2Timothy 1:6-9 Do you have a big enough purpose? A couple of questions for you this morning. What is your purpose? Why do you live? That would be an interesting question to ask people. Answers would vary, but I am certain some would give the standard answers. 1. Some would say they live to work, to make money. 2. Some would say they live for pleasure. 3. Some have determined to be famous, or powerful. 4. Some are more noble and would say they live for their family. Is your purpose big enough? Is it big enough to keep you busy? Is it worthy of you whole existence? The standard list of answers are not. So your purpose is to work or to make money? What will you do when you get too old to work? When you are either forced to retire or when you choose to retire? What will happen when you are laid off work? You will have to find another purpose. The one you selected will be no good any more. Are you living for pleasure? You will soon burn yourself out. People like to refer to themselves as party machines, but we are not. Our human bodies will not endure long if they are indulged in liquor, drugs, and promiscuous lifestyles. Do you live for your family? Again, that is noble and a necessary part of our existence, but it will not serve for your purpose. Children grow up and move away; parents and mates die. A person whose purpose is to serve family will work himself out of a reason to exist sooner or later. And so we could continue, picking apart the standard reasons why most people exists. But let me just jump to the end of the list. What do I believe is the purpose to exist. I believe Paul is alluding to it in this verse. Our purpose is to serve God. Paul states that the reason God has both saved us and called us is that we might fulfill His purpose. I dont know what your reason to exist is, but for me, my purpose is to serve God. As I have been contemplating it, I have concluded that this is the only purpose that is large enough to surrender ourselves to. Now let me tell you why I believe it is the only purpose which is big enough to surrender to. I. To serve God is the only purpose big enough to justify our place in Gods creation. A. People have been telling us for so long that we are animals, that that some Christians are subconsciously beginning to believe it. An animal may exist for its own pleasure, or to care for its family, but man was made for a higher purpose. B. The Bible tells us two important and often forgotten things about mankind at creation. Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 1. God created us in His image. 2. God created us to have dominion over every other thing of the earth. C. These two truths demonstrate the higher purpose for which we have been created. 1. God created us "like" Him. That means a lot. a. People like to talk about how much human and apes are alike, but very few people talk about how we are different. b. Humans and animals are different both in our creation and in what we have been created to be. c. Being like God means that we can recognize God. (1) Animals do not worship God because they can not conceive that God exists. (2) Animals can not even conceive that they exist. (3) Animals just respond to their basest instincts. d. It also means we can reason and determine like God. (1) Man excels the animals in that he can figure things out. (2) Animals cannot deduce or reason on a large scale. They only respond. 2. God has also given to mankind dominion or authority over the whole world. a. That means mankind is the leader not the follower. b. If mankinds has the same purpose has the animals of the world, we must not be doing a very good job of leading. c. A leader must have vision, higher goals, higher purposes. D. Sins entrance has tainted our image and lessened our authority, but we are still fearfully and wonderfully made by our Creator. 1. We are not like animals, WE ARE BETTER THAN THAT! 2. Because of the place God has given to us in His creation, we must have a purpose bigger than that of the other created beings. 3. Our purpose is to seek out and to serve the God who created us. 4. It is the only purpose big enough to justify our place in Gods creation. II. To serve God is the only purpose you can accomplish at every stage of your existence. A. Listen very carefully. Many people are unhappy today because they are confused about their purpose. 1. That list of standard purposes will only serve you for a brief time in your existence; however, to serve God, is something you can do at every phase of your existence. 2. When you have no purpose, you are going to be unhappy. a. The reason so many experience a mid-life crisis is because they are realizing that they have lived the wrong purpose. b. The reason old people want to die is because they feel useless. They think they have no purpose. c. The reason medically assisted suicide is allowed is because people think they have outlived their purpose! d. The reason babies are killed in the womb is because we think they have no purpose. B. Yet, we can accomplish God’s purpose from conception to the grave–and beyond! 1. Someone wonders how is that possible? 2. The answer is that there are two ways to serve God. a. We can serve God by what we do. (That is what most of us think about when we think of serving God.) b. But we can also serve God by the impact we have on others. 3. Did you know that the baby in the womb is fulfilling Gods purpose? a. The baby exists that way because that is the way God made him\/her. b. At that point, the baby is too dependent to be out of the will of God and too weak to do anything for God. c. So what is their purpose? (1) That unborn baby is helping to grow the mother and even the father back into that image of God of which they were originally created. (2) In his innocence and purity, that baby is 100% obedient to God and is fulfilling his purpose completely as God intended. 4. You can see that purpose even more clearly once the baby is born. a. Granted, it wont be long before he will start showing a self will but overall, he is what God has created him to be. b. As a new-born baby, the child teaches the parents about love, sacrifice, devotion, joy, even truths about God and self! C. And so it is at every phase of life. 1. That toddler struggling to stand can fulfill Gods purpose. a. Gradually, it is not just the impact that child is having. As he grows, his actions can serve God. b. As strength, ability, and will grow, more and more we must choose to serve Gods purpose, but we can serve God at every phase of our existence. c. Sadly, more and more the old sinful nature begins to manifest itself and, unless trained, it wont be long until that toddler will be erring from the purpose of his creation. d. Yet, a toddler properly trained can continue to serve God just as God intended. e. Do not dismiss the purpose of these young ones. (1) These children, largely without effort, are more obedient to the purposes of God than we adults. (2) Having more intellect and ability does not necessarily mean that we are using them correctly. 