Our Destiny: To Stand with Hope in the Freedom of Christ

Our Destiny:   To Stand with Hope in the Freedom of Christ
by Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Galatians 5:1 For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage.
    Freedom is autonomy, independence and the power and authority to make wise choices that will lead us into an abundant life in Jesus Christ.  Many times current situations may cause us to fear the future and to long for the past which we often romanticize through the process of selective memory.  Christ has set us free to leave our past behind, to walk peacefully in the present and to look forward in hope.
    Because of the promises of God, we need not fear the future.  In Jeremiah 29:11, God said,”For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” At that time, God was speaking to the captives in Babylon.  He was speaking to a people whose sin had blinded them to their destiny.  Though they had forgotten the destiny that God had designed for them, God had not forgotten their destiny.  God does not change, and He is no respecter of persons.  What He had in mind for the Babylonian captives, He has in mind for each of us.  God has designed a peaceful future and a  hope for us as well.  In Christ, we have the freedom and the authority to live in the destiny that God has designed for us.
    The Message Bible translates Ephesians 1:4-6, 11-12, “4Long 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. 5Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) 6He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son.. . 11It’s 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, 12part of the overall purpose He is working out in everything and everyone.”
    Because God desires to bestow His lavish love upon us, we must not allow either our past or our present to prevent us from looking forward with hope and expectancy. In Living Your Destiny, Graham Cooke states, “All of the tests you presently face are there to develop you into the person you need to be to live your destiny. Everything you are going through has been aligned by God to forge you into the person He has called you to be. Your destiny is unfolding before your very eyes.
    “When we embrace the idea that God has a plan for us, no issue should be able to stop us. The statement, “This situation will be the death of me,” is completely incorrect. The truth is that this situation will make you into who you are destined to be. God partners with our present situation to prepare us for the future He has designed. He uses every test, every challenge, every hurdle, every issue to sharpen us for what is to come.”
    God’s lavish love transcends the chaotic world around us.  He desires to bless us in our circumstances, through our circumstances and in spite of our circumstances. We are free to rejoice in the Lord because He has good thoughts toward us to give us peace and a future and a hope. God has destined us for Himself.

Gifts of the Spirit

Gifts of the Spirit 
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Ephesians 4:12 reminds us that God has given Christians spiritual gifts to be used for building up the body of Christ.  1 Corinthians 12: 7 confirms this truth: “But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”  If we misuse our spiritual gifts, we cannot fulfill the destiny God has ordained for each of His children.
Judges 16:23-31 relates the story of Samson after he had been captured and blinded by the Philistines.   Samson had misused the gifts that God had given him and had fallen into sexual sin that led him, blinded and humiliated, into slavery. 
         The Holy Spirit had come upon Samson while he was still in his mother’s womb and had endowed him with the gift of leadership to judge (to lead in wisdom)  the nation of Israel.  Samson's gift was to be used for the common good of God's people.   Even though Samson judged Israel well for many years, he became involved in the worldly pursuits of fame and pleasure and betrayed his gift.  The consequence of Samson's betrayal is a warning to all believers.  
         Yet, in spite of the sin in Samson's life, in spite of his broken vows, God answered when Samson, in desperation, called on the name of the Lord.  Because His mercy is greater than our sin, Our Lord strengthened Samson for his final battle against the Philistines.  Samson not only avenged the loss of his sight, he glorified the Lord God in his fight to the death.  
We each have gifts to use for the common good and for the glory of God.  Our gifts enable us to serve one another while we are serving the Lord.  Because each gift is necessary in bringing the Christ’s message to the world, we must be willing to use our gifts and to allow others to use theirs. Ephesians 4:15-16a: “but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 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.”
Heavenly Father, You are the giver of every good and perfect gift.  You have blessed us that we might serve.  We confess that we have often misused and ignored Your gifts not only in ourselves but also in our brothers and sisters in Christ.  We thank You for the mercy of Your forgiveness.   Amen.

I will be teaching a study of "The Harbinger" starting February 28 at Rhema Fellowship, 206 6th Ave. in Torrington,WY at 7:00 p.m. It will be a 13 week study. Purchase a copy of the book and the Companion study guide and join us.)