New Episodes every Thursday morning at 8:00 a.m. (Eastern)
Helping men and women find hope, help, healing, restoration and redemption
leading to lasting victory over sexual addiction through a growing, vibrant, powerful relationship with Christ.
Episode #55 "Purposefully Purposeful"
Transcript
Have you ever sat there wondering why you do what you do? Have you ever asked yourself where your life is going? The job seems to have stalled; you've been passed up time and again for that promotion. Or your day consists of meaningless tasks only to be repeated day in and day out. Where’s the excitement? Where’s the challenge? Where’s the fun in life? “There's got to be more to life than this, right?” The answer is a resounding “YES!”
Welcome to The Point of Purity Podcast. I’m your host, Steve Etner, Author, National Speaker, and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry. This is episode #55, and in this episode, we will take a deep dive into the Scriptures to discover not only our purpose in life, but how to successfully and effectively live out that purpose every day of our life. So, let’s talk about how to be Purposely Purposeful in Our Purpose!
INTRODUCTION
The book of Ecclesiastes tells the story of a man named Solomon, who embarks on this massive quest to find purpose and meaning to life. He tries to find it in money, possessions, relationships, and pleasures- the whole gambit. Yet, no matter how hard he tries, how much money he puts into the bank, how many things he accumulates, or how many friends he made, or how many different types of pleasures he pursued, he could not find the true meaning to life through any of those possessions or activities. In fact, at one point in his search he said, “I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; All of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind” (Ecclesiastes 1: 14). Later he states, “When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; Nothing was gained under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:11). Can you relate?
At the end of this search, it began to dawn on him that he had been looking in all the wrong places. He had put the emphasis upon king me. He then makes this one, final, powerful declaration, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12: 13) This is what Solomon was saying, “I've searched long and hard, far and wide, dedicating my entire life to find meaning and purpose to this life and I've come to a conclusion: meaning and purpose to life is found only when I focus my entire being around glorifying God.”
That affirmation is just as true for us today as it was for Solomon. We were created for one purpose alone: to know God and live a godly life that brings honor and glory to him in everything we think, say, and do. God tells us in Isaiah 43:7 that He created us for His glory. Did you catch that? You were designed by God to glorify Him! We are commanded in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Quick question here: how much of your life is to glorify God? Answer: all of it. And never forget that “all” means all and that’s all “all” means! Colossians 3:17 says, “whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Everything is to be said and everything is to be done in a way that brings God all the glory.
Scripture couldn't be clearer. A life lived in pursuit of bringing glory to God and pleasing him will always be characterized by godliness. When you walk in humble obedience to God, bringing glory to your Father, Savior, and Friend- as you were created to do - you are fulfilling your purpose and that is when you will find lasting joy, peace, and meaning in life!
I will quickly be the first to admit that this is easier said than done. The question you must face here is this: do you truly want to live a life that consistently glorifies God? I mean, deep down in your heart of hearts do you want, long, desire, or crave for a life that is characterized by godliness?
Let's assume, for the moment, that your answer is, “Yes! I want to live a life that in every way reflects God. I want to daily be, think, do, say, and feel in the ways God wants me to.” My question for you then is this: what are you doing right now to achieve that goal? What plan of action do you have in place right now to pursue that purpose? And whom have you asked to hold you accountable? As the saying goes, there's no better time than the present!
So, I am going to work off the assumption you want to be godly. But consider this: simply wanting something is not going to make it happen. For example, I want to be 20 pounds lighter, but unless I change my daily life habits and consistently adhere to a specific diet and exercise program, losing that weight is not going to happen. In fact, if I'm not careful, just the opposite could happen.
I want to be a godly man, but unless I make some spiritual lifestyle changes and adhere to a specific spiritual “diet an exercise program,” it will not happen. To be godly certainly begins with a strong desire for it, but you must also have a plan and actually put that plan into motion. So again, I ask you, what are you doing right now to pursue godliness?
