GOD’S 5 PURPOSES FOR YOUR LIFE - Rick Warren

Isaiah 38:1-5 (Mes) 

“Be careful how you live. Live wisely, not foolishly. Make the most of your time and take every opportunity to do good because evil is everywhere. Don’t live carelessly without thinking. Instead, make sure you understand what the Lord wants you to do with your life.”Ephesians 5:15-17 

“If you keep your life clean from sin, you will be an instrument that God can use for his highest purposes.” 2 Timothy 2:21 

WHAT DOES GOD WANT ME TO DO WITH THE REST OF MY LIFE?

1. GOD WANTS ME TO  center my life around Him.  Anything that is in the center of my life besides God is an idol. 

“LOVE The Lord your God with all your heart . . . and soul and mind and strength. This is the first and greatest commandment.” 








Matthew 22:37-38 

THIS FIRST PURPOSE IS CALLED

worship which is enjoying  God's love and loving Him back.  

“A sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.”Philemon 4:7 (Mes) 

2. GOD WANTS ME TO

learn to love His family.

“Let us not give up the HABIT OF MEETING TOGETHER . . . instead let us encourage one another.” Hebrews 10:25 (TEV) 

THIS SECOND PURPOSE IS CALLED

fellowship which is 

learning to love God's family.  

“Those who believed . . . were baptized and added to the church . . . They joined with the other believers and committed themselves to the Apostles’ teaching and fellowship . . . They worshiped together regularly at the Temple . . . and met in small groups in homes . . .”Acts 2:41-42, 46 

NOTE THE ORDER:

1. God wants me to BELIEVE in Jesus

2. Next, he wants me to be BAPTIZED

3. JOIN a church family

4. Commit to regular WORSHIP

5. Connect to a small group FELLOWSHIP

3. GOD WANTS ME TO

cultivate spiritual maturity.

“Let us go on . . . and become mature in our understanding, as strong Christians ought to be.” Hebrews 6:1 (LB) 

THIS THIRD PURPOSE IS CALLED

Discipleship.  God wants me to be a lifetime learner.  

“By now you should be teachers. Instead, you still need someone to teach you . . . !” Hebrews 5:12 (GW) 

4. GOD WANTS ME TO  

contribute something back. 

“God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other.” 1 Peter 4:10 (LB) 

THIS FOURTH PURPOSE IS CALLED

ministry which means serving God by serving others.    

“What can I GIVE BACK to God for the blessings he’s poured out on me?” Psalms 116:12 (Mes) 

5. GOD WANTS ME TO

tell others about His love.  You can't sin in heaven, or share the good news with someone who has never heard it.   

“Through Christ, God has made peace between us and himself, and He gave us the work of telling everyone about the peace we can have with Him . . . So, we have been sent to speak for Christ!”2 Corinthians 5:18,20 (NCV) 

THIS FIFTH PURPOSE IS CALLED

witnessing.   An attorney makes the case and persuades.  A witness says what happened to me.  

“In our work together with God, we beg those of you who have received God's grace TO NOT LET IT BE WASTED!” 

2 Corinthians 6:1 (TEV)   

My True Identity

LEARNING MY TRUE IDENTITY IN CHRIST

The Foundation for a Life Well-Lived - Part 2

Rick Warren

JANUARY 12-13, 2019

1 Peter 2:9-10

“You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

GOD’S TRUE VIEW OF YOU: IN CHRIST . . .

1.  

I am completely accepted.  Our deepest wounds come from rejection.  A lot of our behavior is driven by  this need.  

“You have been CHOSEN by God himself!” 1 Peter 2:9 (LB) 

• BECAUSE  

God chose me before everything.  

“He chose us in him before the creation of the world, to be holy and blameless in his sight by his love.” Ephesians 1:4  

• BECAUSE  

Jesus made me acceptable by His death on the cross.  

“Jesus treated us much better than we deserve. He made us acceptable to God and gave us the hope of eternal life.” Titus 3:7 (CEV)  

2.  

I am extremely valuable.  Value depends upon who owns it.  Who do you belong to?  God.  

“You are a HOLY nation, a people BELONGING to God!” 1 Peter 2:9 

“You are a people holy to the Lord your God . . . his treasured possession.” Deuteronomy 7:6 (NIV)  

God says: “You are precious to me.” Isaiah 43:4 (TEV)  

• BECAUSE  

God is my father.  

“Look at the birds . . . God feeds them and you are far more valuable to Him than any birds!” Luke 12:24  

• BECAUSE  

Jesus gave His life for me.  Value is determined by what someone is willing to pay for it.  The Cross proves your value.  

“You have been bought and paid for by Christ, so you belong to him . . .” 1 Corinthians 7:23 (LB) 

3.  

I am eternally loved.  God's love is unconditional.  God's love is consistent.  

“Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God.” 1 Peter 2:10 

“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.” Jeremiah 31:3 (NLT)  

• BECAUSE  

God is love.  We get into trouble when we doubt God's love.  

“God’s love is eternal and his faithfulness lasts forever.” Psalm 100:5 (TEV)  

4.  

I am totally forgiven.   God doesn't carry grudges.  

“At one time you did not know God’s mercy, but now you have received his mercy.” 1 Peter 2:10b (TEV)  

“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1 

• BECAUSE  

it is God's nature to forgive.  

“I am the God who forgives your sins, and I do this because of who I am. I will not hold your sins against you.” Isaiah 43:25 (TEV) 

• BECAUSE  

Jesus paid for your sins, so you don't have to pay for them.  

“For by the blood of Christ we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. How great is the grace of God!” Ephesians 1:7 (TEV)  

5.  

I am fully capable.   I'm not incompetent.  I am fully able of becoming what God made for me to be.  

“You are royal priests . . . chosen to tell about the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2:9 (NCV)  

“The capacity we have comes from God; it is he who made us capable of serving the new covenant . . .” 2 Corinthians 3:5b-6 (TEV)  

• BECAUSE  

Christ lives in me.  How do you reverse a curse?  Start believing what God says about you in the Bible.  

“I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13  

How should my identity affect how I act?

Rom. 15:7, 1 Pet. 2:17, Col.3:12, Eph. 4:32, Heb. 13:6