God's Purpose - Part 2

Welcome to the InTouch Podcast with Charles Stanley for Tuesday, October 24th. God wants to mold us into His image. Let's learn about how He shapes us so we fit perfectly into His plan. Here's part two of God's Purpose in the Storms of Life. God is a God of purpose. If you'll start in Genesis, the first chapter, you'll find God doesn't respond to things by happenstance.

And God is not a responder. God is an initiator. And so when we look at God, God is a God of purpose. And He says that He is engineering all of our circumstances according to His good pleasure and to His good will and for our good and for His glory.

So what I want us to dwell upon is this. What are the purposes that God has in mind for allowing or sending these storms into our life? Now, we said it could be something God initiates. It could be something we are responsible for or it could be something that Satan does directly or through someone else. But the real issue is what is God's purpose? I'm going to give you five words. The first word is this, because this is one of God's primary purposes for sending, allowing the storm. Now, remember what He said. God causes all things to work together for good.

So it doesn't make any difference what the nature of the storm is. God's intention is that it turn out for our good. First word is cleansing. Now, I want you to remember this. There's several things I'm going to say over again because I want you to remember this. And that is when God sends or allows the storm, He never sends them to sink us but to sanctify us.

There is a cleansing process that goes on in sanctification whereby we are set apart by God for the purposes of God and fitted and suited for what God has called us or equipped us to do. The second one I want you to jot down is companionship. If you and I could ask Him, Lord, what do you want from me most of all? What He would say to us is what I want most out of your life is I want an intimate relationship with you. I want you to understand how much I love you. I want you to experience my love.

I want you to love me in return. And what is it that drives us to God? Most of the time it's not ease, comfort and pleasure. What drives us to God is hardship and difficulty and trial. When are the times that you and I learn the most about God? When do we experience His love?

When do we joy in His forgiveness? Is it not in our failures and our frustrations and our anxieties? Is it not when we feel like God, we have blown it for good?

We've blown it for sure. We've suffered this loss in our life. It may be financial relationship or whatever it may be. All these things that we experience, what is it that draws us to Him? What is it that drives us to Him? It is suffering and pain and hardship, the storms of life. I'll tell you, God is coming and He is going to send whatever is necessary to get our attention to remind us what He wants is us. He wants our undivided, loyalty, loving devotion because His goal for our life is companionship. What is the third word?

The third word is conformity. I want you to look, if you will, to the 29th verse of Romans chapter 8. Verse 29, rest on verse 28. He says in verse 28, We know that God is causing all things to work together for good to those who love Him, to those who call according to His purpose, for whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. Now, what's His goal? His goal is to conform us to the likeness of His Son, that is, to build Christlike character into our life. And so what is He up to? He sends those storms into our life, initiates them or allows them in order to accomplish what His goal is.

Now, what is His goal? Well, when you and I became a Christian, we were like jewels in the rough. I mean, really rough, some a little rougher than others, but we were in the rough. And so from the moment we trusted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, we stepped into the circle, shall we say, of God's predestined will. That predestined circle says you and I will be conformed to the likeness of Christ. We will be. So from the moment you and I trust Him as Savior, God sets in motion those things that are necessary to conform us to the likeness of Christ.

Now, Christlikeness, what are we talking about? Are we talking about us getting better and better and better? No. Are we talking about us straightening up and so forth?

No. We're talking about Jesus, the very life of Jesus within us. We're talking about that life being released through us. We're talking about the Spirit of God as we yield to Him.

We're talking about these lives of ours that belong to God created by Him and for the very purpose of demonstrating and living this life of Christ. And so what happens? He's going to send into our life whatever storms are necessary to do what?

Sand and sift and sculpture and prune in order to do what? In order that the Christlike Spirit within us may be more and more demonstrated over and over and over again. So where does it start? It starts at salvation. Where does it end? When you and I take a last breath. You mean to tell me that God's going to work on me till the day I die?

Absolutely. Why is He going to do that? Because He loves you so much He's not going to leave you where you are. He's not going to leave any of us where we are spiritually. So what does He do? He moves us on and He sends into our life and allows in our life those situations and circumstances that are necessary to conform us to His likeness.

Sanding and sifting. It is being out there in the storm on those seas and we are asking God, Lord, what in the world are you up to? And so sometimes when the storm is extremely, extremely intense, when the pain is awesome, we thank God I can't handle it anymore. We say to Him, Lord, how long are you going to leave me in this? You know what He says? That's not the right question.

The right question is what are you going to get out of this? That is God's question because you see what He wants out of every storm is godly character. What He wants is the very life of Jesus to be exhibited in and through our lives. And so one of the primary reasons that He allows and sends storms into our life is for that very purpose.

And that is that you and I would have Christ-like character. Now remember what I said in the very beginning? The key is not the source of the storm. The key is not the intensity of it, the length of it.

