There's a Reason: His Life in You part 2

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. - Philippians 1:6

Last week, we said that God has unfinished business with you. He's committed to making you like His Son, Jesus. He has promised to grow you. He has promises to finish the work He started.

He has made an unwavering, unalterable commitment to you. This verse is as good as it sounds.

There are a lot of implications of this truth. Knowing that God is actively working to grow you and will never give up on you... well, this leads to some other truths.

Here's one... life's circumstances have a purpose. Allow me to show you how the two truths connect:

But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14 and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. - Philippians 1:12-14

Paul says, "Look, my imprisonment and suffering have actually served a purpose. The gospel is flourishing, I'm getting opportunities to share it here in prison, and other believers are growing more bold and fearless."

In other words, Paul realized that there is purpose in his circumstances.

We want to believe that. We really do. Sometimes it's hard, especially when there is a tragedy. We may not understand, we may not find out why, and we may not be able to give people a reason. But we know that there is a purpose.

Life's circumstances have a purpose... this becomes clear when you embrace Philippians 1:6. When you realize that God is committed to growing you to be more like His Son, then life's circumstances become opportunities to grow.

Paul realized this. He realized that the suffering he was enduring was all part of God's "completing the good work in him." This enabled him to press on.

It's His life in you. Take a few moments and thank God that He hasn't given up on you and that He is committed to molding you into the image of His Son.

Thought for the week: Life's circumstances have a purpose. They're part of God's process of sanctification

By His Grace,

Adam