The Purpose Driven Life

What on Earth am I here for?

By Pastor Samuel Chess 

Ephesians 5:15-17  Be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these evil days.  Don’t act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do.  

I. Why in the World am I here?

    A) The Big Three Questions

            1) Question of Existence: Why am I alive?

            2) Question of Significance: Does my life matter?

            3) Question of Intention: What is my purpose?

     Proverbs 16:4 The Lord has made everything for His own purpose.

  How much of what God made did he make on purpose and is for His purposes.

     Everything!!!   Everything in creation was made with a specific purpose. The fact that we don’t know what all the purposes are does not mean that God doesn’t know.

When God created the universe he made millions of stars occupying an unknown number of galaxies. Yet to him every single molecule is filled with purpose.

     What is absolutely certain is that he did not make mankind purposeless!

Ephesians 1:4    Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Msg

     God made you to love you. He didn’t need to make you.. He wanted to make you!

     You’re here on this earth to be loved by God..... That’s the truth.. not all the truth.

James 1:8 God decided to give us life through the Word of Truth so we might be the most important of all the things he had made.

Paul’s response to Proverbs 16:4

     Col. 1:16  ..Everything got started in him and finds it’s purpose in him. Msg

The purpose of your life is far greater than your personal fulfillment... It’s far greater than your own happiness....You were made by God and you were made for God and you were put here for His purposes! Until we understand that life isn’t going to make sense.

     Eph. 1:11   It is in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are  living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up,  he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of his purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.

II. Three Levels of Life and Living

     A) Survival Level-Many people live their whole life here...

            - Just getting by

            - Just existing, not living

            - Controlled by circumstances

            - Put in their time live for the weekend

            - Survival mode

     B) Success Level- This is the goal we are taught to reach   for...

            - Comfortable living; compared to the rest of the world

            - Wealthy; compared to the rest of the world

            - Possessions, freedom, health, prestige...

            - Successful....... but perhaps not fulfilled.

              In order for this life to make any real sense

              you must reach the next level.

     C) Significance Level-  My individual life matters!

      1) You know the meaning of life-

          that gives you significance.

       2) You know how much you matter to God

            = Significance

       3) You know God’s purposes for your life

            and  you are living them out-

            That’s powerfully significant.

If, in your life, you are simply moving rubble one day, and moving it back the next.. that’s not significant!

Ps. 139:16  You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Each day was recorded in your book. LB

    - You matter so much to God that every detail of your life was recorded in His book before you ever took your first breath.

    -He made you to love you, and he crafted you for a very         specific purpose; that’s how much you matter to God.

III. The Mother of All Purposes for this Life

     A) This life is dress rehearsal for the next! 

Just as you spent 9 months in the womb preparing for 70-90 years of life in this world..

You spend 80 years in this world preparing for millions of years in eternity.

You’re going to spend far more time on the other side of death in eternity than you are on this side. Thomas Brown said that life is but a parenthesis in eternity.

            Eternity (  ) Eternity

            This part of life is temporary...

2 Corinthians 5:1 When this tent we live in- our body here on earth- is torn down, God will have a house in heaven for us to live in, a home He Himself has made, which will last forever. TEV

1 Corinthians 2:9 No mere man has ever seen, heard, or even imagined what wonderful things God has ready for those who love the Lord. LB

   To make the most of your life, you must keep the vision of eternity continually in your mind and the value of it in your heart!

Just as your coming out of the womb marked your birthday here on this planet, your death from this planet should be viewed as your birthday into eternity.

However, notice the baby that does not form well in the womb is in trouble from the moment it enters it’s new life. The preparation process was not adequately completed.

So it is with this parenthesis we call life.

If we wonder through life with our purpose we will have missed the very reason for which God planted us on this earth to start with.

   The greatest tragedy will not be our death; it  will be our aimless life!

Many people’s lives by their own admission is much like a hamster on an exercise wheel. They are accomplishing a great deal. They are getting it done, they are covering the ground,  making it happen.... but when they stop (if they ever do) and look at life from the perspective of how it plays out in eternity, they are caught in the “hamster on the wheel syndrome”

     B) If you want your life to have impact it must become focused!

Light that is diffused has little effect. The more focused light becomes the greater energy it provides. We’ve learned that light, intensely focused will let you cut through steel; the same light unfocused, diffused, won’t even cast enough light for you to see the steel let alone cut it.

Listen to Paul...

Philippians 3:13  I am focusing all my energies on this one thing; forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead I press toward the mark...... NLT

Philippians 3:15 Let us keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us.

Many people spend their lives trying to do something for which they will be remembered when they are gone.

   What ultimately matters is not what others say about your life, but what God says!

   You will not be in heaven two seconds before you cry out: “Why did I place such importance on things that were so temporary? What was I thinking? Why did I waste so much time, energy, and concern on what was not going to last?

IV) Finding our Life Purpose in our Creator

     A) The easiest way to discover the purpose of an invention is to ask it’s inventor!

     1) Only the Creator or His owners manual can reveal what the created was created for.

     2) Col. 1:16  ..Everything got started in him and finds it’s purpose in him. Msg

     3) Rev. 4:11 You created everything and it is for your pleasure that they exist  and were created. NLT

     B) Our First and Greatest Purpose

Matthew 22: 34-38  Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law tested him with this question. Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus replied, Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind.

       1) God says; I created you, I take great pleasure in you, I love you with an infinite love. Here’s the first and most important thing I need you to do....

                        Learn to love me back.

Commercial on TV right now where the girl tells the guy that she loves him. The guy just sits there mute.... Finally, broken hearted the girl gets up and leaves. As she’s walking away the guy finally says... I love you too.    The caption: Timing is everything...

The idea that we would spend this life loving ourselves, being completely self absorbed, self focused and then at death we will enter heaven for an eternity of loving and worshipping God is seriously bad timing.

The greatest task you have in preparing to spend an eternity with God in heaven is to learn to love God back with an intensity and focus that involves all of your heart, all of your soul, all of your mind.

God wants me to love him:

            1) Thoughtfully   - with all my mind

            2) Passionately  - with all of my heart and soul

            3) Practically -  with all of my strength

Roman 12:1 Because of God’s great mercy to us.. Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His service and pleasing to Him. This is the true worship that you should offer. TEV

NEXT  (Our first and greatest purpose)

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