Fulfilling Your Destiny!By David Wilkerson
What is "destiny"? In
simple terms, destiny is God's purpose for your life. It is your appointed or
ordained future. Destiny is what God has predetermined you to be and to become,
in His divine will.
I get sad
when I read of the many godly men and women in Scripture who missed their
destiny. God chose a destined work or ministry for each of them -- but they
ended up aborting His plan. They started out right, moving for a while in the
power of their calling. But in the end, they died in shame and ruin -- missing
God's destiny for their lives!
So, tell
me: Is it possible for such Christians to be so pressed down and troubled, to
be in such despair and despondency, they become convinced they're not going to
make it?
Saul Was a Man Who Missed His Destiny!
God
Himself chose Saul to lead Israel out of bondage to the Philistines. When the
prophet Samuel first laid eyes on Saul, the Lord said, "...Behold the man
whom I spake to thee of! this same shall reign over my people" (1 Samuel
9:17). The Lord was saying, "Take a good look, Samuel. This is the man I
have chosen to lead Israel!"
Samuel
didn't choose Saul. Nor did Israel choose him at this time. Rather, God said,
"I have appointed this man!" The Bible says of Saul: "And the
Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy...and shalt be
turned into another man" (10:6).
Indeed,
Saul was transformed by God's touch on his life: "...God gave him another
heart..." (verse 9). Then Samuel said something wonderful to him:
"...God is with thee"(verse 7). In other words: "Go with
confidence, Saul -- for God is with you!"
Here was
a man appointed by God, moved upon by the Holy Spirit, gifted with a spirit of
prophecy, destined by God to lead Israel -- and God was with him. What more
wonderful things could be said about him?
And Saul
started out right. For a while he lived his destiny, walking in the fear of
God. He quickly won a great battle against the Ammonites. And the people came
home praising God, saying: "...Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over
us? bring the men, that we may put them to death. And Saul said, There shall
not a man be put to death this day: for to day the Lord hath wrought salvation
in Israel"(11:12-13).
Saul was
appointed king over Israel. Yet, one of the most tragic pictures in all of
Scripture is when this man began to fall apart. He had walked in his destiny
for only a short time -- yet God fully intended that Saul live out his days
with the Lord's blessing. He had desired that Saul be remembered as the man who
delivered Israel from the bondage of the Philistines. But Saul missed his
destiny! He began to disintegrate, caving in to his need for human applause and
acceptance. He made compromises to attain these things -- and he missed the
plan God had for him.
It is so
sad to see Saul toward the end of is life. As he faced one of Israel's greatest
military battles, his heart smote him with fear. He ended up consulting with
the evil witch of Endor! He told her, "...God is departed from me, and
answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams..." (28:15).
By Saul's
own confession, God was no longer with him. What a chilling, frightful thought!
A person can be called to a great, divine purpose, walking in God's blessing
and anointing -- and then suddenly go off on a tangent, serving himself and
ending up abandoned by God.
That is
the picture of Saul here. This king ended up prostrating himself before a witch.
And he died in shame -- forsaken by God. These words might easily have been
written on his tombstone: "The man who missed his destiny."
Samson Was Another Man Destined to
Greatness
for God -- But He Missed His Destiny!
for God -- But He Missed His Destiny!
Samson is
yet another tragic figure in the Old Testament. His destiny was known before he
was born. According to Scripture, "...he shall begin to deliver Israel out
of the hand of the Philistines"(Judges 13:5).
Angels
announced this man's birth, giving his parents detailed instructions on how to
raise him. Samson was to be a Nazarite -- meaning, he was to be given
completely to God's service for his entire lifetime. He was never to drink wine
or cut his hair. And he was never to touch anything dead. He couldn't even go
to the funeral of a near relative.
Samson
was raised under strict training. And at a young age he experienced the moving
of God's Spirit upon him: "...the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at
times..."(verse 25).
I know
what that is like. The Holy Spirit first moved on me at an old-fashioned camp
meeting when I was eight years old. And He continued to move on me throughout
my teenage years. I would go into my room and pray, and I would feel God's
Spirit come upon me.
I ask you
-- what is the first thing the Holy Spirit does when He moves on us? He
convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment. Then He guides, comforts and
teaches us. And He prays through us with cries, groanings, and supplications.
You can
be sure God's Spirit convicted Samson. And the boy was also taught, guided and
comforted by the Spirit. If you had met Samson when he was just nine or ten
years old, he might have told you, "God said I am someone special. They
say an angel announced my birth. I've had God's Spirit on me, and He has called
me to be a Nazarite. One day I'm going to help Israel become a free
country!"
