FULFILLING YOUR PURPOSE

Beloved friends, this is Pastor Amara Uwaeziozi welcoming you to today’s broadcast, in the Name of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. May I also appreciate you for your continuous interest in this particular broadcast.

Our message today is titled: Fulfilling Your Purpose

FULFILLING YOUR PURPOSE

Our Bible reading is from Acts 22; we will be reading from verse 12 – 16.

Acts 22:12-16

¹² “Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, ¹³ came to me; and he stood and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that same hour I looked up at him. ¹⁴ Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. ¹⁵ For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. ¹⁶ And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’

Let us pray.

PRAYER

Heavenly FATHER, YOU chose us, and brought us into the World to fulfill purposes. There are many people who do not know their purpose. May YOU, our FATHER, open their eyes to understand, as they hear this message. Help them discover their purpose, and enable them take proactive steps towards its fulfillment…in JESUS’ Mighty Name I pray. AMEN!

Fulfilling Purpose

Let’s define purpose in our context. Purpose is the reason for which something is done or for which something is done. Everything GOD created has a purpose; therefore you have a purpose. GOD establishes purpose before HE creates or designs or institutes anything. Therefore your purpose and my purpose have been established by GOD before we were created.

Our Brother Nnaemeka Akomas in his book, Dream Big, states that, “Ignorance of purpose makes abuse inevitable.” Yes: anything can be abused when people are ignorant of the purpose of a thing. Purposes can only be fulfilled when there is understanding. In Proverbs 15:22 The Amplified Bible says,

Proverbs 15:22

Where there is no counsel purposes are frustrated; but with many counselors they are accomplished.

With many counselors purposes are accomplished: this we find in Proverbs 15:22. If we read the same passage in The Maximized Living Bible, it states this way,

Proverbs 15:22

Plans fail without good advice, but they succeed with the advice of many others

Purposes and plans can be synonymous – they are synonyms. When the bible says, I know the plans I have for you, GOD is talking about the purpose for which HE created you. And WHO can give us the best advice that will enable us succeed in our purposes? No other person is qualified than GOD our creator. Therefore the closer and more submissive we are to GOD our creator who determined our purpose before birth the more we can receive understanding of the things HE has purposed for our lives.

Friends, do you see why you should pursue the understanding of your purpose? It could be that presently you are completely existing and functioning outside your purpose. It is not late to recover and follow your purpose.

Apostle Paul was such a person. He spent his time persecuting the church. He spent his time pursuing the followers of CHRIST up and down. He was convinced he was accomplishing purpose. He played a major role in the stoning to death of Stephen the servant of GOD: and the first martyr. There were many people like Paul. They persecuted young people who embraced CHRIST by being born again. Some church leaders, reverend gentlemen, fathers and mothers thought they were defending their church and they persecuted and drove away people from church and families.

I know parents who refused to pay school fees for their children because they were born again. I do hope such people have repented from such past actions.

And that brings me to our passage today. In Acts 22:12-16 the background was the defense of Apostle Paul before Governor Felix. The Apostle was narrating how he persecuted the Church and imprisoned the followers of CHRIST. Then he encountered our LORD JESUS CHRIST on his way to Damascus. The encounter made him blind. In verse 12 another disciple called Ananias was sent by our LORD JESUS to meet Apostle Paul. Ananias said to him, Brother Saul, receive your sight. Can you see that? It is only GOD that can change a persecutor to a brother.

In verse 14-15 we read the profound revelation of the purpose of GOD for Paul the changed persecutor. Let me read what the bible says.

¹⁴ Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. ¹⁵ For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard.

Friends, the purpose of GOD for Apostle Paul was fourfold: fourfold purposes.

1. He was chosen by GOD so that he might know GOD’s will: He might know HIS will. That’s the first purpose – chosen by GOD so that he will know GOD’s will.
2. He was chosen by GOD so that he might have a revelation of HIS SON JESUS CHRIST – that he might see HIS SON JESUS CHRIST.
3. He was chosen by GOD so that he might hear his voice. “Hear HIS voice
4. He was chosen by GOD so that he would be a witness to all men of all that he has seen and heard.

You will see that Apostle Paul was far away from these very fourfold purposes for his life. Perhaps that is your experience. You are very far away from knowing the purpose of GOD for your life.

This is why you are listening to this purpose.

1. The first step is to meet the LORD JESUS CHRIST. It is only through HIM that you will know GOD The FATHER. HE alone has the blueprint of your life. He created you for a purpose. Ananias called on Paul to waste no more time as he has already wasted his time pursuing another purpose different from the one for which GOD created him.

I do the same thing today: I make a call to you – and what are you waiting for, the bible says. Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the LORD. Friends, arise and repent of your sins; confess your inability to follow the purpose of GOD for your life, and invite HIM into your life as your Lord and your Saviour. Ask HIM to show you HIS purpose for your life. Basically we are chosen. You have been chosen like Apostle Paul to know the will of GOD. Many people are outside the will of GOD. And it may be your own case. But GOD has chosen you from the foundation of the world to know HIS Will.

ii. The second thing is that GOD will like you to have a revelation of HIS SON JESUS CHRIST – to know HIS SON personally; to have a relationship with HIS SON.

ii. And GOD has chosen you so that you might hear HIS voice: so that you might hear HIS voice.

Presently are you hearing the voice of our Master JESUS CHRIST? You may be far away from that. You may be very far away from that. But that’s the purpose of GOD for your life to enable you hear HIS voice.

iv. HE has chosen you so that you will be a witness to all men. You will witness for CHRIST. You will tell people about JESUS CHRIST – what HE can do: HIS attributes, HIS personality, that HE can save; that HE can deliver; that HE can heal. And that’s why you need to commence the process of entering into the purpose of GOD for your life and to fulfill it.

I call upon you to begin. And the first process is to confess your sins and ask HIM to come into your life to be your LORD and SAVIOUR: then you would have started the process of fulfilling your purposes.

Shall we pray.

PRAYER

Gracious LORD, The Savior of mankind, kindly accept all who are inviting YOU into their lives genuinely, and save them. Open their spiritual understanding to see your purpose for their lives…in JESUS Mighty Name I pray. Amen!