The Unwrought Purposes of the Heart

“Whereas it was in your heart to build a temple for My name, you did well that it was in your heart.”  1 Kings 8:18 

Vision drives purpose.  President John F. Kennedy said, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to earth.” He was assassinated in November of 1963, but his dream was fulfilled with the moon-landing in 1969.  Dr. Martin Luther King preached, “I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.  I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.’”  King was assassinated in April, 1968, but days later, the Civil Rights Act of 1968 passed congress by a wide margin. 

David had purposed in his heart to build a temple for the Lord Jehovah. The tent that housed the Ark embarrassed him. He envisioned pillars, columns, porticoes and friezes. He saw cedar walls carved with flowers and fir floor planks. He saw cherubim overlaid with gold. The plan was fabulous, but when David was about to put it all together, God said it was not for him to do. He allowed David to dream the dream, to give impetus to the purpose, to even prepare the plans and gather the materials. But God said no to the final phase of construction.  But David left this world with an unwrought purpose in his heart. “Nevertheless, you shall not build the temple, but your son shall build the temple for My name.”  1 Kings 8:19. The purpose is as worthy as the fulfillment, because God, the Master Designer, weaves all the purposes into the finished product. 

A home missionary once told me, “I did everything I could.  I worked, witnessed, taught bible studies and knocked doors. Nothing happened.  Now I feel as if I am dying spiritually.  Is everything in vain?  Am I a failure?”  My response: No, you are not a failure. God has a larger plan in mind. You fought and conquered an unseen enemy. Like the Marines, you landed on beach to establish a position for others who will come later. God sees every sacrifice.  “You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?” Psalm 56:8.

Your vision for evangelism may not have happened yet. Your goal for your class may not have yet become a reality. Your loved ones may still be unsaved. What does all that mean? It means that whether you have seen the harvest or not, God used you to plant the seed. You blazed the trail, even if you don’t get to march in the final victory parade. Pray on.  Battle on.  Labor on. You are driving back the unseen enemy with your intercession. You keep the work of God advancing forward. Although your life looks like a vast wasteland, languishing in an unfinished, unfulfilled state, the unwrought purposes of your heart are sealed in the heart of God!  You must believe that God will see your desires through to the end. 

Jesus Christ gathered the materials to build the temple greater than Solomon’s. He called, mentored, led, taught and inspired his disciples.  It appeared that He would never see the completion of his house, not because of blood-soaked hands, but because of the shedding of his own blood.  Beaten and bruised, mocked and spat upon, bound and crucified, it looked as though the eternal purpose of God was stopped in its tracks. Peter sunk into depression when he looked at the mangled figure, like a common thief, brutally nailed to a tree.  Evil smirks curled the lips of the tormentors of Christ and Pilate feasted in his back chambers. 

But when they laid Him in a borrowed tomb, they did not destroy the unwrought purposes of God.  They unwittingly participated in the fulfillment of the very purpose they sought to thwart. “For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8.  Trust God! In the end, all His purposes will be fulfilled!

Comments

[Sydney Heimericks]

I love this blog. It is SO needful. It's such an encouragement!!! Because - sometimes you do wonder .......................; but God knows the ending from the beginning of everything. In our busy lives, it's easy to forget about God being - omniscient (let alone the other 2).