Living a life of purpose III, Bible Study 01/22/14

Posted on January 23, 2014 by growintheword

 

Living a life of purpose III

Synopsis of Bible Study 01/22/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

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

God put everything in you that you need to fulfill your purpose. Having said this, know that you weren’t born lazy, you just became lazy. You weren’t born trifling, you just became trifling. You have to live then a life that is pleasing to God

Spiritual gifts are God given capacity to Christians to carry out the functions of Christ. When you understand what your spiritual gifts are, this will help you carry out Gods goals, makes you aware of your location or position, helps your decision making, and more. 

You have to find your gift

In order to do this, you have to make an assessment of your life. (NKJV) 1 Corinthians 12:5 says 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. – We have to understand that the body is full of many different gifts and we must also understand that our gifts were given to us by God.  If we be honest, sometimes we ask God why he didn’t give us a gift like the one somebody else has. We have to know that God knows exactly what to give you, because he knows you and he knows your capacity. God knows what we can handle.

Your gift must be developed once it is identified – (NKJV) Romans 12:4-8 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. – One of the things that are fascinating about Paul’s writings is Paul uses anthropomorphic imagery. In other words, Paul uses human anatomy to explain things. Paul says each part of the body effects the others, so each part has to do what it was designed to do. Ex- Ever woke up from a sleep and everything woke up but your foot? It is not that your body can’t move, but because your foot won’t wake up, you aren’t able to move at the pace that you were originally designed to move. Just like this, when you sleep on your gifts, you hinder the whole body. You can’t operate in the way that God intended for you to move. No part of the body is insignificant. There is no part of your own body that you feel is so insignificant enough that you would want it amputated. The same then goes for the Body of Christ.

 (NKJV) 2 Timothy 1:6 says 6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. – We are here today to tell you to stir up the gift! God has given you something to do. Don’t be guilty of hindering the body by no using your gift!

How do we narrow down what our gift is?

  1. Ask what idea, things, places, or people you are most inspired by?
  2. Ask what are you most complimented on in the Body of Christ?
  3. Ask what do you often give to others?
  4. Ask what do others look to you for?

Exploring areas of passion for purpose

No matter if you are the most reserved person in church, you have passion. (NKJV) Luke 12:34 says 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – Another word for heart is passion. If we could snatch your phone and look at your phone log or examine your credit card statement, we could find out what your passions are. Often, a person invests into what they are passionate about.

Passion can be misguided. Every day you wake up, there is a competition in the spirit realm for your passion. Every day you wake up, the spirit realm is petitioning for your passion. In fact, there are lots of drug dealers on the street that could be CEOs of corporations right now. They are passionate people, but darkness has their passion. The devil wants your passion. You got to learn to put your passions towards the things of God. Remember Samson had passion that was misguided and he ended up with a haircut from hell!

When passion in line with purpose, it indicates that your first passion has become God. People whose first passion is not with God are confused at why you are not passionate about them. This is because you are only passionate for people whose first passion is with God too. If you ever let a person become your first passion, then you become one who is easily let down. God never lets us down!

When you discover your passion, you have to ask these questions:

  1. What is it that I love doing (in the spirit) that keeps me up all night long?
  2. What brings me the most joy?
  3. What do I do, when I lose track of time? Note: Video games don’t count!
  4. What is it that I would do even if I am not paid for it?

You can’t burry what God has given to you. There is great treasure in you!

 (NKJV) 2 Corinthians 4:7 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.-  Treasure buried becomes dormant and does not expand. We then must allow treasure to be cultivated by the spirit of God inside of us. We are nothing but a collection of dirt. God says he will put this treasure or gift inside of us and allow this imperfect person to perform that gift (his gift) and that it still comes out perfect. We often miss benefiting from some gifts, because we get caught up in a person’s vessels. Sometimes, we are amazed that God will choose us to do great things through us as flawed as we are. The gifting and the anointing that flows through you confirms that God puts treasure in trash!