Samson
knew he had a destiny. He was born for a purpose -- to begin Israel's
deliverance from bondage to the Philistines! And for twenty years, Samson
walked in the authority of his destiny. He judged Israel. And he harassed the
Philistines, bringing a ray of hope to the nation.
You have
to understand here -- Samson's strength was not in his hair, but in the moving
of God's Spirit upon him. Scripture says the Holy Spirit would come upon
Samson, and he would do exploits. Without the Spirit, Samson would have been as
weak as you or I.
God had
fully intended to bless the rest of Samson's years with greater victories. His
Spirit would remain upon him to his dying hour. History would say of Samson,
"He was faithful to the end. He did all that God appointed for him --
living and dying in honor to the Lord. He fulfilled his destiny!"
But not
so! Samson aborted his destiny -- because his heart was black with sin! He kept
up an outward holiness, but he chased after harlots. When he went down to see
Delilah, he knowingly flirted with danger. Although the Spirit moved upon him,
this man never allowed the Spirit to touch his inner man. Samson had no truth
dwelling within him.
Here is
yet another tragic picture of a man who missed his destiny. After twenty years
of walking in God's calling, Samson began to degenerate. He became a sensuous
man -- and he lost the respect of his own people.
Samson
should have lived out his days in dignity, as a vessel of honor. There should
have been one victory after another for this man and for Israel. We should be
able to read of how Samson built strength upon strength, and grew in the power
and anointing of God's Spirit.
Instead,
we read of a man who ended up one of the most pitiful weaklings in biblical
history. In the end, we see Samson strapped into a harness like a dumb ox,
grinding away at a Philistine mill. His eyes are gouged out, and he has lost all
his strength. He is the laughingstock of the heathen. And his own people have
turned against him.
Even in
his dying day, when Samson brought down the Philistine temple, it was not a
great victory. Why? His desire was all about personal revenge. His prayer that
day wasn't about avenging the name of God. Rather, he prayed, "God, give
me strength one more time -- that I may avenge my eyes!"
Samson
died in utter deception, having missed his destiny. His tombstone also might
have read, "The man who missed his destiny."
Solomon Also Was a Man Who Missed His
Destiny!
If ever
there appeared to be a man of destiny, it was Solomon. He was the wisest,
richest, most respected man of his time. And his destiny was clearly laid out
for him. He would be the king who once and for all rid Israel of idolatry!
Solomon promised both his father and the Lord that he would bring down every
idol in the land.
For a
while, Solomon walked in his destiny. At one point, the visiting Queen of Sheba
was breathless at the mere sight of Solomon's reverence as he ascended to the
temple. But something happened in Solomon's life -- and he too missed his
destiny!
This man
amassed some 900 wives and concubines, many from other nations. And to appease
them, he built an "embassy row" of heathen temple after heathen temple.
Soon, the man who had been called to rid Israel of idolatry had become an
idolater. He accompanied one wife after another to their temples, bowing before
heathen idols.
Solomon
ended up missing his destiny -- a disillusioned, decrepit, immoral man. He entered
eternity crying, "All is vanity and vexation of spirit. It's
worthless!"
Like
Solomon before him, King Uzziah also missed his destiny. This man had come to
the throne at age sixteen, destined to be one of the greatest kings of Judah.
He received counsel from the prophet Zechariah. He received visions from the
Lord. He was mightily blessed by God.
The Bible
says Uzziah sought the Lord -- and God caused him to prosper and become strong:
"And God helped him..."(2 Chronicles 26:7). "...And his name spread
far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong"(verse 15).
Except
for Solomon, Uzziah had the greatest reputation of any king over Judah. He was
anointed of God. He brought about revival in the land, tearing down idols and
walking according to God's Word. When this bold king rode his chariot down the
streets, he was given awe and respect. He received gifts and tributes from all
over the world.
But,
Scripture says: "...when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his
destruction: for he transgressed against the Lord his God, and went into the
temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the altar of incense" (verse 16)
Pride
overcame this man of destiny. He wanted to be priest as well as king! In
disobedience, Uzziah entered the temple and began to wave the incense before
the altar. He received a rebuke for this -- and when he pointed an angry finger
in response, his hand immediately began to wither. It suddenly became leprous.
Uzziah had to be cast out of the temple of God!
Oh, the
shame of it! One of the greatest, richest kings in Judah's history now had to
be isolated. He was taken to a small house where he spent the rest of his days
as a leper: "And Uzziah the king was a leper unto the day of his death,
and dwelt in a several house, being a leper; for he was cut off from the house
of the Lord..." (verse 21).
Uzziah
died in isolation -- cut off from every blessing of God!
When this
once-great man died, multitudes should have been gathered around him. His
passing should have been an honor to the Lord's name. Instead, he died a
near-unknown man, his body eaten up with leprosy. Uzziah missed his destiny!
