What God Has Saved Us For
One lovely moonlit night a grandfather and his small granddaughter went for a walk. The stars were magnificent. As the grandfather named individual stars and constellations, the granddaughter exclaimed, “Grandpa, if the bottom side of Heaven is this beautiful, just think how wonderful the top side must be.”
Heaven is definitely beyond our comprehension and every person who has yielded to God by faith is going there to be with Him. In the last blog, I wrote about the doctrine of hell and what God has saved us from if we yield to Him by faith. I want to write about what God has saved us for. The first thing He has saved us for is:
- Purpose – If you are reading this article, then you have purpose. Purpose means the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists. Thomas Carlyle said, “A man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder–a waif, a nothing, a no man. Have a purpose in life, and, having it, throw such strength of mind and muscle into your work as God has given you.” God has called you as sure as He has called Jeremiah mentioned in Jeremiah 1:8, “”Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” You are not an accident or a mistake. You have been appointed to be a representative of God. Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” His purpose is what lasts. God has created you with a purpose in mind. Don’t compare your life with others. God has a special purpose for you.
- Potential – Deion “Prime Time” Sanders, outfielder for the Atlanta Braves and cornerback for the Atlanta Falcons, is the only athlete to have hit a Major League home run and scored an NFL touchdown in the same week. Sanders grew up on the mean streets of Fort Myers, Fla., where exposure to some would-be athletes spurred him to make a success of himself. He explains: “I call them Idas. ‘If I’da done this, I’d be making three million today…If I’da practiced a little harder, I’d be a superstar.’ They were as fast as me when they were kids, but instead of working for their dreams they chose drugs and a life of street corners. When I was young, I had practice; my friends who didn’t went straight to the streets and never left. That moment after school is the moment we need to grab. We don’t need any more Idas.” The Omni-Potent God who lives in you can help you fulfill your potential. There’s nothing too hard for God. If you understand God is in control of your purpose then you can allow Him to work in you and through you.
- Power – When J. Wilbur Chapman was in London, he had an opportunity to meet General Booth, who at that time was past eighty years of age. Dr. Chapman listened reverently as the old general spoke of the trials and the conflicts and the victories. Then the American evangelist asked the general if he would disclose his secret for success. “He hesitated a second,” Dr. Chapman said, “and I saw the tears come into his eyes and steal down his cheeks, and then he said, ‘I will tell you the secret. God has had all there was of me. There have been men with greater brains than I, men with greater opportunities; but from the day I got the poor of London on my heart, and a vision of what Jesus Christ could do with the poor of London, I made up my mind that God would have all of William Booth there was. And if there is anything of power in the Salvation Army today, it is because God has all the adoration of my heart, all the power of my will, and all the influence of my life.’” Dr. Chapman said he went away from that meeting with General Booth knowing that, “the greatness of a man’s power is the measure of surrender.”
If you will surrender to the fact that God is your Creator, Redeemer and Planner of your life then you will live with purpose and potential that you could never muster on your own.