How do we nurture this treasure?

  1. Never think of speak negatively about yourself in a way that puts you in disagreement with God.
  2. Meditate on your God given strength and learn to encourage yourself.
  3. Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Know that you are unique. Be who God made you to be. Stop committing people plagiarism. Coby Bryant wasn’t trying to be the next Michael Jordon, he was trying to just be Coby. Understand who God made you to be. God made you to be original. Why are you trying to be someone else? Don’t minimize yourself based on someone else’ gift.
  4. Don’t focus on your limitations.
  5. Find what you like to do, do it well, and strive for excellence.
  6. Have the courage to be different. Don’t be a people pleaser.
  7. Learn to handle criticism. Don’t be so thin skinned. Remember when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended on him and voice came from heave saying “This is my beloved son of whom I am well pleased” The voice of God said he was pleased with Jesus, yet his haters still hated on him! If they hated Jesus after that, what makes you think that people won’t hate on you?
  8. Determine your own worth instead of letting others do it for you. Walk into the room like you supposed be there. Act like you got it, even if you don’t. Walk in confidence!
  9. Keep your shortcomings in perspective. Know that you are still a work in process. – You think God is going to punish you for things you done three years ago? God is not like that. God is a forgiving God.
    1. Focus on your great source of confidence – which is God. (NKJV) Matthew 25:24-30 (read) 24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’

26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.

29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ – Many of us are guilty of sitting on our gifts. How would you feel if your Pastor got up one Sunday morning and said he didn’t feel like preaching and then passed the mic to one of his associates? What if he did this for six weeks straight? You might understand at first, but eventually you would feel a certain way about this. It isn’t because you are hung up on the Pastor, it would be because you would feel that you have been deprived of his gift. After all, you probably joined that church, because of the gift that is flowing through that Pastor. Keeping this in mind, you must know that Pastors feel the same way about its members. When you just attend church and leave and never share your gift, then you are depriving the ministry of your gift. There is something that you are supposed to deposit in the house to bless the Body of Christ.

 

 (NKJV) Ephesians 4:16 says 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.- Every part of the body has a responsibility to do its share. This means if one person has a gift such as an arm and another had a gift such as a hand, then they have to learn to function together. Say another person has a gift such as a mouth. If the body was to go and eat, we are all depending on the mouth gift to work. If the mouth refuses to open and chew, we can’t eat. Aside from that, if we go to eat and the hand and the arm are at odds with each other, then we can’t eat still. We would depend on them to put the food into the mouth. If they are not getting along, it’s not just a spat, its one part of the body hindering the whole body. Same scenario as stumping your little toe. Everything has to be in sink. It is like the left leg and right leg being at odds with each other. If the left leg wants to leave and the right leg don’t won’t to move, then the body can’t move. When gifts don’t want to flow, you put a strain on the whole body. If you get upset at someone in your house and everyone is paying ¼ of the bills, then we are in trouble at rent time. If 3 have to pay for what was designed for 4 to pay, it puts a strain on the remaining 3. It’s not how many you can count, it’s how many you can count on!

Maximizing your gifts

 (NKJV) 1 Peter 4:10 10 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God., (NKJV) 1 Corinthians 12:13-14 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink intoq one Spirit.14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.- God gives you have capacity to handle what he has called you to do.

How do we maximize our gifts?

