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By Pastor Tim Hodge In this series we have dealt with the
following: Part 1 – “Character Class” -- the molding of the integrity and
character of the doulos (servant) of God, Part
2 – “It’s A Mental Thing” -- the mental focus of the doulos, Part 3 –
“Equal But Emptying” – the acknowledgement of who we are in God and the Christ like
emptying of ourselves as did our Lord to be the doulos of God. As a reminder, please note the
definition of our working definition for the word “doulos” (the Greek word
for ‘slave/servant’): “The
doulos slave is a slave of God who is totally
devoted to God’s will to the
point that the slave completely disregards his
own self interests knowing
that His loving Master will abundantly
provide for us.” Destiny is not a coincidence but a
pre-planned turn of events by God. The
Psalmist declared, “Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so
shall I talk of thy wondrous works” (Psalms 119:27, KJV).
The Old Testament is written in Hebrew.
A study of this word “precepts” shows that it is to be literally
defined as “appointments.” Therefore, the Psalmist was saying, “God, make me
understand Your appointments.” God
works by appointments only. God has
the Daytimer, the Palm Pilot, the Planner of the ages.
He has already gone through time, before time even was, and set
“appointments” when certain events would come to pass. The doulos of God must understand
Romans 8:28 is true: “And we know that all things work together for good to
them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (KJV).
It is your destiny for things to work out for your good. Destiny, according to Webster’s
Dictionary is defined as, “that which happens to a person or thing, thought of
as determined in advance by fate.” For
our definition we will drop the last word “fate” and interject “God.”
So to the doulos destiny is “That
which happens to a person or thing, thought of as determined in advance by
God.” Deuteronomy 28:13a gives a portion of the
pre-planned destiny of the doulos – the faithful servant: “The LORD will
make you the head, not the tail…” (NIV).
For the doulos to have character and integrity we have to start at the
extreme end of the tail and God works us up to the head.
There are, however, a lot of smelly parts between the tail and the head.
Once you get from the far extreme of the tail to the other end there is
the… um, well, you know. You may
even have to spend some time at the hoof and as the animals walk around in the
pastures all day you know the hoofs get squished into stinking… um, well, you
know. While on track to the head you may have to spend some time on
the torso and that’s where the biting insects torment the animal causing it to
shake, quiver, and jerk trying to get some relief. However, your destiny is to be the head!
The head rules the show and faithful servants will be rulers over much. It is interesting to note some of the
humble beginnings of a few scripturally significant people.
Jesus started out in a stable but ends the story of time as the King of
kings and Lord of lords. Moses’
earliest influence was found in the Nile River but his life ends as God’s
servant who led Israel out of four hundred plus years of Egyptian slavery, their
forty years of punishment in the wilderness, and his life ends with Israel about
to enter into the promised land. The
prophet Elijah came out of nowhere… unknown and ends with a great anointing
that was passed on to his servant and a prophetic generation to follow.
John the Baptist had church in the wilderness by the raging Jordan River
yet he was the chosen forerunner who prepared the way for Jesus Christ.
Peter’s first job for Jesus was to simply row Him around a little bit
while He preached back to the crowd on the shoreline. Peter, however, was the first man to preach a Pentecostal
message and see thousands of people come to accept Christ as savior.
Matthew was a hated tax collector (hooray for the IRS) and later penned
the gospel of Matthew which will last for eternity. Destiny should be motivational The fact of our destiny should motivate us to get from where
we are to where we are going to be. Here
is a Destiny Declaration: “I am not where I am going to be!” We are in
route to being perfected and we are going beyond where we are at this moment.
When discouragement comes our way we can boldly say to ourselves, “I AM
NOT WHERE I AM GOING TO BE! I
can’t stay where I am. This will
pass. This place is not my destiny.”
Even in the good places of life we must understand there is something
GREATER… the fulfillment of our destiny.
Joseph, while in the slavery and in prison, had to keep reminding
himself, “I am not where I am going to be!” Destiny should be an
ever-increasing revelation If God were to reveal your whole future
to you in one sitting you would probably die.
Your obituary would read: “Person dies of fear-inspired cardiac arrest
as God reveals entire life’s future turn of events!”
In order not to kill you God gives you a “sense” of your destiny.
