Godly Success Just What Is God's Idea Of Success? Does it mean a singing career, a business that makes lots of money, a big ministry in a big church building with lots of people, or maybe a new home with new furnishings and a new car in the garage? All these things are okay to have, but are they a sign of success or just a sign of our culture? You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices. You must obey My laws and follow My decrees. I am the Lord your God. Keep My decrees and laws, for the man that obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord. (Leviticus 18:3-5) The scripture says we aren't supposed to live like the land we came from (our old lives of drinking, smoking, sex, violence...) and we aren't supposed to live like the people living next door (religious pharisees). So much of our idea of success is what we've learned from our culture. We see the things from our past and sometimes become indifferent to it's destruction (that's life). Even church becomes just an accepted social activity with no long-term benefit. When this happens we see we are still living in Egypt. So what is it that makes us successful in God's eyes? We begin by heeding His words to "...not do as they do in Egypt...not do as they do in the land of Canaan". The scripture says "keep my decrees and laws, for the man that obeys them will live by them" is that how we become successful? "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." (Joshua 1:6-8) We keep our strength by following Gods laws. Not just as much of them as is comfortable for a particular situation, but even beyond our comfort. God's strength and courage is in us so we can reach beyond what our simple thoughts can reach. God has given us the charge of leading His people and we can't do that without His strength and courage in us. We can't tap into His strength and courage without living and speaking and meditating on His laws constantly, day and night. The more time we spend with God the more we want to know Him, and the more we know Him the more time we want to spend with Him. That makes us successful in His eyes. Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields it's fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3) When we purposefully stay away from "the council of the wicked" or "way of the sinner" we find it much easier to delight in God's will. When the distractions aren't there to take our mind to places it shouldn't go, it's easier to delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on His law day and night, and when we do these we begin to see prosperity. How, you say? We begin to bear fruit. Our gifts begin to surface; they may not appear in ways of financial gain but surely we can see them in our spiritual growth. The more we grow the more we want to be in God's presence and live by His law. We don't want to spend time in the wickedness of the world. Keeping our relationship with God a close one is the only way we can be safe living in this world. After being away from the ways of the world for awhile, it becomes more difficult when we are asked to go out and minister to those people God calls us to. Our relationship with God keeps us alert to His voice, and is the most important thing for us to be able to continue doing His will. He said, "Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation who has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have been in revolt against Me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says.' And whether they listen or fail to listen --for they are a rebellious house --they will know that a prophet has been among them. (Ezekiel 2:3-5) Ezekiel may have not been liked or received well by the Israelite people, but does that mean he wasn't successful? Of course not, he simply did what God said to do even though he knew the people wouldn't like what he had to say. That makes him successful in God's eyes and He's the only one that counts. God doesn't judge us by someone else's response to us, he judges us by our own actions, or lack of actions. He judges us by our faithfulness, our obedience to do His requests. God always gives us the ability to do His will. He would never give us something we weren't able to do. After all, "I can do anything through Him who gives me strength." (Phil 4:13). God gives us the ability to do His will and also the choice to do His will. Every part of God's church must make the decision between God's ways and the ways of the world. To be a success we must choose God over the ways of the world. Qualities of Success Righteousness A man cannot be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted. (Proverbs 12:3) For as the soul makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations. (Isaiah 61:11) Righteousness: Acting in a morally correct manner; correct by divine declaration; honorable. Uprightness before God. Man, in and of himself or through his own efforts, is incapable of making himself righteous; righteousness coming through the atoning work of Christ imputed to the believer. (1. God's law shows us where we go wrong, because of the law, we know that we are helpless sinners and that we must come to Jesus Christ for mercy. (2. The moral code in the law can serve to guide our actions by holding up God's moral standards. We do not earn salvation by keeping the law, but we do please God when we conform to His revealed will for us. Real success comes only to those who do what is right before God, not what is acceptable in our culture. Developing a relationship with God, getting to know Him, changes how we act and how we feel about the things we do. The more we know Him the more we receive from Him. Then as we continue to receive from Him the more our praise rises to Him and is returned by Him. Relationship and righteousness go hand in hand. Hating What Is False The righteous hate what is false, but the wicked bring shame and disgrace. (Proverbs 13:5) False: Dishonest; intentionally untrue; misleading; faithless. As our relationship with God develops, we begin to see and hear things differently. Hating what is false means all things false. Being aware of what we say is a first step to always being honest. If you don't know, don't speak. It's easy to understand hating a lie, but what about the times we omit something from the conversation, maybe to avoid a confrontation or retaliation from the other person. It's still wrong. If you aren't willing to speak the whole truth out, then don't speak. Remember that God judges us by our actions and words, not the reaction of the people we speak to. If we recognize we are holding back for fear of the other persons reaction, repent and ask God to give you what we need to do next. We won't