  1. Got to be faithful in little. Small beginnings lead to bigger things. God wants to know he can trust you with little before giving you a lot.
  2. Be diligent in your gifts. (NKJV) Proverbs 22:29 29 Do you see a man who excels in his work?
    He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men. – You can’t go through seasons of vacillating.
  3. Overcome your failures. You got to pull yourself together and realize that you are a champions. Know that you going to mess up sometimes, but this doesn’t make you a failure.
  4. Avoid procrastination. (NKJV) Proverbs 13:4 4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing;
    But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. – You have to overcome the spirit of procrastination. Do things when they are due. Ex- If you put of answering email, you will have a pile that you can’t answer in a very short time. Do it now!
  5. Seek encouraging surroundings. Surround yourself with people that are encouraging. (NKJV) Proverbs 23:7 7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, But his heart is not with you. – Some people make you want to start drinking, when you’re not a person that drinks. They just simply drain you. Get negativity out of your life!  Say this to yourself, “I am the average of the 5 people I spend the most time with.”
  6. The outcome of your gift must glorify God first. Everyone wants fame and popularity. This is why reality TV has gotten so popular.
  7. Know it is about the grace of God; it is the grace of God that allows us to do what we do. When you walk in purpose, there is a certain grace about it. Somebody will see you take on a crisis and say “Boy you’re a good one”. Ex- Every time you go to pick up your child from the daycare center and see all of the workers working with all those kids, you ought to think it is amazing that they can do this. Most people can’t handle their one kid and these people are handling 20, 30, or 40. This is why God puts into you what you need, in order for you to do what he has called you to do.

 

Ask God to give you the grace to do what you do…

 

 

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Living Life of purpose, Bible Study 1/15/14

Posted on January 16, 2014 by growintheword

Living life of purpose II

“Let nothing hold you back”

Synopsis of Bible Study 01/15/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

There is something that we got here on earth to do. That thing is called purpose. When we are in purpose, we are born, and then we are walking into something God has ordained for our lives.

Purpose is the path towards destiny

Destiny is destination, the end result, arriving at that place! For example, we all want to reach heaven, but we also want to have destiny here on earth too. We don’t just want pie in the sky, we also want ham where I am. We have to learn to walk it out and not allow hindrances to take us out along the way.

When walking in purpose, there are constellation prizes along the way, but don’t be fooled! Wait on the prize!  (NKJV) 2 Timothy 4:8 says 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.- At the end of our journey, we will receive a crown signifying that it is finished. In like manner, we have to make sure we finish our purpose. At end of our journey, we have to know that we have fulfilled what God wanted us to fulfill.

There are days that you lose your zeal. In other words, you get up and don’t feel like doing anything. There has to be something within you that makes you want to move and to work it. (NKJV) 2 Timothy 1:9 says  9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,. – God saved us for purpose and gave us the grace to walk it out.

It takes grace to walk out purpose. Only God can give you this. Know that God will never aim you toward what he didn’t give you grace to walk towards. (NKJV) 2 Peter 1:5 says 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,- When you get in purpose, you don’t just exist, you live.

With life comes precious promises. There are promises God makes to you along the path towards your destiny. Just reflect on what God has shown you. There are promises in your life that reminds you that God is going to do what he said he was going to do. Even scripture reminds us “… that thing he promise you, he will do until the end of time.” Scripture also promises that “… they that wait on the Lord will have their strength renewed if they don’t faint.” These are all promises. When you understand the promises of God, you don’t let things in life detour your form your destiny.

How does this manifest? Ex- Someone gives you $100 to go to Wal-Mart. You can’t cash it there and they tell you that you have to cash it or deposit the money into your account and then come back. See the check is only a promise from the someone that gave it to you. When the check is validated, then it becomes truth. Just like this, we have to take God’s promise and employ our faith to that promise. When we make a faith exchange, we are able to receive the promises of God. We don’t just talk about what God is going to do, we believe it!

What is keeping you from your purpose?

Is it fear, complacency? What is it? It takes a kingdom perspective. The kingdom of God is God’s way of doing things. If it is a kingdom agenda or idea, so we can’t personalize the attacks we are going through. We have to realize that what we are going through is much bigger than us. It is not all about us. Jesus says what has happened to us, has already happened to him. It is about something much larger than we are. It is about then Kingdom perspective.

