In all wisdom and insight
He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention
which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the
fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things
in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him also we have obtained an
inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all
things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to
hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. In Him, you also, after
listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also
believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given
as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own
possession, to the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1:8b-14).
God always has had a purpose. God made it clear He had a purpose in the Bible’s
first book in Genesis 12:3. Paul confirmed that the divine promise to bless all
families of the earth through Abraham’s descendants was a reference to God’s
intention to send Jesus to be the Christ (Galatians 3:8, 16). In Romans 3:21-26,
this same Paul declared how much God accomplished in Jesus’
sacrifice—righteousness, the power to save gentiles by faith, justification,
grace, redemption, propitiation, a demonstration of God’s righteousness in
pre-Jesus forbearance, and a declaration of God’s justice in mercy.
God has never bumbled along achieving good by accident. God is and always has
been intentional. He intended to achieve in Jesus what He achieved. Long before
Jesus’ birth, God intended for Jesus’ life and death to be the core (the
centerpiece) of every good thing He did and would do for sinful humans.
Healthy congregations are filled with intentional people who surrender to an
intentional God. These Christians are not accidental in the way they live their
lives for Jesus Christ. They serve their Lord Jesus Christ with thought,
planning, reason, and purpose. They understand one of God’s purposes is for
Jesus to be their example!
A person has to be intentional to believe that good is stronger than evil
(Romans 12:21), to pray for his/her enemies (Matthew 5:44), to turn the other
cheek (Matthew 5:39), to understand God’s grace covers all our flaws (Ephesians
2:4-9), and to grasp that God rewards the righteous after physical death (1
Corinthians 15:12-19). Healthy congregations are the result of the members’
faith in God. These God-focused members understand physical life is an
investment in the life that exists after physical death. Physical life is not
about one’s earthly lifestyle, but about life with God—now and in Heaven!
Poverty is no hindrance to God’s blessings! Poverty is not proof of God’s lack
of concern!
To be a healthy congregation, it is not enough to believe God exists! It is only
enough to believe God exists and has objectives! The healthy congregation allows
God to declare His objectives as believers in God adopt His objectives rather
than making our objectives God’s purposes. Our objective: to grasp all God’s
purposes in Jesus Christ.
Link to other Writings of David Chadwell