We must understand that godliness does not automatically happen for the Christian. The moment you were saved you did not become instantly godly. Nor does godliness come easy. Take a close, hard look at your spiritual life to date. Have you periodically tried to be godly only to find that you failed in your attempts? Why do we seldom succeed even when our desires are genuine, and our efforts are sincere? After all, we want to do the right thing. We want to glorify God in our daily life, yet we tend to fall short of our goal.
BLOOD, SWEAT AND YEARS
In our household, we like watching the Olympics. Whether it’s the Summer or Winter Olympics, it really doesn’t matter as long as we can watch those athletes compete. I enjoy seeing the competitors doing things that I could only dream of doing. I can only imagine what it would be like to glide effortlessly across the ice or soar through the air after zipping down an ice-covered hill at break-neck speeds.
I guarantee you that not one of those athletes who stand on the winner’s podium, no matter their sport or discipline, age, gender, or country of origin, woke up one day and said on a whim, “Hey, I wanna go compete in the Olympics!” They didn’t suddenly contact the airlines, buy a plane ticket, hop the next jet over to the Olympic venue, and stand in line to compete.
Before they ever placed a foot on those starting blocks, before they ever stepped up on to the springboard to swim the 100 meters, before they ever flew over the uneven bars, and before they ever did a triple lutz or a quad, they began their journey to the Olympics with an intensive, intentional training program. They shed blood, they sweat buckets, and it took them years to achieve their goal.
In the same way, we are to train ourselves to be godly. To do so, we need to do more than just occasionally read our Bible; more than just go to church every Sunday, singing the songs, putting our tithe in the offering plate, and listening to a good sermon. We need to daily …
- exercise our faith (Hebrews 11:6),
- wear our spiritual armor (Ephesians 6:10-17),
- maintain a humble spirit (James 4:6),
- keep our heart pure (Matthew 5:8),
- focus our hope in Christ (Romans 15:13),
- live in contentment and the fear of God (Philippians 4:11-12),
- pursue hard after righteousness (1 Timothy 6:11),
- be patient in trials (Romans 8:25),
- manifest a gentle spirit (Titus 3:2),
- and walk in integrity and truth (Proverbs 10:9).
Feeling a bit overwhelmed now? That’s quite a list, and it’s not even a complete one. I don’t know about you, but I can feel exhausted just thinking about having to do or be all those things. In fact, if I’m not careful I could easily become discouraged, thinking there’s no way on God’s green earth that I could ever fulfill that list for even one day, let alone the rest of my life!
The exciting thing is, I don’t have to try to manufacture all the things needed to be godly. Why? Because God has already provided them—all of them!
DIVINELY EQUIPPED
The person who is training to run a marathon not only sets up a plan on how to achieve their goal, but they also surround themselves with the right equipment necessary for the task. Proper running shoes, the right kind of clothes that fit comfortably and breathe, possibly a treadmill and an elliptical machine are all things a serious runner wants to consider. In the same way, if we're going to train ourselves to be godly, we need the right equipment.
In his second epistle, Peter writes, “(God's) divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV’84). Wow! Did you catch that? God provides everything we need to live a godly life through our knowledge of him.
There's a lot of truth packed into this verse and if we are going to be successful in living a life that glorifies God, we need to dig it out and meditate upon it! First, notice that Peter tells us it is God's divine power that provides us with everything we need to live a godly life. By using the word “divine,” Peter is telling us that which is being spoken of (namely, the power to be godly) belongs to God alone. Only God possesses the ability to provide all that we need to live godly lives. That power does not naturally reside within you; it does not naturally reside within me. In and of ourselves we will always fail to be godly, which is why it is divine. No wonder we struggle so much with feelings of defeat and failure!
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at that word “power.” It refers to the natural capability to do something. The one who has this kind of power is not dependent upon an outside source to accomplish the task. The power or ability resides completely within the individual. So, “divine power” means that only God has within himself the natural capability of equipping you and me with everything we need to live a godly life. So why do we try to do it on our own?
