Nothing motivates humans like the hope of a wonderful destiny. And if that destiny is certain then people become absolutely fearless because they dwell in the peace of knowing that no matter what happens their ultimate future will be blissful. This is why God wants us to be absolutely confident in our destiny with him. This confidence will strengthen us to endure any troubles. We realize that “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18 NIV).
Awareness of our destiny enlightens our minds to see beyond the physical realities around us to the reality of the kingdom of God around us. This unstoppable kingdom marches along its predetermined course bringing all the people of God to the complete fulfillment of the kingdom in the New Creation. We will live in a perfected community of love with God and his followers. This reality is the compass that keeps us moving in the right direction regardless of circumstances.
We see the power of believing in God’s destiny in one of the most important stories of the Old Testament. In 1 Samuel 16 we read that the great Jewish prophet Samuel anointed a shepherd boy named David.This happened in about 1000 B. C.. Samuel did this because God had chosen David to be the new king over the nation of Israel even though Saul was still the official king. When Samuel anointed David the “the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David from that day on” (1 Sam. 16:13 NLT). We don’t know if David understood why Samuel anointed him because Samuel did not tell David he would be king and David does not claim to be king after that. In fact, it was many years before David actually became king.
“This reality is the compass that keeps us moving in the right direction regardless of circumstances.”
The Christian life is similar to David’s life. When we repent and believe in Jesus God adopts us as his child and anoints us with his Holy Spirit and establishes a destiny for us. Unlike David we can read the New Testament and learn what our destiny is, but just like David it will be awhile before our destiny is fulfilled. David had to overcome many challenges before he became king. Yet in all these challenges he believed that his destiny was to overcome with God’s help. This gave him confidence to slay Goliath.
Eventually David did become king and he was the greatest king in the history of the nation of Israel. But God does not promise to make us kings in this age. Instead, he promises that his people, his saints, will be the ones who manage the earth in the age to come.
The reign of the saints is a major biblical theme. In I Cor. 4:8 Paul explains that the time for reigning has not come yet; in II Tim. 2:12 those who endure will “reign with him”; in Rev. 3:21 Jesus promises conquerors that they will sit with him on his throne (!); in Rev. 5:10 the saints “shall reign on earth”; in Rev. 20:4, 6 some saints will reign “with Christ for a thousand years”; Rev. 21:24 mentions “kings of the earth” (which are saints) who enter the New Jerusalem; in Rev. 22:5 the saints “will reign forever and ever”.
So, like David, we will be kings one day and enjoy the opportunity to apply our creativity to God’s creation. We will not oppress others rather we will bless others, which will be tremendously fulfilling for us and make our Father proud. This is part of the destiny that we focus our lives on. It allows us to wait a few years, our life in this age, and overcome any challenge until the new age comes and everything will be as God originally intended.