 God give us benefits. (NKJV) Psalms 68:19 says19 Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Selah – God will give you the wherewithal to achieve what he wants you to achieve. We have to start giving God glory for these benefits!

There is a process

  1. 1.       Based on our experience with him, we ought to have hope. 5 (NKJV) Ephesians 2:5 says 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),- Through salvation, we are saved and have hope. If you look at what you used to do (and some of it was pretty bad), then the Lord saved you. This means God believed in you, when you didn’t believe in yourself! You were saved by this hope. When think about where you should be, then you should be full of hope.
    1. a.       Some say God was at his best at creation of the world. Some say God was at his best when he split the seas. Some say He was at his best with Daniel in the lion’s den. Some would say when Jairus’ daughter was raised from dead, but some can say God was at his best when he saved them!
    2. 2.       Trials are going to come – Once you get that word, it produces hope, and Satan wants that word. Jesus gives a parable of the seed sewer whose seed fell on hard ground, soft ground, thorny, and good ground. The point is, there will be those that will receive the word gladly, but the devil will try to put them through things to make you doubt Gods word. The devil will say things like, “You went to church, but you still broke!” or “You went to church and you’re still sick!”
    3. 3.       You got to hold on to your hope.  (NKJV) Acts 14:22 says 22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”- You got to go through to get to. We wish we could say it will be a trial-less journey, but God wants to know if you will make him look good going through, before you represent him, when you get to.
    4. 4.       You got to continue in faith – This challenge is major decision time. Here is a scripture that keeps Bishop going when he gets weary and feels like he can’t go on.  (NKJV) Hebrews 10:35-36 says 35 Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: – Don’t throw away your confidence! You got this! Don’t throw away this word! Why are you going to throw this word away, just because the devil made you think you are done? Hold to this word! This is your confidence!
    5. 5.       After receiving the will of God, I have to still go to work. – If you don’t do the will of God, you will never receive the will of God. Ex- There was a man in an airport. At the gate, they said they were going to reroute the passengers to Baltimore. This one dude went at it with the Gate Attendant over this reroute decision. While he was doing that, the line was getting longer and longer. The line kept moving while the guy continued to argue. Soon, most of the people in the line were seated on the plane. Finally, the plane took off. The people in the line got on the plane and took off while the guy was still arguing with the gate attendant. The point is, while the guy was arguing, the plane took off and he missed his destination. In like manner, if you sit there with God, complaining that it ain’t fair, you will never get to what God promised you. You can’t go through life bitter, because things didn’t work out like you planned. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, at least you’re moving in the direction of your destiny. (NKJV) Hebrews 12:12 says 12 Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees,– Strengthen your hands! You need start looking like what you are going to. We should be able to look at you and tell where you going. In the world people could look at you and tell you were getting ready to go out. Point is, what you look like, ought to indicate your destination. Ex- Royce and Bishop were in a cold city. They had been out all night at church. The church fed after service and this made them get back to the hotel late. It is real cold! The next morning they got on the plane to come back to Nashville. Even the plane was cold that day. Trying to get back to Nashville, they were sitting wait for the plane to depart and this dude gets on the plane with shorts and flip flops on. The majority of the plane is going to Nashville, so everyone is tripping. What Bishop and the other people didn’t know was this guy was, although they were going to Nashville where it was still cold, this guy was on his way to Ft Lauderdale. This guy wasn’t paying attention to those talking about him, because he refused to let people that were not going to his destination, effect where he was going. In like manner, don’t let your haters, frustrate you from your destination. Keep your destination on your mind.

You got to maintain your zeal.

There are moments you have those days. Sometimes you want to revert back to your Peter days and you want to cut somebody’s ear off! There comes a point where you have to say, who shall separate us from the love of God (NKJV) Romans 8:35 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?- The enemy is trying to separate you from that thing (purpose), so he can separate you from Christ. To give up on your purpose, is to give up on the one who saved you for that purpose.

Remember you are more than a conqueror. The fact we overcome, means that we have already overcome some things!

