Sermon Notes

Sunday January 15, 2023

Purposes, Plans, Pursuits (Part-1)

GOD IS A GOD OF PURPOSE, PLAN AND DESIGN

Psalm 33:11,15
11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations.
15 He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works.

The word ‘counsel’ can also mean plan or purpose.

We see in Scripture that God has a purpose and plan for people and for His creation.

Notice, God’s purposes, and plans go across generations (vs 11).

Notice, also that God fashions are hearts individually. Each of us has been personally
and individually fashioned by God for a purpose.

We can state the following from Scripture.

GOD HAS A PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE

GOD DESIGNED YOU FOR A PURPOSE

Psalm 139:16-17
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were
written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.
17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!

We can extend this and state the following:

God has a purpose for your family.
God has a purpose for us as a local church.

GOD REVEALS HIS PURPOSES TO US

1 Corinthians 2:9-10
9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart
of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him."
10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all
things, yes, the deep things of God.

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OUR GOAL IS TO LIVE FOR GOD’S PURPOSES

HAVE A SENSE OF DIVINE PURPOSE

ASK GOD TO REVEAL AND GUIDE YOU INTO HIS PURPOSES FOR YOUR LIFE

Ephesians 5:17
Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

Having a sense of purpose helps us in many ways.

It helps us stay focused.
Keeps us determined.
Keeps us energized, enthused, excited, passionate about life.

PLAN AND PURSUE THE FULFILLING OF GOD’S PURPOSES FOR YOUR LIFE

We must get a sense of His purpose and begin to plan and pursue His purpose.

God works in many ways and leads all of us in different ways. So it is not a ‘one size fits
all’ way of working.

God leads and guides each of us personally and individually.

Psalm 32:8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My
eye.

HOW TO WORK ON A LIFE PLAN

What we’d like to do is share one way we can PLAN and PURSUE God’s PURPOSES for
our lives. This is just a practical tip that we are sharing. This is not something we are
forcing everyone to do.

Example:
Let’s say you are now studying towards your bachelors degree in college.
Let’s say the general sense of purpose you have is to become a tech entrepreneur.

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Here is a simple chart, something that you can work in a spreadsheet or on paper to
have a PLAN and identify things you will PURSUE in order to reach toward the PURPOSE
you feel God has for your life.

PURPOSE: become a tech entrepreneur, launch a tech startup

PLAN PURSUITS
Current – graduation (2 Complete education and 1, Take courses in tech and
years) learn as much as possible business.
for a future in tech. 2, Be current with
developments in
technology
3, Do an internship with a
tech company
Early career (4 years) Gain practical experience 1, Do well on the job
and understanding. Learn 2, Read widely in tech,
best practices. Prepare for business across industries
launch. 3, Incubate ideas
4, Prepare for launch
(team, funding, business
plan)
Launch phase (2-4 years) Launch startup 1, Focus on developing
product
2, Go to market with MVP
in 2 years
3, Prepare to build and
grow

The above is an example for one area of your life, professional career.
Similarly, we can work on other areas of life, e.g. your spiritual walk, personal life, other
interests you may wish to pursue.
We will expand on this next week.

IS IT RIGHT TO PLAN?

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Now some may have objections to planning and ask if it is right for us to plan.

Let us look at this from a Biblical perspective and address a few common Scripture
passages that are quoted.

James 4:13-17
13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city,
spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit";
14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is
even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.
15 Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that."
16 But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.
17 Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

The main emphasis in James is self-dependance, pride and boasting. We know the good
things God has called us to do and we must do it, all the time, maintaining our
dependence on God, and not our own self.

In planning our only desire is to fulfill His will. So we can plan to the best we can, and
then fully depend on the Lord to enable us to fulfill His will.

Consider another passage:

Matthew 6:33-34
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall
be added to you.
34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own
things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Here, we are taught not to worry about things, either for the present or the future,
because God our Heavenly Father will provide. The instructions are not to worry. He is
not telling us that it is wrong to plan. Planning is thinking through about a course of
action. It is not worrying.

Now let us quickly look at Scriptures that speak to us about the importance of planning.

PONDERING OUR PATH

Proverbs 4:26
Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.

Ponder = watch, study, prepare, weigh, think through

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PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE

Proverbs 6:6-8
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise,
7 Which, having no captain, Overseer or ruler,
8 Provides her supplies in the summer, And gathers her food in the harvest.

HAVING FORESIGHT
Proverbs 22:3
A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, But the simple pass on and are punished.

PLANNING WITH THE HELP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

We also see that the apostle Paul planned for his missionary journeys and did so with
the help of the Holy Spirit.

2 Corinthians 1:17-18
17 Therefore, when I was planning this, did I do it lightly? Or the things I plan, do I plan
according to the flesh, that with me there should be Yes, Yes, and No, No?
18 But as God is faithful, our word to you was not Yes and No.

SUMMARY
So we desire to impress on each of us that God has a PURPOSE for our lives.
We must do our part in understanding His PURPOSE for our lives.
We must then actively PLAN and PURSUE His purpose.
Today we introduced a simple practical approach on how to develop a LIFE PLAN.
We also responded to some common objections to planning.

Next Sunday, we will expand on this and share how to include other areas into your LIFE
PLAN.
We will also share how to actively PURSUE specific action items in order to work out the
PLAN.
Our goal is that all of us will live for and fulfill God’s PURPOSES for our lives.