know what God wants if we don't ask and not asking isn't an option. Committing All Work To The Lord Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plan will succeed. (Proverbs 16:3) It seems there are ways we fail at full commitment to the Lord. We sometimes only commit things on the surface, things we aren't quite ready to release. There are also those things we release to the Lord and then when it doesn't go the way we expected we want it back, or times we give it over to God and then just sit around and wait for it to fall on us, and then wonder why nothing is happening. If we are really putting our trust in God and committing the task to Him, then we will hear His direction or at least the correction when we get in the way. If we're hearing nothing then God probably wants more from us. More prayer, more praise, more worship, more of our time and talent. Are we then willing to commit more? How much time and energy are you willing to commit to God? Are you willing to accept the beating you get from friends and family when your commitment to God doesn't fit their schedule? Are you willing to give up worldly things if they get in the way of your relationship with God? Are you asking God what needs done and then asking Him how you can succeed? Using Words With Restraint; Being Even-tempered A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered. Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue. (Proverbs 17:27-28) If you really do care about yourself and your soul, then seek wisdom. Learn all you can about God and who He is and what His desires are and then get to know God personally. Your soul is at stake here. Don't wait for someone else to give you their revelation from God, get your own. Go after God with all you've got and wisdom and understanding will soon follow. Let other people's revelation become confirmation for you. Open up and let God speak directly to you, allow Him to be your restraint. Don't allow anger, resentment or bitterness to be your only knowledge of life. Lay them down, give them to God and He will reward you. With God, you will know when to speak and what to say. With God, you don't have to get angry or frustrated, He has everything under control. Humility And The Fear Of God Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life. (Psalm 22:4) Humility: the state of being humble (not proud or arrogant;having a spirit of submission)--Lack of pride (an excessively high opinion of oneself) Fear of the Lord: to recognize God for who He is: Holy, Almighty, Righteous, Pure, All-Knowing, All-Powerful, and All-Wise. When we regard God correctly we gain a clearer picture of ourselves: sinful, weak, frail, and needy. When we recognize who God is and who we are, we will fall at His feet in humble respect. Only then will He show us how to choose His way. What does God say about humility? To be truly humble we must be first willing to submit to the authority of God (and others). That means doing what we are asked, or told, without grumbling or complaining or even thoughts of superiority in a situation (thinking I can do a better job). We don't truly fear God when we react this way. If we did fear God we wouldn't find it so hard to let go of the world we hold so tightly to. I was given and example of a child trying to do everything holding on to a toy he didn't want to share. How many things in our own life have we been afraid to let go of? In my own life I have been put into a position where I've had to sell possessions that I've held on to for many years. At first it was hard to let go of them, then as I began to pack them in boxes to sell, I found a peace in knowing that they are all things that could be replaced if I really wanted to. None of it is of any great importance to my spiritual life--nothing of any importance to my relationship with God. Even through all that I still find myself holding on to unnecessary things. God has been showing me more and more how unnecessary "things" are in my life. I've disobeyed so many times, just in small ways, and yet God is still patiently waiting for me to let go. What if He dropped His protection every time we were disobedient? That thought alone should put fear in us and yet--give me a minute, I'll do something to show my rebellion. A thought or word or even action that in itself looks harmless is really not so harmless if it's not God. Some of the examples would be: "I can't do that", "I'm not smart enough to learn how", "I'm not pretty enough", "I don't have enough money",... Think about it, even the scripture tells us, "I can do anything through Him who gives me strength." Do we really believe that? If we do believe it we are always smart enough, strong enough, pretty enough, talented enough, etc..., and if we are speaking negative about God there must not be enough fear. Willingness To Confess And Renounce Sin He who conceals his sin does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy. (Proverbs 28:13) Why do I think I have to be right? How many times do I argue my position and right to be right? God forgive me for being so self absorbed. If I was doing so great there wouldn't be all these strongholds that I keep finding tucked inside. Thank You for continuing to work in me even through my rebellion. The best thing to do when we confess we've messed up, is to actively change our ideas and thoughts in that area. If we confess we've been trying to control someones life then we need to ask ourselves, "What can I do to stop this way of acting and thinking?" We all make mistakes, but no one wants to be labeled a fool who keeps repeating them. Our nature wants us to resist admitting we are wrong--we want to change our nature to God's nature and then we won't have a need to be defensive. Start praying before we act on or speak about anything. Let God's ideas run through our thoughts. We don't always have to be quick with and answer, use your brain, God gave it to us for something other than just storing wrong ideas. We already have enough wrong ideas stored away, we don't need any more. Start by going to God first not our own understanding. Praise God for giving us His Son, Jesus Christ, so we don't have to hold on to the sin. Confess it, release it, move closer to God and be a SUCCESS. This isn't all there is. God has so much more for us if we will only give it all to Him. He wants everyone of us to be a success, but not by the world's standards only by His. So, be righteous, hate what is false, commit all you do to God, be humble and reverent toward God, and be willing to confess and renounce your sins so you can become a SUCCESS in God's eyes. |
| What Is Success? August 12, 2006 |
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