePracticalGospel.com

Now let’s look at something that gets a lot of press, but like so many other things, usually from ‘an instructor in Christ perspective.’ I don’t hear this topic presented very well from a gospel perspective of finding our mission and purpose in life.

What is it that truly gives credence, motivation and drive to the things in our lives? It’s having a mission and purpose in life. At a well known university, students in the initial psychology course, Psychology 101, were polled as to WHY they were taking the course. Most of them said they were taking it to discover why they were on earth, and what their purpose and mission here might be. The sad thing is Psychology 101 doesn’t even hint about this.

Without the certainty of knowing our mission and purpose on what Buckminster Fuller calls ‘spaceship earth,’ we really don’t have the vision and drive to live life in passion. As Christians, we don’t have what it takes to make us conquerors and overcomers.

All the aspects of life that we pursue so readily come down to this: mission, and a sense of destiny. We want to know we are here for a purpose — that our life will have importance, value and impact. Many can quote God’s words in Jeremiah 29:11: “I know the plans that I have for you: plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.” But just as many don’t know what this means.

Plus, we Christians have this topic clouded more by teaching on the mysterious and hard to discover ‘will of God.’ Some divide God’s will into (1) perfect, (2) preferable, and (3) permitted, or something like this. Like most other things that instructors present, they present the will of God in a very regimented, principle focused fashion. We will close today talking about God’s will from a gospel perspective. Seen with gospel eyes, it will give you revelation and freedom!

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GOSPEL TRUTH #47

Life doesn’t make sense without a sense of purpose and mission. Are we just ‘treading water,’ spiritually speaking? Are we just here as puppets on a string? NO! Are we here as clay in the Potter’s hands? YES! But the latter is a very different concept. The latter implies a divinely imparted purpose, mission and destiny.

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We are here as part of God’s plan. We are here to dream and connect with God, and do what we see our Father doing. To him there is no secular v. spiritual. Life is simply life in any way we live. And I will challenge you with the fact that, in the gospel, God doesn’t really care much HOW we live life — at least 95% of the time. He doesn’t care if we’re a pastor, a lawyer, a contractor or a truck driver. He wants US to have the desires of OUR hearts — once we have submitted ourselves, and come under authority to the desire of HIS heart in our lives — which is the gospel of Christ’s finished work.

A sense of purpose and mission is the SAME for all of us, and yet at the same time, also DIFFERENT for all of us. The gospel is about giving ourselves to God, and entering into his life. This is the supreme desire of God for us. Jesus died a hideous death on the cross to give us the truth and power of the abundant life of the gospel. For us to disregard this, and live life by principles, outside of the process of the gospel — is like taking an AXE to the cross of Christ!

Hebrews 10:9 says Jesus came to do the will of God, and he did his Father’s will by ‘taking away the first, Old Covenant law, and establishing in it’s place the second, New Covenant gospel’ (paraphrased).

Jesus did this historically, by means of the cross. He came, as predicted by thousands of years of history, to live and die to bring us what Paul calls the new dispensation of grace. Peter says that both prophets and angles longed to see the better New Covenant that is given to us. The prophets didn’t understand it, even though they wrote about it.

But we have to do what Jesus did, personally and practically in each of our lives. We do this by believing his finished work, submitting to it, and coming under authority to it. This is living in the process of the gospel. This is entering into the finished work of the cross.

This is coming into the mission, purpose and destiny of God!

This is the part where we are all the same. Each man and woman on the face of the earth, who depends on the finished work of the cross for their salvation, is called to live in this divine mission, purpose and destiny. After this, we are each to ‘work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, knowing that it is GOD working in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure’ (Phil 2:12-13). To reiterate, we are all the same, but at the same time, we are also all different.

In our lives, what we usually try to do is to control events, and other people. This is living in the flesh, in a natural, human dimension. People and events in our life are, most of the time, not controllable by us. All we can do is control our BELIEFS, which then form our mission, purpose and destiny. Beliefs are what guide us. They are what control the people and events in our lives.

Our focus in life is so humanistic: increase pleasure and success, and decrease pain, suffering and sorrow. If we live by principles, sometimes this is all we can see. We can’t see beyond our nose. This is of course born from the forbidden tree: The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This tree defines everything in life as either good or bad.

Of course, this is all founded in SELF: on independence from God: ‘You shall be as God’ (Gen 3:5). Living by The Tree of Knowledge cannot produce a gospel life founded in the process of The Tree of Life. The two are totally opposite and diametrically different. The Tree of Knowledge is about US. The Tree of Life is about GOD.