When you first start off, there are several attacks you will experience.

  1. 1.       1.The initial blow – When God says he is going to do it, he is going to do it! Ex- When a receiver is getting ready to run a route, he may receive an illegal hit. This hit is designed to detour the receiver from running his planned route. He has to shake the illegal hit off and run the route he was chosen to run! To fail to do so, can cause the his purpose to fail.
  2. 2.       When you truly understand with clarity, you see clearly that this is kingdom assignment, and that this is bigger than you, you will then become irritated with people in your life that is not going where you are going. You will begin to wonder why you are carrying around this dead weight.
  3. 3.       You coast- You have little attacks, but they are not major.
  4. 4.       Now you have the major attack- How will you know that you are close to where God wants you to be? This is when the enemy throws the kitchen sink at you! The devil wants to do everything he can to mess you up, because you have survived everything that he has thrown at you so far.
  5. 5.       See it through! –

See it Through

When you’re up against a trouble, Meet it squarely, face to face; Lift your chin and set your shoulders, Plant your feet and take a brace. When it’s vain to try to dodge it, Do the best that you can do; You may fail, but you may conquer, See it through! Black may be the clouds about you And your future may seem grim, But don’t let your nerve desert you; Keep yourself in fighting trim. If the worst is bound to happen, Spite of all that you can do, Running from it will not save you, See it through! Even hope may seem but futile, When with troubles you’re beset, But remember you are facing Just what other men have met. You may fail, but fall still fighting; Don’t give up, whate’er you do; Eyes front, head high to the finish. See it through!

Edgar Albert Guest

 

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Life and Favor – Featuring Minister Royce Mosley & Mt Zion Choir

Posted on January 13, 2014 by growintheword

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Living a life of purpose, Bible Study 01/08/13

Posted on January 11, 2014 by growintheword

Living a life of purpose

Synopsis of Bible Study 01/08/13

Delivered by Bishop Walker

Anchor Text: Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

This is season where everyone wants to know what their purpose is (the new year).

2 keys to purpose

  1. Know that your purpose existed before you got here
  2. Know that your purpose is in the mind of the creator

When God made the world he stepped out onto nothing and made something. The point is God had already purposed the nothing before he stepped out into the nothing and He made it something. We were then created for a purpose.

I . Created for purpose

We have a spiritual birthmark- Genesis 1:26-28 (NKJV) 26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all[a] the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” – We are made in the image of God. God’s personality and DNA has then been placed our lives. This means, people should be able to look at you and know that you belong to  God, just like they are able to look at you and see that you belong to your parents.

You must also take your dominion in the earth. You can’t fulfill purpose without dominion and authority. No matter what happened in your life before you got here, know that you are not an accident. You had nothing to do with how you got here. You were made by God. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. God made sure he prepared us for purpose before he delivered us onto the showroom floor. Ex- Like a Saturn or Nissan car, the parts and components are put together and planned for a specific purpose in mind, before being delivered to the showroom floor. These cars were designed for the purpose of driving. You wouldn’t buy a car without tires or windows on it, would you? Like this, God has madue us for a specific purpose to fulfill and our makeup is designed with purpose in mind. This means we don’t have to add anything to ourselves. We are perfect he way we are. God didn’t put you out and say, “batteries not included!” You are perfect for you purpose.

Jeremiah 1:5 (NKJV) says 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”- God says, you existed before you got here. This doesn’t mean you had a former life. It simply means that you were in the mind of the maker. In other words, you existed. Your existence was on God’s mind. God knew you, because he had you on his mind.

 

If I existed, then I had a choice to exist on the earth or live in the earth. If you just exist on the earth, you are just moving from place to place with no purpose and no kind of life. When you on the other hand live, you do what you were intended to do and live like you are supposed to live. Life (living) is all about purpose. You have to know that when you are in purpose, you will never work another day in your life.

