You are predestined

Your steps are ordered of the Lord. You are predestined, called, chosen, justified and glorified. God calls you His masterpiece. He has prearranged and preordained the paths you would take in your life. It is in Him we live and move and have our being. He knew you before you were formed in your mother's womb.

For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30, NKJV)

Everything I know about the Bible, and everything I know about God, can be summarised in this: with God, nothing happens by accident. God knows in advance; our steps are ordered; we are predestined. With God nothing happens by chance. Everything God does is for a purpose, by design, and with foreknowledge.

'And it happened when He was in a certain city, that behold, a man who was full of leprosy saw Jesus; and he fell on his face and implored Him, saying, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean." Then He put out His hand and touched him, saying, "I am willing; be cleansed." Immediately the leprosy left him.' (Luke 5.12-13, NKJV)

When Jesus cleanses a leper in Luke 5, it is almost as if it was a chance encounter, an unexpected miracle, a happenstance: I find it interesting that neither the city nor the man's name are recorded; it is almost as if the miracle was by divine providence rather than by human planning or intervention.

In this Bible story, Jesus was in this unknown town; it could’ve been any town in the world; but when Jesus was in that town, immediately a man found Him. The Bible simply says that a man who was critically ill, he had that dreaded disease called leprosy – the Bible says he was full of leprosy, not just in his hands or feet, but his whole body was troubled by the disease. But when he saw Jesus – I don’t think he had ever seen Jesus before, but when he saw Jesus for the first time, suddenly the man fell on his face: out of his sickness, pain and trouble, he just looked at Jesus, and said, ‘Lord, if You want to, You can heal me!’ What an expression of faith: if You want to do it You can. You have the power. You can do it!

Many of us are like this man today. We all have problems. God wants to solve the problems in your life now! To forgive your sin. The Bible says that when God forgives you, it is like your sin is buried in the depths of the deepest ocean. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. It has gone! – That is what God does with sin. He takes it out of your life; it is gone forever. You will never see your sin again. – That is the power of God in your life.

God will do the same with your sickness. I know, because twice God has healed me of cancer. I had no treatment: no chemotherapy, no medication, no operation: God totally healed me by the power of His Word. You ask, how can God do this? It is a miracle! The Bible says that the man in Luke 5 looked at Jesus and said, ‘You’ve got the power to do it; I know You can do it, if You want to!’ Jesus responded, ‘That is why I came here, so that I can deliver and set you free. I want to heal you!’

For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]. (Ephesians 2:10, AMPC)