I give a lot of press to the gospel of the finished work of Christ.
But the gospel is only a revelation of God.
As important as the gospel is, it is only the completion
of Old Testament revelation of a coming King, and his Kingdom.
The gospel is divine revelation of relationship with a Person.
We should not deify the gospel. It reveals God in us.

Our expectation and perception of The Tree of Knowledge focuses us on worldly life, and describes how that life should be — both good and bad. When this life meets our expectations and perceptions, then we think of God as good. But if things don’t measure up, and we don’t have the life we want or think we deserve, then we perceive God as less than good: he doesn’t answer our prayers — he doesn’t seem to care about us.

This causes some of the negative emotions we looked at last time.

It causes us to separate FROM God, rather than separate ourselves TO him, and unto the gospel. Most Christians have ‘a separation theology.’ This theology says that we are all separate and distinct from each other. You are there, and I am here, and God is ‘up there somewhere.’ This is not New Testament reality. The gospel describes a state of unity and oneness — between us and God, and us and each other. Our minds have difficulty processing this. Our 3-D perception is different.

If we think in terms of separation, it is difficult for us to truly establish our purpose and meaning in life. Purpose and meaning must be defined in terms of a child’s vital union with his Daddy. This is impossible to achieve if God is ‘up there somewhere.’

Revelation is divine inspiration. It is how life comes together for us. It allows us to embrace the thoughts and ways of God (Isa 55:8-9). This is available to us by means of gospel truth. To live outside this process short circuits revelation and inspiration, as well as mission and purpose!

We often try to define mission and purpose only in terms of US, and our existence on this planet. Our lives are but a vapor. This life is meant to get us to enter into the plans and purposes of God. It is meant to get us to enter into his dreams and desires. Its goal is to get us to enter into his ways and means. We are told he wants us to prosper here, — AS our soul prospers (III John 2). Our soul only prospers by getting life from the Spirit: The Tree of Life. Our BODY gains nurture from things of the earth. Our SPIRIT gains nurture from God.

We must define our sense of purpose and mission in earthly life in terms of the entire gospel process of eternal life. If we are one with God, he must be the BIGGEST part of any earthly plans we have. He is way outside the realm of Psychology 101, even if it taught about purpose.

Eternal life is knowing him, and how he invades our lives (John 17:3, Phil 3:10). The gospel is the revelation of this divine process in us and through us.

Life is all about HIM: his Zoë life. Love is all about HIM: his agape love. Light is all about HIM: the revelation of his thoughts and ways. We are here for the mission and purpose of becoming ONE WITH HIM! We are here to embrace eternity. Our minds must always be transformed to see things from God’s perspective.

Life is not only a temporary assignment. Life is also a test.

It is a test of our humility, our willingness, and our submissiveness. It is a test of how well we come under authority to the ways, means, and process of God that the gospel reveals. We must let God be the driving force in our lives, and not just rely on our inept ability: “Without me you can do nothing.” HE is the reason for all things. WE are here on earth for his pleasure, friendship, fellowship and relationship.

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GOSPEL TRUTH #48

Purpose and mission are really all about HIM. It’s all about HIS family… HIS kingdom… HIS Son… HIS ways… what HE has done… who HE is in us… the place of HIS gospel truth in us. Our mission and purpose cannot be defined outside of GOD. But as I enter into him and his process, I learn that HE is all about ME! To God, because of his love and grace, — everything is about ME.

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Now let’s talk about the illusive will of God that so many of us find so difficult to get a handle on. What I have discovered is that if we live life in the gospel, at least 95% of the time, God doesn’t have a specific will for us. Life truly is all about US — our desires, our wants, our needs. He doesn’t care if we travel north, south, east, or west. Most of the time, he doesn't care if I stay in Colorado, move to Texas or New York, or become a missionary in India, China or Africa.

He doesn’t care if I’m a lawyer, am a pastor, work at Target, move to Asia, or do anything else. What he cares about is his process in me and through me. By living in his ways and process I am both called and sent because of the gospel, that I believe, obey, live and preach (Rom 10:14-16). He doesn’t care so much what I do or where I do it, because he knows if I am in his process, he can move me anywhere, and cause me to undertake any task. I’m under authority to him because I am ONE with him. I am submitted to him because I know I’m the center of his love. All he wants is what is best for me — all things work for my good.

I simply seek him, his kingdom, and his righteousness (Matt 6:33). It’s not about where I live, or what I do — but WHO I AM IN HIM. If this is my mission and purpose, there is no limit to the whole world of possibilities that open up. The gospel is his process for me to move in union and oneness with him on this earth!