Isaiah 44:22 (NKJV) says 22 I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions,
And like a cloud, your sins. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.” – God was incubating you in eternity. Your 9 months inside your mother really wasn’t your incubation period. God did this before he put you into your mother’s womb. God was orchestrating things before you even got here!

II. Purpose is found in God

Colossians 1:16 (NKJV) 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All  things were created through Him and for Him. – Everything that God created has its purposes in God. Everything God creates, it has a purpose. If we were to ask you “What is the purpose of water?” you could give 50 reasons for this. If we were to ask you “what is the purpose of grass?”, several theories would come up about this too,  but when it comes to knowing our purpose, we can’t name it. Isn’t that interesting?

When you understand purpose, then you know that God aims you towards something. In otherwords, there is that amazing thing God wants you to do. It is out there! The question is then raised, “How do we know it is out there?”

We know it is out there, because:

a. It is not free from persecution – Persecution is the devils attempt not to let what God has in you, come to fruition. You got to then not whine over your persecution. You got to know that if you are going through persecution, then the devil must be nervous about what God has for your life! What is it, that is inside of you, that makes the devil so nervous?

When you walk in purpose, you can’t be nervous. You got to just walk in it.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (NKJV) 8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— – Persecutions come to children of God, but we don’t respond to it. We don’t allow ourselves to be broken. We know that what’s in us us is greater than what is after us and what is happening to us. We have to the a blessed assurance.

III. We have blessed assurance

John 16:33 (NKJV) 33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will[a] have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”- You don’t have to worry about whats coming, because Jesus has already over come it. The devil is already defeated. Look at the things you have already over come. Jesus died at Calvary and over come it, so you have to know that since there is nothing greater than Calvary, you can overcome it! Ex- When a boxer knocks out another boxer, the crowd doesn’t ask you to go and knock them out again. Why is this? It is because the opponent has already been defeated! Just like this, years ago, Jesus already overcome the devil. Why then would he do it again? The devil is already been defeated!

IV. There is power in purpose

The people you hang around can speak a lot about your purpose. Everything God created, besides us, has an 8th sense about boundaries that could potentially kill them. Ex-A gazelle never goes up to lions, because the gazelle knows it could be lunch. The rodent doesn’t goes up to the rattlesnake, because he knows he would be lunch. The antelope doesn’t go up to the crocodile, because he knows it could be lunch. Everything God creates respects boundaries between life and death, except us. God’s greatest creation (us) will come close to stuff that could potentially kill us, because we are so intrigued. We are like a deer running up to a lion with onlookers trying to warn us by yelling, noooo!

Isn’t it amazing the curiosity we have! The more dangerous it is, the more intrigued we become!

Your purpose will be truncated with repeating this flirt with danger.

Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV) says

1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper. – Planted by anointing that is flowing, it will be growing. – In this season, God don’t want you with stuff that will make you wither away. You ought 2014 to be the year that you prosper.

V. Fulfilling purpose, pleases God

Matthew 3:17 (NKJV) – 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”- You have to be in the right place at the right time. Lots of times we miss a blessing, because we are not in the right place. Ex – The palm tree is a beautiful thing, but who plants a palm tree in Connecticut? This would be a good thing in a bad place. If you are not positioned where God wants you to be, you will not grow.

Timing is is everything concerning your purpose. Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV) says 3 To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: John 2:4 (NKJV)  says 4 Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”- Jesus knew when it was his time to walk in purpose. Galatians 3:4 (NKJV) 4 Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?- Jesus knew which season he needed to come. Everything that happens in purpose has to happen in a specific time. We can’t be premature or too late! When you are premature, people can not receive your purpose or your vision, and as a result, you disengage, but this is not God’s fault! Others don’t move when God says to move and as a they miss it their blessing. Ex- Bishop explains that he went to his publisher and told them that he needed his book to come out at a certain time. The publishers explained that this would be impossble to do, because it atleast takes 12 months to write a book. The publishers explained that in order for this to happen, he would have to write the book in 6 mths. Bishop buckled down and wrote the book in 6mths, because he knew the importance of timing. This book had to come out at the time that God had designed it to come out.

