Session 20

Your position is not your purpose

From Chasing Purpose: A 27-Day Devotional

From an early age, adults ask us, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” As we get on in high school, the question becomes, “What are you going to do?” And when you enter adulthood, nearly every conversation starts with, “What do you do?”

We’re a people obsessed with position, which might explain why we find it so hard to understand that our position is not our purpose.

The Bible says we are here for God’s glory, our joy, and to do good works (‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭10:31‬, ‭‭‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18, Ephesians‬ ‭2:10‬). None of which is contingent on having a specific position.

We’re not the first people to struggle in this regard. In Luke 14:1-11, Jesus teaches people not to rush for the places of honor at a table. In other words, don’t get caught up in chasing a position. Rather than building your influence, look for a place where you can serve. If God wants you to serve on a broader scale, He will invite you to take a higher place.

In God’s kingdom, service is more important than status. And not just serving those who can help increase your status. “... when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you” (Luke 14:13-14).

We will have lots of opportunities to build our own kingdoms, but our lives weren’t meant to revolve around us. They were meant to revolve around God.

When we’re rushing from place to place, pushing for promotion after promotion, we can find ourselves taking the same attitude as the guests in the parable of the great feast.

“... they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come’” (Luke 14:18-20).

What if one of the reasons it feels like we’re missing out on God’s purpose for our lives is because we’re full of reasonable excuses not to sit down at His table?

The metaphor Jesus chooses is a feast, not a labor camp. Jesus is inviting us into something better than a life pursuing position and status. He’s inviting us into a life of fullness and purpose.

Reflect:

• What’s something that brings God glory and you joy?
  
• How can you do good works right where you are?