It's not how dark and how painful it is. The real key to it is how do I respond in the storm? Everybody is going to respond to their storms in certain ways. We will respond in a fashion that develops us and equips us. We will respond in a fashion of getting bitter and resentful and hostile and angry. And what we do is we ultimately self-destruct. And we put ourselves in a position where God cannot use us. The fourth word is conviction. You say, what does that have to do with storms in life?

It has a great deal to do with these storms. Because if you will think about your life and think about the things that you believe, every single one of us has a belief system. Now the atheist has his belief system. He doesn't believe in God. He doesn't believe in Jesus. He doesn't believe in the Bible. He doesn't believe in spiritual things.

He only believes in sort of what he can see and feel and touch. And these folks say, well, my philosophy of life, if your philosophy of life does not begin with Christ, my friend, the foundation is missing. If it doesn't begin with the Lord Jesus Christ, there's something missing in life.

What's missing is the very foundation of it. So when we talk about conviction, all of us who are believers have a belief system. There are certain things we believe. We believe the Bible is true. There are some people who believe the Bible has errors. Well, how much assurance and confidence do you have in the Bible if you're having to go through and say, I believe this, I don't believe that. I believe these five pages, I don't believe this.

Well, what an absolute collapse of faith that would be. But you have a belief system that's developed over all these years. Now some of these things, I mean, you, a do or die, you know they're absolutely true.

And a lot of things you and I can speak with our mouth and we say, I do believe these things. And if I were to give you a test, you believe in the virgin birth, you believe in the resurrection, believe in a lot of these things, yes, I do, absolutely, no question about it. But you see, one of the things is you never have to test the virgin birth.

I mean, you don't have to test that. You believe in the resurrection of Jesus, you don't have to test that. The Bible states that you've already settled that issue in your mind. You believe in the resurrection, why? Because the Word of God says so.

You believe in the virgin birth, yes, the Word of God says so. You believe Jesus is coming again, yes, why? Because the Bible says so. So we could go down a long list of things that God has said.

Now, but let's get down to some things that are practical when it comes to our daily living. Do you really and truly believe that God will supply all of your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus? You really and truly believe that? You believe when you go through a financial problem in your life and you have a need that God will supply? Do you believe that God really and truly hears all of your prayers? Do you believe that he really and truly protects you? All these things that you and I believe about so much in the Scriptures, do you really believe that?

Yes, I do. Well, why do you believe it? Because the Word of God says so.

Then, then what happens? I mean, this storm begins to brew in your life, and I mean the clouds are dark, the waves are high, the water's deep, and I mean the winds are blowing and it's painful and horrendous and you'd like out and you'd like to get in a raft and you want to head the other direction. Then let me ask you, well, I mean when everything breaks loose upon you, then what do you believe about this God of love whom you have said to others that you've trusted him as your personal savior? Then what do you believe about Romans 8.28, my God is engineering all of my circumstances for my good when I'm hurting so bad and I'm so painful and I'm so bent out of shape and I don't see any hope and I feel so helpless and so distraught and everything is so endlessly, absolutely dark. Where is this God whom I love? Is he the same God he is when everything is going my way? How does this belief system become so real in me? Listen, that it begins to govern my responses to life. Only when I am tested and tried and proved by our experience, these things are true. Why does he sin and why does he allow the storms?

Here's why he does. In order to demonstrate his faithfulness to us, in order to show us how real and practical and personal he is, God allows these storms in our life that what we believe, well, it's not just something in our head and not just something in our heart, not just in our emotions but something in our very being, something in our very spirit that we can stand unquestionably. We can stand against all odds and we can stand against all doubts and all fears and say this is who God is, this is what he will do in your life, this is how he operates, this is not only what he says, this is what he will do. God wants us in such a relationship with him, so intimate with him that we always know he's there.

And what do these storms do? These storms make our convictions absolutely a vital integral part of our life. For example, would Peter, would he ever have learned how much faith he had that one night in a storm he stepped out of a boat on the, listen, he probably weighed 140, 50, 60, 70, 200, who knows how much he weighed, but he knows that every time he'd ever stepped on water, he went down. He swam in it, but he didn't walk in it. How would he ever have known that he had enough faith to step out on water, not in water, had there not been a storm that night? How would the apostle Peter ever learn how fearful he was? Is he not the one who said, Jesus, you can trust the rock? All the rest of these disciples may desert you, but you can put your faith in the rock.

I'll be there when they're all gone. How would he ever have learned how fearful he was as a man in the garden he pulls out a sword and whacks off an ear. He's ready to go to battle. He's ready to die, and I don't question that. He would have laid down his life immediately, unmistakably, clearly, lovingly before Jesus, fighting off those Roman soldiers.

