24 July 2014 by Donna Uning CM –
“What is the mystery of God’s favor?” asked Ps Peter Tsukahira in his message about finding God’s favor at the First Baptist Church, Kota Samarahan here recently. He touched on finding God’s favor as a Christian in Malaysia and fulfilling God’s calling in the midst of difficulty in the society.
Everything that we do is the exaltation in the name of Jesus to speak, teach and fellowship is because of His presence. We do this because He has purposes to accomplish in our lives. “The reason we have meetings like this is to facilitate and accelerate God’s work in each of our lives,” he said.
“All that God is and has, He releases to us because of His favor toward us,” he continued describing God’s favor is His blessings of opportunity, success, status, prestige, prosperity and love. Finding this favor is a hidden process in the life of each believer.
“I say hidden because this takes place in the hidden part, deep in our spirit – in the innermost being, in the Holy of Holies. The process of development is in the seeking and finding; and of connecting to God’s heart,” he said.
Connecting to God’s heart, willing to conform and adapting to God’s ways lead to finding God’s favor. It may not happen instantaneously, but it is not impossible because He can do anything he explained. Based on his 40 years’ experience, “this rarely happens in an instant.”
“It is the process of grace – growth and development,” he said telling, “We are the one always lacking time; God is not in a rush.” It is a progress as we enter into the favor of the Lord. “If this was to happen instantaneously, it would blow our lives to shreds if we don’t have the maturity and depth to handle it,” he added. It is an inner process through the spirit in our lives.
“It has to do with linking up to God’s identity and character; and joining ourselves to His purposes. God’s favor is a mystery because it needs unfolding, he said. “God is always not immediately obvious about what He does; what we need to know about God is that He has chosen to be invisible,” he said telling, “He has reasons for that.”
“Finding His favor is something we have to seek for,” he continued. And then God allows us to progressively enter into His favor. “He doesn’t just blast everything out in the media, He’s not a celebrity,” he said telling, “He hides from that, He retreats from that.” As we find Him, He progressively opens up. “It’s an unveiling of a mystery,” he added. There are many examples in the Bible; He may be angry with us for a moment, but His favor lasts for a lifetime.
When God gives you a gift, when God gives you an opportunity, when God goes before you, these are the things no man or woman can take away from you. The reverse is also true. “If you want anything that truly last, John the Baptist understood this,” he said quoting “A man can receive nothing accept what is given to him from heaven.” He understood that anything else that we get in this life is going to come and go.
“Anything that you get from God is always going to be 100 percent good!” he said. When God gives His gifts, He never changes His mind; the gifts and the calling of God are without repentance. “God is an eternal God; He is a faithful God. He isn’t playing games with us,” he said. When you find Him, you have something real in your life. God’s gift lasts throughout your life and eternity.
“This is why it’s so valuable to find the favor of God. There are two things about God that we need to nail down before we go further – what God is and what God does.
“What God is – God is moral; God is Holy and God is pure,” he said. “God will always, without any exception, do the right thing.” He will always have towards you, a pure attitude. He is love. “His love towards you is unchanging and pure. That also means that He is Holy,” he said telling that is one of the reasons why He remains invisible. If God remains visible, it won’t take long for us to take hold of Him. Once we get hold of Him, we would make plans to manipulate Him in achieving our goals.
“He chose to remain invisible and distant from us for our own good,” he laughed recalling the “selfish prayers” he had prayed. “We chose His holiness; and when we align ourselves with His morality and His justice, God draws close to you,” he said once we embraced His love and character, “You become His favorite.”
Knowing that God is moral will begin to tell you what God will do. “This is very powerful but is also misused and misunderstood,” he continued. If you know that God is moral and that He will always do what is right, when you come to a situation where there is immorality, injustice, lack of integrity – you know that God is against this.
He is not going to align Himself to injustice, immorality and corruption. “When people get hold of this, it is very powerful. We often made the mistake that He is only moral,” he added saying this makes us judgmental saying God is going to strike this or do this.
“There’s a lot of this,” he said telling about the situation in Israel where there are war-like challenges on a regular basis. The people who live there learned to live with this and expect these situations. “There are a lot of people, particularly internet prophets, prophesying disaster,” he told, and the pastor dealt with this all the time. “You don’t want to tell them, stop! It’s not prophesying. It’s so common for people to prophesy war when there is no war,” he explained, “At least in my part of the world.”
“I think it’s because people get morality in their minds and that is the only thing they need to know about God,” he said. “But the second thing you need to know about God is that He is purposeful.” God is moral, and He is purposeful. Understanding that God is purposeful will tell you what God does.
“Morality is what God is. He is pure. He is Holy. We need to embrace that,” he said. “When it becomes the desire of our heart to be like Him, we draw His favor.” But God is purposeful. He has things that He will accomplish in this world. He has things that He has designed and planned to accomplish in your life; He has a purpose and a time for everything.
“God’s morality will tell you when God will judge sin, God’s purposefulness will tell you how and when,” he said telling, “And you’ve got to have both if you want to be in the center of God’s favor.”
“We’ve got to want to live a holy life like Him but you’ve got to understand what He wants to accomplish,” he added. God has plans He wants to accomplish in your life tomorrow; He has plans for every human being, for every city, and every nation. He has plans right up to the day of the coming of His Son; and He’s going to work His plan with or without us.
When you decided to conform to that plan, asking God to show you part of His plan and promised to do what He wants to do in your life – making a vow to God, “When you start making decisions like that, God’s attention starts focusing on you,” he said, “And the mystery of God’s favor begins to be revealed.”
“If you have those two things in your heart and in your mind, it begins to unfold for you; God is moral and God is purposeful,” he said.
Ps Peter Tsukahira is currently serving at Mount Carmel School of Ministry, Israel. He was sharing at the two-night meeting organized by the Full Gospel Businessmen Fellowship.
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