June 9, 2022 GOD’S ULTIMATE PURPOSE FOR US
1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies if Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”
Romans 8:29 “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren;”
We tend to get caught up in the here and now, losing sight of the higher calling of God. The ‘here and now,’ the routines of daily life, and the challenges we face are the arena where God works out the purpose He has for us. If our goal in life is self-fulfillment, or happiness, or riches, or popularity, or even to be known as a great person, we are missing the mark; or if we see God as a heavenly Santa Clause passing out gifts, we have not yet come to understand the plans and purposes of what God is doing in us. God does answer our prayers, and He does care for us-but His ultimate purpose for us is much more than that. God has chosen us and called us as His people for His own possession; we no longer belong to ourselves; we belong to Him! As His people, He is transforming us into the image of His Son, who is holy. You might say that we are ‘diamonds in the rough,’ but we are being polished. His ultimate purpose in us is to make us holy. Being transformed is a work that God is doing in us; at the same time, we have a part to play in the process. Much of scripture is instruction on how we are to live as those who belong to God and how we are to conduct ourselves in the daily routines of life. In the verses above we are told to “cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” We may find ourselves making allowances for our flesh to manifest itself, and allow it to continue in our life. For example, if I find myself being impatient with people, I must not excuse it saying that ‘That is just the way I am;” I must recognize that impatience is not a part of the new person that God has made me, and I must ‘cleanse’ myself of impatience. Simply said, I must stop, or lay aside impatience, and start being patient. It’s just that simple; of course it is the Holy Spirit who give us to power to do so. It is interesting, but we are also to cleanse ourselves from all defilement of spirit. I am not a 100% sure what all this entails, but I think it is referring to things about our personality, or certain thought patterns, or certain ‘vibes’ we put out that need adjusting-or cleansing. I know that our spirit-how we come across and how we relate-is to be being conformed to the image of Christ-and that is where the cleansing process comes in for us. The other action we are called do is to be about “perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” We are to be holy in our thoughts and our conduct; we have been made righteous and now we are to be righteous in all we do. We must dispel the idea that our old sin nature is co-reigning with the Spirit of God in us; our old self has been crucified with Christ, and now we belong to God and He is transforming us into the image of Christ. We can choose to walk according to the Spirit, and not according to the flesh.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”
1 Peter 15-16 “But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”
Blessings, Buddy
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