We must consider this carefully. You and I cannot manufacture godliness on our own. Job asks the question, “who can bring what is pure from the impure?” He then answers, “no one” (Job 14: 4). In and of ourselves, we are incapable of being godly. We just don't have it within us. In fact, God says, “all have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one” (Psalm 14:3). “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away” (Isaiah 64: 6) Ecclesiastes 7: 20 says, “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.”
We are incapable of being godly. The only way we can live a life that glorifies God is if God himself, who has that power naturally, comes to dwell within us- placing his own godliness within us through his Holy Spirit, and we, intern, learn how to yield to his power. Godliness is not me doing or being something, it is God living through me. John declared that he must become greater; I must become less (John 3:30). Peter assures us that God's divine power has given the believer everything we need for a godly life. So, again I ask, why then do we try to do it on our own?
Think again about second Peter 1: 3, and let's focus our attention on Peter's use of the words “has given.” God's divine power has given us everything we need. That phrase is written in what's called the perfect tense, passive voice. Let me explain. When something is written in the perfect tense, it describes an action which is viewed as having been completed in the past, once and for all, never needing to be repeated. By writing that God's divine power has given us everything we need in the perfect tense, Peter is saying that this has already been done for us. It doesn't need to be repeated ever again. As a born-again believer, you already have everything you need to live a godly life-you don't have to ask for it or go searching for it- because God's divine power has already given you everything you need to be godly!
Furthermore, when something is written in the passive voice, it means the subject is the means the recipient of the action as opposed to being the doer. In other words, the action being described has been done to or for you and not by you. Here is where it gets exciting - you are the subject of this verse! God's divine power has given YOU everything you need to be godly. Every person who names the name of Jesus Christ as savior is the recipient of everything, we need to enable us to live a godly life. Again, the question comes up: why then do we try to do it on our own?
Continuing our deep dive into second Peter 1: 3, the next thing we need to consider is this: God's divine power has given you or everything you need. The word “everything” is literally the word “all.” If you have been listening to this podcast for some time now, then you have heard me define the word all this way: “all” means all and that's all “all” means! I love that! It is a word that refers to each and every part of the whole, leaving absolutely nothing out. God's divine power has given you all you need for a godly life. That's fantastic! You cannot manufacture it on your own, but you don't need to. You already have it. All of it! You don't have to go looking anywhere else for it. God is the only source, and he is already given it all to you.
So where do I find this power to live a godly life? The answer is found within our text. Peter says we can find everything we need for godliness “through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). Did you catch that? It is through our knowledge of God that we are enabled to be godly. The word “through” carries with it the idea that this is the instrument or way that something is going to be accomplished. In other words, it is through your knowledge of God, by means of your knowledge of God, as you grow in your knowledge of God, that you are given everything you need to live a godly life.
There is so much more that I want to share with you and teach you on the subject! But unfortunately, time does not permit us to continue in this episode. So be sure to tune in next week as we continue our deep dive into the word of God to discover not only our purpose in life, but how to successfully and effectively live out that purpose every day of our life.
CONCLUSION
If this Point of Purity podcast has been a blessing to you, if it’s ministered to you, encouraged you, challenged your walk with Christ, would you please do two things for us. First, would you please pass the word on to your family and friends about this podcast. Help us grow our listening audience and thus increase our ability to speak God’s truth into the hearts of men and women all over the globe who need to hear the message of hope, healing, and restoration through a right relationship with Christ.
Then, second, I ask that you give serious, prayerful consideration about joining our team of Point of Purity Partners as we impact our world by equipping and training men and women how-to live-in purity, godliness, and integrity. Your tax-deductible financial support of any amount to this ministry will go a long way toward helping men and women find the victory and freedom that only Christ can – and will – give!
To give your tax-deductible gift to this ministry today, simply go to ThePurityCoach.com and click on the Donate button in the upper right corner. And thank you for partnering with us!
And if you have not yet subscribed to this podcast, let me encourage you to do so today so you won’t miss any of our upcoming episodes!
So, until next time this is Author, Speaker, and Purity Coach Steve Etner reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.