2. The child learning in school can fulfill God’s purpose. 3. The teenager spreading his wings 4. The young adult laying the foundation blocks of his life 5. The adult reaching his maturity 6. The older person who begins to watch the activity of life pass him by 7. And even the very aged, the sick, the infirm, who must now be waited upon 8. At every point in life, we can choose to serve our God in various ways. a. Those ways will change. b. Typically, at the beginning and end of our life, our primary means of serving God may be by the impact we have on others. c. In the days of our strength, we will be more able to do the witnessing, the preaching, the building, the repairing. D. However, WHAT God chooses to let us do is not as important as the fact that it is God who is making the choice! 1. God has created every stage of our earthly lives for His purposes. 2. Just like many have dismissed the purpose of infants and babies, so many have dismissed the purpose of the elderly and sick. a. I continue to pray that this socialistic health care bill is dead, but I continue to see some who are insistent on ramming it down our throats. (If it does not pass this year, it will in the future.) b. Regardless of what the initial bill says, before it is over, socialistic medicine will terminate the lives of the sick and the elderly. c. Why? Because too many feel they have no purpose. (1) Not only does socialism see them that way. (2) Many of them see themselves that way! 3. Clarence Sexton made a statement in a sermon I recently heard which sparked this message. a. "God calls on some to continue living when the joy of life is gone." b. That means that God still has a purpose for you even after you dont see it. c. When we are young, every day that we get older brings more joy, more opportunities, more privileges. d. However, at some point, getting older does give us more in life, getting older starts taking things in life away. e. Just because you arent enjoying life right now doesnt mean God doesnt have a purpose for you. f. If you have breathe, God is still wants to use you. g. If you cant do anything else, pray. h. If you cant do that, rest assured that God will use you to teach others about Him. E. Our purpose is to serve God, and we can do it not only at every phase of our earthly life but this purpose will carry over into eternity. 1. Making money, being famous, even caring for our family have a limited run even in this life. 2. None of those standard purposes for living will carry over into eternity. 3. However, those who live in this life to serve God will have the same purpose throughout all eternity! F. Indeed, to serve God is the only purpose big enough to last us through every stage of our existence. IV. To serve God is the only purpose that will justify God giving His Son for us. A. If there is one thing the Bible says, it is that Jesus died FOR or INSTEAD OF us. Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 1 Thessalonians 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. 2 Corinthians 5:15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. 1 Thessalonians 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. B. The death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, FOR US demands more of our existence than that of pleasure, or work, or even a short time of helps to a family member. 1. Whether you are saved or lost, certainly you recognize what an overwhelming sacrifice Christ made to die in our place! a. Jesus, the Sinless, died for us, the sinners. b. Jesus, the Guiltless, died for us, the guilty. c. Jesus, the Eternal, died for us, the temporal. d. Jesus, the Divine, died for us, the defiled. e. Jesus, the Creator, died for us, the created. f. Jesus, the Redeemer, died for us, the rebel. 2. The fact that God has given so much demands we do more with our time on earth than to live it selfishly or just get by. IV. To serve God is the only purpose that will satisfy you. A. Too many people are tired of living. 1. They think they have no purpose. 2. Maybe they think that because they are now too old or too weak to do what they thought was their purpose. 3. Maybe they think that because, up to this point, they have not found their purpose. 4. But too many people are attempting to end their life. a. SCIENCEDAILY.COM reported (in 2007) that suicide deaths rose in 2003-04 by 8%, the largest increase in 15 years. b. An article at MEDICALNEWSTODAY.COM listed the suicide rate for white American males aged 40 to 64 at 2.7% from 1999 to 2005. c. The same article listed the rate for white women during the same period as 3.9%. d. An article on FAMILYFIRSTAID.ORG said that in 2001, suicide was the 11th leading cause of death in the US. e. Suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death among those 15 to 24 years of age. f. Suicides is even a problem among those aged 10 to 14. 5. All of this tells me that people either have no purpose or the purpose they have has not satisfied them. B. Suicide is not the only indicator of a purposeless society. Bad and foolish behavior is as well. 1. Teenage rebellion, mid-life crisis, the partying lifestyle, risking your life in extreme sports, extreme depression, drunkenness, drug abuse, and plain stupidity are all indicators that the present generation is not satisfied with life. 2. Education, occupation, discipline, and even family may help to occupy life, but they will not produce the satisfaction that the human soul seeks. C. The only thing that will satisfy you is accomplishing the purpose for which you are created. That purpose is to serve God. 1. God made you. 2. God has given you certain abilities. 3. God has given you certain drives and desires. 4. Satisfaction will come when you allow God to use all of your makeup for what He intended. To serve God is the one and the only purpose you will ever have. Whether you fulfill it or not is up to you, but it is the reason you are here, the reason you exist.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
2Timothy 1:6-9 Do you have a big enough purpose? A couple of questions for you this morning. What is your purpose? Why do you live? That would be an interesting question to ask people. Answers would vary, but I am certain some would give the standard answers. 1. Some would say they live to work, … Continue reading “2 Timothy 1:8-9 – Do You Have A Big Enough Purpose – Bible study”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1355","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1355"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1355\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}