Then along life’s path He will give you a dream, a prophetic word, or a
“sense” that you are about to take a step closer to the fulfillment of your
destiny. Joseph had two dreams in
Genesis 37. In those dreams he was
shown he would be in a position of leadership.
In those two dreams he was not shown a dried up well into which he would
be thrown by his hate-filled brothers. He
was not shown a slavery caravan headed toward Egypt of which he would be a part.
He was not shown Potiphar’s house where he would be a slave.
He wasn’t shown the dungeon of the prison where he spent several years
incarcerated. Had he seen all that
he would have ran and spent the rest of his life in hiding… if he would have
even survived the dreams. Destiny is not a coincidence Destiny is a “pre-determined plan.”
Jeremiah 29:10-11 states, “This is what the LORD says: ‘When seventy
years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious
promise to bring you back to this place. (v11)
For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to
prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future…’”
(NIV). Nothing can happen to us by
chance. God’s work order of the
day is preparing for us tomorrow and tomorrow we are growing closer to our
destiny in Christ Jesus. Destiny can be delayed, but it can
not be denied If destiny is predetermined in advance by
God and God is not limited by the confines of time and space then we must be of
the persuasion that nothing catches God off guard and He never has to go to
“Plan B”… He’s always on “Plan A”.
Our failures are not a finality! Our
failures may delay our destiny, but nothing on our part can deny the
predetermined appointments of God. Here are some examples: 1.
The children of Israel had a destiny to be in the promised land… the
land God said He would give to Abraham’s seed.
Their rebellion at Kadesh-Barnea delayed had that destiny for forty
years, but they did go in. Destiny
was delayed, but not denied. 2.
Peter denied Christ three times. He
appeared to be a failure, but his destiny was to be a Holy Ghost-filled man.
His destiny thundered to a new level on the day of Pentecost and in the
birthing of the New Testament Church. 3.
Saul of Tarsus as wreaking havoc on the early church. His destiny was to be the man God would use to write
two-thirds of the New Testament sharing the revelation about the Lord he was
attempting to force people to deny. On
the road to Damascus he had a “God-encounter” with the Christ. Bang. Name
changed to Paul and he’s on the road of destiny. 4.
Paul and Barnabas are setting out on a missionary trip. A young man named Mark wants to go. Not too far into the journey Marky-boy decides he wants to go
home to mommy. Paul’s all for
booting him out of the plan with no mercy.
Barnabas is ready to give him a second chance.
Paul and Barnabas get into such a verbal altercation over the matter that
they part company. 2 Timothy 4:11
records some of the last words recorded by the Apostle Paul and in it we find,
“Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me
for ministry” (NKJ). Mark’s
early immaturity may have delayed his ministry, but even Paul, the man who was
ready to strip him of any ministerial credentials, later acknowledged how
important he was in the fulfillment of his destiny. Destiny answers the questions of
your skeptics when you get to the top. Joseph has already been mentioned
briefly. Destiny serves as your
motivation by answering your own questions while on your way to the top.
“Is this where I will spend the rest of my life?
Is this all there is to it?” However,
when you come into a full season of your destiny you might as well prepare
yourself… everyone won’t be as excited about your destiny as you are.
Others will be jealous and skeptical.
Yet, the same destiny that answered all your “What if…” questions
on the way will be the same destiny that silences your skeptics when you arrive
at the top… the fulfillment of your destiny.
Joseph spoke to his brothers after their father’s death. Now that their father was dead they were afraid that Joseph
would no longer have mercy upon them and would pass judgment on them for what
they had done to him. These are the
words he spoke to them, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God
meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many
people alive” (Genesis 50:20, NKJ). They
were questioning Joseph’s integrity and character.
Joseph was quick to reaffirm to them that all he had experienced and
endured was because of his DESTINY and that destiny was to save many people! So friend.
Where are you? I mean in
terms of your destiny. Are you just
wandering aimlessly through the caverns of time?
Or, are you on a journey… a journey which has been pre-charted for you
by a Great God? Doulos of God if
you are on the great journey of destiny I encourage to look beyond the horizon.
Look beyond the good, the bad, and the ugly of the present and see way
ahead through the time warp of destiny and see yourself sitting as the head of
something grand in the kingdom of God.
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