In the Old Testament, Every Person
Had His Own Individual Destiny!
Had His Own Individual Destiny!
There
were as many destinies in the Old Testament as there were kings, priest,
prophets and even ordinary saints. Even the lowliest people -- those called to
be servants, worshipers, shepherds, tentmakers -- had his or her own destiny.
And as we look at their lives, we are to be convicted by them. We are to learn
from the failures of these past saints who either missed or fulfilled their
destinies.
But we
cannot compare our destiny to that of any person in the Old Testament! You see,
in the New Testament, God has done an entirely new thing. He no longer measures
our destiny as He did those under the Old Covenant. Their lives have nothing to
do with our destiny, since the Cross of Jesus Christ.
At the
Cross, God gathered up all the individual destinies of humankind into one grand
purpose -- and He placed them all in His Son: "That in the dispensation of
the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both
which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him" (Ephesians
1:10)..
God
gathered up all our destinies in Jesus -- so that His Son would have
preeminence!
Today,
there are no more individual destinies, but one destiny for all believers. Yes,
you do have a destiny -- and it is the same as mine. It doesn't matter whether
you're a waitress or the captain of an ocean liner. We have all the same fixed,
predetermined destiny, given to us before the world was formed.
What is
this single, grand and glorious destiny given to all last-day saints? The
apostle Paul reveals it to us in the book of Ephesians: "According as he
hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the
adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure
of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us
accepted in the beloved" (verses 4-6).
God says,
in essense: "In the last days, in the fullness of time, I have one divine
purpose. And that is for every follower of Mine to come into adoption by Jesus
Christ -- and to live blameless, as a praise and glory to My name!"
"In
whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the
purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: that
we should be to the praise of his glory" (verses 11-12).
Our
destiny is to be an adopted child of God! We have been adopted by the heavenly
Father -- and the devil no longer has any claim on us. Now we are to live for
our Lord, blameless and holy, by the power of God's Spirit. Our single purpose
on this earth is to live our lives as a praise and glory to Him!
Do you
get what Paul is saying here? No person's destiny is measured by his great
works, his achievements and exploits, his special accomplishments. No one's
destiny ultimately is to build successful ministries, institutions or churches.
You might
say, "Wait a minute, Brother Dave. Do you mean it wasn't your destiny to
raise up Teen Challenge, the worldwide ministry to drug addicts and alcoholics?
Do you mean it wasn't your destiny to come to New York and start Times Square
Church?"
I thank
God He allowed me to be the father of these works. Today there are some 300
Teen Challenge rehab centers worldwide. And now there is also a center of
praise for Jesus on Broadway, at the crossroads of the world. But neither of
these things was my destiny!
My
destiny has little to do with the things God has allowed me to do. My destiny
has always been to reach lost souls and bring them into the fullness of Jesus,
to the praise and glory of God. My destiny also was to walk as an adopted son
of God -- living before the world blameless, all to His praise and glory.
When I
came to New York, nothing changed. My destiny had remained to build up the body
of Christ -- and to walk before the Lord as his adopted son! Some day, not a
single building that our ministry has built will be standing -- not the
incorporated institutions, not the Bible schools, not the rehab houses. They
all will decay and vanish. And when I stand on Judgment Day, I won't be able to
take any of those things with me.
These
ministries are simply "burdens of the Lord" that God has allowed us
to share and undertake, while walking in our destiny of doing His perfect will.
And I believe He has blessed these ministries because we have lived in our
destiny.
Dear
saint, God is not requiring some great accomplishment from you. The Bible makes
this very clear: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth
the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk
humbly with thy God..." (Micah 6:8).
Paul was
very certain about what his destiny was:"...that we may present every man
perfect in Christ Jesus: whereunto I also labour, striving according to his
working, which worketh in me mightily" (Colossians 1:28-29).
This is
my destiny as well, as a minister of the Lord. It is that I become conformed
more and more to the image of Jesus -- and that I also see you become more like
Him!
I feel
sorry for many of the young ministers who call, write and visit me from all
over the country. Most are striving to live up to a destiny that is an
invention of their own flesh. Some of them pastor small churches, pouring our
their hearts in ministry to their congregations. But then another pastor may
come to town and suddenly build a church of 1,000.
These
young men compare themselves to the newcomer, thinking, "Surely I'm
destined to do great things, as he is doing. What's wrong with me? Why am I not
blessed with greater results? He's attracting huge numbers of people -- and I
have only a handful each Sunday." They don't realize -- that is not their
destiny! Their destiny is to get to know Christ better -- to have God's hand on
them -- to walk blameless before Him in their city. The man with true power is
the one who has a personal knowledge of Christ!