SALVATION CALL

SUPERNATURAL MINISTRY TIME

Minister as the Spirit leads

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LIFE GROUP STUDY GUIDE

Sunday January 15, 2023

Purposes, Plans, Pursuits (Part-1)

The is a simple guide for use in Life Group discussions. Our objective is to focus on the
application of the Sunday sermon - how each one is becoming a doer of the Word and
building their life on God's Holy Word. The Life Group meeting would normally last for 2
hours. Each Life Group would have up to 12-15 people.

Preparation
To prepare for the Life Group meeting, you can listen to the Sermon Key Points (sermon
summary in five minutes) or the full-length Sunday sermon. You can also review the
Sunday Sermon notes. All these are available in the "All Peoples Church Bangalore"
mobile App or online at our sermons page . Pray for the Life Group meeting and invite
the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Welcome
The Life Group meeting may commence with a time of prayer, worship, and a fun
activity.

LISTEN to God's Word

Read the following Scripture references: Psalm 33:11,15; Psalm 139:16-17; 1 Corinthians
2:9-10

INVESTIGATE God's Word Together

Please discuss a few of these together, giving time for people to share their insights. We
encourage each one individually to make notes of their personal learning during the
Group discussion.

1, Discuss based on Scripture, the understanding that God has a purpose for each one,
and has designed us to fulfil that purpose.

2, Why would it be important for us to get a sense (an understanding) of God’s purpose,
and then plan for it, and practically pursue the fulfillment of God’s purpose? Why can’t

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we just “sit back” and let “life happen” and assume that His purposes will be fulfilled
automatically?

3, We presented one practical approach to draw up a LIFE PLAN and intentionally work
towards it. Review what was presented and see if there are things can be improved upon
or even worked differently.

If time permits, each one can take a few (3 minutes max) to share one or two key
learning and how they see themselves applying it into their specific life situations.
Encourage each one to participate and share.

FELLOWSHIP by sharing your life and spiritual journey

Each one takes a few (3 minutes max) to share anything from their walk with God,
something God has been teaching them, a testimony of answered prayer or a specific
challenge that they would like prayer for. Encourage each one to participate and share.

ENCOURAGE each other by praying and ministering to one another

Get into small groups of two or three and take turns to thank God and pray for each
other in the light of what was learnt today. Listen to the Holy Spirit. Expect the gifts of
the Holy Spirit to flow bringing healing, releasing miracles, prophecy, etc.

Regroup and pray together for:

1, families to be protected and strengthened
2, a mighty outpouring of God's Holy Spirit on us as a church and through us to bless
many others in our city and nation. Nothing but a mighty work of God's Spirit can change
our city and nation.
3, for the BUILD TO IMPACT project - for God's hand to guide us through the land search
and acquisition process, and for finances to be more than enough to get this project
done.

Close by thanking God together.

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USEFUL RESOURCES

Watch our online Sunday Church service live stream every Sunday at 10:30am (Indian Time, GMT+5:30).
Spirit filled, anointed worship, Word and ministry for healing, miracles, and deliverance.
YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/allpeopleschurchbangalore
WEBSITE: https://apcwo.org/live

Our other websites and free resources:

CHURCH: https://apcwo.org
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FREE BOOKS: https://apcwo.org/books/english
DAILY DEVOTIONALS: https://apcwo.org/resources/daily-devotional
JESUS CHRIST: https://examiningjesus.com
BIBLE COLLEGE: https://apcbiblecollege.org
E-LEARNING: https://apcbiblecollege.org/elearn
WEEKEND SCHOOLS: https://apcwo.org/ministries/weekend-schools
COUNSELING: https://chrysalislife.org
MUSIC: https://apcmusic.org
MINISTERS FELLOWSHIP: https://pamfi.org
CHURCH APP: https://apcwo.org/app
CHURCHES: https://apcwo.org/ministries/churches
WORLD MISSIONS: https://apcworldmissions.org

SERMON OUTLINE
This sermon reminds us that God has a purpose for each one of us. He designed us for
this. We must do our part to discover God’s purpose, and then intentionally plan and
pursue the fulfillment of God’s purposes for our lives. We present a suggested practical
way to develop a LIFE PLAN. We discuss the importance of planning our way forward,
preparing for the future, having foresight, and planning with the help of the Holy Spirit.

KEYWORDS
Purpose in life, Planning, Life Plan, Pursuing your life dream, life assignment, sermon,
sermons, sermon notes, sermon outline, free sermon notes, free sermon outlines, Bible
study resources

REFERENCES/CITATIONS
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible
2020, (NASB) Copyright © by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.

Biblical definitions, Hebrew and Greek words and their meanings are drawn from the following
resources:

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Thayer's Greek Definitions. Published in 1886, 1889; public domain.

Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries, Strong's Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong,
S.T.D., LL.D. Published in 1890; public domain.

Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, © 1984, 1996, Thomas
Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary. Edited by William D. Mounce with Rick D. Bennett, Jr.
(1993)

Word Pictures in the New Testament. Archibald Thomas Robertson. Published in 1930-1933;
public domain.

Word Studies in the New Testament. Marvin R. Vincent, D.D. (1886)

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