That is the first damage done by this push towards false divine purpose. It does not redeem the time at all. It abuses the time. It squanders the time. It wastes our time in the pursuit of temporal greatness while the world continues to go to hell. The devil is masterful at getting Christians to not redeem the time. He has us chasing politics and revival. He has us chasing false signs and lying wonders. He has us chasing the riches and trinkets of this world. All of this we chase through the false doctrines in His very church. At the heart of many of them however is this purpose driven mindset that takes our focus off of Christ and places it onto ourselves.
The second great harm is it cheapens the ordinary but godly. With all of the millions of Christians in this country does anyone truly believe that we are all destined to reign? That greatness is ordained for everyone? I used to teach college planning for high school students years ago and I remember this true example from the University of Michigan. They asked applicants if they were a leader or a follower and why. One applicant who answered follower received an acceptance letter that read in part, "of all the thousands of applicants this year you were the only one who said they would follow. We only thought it prudent if we were to have so many potential leaders that we give them someone to follow them." That is how the world views itself. Narcissistically great amidst a sea of self importance. Very few actually rise to the level the world would assign the greatness tag to. That is one of the benefits of being in Christ. We no longer need to aspire to the world's definition of greatness. Our greatness is now found in the God we serve. If He chooses to elevate us to bigger things because we show ourselves worthy in the smaller things then glory be to God. However, if He chooses in His sovereignty to not elevate us regardless of whether we are worthy in the smaller things then He still is worthy Himself of praise and glory. Do we understand this today? It is not about us! That pastor who labors over the small flock faithfully and God maintains but does not promote will still get "well done my good and faithful servant." Who knows how many lives his faithfulness touched on his way to heaven! Who knows how many lives in turn they touched! The same goes for the faithful mom and the faithful landscaper. Greatness is not found in what we do but who we serve. We should never allow something as trivial and fleeting as earthly purpose distract us from that.
Lastly, the damage done by this nonsense is it hurts the people. It raises false and hopelessly unachievable expectations. The average time someone spends in a seeker-friendly, purpose driven mega church is just under three years. Most never return to church. Most think they are saved when they are not and those that are become virtually useless to God or so warped in their theology they may as well be. Beloved imagine this will you. People come to church, hopefully seeking God. Instead they hear about their own greatness. They hear about their own potential. If it is prosperity heresy they hear how much God wants them to be rich. If it is word faith they hear about how they are in fact themselves "little gods." If it is false signs and lying wonders they hear about how their experiences trump biblical truth. Throughout all of these lies and heresies however is the purpose driven foundation. They are told that God has so much more for them. That He has so much greatness in store for them. In many cases they are taught that God actually needs them to accomplish His purposes here on earth. They hear this for a year but nothing gets better. They hear this for two years and then lose their job. Two and a half years and their wife files for divorce. Instead of drawing close to God at their most desperate hour they turn and blame Him because they were sold a false bill of goods. They are lost and their darkness will only grow colder and darker. Do not tell me there is little to no damage from selling people this purpose driven pabulum. I know people who were caught up in this and remain apart from the body of Christ to this day.
Which brings us to the key verse for today. By far the favorite verse abused by the Seeker Friendly Industrial Complex. Only poor Malachi sees his words twisted more. Let me start by saying something that many have probably not heard. Jeremiah 29:11 is not written to you. It is not written to me. It is not written to the church. It was written to the exiles in Babylon. Read the entire context and that becomes quite clear. So does that mean God is not saying to us that He has a great plan for us? Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. Now, if you want to use the entire canon of Scripture you can make the case that God most definitely has a plan for us. He knows this plan because He is sovereign over all and sees all time from beginning to end. The problem is once again, how we are defining greatness. For Peter his hope and future were to be crucified upside down. That was the plan of greatness he faced. What about the Apostle Paul:
But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name." - Acts 9: 15-16 (ESV)
Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. - 2Corinthians 11: 24-28 (ESV)
The verse from Acts is God telling us the great plans He had for Paul - how much he must suffer for His name. The verses from Paul's second letter to the Church at Corinth is the summary of that promise delivered. If that was not enough beloved, Paul would be beheaded eventually. These could very well be the plans the Lord has for us. The Bible says we are to leave our life and carry our cross if we are to truly follow Jesus. Not pursue these fanciful notions of carnal purpose. The only time we were meant for so much more is if we are not living every moment for Christ, in humility, redeeming the time.
Reverend Anthony Wade - February 11, 2016