There was a specific timing in the way God created things. God didn’t create the cow before the grass for instance. When God moves on your behalf, it has to be the right time. Get ahead of God if you want and see what happens. Wait for your time. It is all about timing. God is rearranging and setting the stage for you, so don’t get there before he’s ready for you. God is fighting battles for you before you get there.

Our purpose then manifests in certain time. Ex – Old HB and Antioch location (of Mt Zion) both were built in God’s timing.  Its growth and success is the result of this.

VI. Fulfilling purpose is for the glory for God

Isaiah 43:6 says  (NKJV) – 6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’
Bring My sons from afar, And My daughters from the ends of the earth— – Everything thing you do is for the glory of God!

a. Our life has to be devoted to God – Everything I do is fruitful. Proverbs 11:28 (NKJV) 28 He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like foliage.- I want to flourish in everything that I do!

Our life purpose involves growing in character- Gal 5 talks about the fruits of the spirit. You can be a gifted person in purpose, but it will not manifest if you don’t have the character to sustain it! The problem for some people is you are too mean. Ex – You can be the best Barber, Baker, or Store Owner there is , but if you got a nasty attitude, it will kill your purpose. Ex- People often asks how Mt Zion has grown so much and though Bishop has given many different reasons for our success, at the end of the day, Bishop feels it is because he is a down to earth Pastor. If you just ask God to help you with your social skills, it will often make the difference in all that you do.

Remember no matter how gifted you are, if you don’t have the “fruits of the spirit”, you will not prosper!

VII.Purpose draw us close to God

It ain’t just about stuff, it is more important than that. You think your purpose is about chasing the dollar bill, but you got to know that you never depend on money for purpose.

Philippians 3:7-10 (NKJV) 7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know – Paul says if I loss all this stuff, it doesn’t compare to my knowledge and relationship with Jesus Christ. This keeps you from loosing your mind. Paul says simply, “I don’t need stuff” to make me happy!

7 things to remember about purpose

  1. There is a problem – When God engages us in purpose, there is problem that has to be solved. For example, there is a problem called cancer and somebody in jail has the cure for it. That problem therefore still exists, because that somebody missed their purpose. Somebody will eventually come into the earth just to solve this problem. Polio is an example of a problem that people thought couldn’t be solved, but eventually, God sent somebody that solved that problem.
  2. God works by his providence – God brought your mother and father together. He needed your father and mothers genes to come together to make you and so you could solve a problem. Ex- Bishop explains that his Dad is 84 yrs old. Not only does he not look it,  he in addition has an abundance of energy. He is always doing something. God gave Bishop Walker his Dad’s energy and his Moms kind, nurturing, and caring spirit. Both of his parents were needed to make a Bishop Walker who would solve a problem. As an answer to a problem, God sent Bishop to Pastor Mt Zion.
  3. Predestined – You are predestined. When you were conceived, you were predestined towards a thing. In the spirit realm, the devil even knew why you were born. In the spirit realm, your conception was made aware even to the angels. How is this proven? Elizabeth looked at Mary and said to her, “you’re pregnant. What you going to name the baby?” and Mary said, Jesus. When she said this, John, Elizabeth’s unborn leaped in the womb. You were born, grew up, and it turned into passion. This is an example of being predestined.
  4. Passion -Passion drives you for purpose.
  5. Preparation – This makes you the best in your purpose.
  6. Persecution – During preparation, this is when you will experience your greatest persecution. Satan wants to make you drop out during your prepartion period so your purpose will never come to pass.
  7. Produce– When you endure the persecution, your will reproduce. That thing God placed in you, he will complete. There is some big stuff that is about to jump of in your life!

 

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