I see
many Christian musicians striving to find a little acclaim, hoping their
destiny is to write that one hit song that will put them over the top.
Likewise, many Christian writers want to produce that one, great book. And many
Christian businesspeople look for the big break that will distinguish them in
their field.
But, beloved,
if you're going to walk in your destiny, the only thing that will set you apart
is your desire to surpass all others in the knowledge of Jesus. No one will
spend more time alone with Him than you; no one will accept his wonderful
adoption more eagerly than you. That is greatness!
I Want to Talk Now About the Destiny of
Wives and Mothers -- and of Husbands and Fathers!
Wives and Mothers -- and of Husbands and Fathers!
I am
talking now not to ministers, but to laypeople. I want to show you what it
means to fulfill your fixed destiny!
Christian,
it doesn't matter how successful you are outside your home. You are missing
your destiny if you are not becoming more and more like Jesus in your
household. If you are not becoming sweeter, more loving and considerate to your
family -- if you are not growing in the love and knowledge of Christ at home --
you are not fulfilling your destiny!
Wives and
mothers: Before the world existed, God foresaw you in this present place and
time. He knew what your address would be. And He had a predetermined plan for
your life!
At times
you may say to yourself, "I'm just a housewife. All I do is cook, clean
the house and raise my kids. How can that be destiny?" But you do not
understand how important your place is in God. You are a great success in His
eyes if you can stand before Him one day and present your children to Him in
righteousness!
God has
always known how many children He would loan you. He knew their names and
personalities. He numbered their body members and hairs. And he destined you to
raise them in a home filled with the power and presence of Jesus! Your children
are not toys or live-in dolls. They are an investment God has entrusted to you.
They are part of your destiny!
I ask
you: Do your children say to your neighbor's kids, "My mother prays for
me. She's sweet to me." Or do they say, "Oh, boy, there she goes
again -- yelling her head off!" Does your husband look at you with great
respect? Does he tell you, "We may have our differences -- but I always
feel you want to heal, not divide. You always run to prayer!"
Your
destiny is to raise your children in a home where prayer is commonplace --
where your life and marriage are a praise and glory to the God!
Husbands
and fathers: Can you imagine your wife saying of you, "My husband is
human. He makes mistakes. But he is a praying man -- and he is constantly
becoming more like Jesus! He practices what he preaches. I know -- because
every day he's kinder to me, gentler, more considerate of my needs."
I am not
boasting here. But it was one of the great thrills of my life to hear my wife
say, "David has a temper, but he's working on it. I don't care what
anybody says -- I know he walks with God." I hope that can be said of me
to my dying day. That is destiny!
Many
preachers' wives have told Gwen and me, "It's all I can do to sit in
church and listen to my husband preach. He's always smiling out at the
congregation -- but he's selfish and mean to me at home. Sometimes I just want
to scream!"
I know of
one minister who did great works for God. He wrote many wonderful books. He
built institutions at home and overseas. He was in demand as a speaker all over
the world. He was called a man of faith and vision -- a man of destiny.
But one
day his son, a young minister, called me, crestfallen. He said, "Brother
David, I'm so hurt. My dad isn't what people think he is. He doesn't know how
to tell the truth! Most of the stories he tells about miracles are lies. When I
approached him about it, he admitted it to me. But he won't quit!"
I ended
up talking to the father. He told me, "Yes, David, I'm a habitual liar. I
don't even know what the truth is anymore." I prayed with the man -- but
there was no change. His son called me later to say things were only getting
worse. His father apparently had committed himself to his sin.
This man
is not a man of destiny. When he stands before the Lord at the judgment, all of
his works will burn; all of his writings will judge him. None of those things
was ever his destiny. Rather, his destiny was to become more like Jesus -- to
grow in holiness, righteousness, purity, with no lies. He may boast about being
a "man of destiny." But he has missed his true destiny!
So many
Christians are striving to accomplish wonderful things for God. But the Lord
boils it all down to this simple thing: Are you changing from glory to glory?
Are you becoming more like Jesus? "For whom he did foreknow, he also did
predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the
firstborn among many brethren" (Romans 8:29).
On
Judgment Day, not one word will be said of mighty works. There will be no
notice of personal fame, success or human accomplishments. Instead, the
question will be: Did you grow in Christ? Did you allow the Holy Spirit to
teach you to serve others, to give up your rights? What were you like at home?
So, dear
saint -- are you fulfilling your destiny? Are you more like Jesus this year
than you were last year? Is your marriage growing or deteriorating? Do your
children see you as tender and kind, or as a grouch? Do the people who know you
see the love of Christ in you?
What will be written on your tombstone: "The man who missed his destiny"? Or, "The man who walked humbly with his God"?
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