THE LORD NEEDS YOUR COOPERATION

When God calls us, He assigns us with a specific purpose of His Kingdom because He can never fulfil any of His purpose on earth alone, all by Himself. He chooses to use us because He is all about relationship, association and cooperation. And if God, in His perfect plan chooses to use us, we must learn to cooperate with Him without reservation, no matter the description and size of the task.

Reference: Matthew 3:14 English Standard Version (ESV) 'John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"'

As a prophet of God, John's purpose was to baptize the people of Israel as a sign of their repentance before God. He knew he had the authority to fulfil this purpose but he could not imagine himself baptizing the Messiah. In his limited mind, 'how can I be the one to baptise a whole Saviour, who had no sin to repent from.' Sometimes many Christians are guilty of this. We tend to explore our calling and analyse God's plan for us. And then we come up with ideas that question whether or not we fit into His plan. Moses did the same. In Exodus 4:12-13 (NIV), God said to Moses, 'Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.' But Moses analysed his ability immediately and disqualified himself by responding, "Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else."

When God calls you, He qualifies you, not according to your skills and ability, but according to His ability and by His Spirit. Though John the Baptist was overwhelmed that a whole Son of God was asking to be baptized by him, he forgot that it wasn't about the identity of the personality that approached him, but about his mandate and purpose. John was quite careless with his words. He had already declared himself unworthy to unloose the latchet of the Christ's sandals, and now this Saviour of the world was asking him to administer His baptism (see Luke 3:16). Likewise, many are often overwhelmed by the idea that the Lord could use us. Who are we to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ? It is easy to disqualify yourself and not fulfil God's instructions. However, Jesus told John that he had to do it to fulfil all righteousness.

As incredible as it may seem, the Lord can choose to use you in any area and in a greater capacity, to fulfil His purpose, but you must be a man or woman of that purpose and refuse to be timid about it. In demonstrating your God-given purpose, be impeccable with your words and speak boldly about it, without apology. Don't disqualify yourself. Avoid using your own words to speak against yourself and your calling, rather use the power of words to propel yourself in the direction of fulfilling your divine purpose and doing great exploits. Just as God's purpose could not have been fulfilled without John's cooperation, God cannot do it without you. And guess what? Before He called or chose you, He already qualified you for notable accomplishment.

Always bear this in mind: As long as God's purpose is concerned, His Spirit will work through you because you can do nothing for Him by your own ability, and the Lord will do nothing by Himself too. No wonder Paul said in Philippians 4:13 (NKJV), 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.' In other words, Christ is the one who gives us the strength and empowers us to do whatever He wants us to do for Him. Failure to understand this has caused many people to abandon God's calling and purpose for their lives. Although John the Baptist was not seeking to exalt himself, if he had failed to baptize Jesus, it would not have been an act of humility and he would have ended up not fulfilling his greatest calling. So its actually a great humility to identity with the call of God and yield to His Spirit so He can use you.

Many people pray and desire God's purpose and direction, but wait on God to move independent of them. By having this message come to us, we must endeavour to cooperate with God and embrace His purpose with corresponding actions, if we must fulfil His righteous cause in our lives and world (John 15:5).

Scripture Reading: Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-23; Ephesian 3:20.

Guided Prayer: Blessed Father, you are faithful and just. I honour you today because you have taught me that you have a purpose for me and a plan to fulfil that purpose. By your Spirit, you guide my steps and provide me with all I need for your purpose, thereby making me too willing and able to act accordingly. As I cooperate with your instructions, I'm strengthened and empowered, both to will and to fulfil your good pleasure. I'm inspired to walk in the path of my glorious destiny in Christ and positively impact my world through your Spirit in Jesus' Name, Amen!