He would never have hesitated one moment. So why would he ever believe that he'd be fearful and disloyal to Jesus? How would he ever believe that he would ever deny the Son of God?

I'll tell you. It was in the storm of the trial and the arrest of Jesus. It was in that awesome storm that night that he stood around a fire and said to a teenage girl, I don't even know that man. How would he have known that about himself had he not been in that storm?

You see, storms reveal things about us that we wouldn't discover any other way. How would he have ever known that Jesus Christ, oh, he knew he was the Messiah, and he'd watch them raise people from the dead and heal the sick and these kind of things? How would he have ever known that this Christ not only could do that, but he could walk on water? And not only could he walk on water, he could just simply say, shh, stop raining.

The sea died instantly, and it became like silk, like glass. How would he have ever known that had he not been in that storm that night? How would the apostle Paul ever have known the adequacy and the sufficiency of Christ in a storm that would not let up, a thorn in his side that God would not remove? How would he ever have known the sufficiency of God only in the storm of hurt and pain and suffering? How would he ever have known the faithfulness of God except he was out, he says, in the deep three times in a shipwreck day and night, beaten with rods, beaten 39 times, he says, often? How would he ever have known the sustaining power of God had he not gone through that? And if you look in the second Corinthians chapter 11, his biographical sketch of all the storms in his life, it's one storm after the other. He says, dangers from robbers, dangers from wilderness, dangers from this, dangers from that, the oppression of the churches, all of these things. How would he have ever known how absolutely awesome God is to one individual had he not been thrown in the storms?

And how would you not have been so encouraged had we not read it about him in the Scriptures? One of the primary purposes for the storm is to deepen and strengthen our conviction. And listen, you and I can say to other people, we can quote this verse, there's a peace that surpasses all human understanding that'll guard and keep our hearts in Christ Jesus. You know when I know that's true? I can tell you. I know it's true because the Word of God says it, but you know when you and I can speak with conviction when we have nothing left but God himself, when there is absolutely nothing around us offering peace and we still have that awesome sense of peace, the storm is torrential, the waves are high, the water is deep and the sky is black and the winds are furious. And somehow there's a peace that abides within you cannot explain. How would you ever know that if you didn't get thrown in the storm?

You would not. The fifth word is comfort. I want you to turn, if you will, to 2 Corinthians and look, if you will, in that first chapter. 2 Corinthians chapter 1. Paul begins this book calling God the God of all comfort. And listen to what he says. 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 3.

Now listen carefully to this. He says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all what? Comfort. Who comforts us, and I want you to watch two words. Who comforts us in what? All our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction or all affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. Now he says, God comforts you and me in our stormy times in order that we may do what to others? That we may comfort others.

Now listen to what he said. He says, This God comforts us in how many of our afflictions? All of them. In order that you and I may be able to comfort others in how many of theirs?

All of theirs. And he says, For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation. Or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer.

And here's what he said. He said one of the reasons that God sends storms into our life is he comforts us. And in comforting us, what does he do? He equips us.

Listen. Storms are God's tools. Storms are God's training periods in our life.

It's his training periods. It is his tools in our life to do what? In order to equip us, it isn't enough for God just to comfort us and to strengthen us, but God also wants to use us. He wants to do something through us, and so it's not enough that God would just allow these storms in our life in order to do something and build character in our life. But it is you and I learn to hurt, learn to suffer, learn to experience pain.

Listen. Not always trying to escape it and run from it, but God, you said you are causing all things to work together for good. So God, you must be causing my storm to work for good in my life, and so I want to thank you for that. Lord, what are you teaching me in this? And Father, how can I now be a comfort to someone else? Let me ask you, why does God allow storms in our life?

Listen carefully, and I don't miss anything I'm going to tell you. He allows these storms in our life because you and I, listen to this, are the living, walking expressions of Jesus on this earth. And so people see in us how we respond to storms. And secondly, when the storms hit them, they are going to find someone whom they believe knows enough about the storm that they are going through, they're going to find you, and they're going to ask you how you survived it.

Storms were never sent to sink us. Storms are allowed in order to do what? To sanctify us and to make us more capable and more equipped to be what? Valuable, strong servants of God. Doing what? Making a difference in the hearts and lives of people who are hurt because every single child of God is to be a walking exhibition of the life of Christ.

And what was He doing? Come unto me all you that labor under heavy laten and I'll give you rest. He was always reaching out to comfort and to strengthen.

And so that is our responsibility. And I want to challenge you, whatever storms you've been through in your life, if you'll analyze what happened and ask yourself the question, what did I learn? What has God in the process of teaching me?

And then remember, you don't keep that to yourself. God used that as a training time. He used it as a tool in order to equip you to be a servant to someone else. Thank you for listening to Part 2 of God's Purpose. If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or In Touch Ministries, stop by intouch.org. This podcast is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.