Predestined with Purpose
Scripture - Matthew 1:18-25
Society would consider Jesus an illegitimate child due to the circumstances surrounding His conception. Think about it… a woman suddenly gets pregnant by someone else while she is engaged. Her fiancé thought about leaving her, but marries her anyway and raises another person’s baby.
It sounds like an episode of Jerry Springer or Maury Povich at first glance. Yet in the midst of this seemingly awkward engagement/marriage, the purpose of the child is revealed in verse twenty-one, “He will save His people from their sins.”
I love how down to earth (no pun intended) Jesus’ conception was. It put Jesus on a leveled playing field (if you will) with everybody else. He was not born to a royal family who was naturally wealthy. They were a regular couple who had regular issues just like many of our parents had when we were conceived. Yet, the circumstances surrounding His conception did not negate Jesus’ purpose.
Maybe you were conceived as a result of unwed parents, rape, adultery, in vitro fertilization, perhaps you were planned by both parents who were married, or in rich or poor conditions (no judgement here). Regardless of your conception, there is no such thing as an illegitimate child. We are all legitimately supposed to be here to fulfill our God-given purpose. Your natural beginning does not dictate your ending and just like Jesus you were predestined with purpose. God has a special plan for your life (Jeremiah 29:11).
Jesus was not defined by His conception; nor did His ancestral lineage put limits on who He turned out to be. After all, His family had issues just like all of ours do - Rahab (prostitute), David (adulterer and murderer), Jacob (a schemer/hustler), Ruth (a poor widow), the list goes on. But none of that defined Him or prevented God the Father from using Him for a greater purpose.
Jesus’ life on earth is meant to be an example of how we’re supposed to live here too. He’s no different than we are in that He walked this same earth and experienced all that we’re experiencing now. Despite all He went through, God’s plan always prevailed and the same is with you. No matter what got you here, what you’ve been through, and what you’re going to go through in the future, God’s purpose and plan for your life will prevail.
Don’t know your purpose? Let me help you with it. Your purpose is your highest expression of love. It is loving God, loving yourself, loving God’s people, and sharing the message of faith, hope, and love to all. You do this through whatever means God designed specifically for you. You’ll know your specific reason through prayer and a relationship with God.
Journal
- Think about your life. Are you living your highest expression of love or have you allowed natural circumstances to prevent you from living your God-given purpose?
- What excuses, if any, have you allowed to rob you from living in the manner God designed for you to live?
- Spend time in prayer today thanking God for His plan for your life.
For I know the plans I have for you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. -Jeremiah 29:11-13, HCSB
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