CROWNED WITH FAVOR

“CROWNED WITH FAVOR”

BY

RANDALL J. BREWER

The good life is to bask in the sunshine of the favor of God. The prophet Jeremiah recorded these words spoken by the Lord, “I will satiate (fill to the full) the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.” God longs for us to be a well-watered garden, flourishing, full of joy, always in blossom, living the good life. We read in Jer. 32:40-42, “And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me. Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will assuredly plant them in this land, with all My heart and with all My soul. For thus says the Lord: Just as I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will bring on them all the good that I have promised them.” All things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3) are to be yours so that you can experience the deepest joys and benefits of godly living. This is why Jesus came and the more you grow in the knowledge and love of God the more His goodness will be increasingly experienced in your life.
	Acts 3:26a says, “To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you…” The Lord is good (Ps. 107:1). He is merciful, kind, gracious, and very patient. And because He died for you, you can live the good life. Jesus came to give us a life of fullness (John 10:10). At His birth the angels proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.” God’s favor resting on man was the beginning of a new and awesome reality that was to change history forever. It is God’s will for each of us to live the good life and He wants to amaze us with His favor.
The psalmist tells us that the favor of God will be poured into the end-time church like no other generation in times past. Ps. 102:13 says, “You will arise and have mercy on Zion; for the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come.” ‘Zion’ is symbolic of the church and the psalmist tells us the set time to favor the church has come. It’s in the mind and will of God and nothing can change it. When might this “set time” be? The psalmist tells us in vs. 16, “For the Lord shall build up Zion; He shall appear in glory.” The Lord will build up Zion - that’s you, folks - and favor her just prior to His second coming. In other words, the set time is NOW!!!! Is. 30:18 says, “Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.” The set time is now and Paul tells us in Eph. 2:7 “that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” If God has already been good to you then get ready because you haven’t seen anything yet. Remember, before Jesus returns there will be a manifestation of the favor of God like no previous generation has ever seen. Whew! God has a set time to favor the church and that time is now! Yes, adversity will come but the favor of God will shine through the darkest clouds of trial and hardship. No matter what Satan tries to do always confess the favor of God over your life and circumstances. Never forget, this is the season of God’s favor. Ezekiel described the good life in Ezek. 34:26, “I will make them and the places all around My hills a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing.” Seek the showers of God’s blessings for it is His desire to pour forth into your life a torrential downpour. Be overwhelmed with the goodness of God. That’s the good life. Favor makes you achievers in the kingdom of God. It is the heavenly link to your success and will cause you to live a reigning life. David wrote in Ps. 5:11,12, “But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name be joyful in You. For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield.” The Amplified Bible says God “will crown you with favor.” When God’s favor comes into a person’s life a zero becomes a hero. In the book of Esther the king chose her to be queen. In a single day she went from being a nobody to a somebody. One day of favor is worth a lifetime of labor. With the favor of God operating in your life there is no way you can be defeated or overcome by the wiles of the enemy. 1 Peter 1:13 says, “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” We should live each day anticipating more of God’s favor in our lives. Get your thinking in line with God’s thinking and receive more of His favor than you ever imagined possible. The Bible abounds with declarations of the goodness of God. Ps. 34:8-10 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want (lack) to those who fear Him. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.” God’s goodness is available for your personal experience whenever you trust in Him. Peter begins his second letter by saying, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him Who called us to glory and virtue.” God’s grace - His ability and His favor - is available to you in multiplied measures. Peter twice tells us that the process for partaking of the showers of God’s blessings simply requires you to grow in the knowledge of God. The Message Bible records Peter’s words this way, “Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master. Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One Who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you - your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.” God desires to bless you abundantly. This means you can have it all. Even Jesus said in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have and enjoy their life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” The Message Bible says, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.” David wrote about this in Ps. 31:19, “Oh, how great is your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men!” Prov. 22:1 says, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, loving favor rather than silver and gold.” Favor is more valuable than silver and gold for it can do things money can’t buy. Favor will bring you great achievements and great advancements more than you’ve ever known before. Godly opportunities will come your way if you will first make the choice to seek favor more than the uncertain riches of financial gain. The Lord told Joshua how to have good success and favor in Josh. 1:8, “This Book of the Lord shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that’s written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” It all goes back to knowing God in a personal, intimate way. Jesus also experienced in abundant measure the favor of God. Luke 2:52 tells us, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” How did this come about? He studied the scriptures and was forever going about the Father’s business (vs. 49). Vs. 40 says, “And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.” Remember, Jesus came to earth as a man and had to rely on the scriptures just as much as we do. Luke 4:16 says, “So He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.” Notice it was His custom to do this, and as a result of His diligence the grace and favor of God was upon Him. Notice also that not only did He grow in favor with God but also with men. Favor with God will automatically guarantee you favor with those you come in contact with. The word “favor” means ‘friendly regard shown toward another especially by a superior; approving consideration or attention; partiality; leniency; popularity; in one’s good graces; to one’s advantage.’ Favor will put you into a social realm where you will receive special treatment from those around you. We read in Esther 2:17, “The king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.” Humble yourself before the Lord and His grave and favor will exalt you. Like Esther, those who have God’s favor are overshadowed by a divine plan that dictates their destiny, propels them into their God-given purpose, and causes all things to work together for their good. God gave Joseph favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison and he was placed over the whole prison. Favor gives you access to someone else’s power. God gave the Israelites favor in the sight of their Egyptian captors and they enriched them with gold and silver ornaments and precious garments just before their exodus into the wilderness. A young Jewish virgin named Mary was described as “highly favored” and she became the very mother of the Son of God.” How amazing is that? When you bask in the favor of God people will prefer to be around you more than others. You will receive recognition even when you seem like the least likely to receive it. 1 Sam. 16:22 says, “Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, ‘Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.’” Like a spiritual magnet people will be drawn to you, resulting in promotion in whatever you put your hand to do. People will offer you their help, support, and assistance to help in whatever endeavor you are in. That’s part of living the good life. When the favor of God overflows in your life, when you taste and see that the Lord is good, battles will be won in which you won’t even have to fight. The battle is the Lord’s and you will experience greater victories in the midst of greater odds. Josh. 11:20 says, “For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that He might utterly destroy them, and that they might receive no mercy, but that He might destroy them, as the Lord had commanded Moses.” The more impossible the battle looks, the greater the trial, the easier the victory will come. Ps. 44:1-3 says, “WE have heard our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what deeds You did in their days, in days of old: How you drove out the nations with Your hand, but them You planted; How You afflicted the peoples, and cast them out. For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You favored them.” Favor is a tool used to defeat the enemy. It drives out the barriers and the giants that are blocking your path to success. Favor will open doors for you and plant you in your own personal promised land. Favor is the doorway into the blessings of Canaan and supernatural provision. When you learn to tap into God’s favor, you will have a tremendous advantage in every day life. Doors will open for you that remain closed for others. Like Joseph you will receive preferential treatment that seems unusual to most people. However, for those living in the favor of God, it will be no less than what you will come to expect. It only takes one touch of God’s favor to completely turn your situation around. Favor can turn adversity into victory, failure into success, and sickness into good health. One touch of God’s favor can turn any situation around in an instant of time. This all happens when you discover the power of God’s divine favor in your life. You’ve been crowned with favor so you can live with confidence and boldness knowing you’re a child of the most high God. The heart of God is to pour out His blessings on you. For sure, He wants to amaze you with His favor. Eph. 3:20 says, “Now unto Him Who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above and beyond all that we could ask or think.” Notice the words “above and beyond”. That’s the favor of God so get in agreement with Him and be more favor-minded. The sooner you do, the sooner you will live the good life. You will succeed more quickly with favor than you will without it. Don’t be afraid to be bold and ask for what you really want, things you wouldn’t normally ask for. You wear a robe of righteousness and a crown of favor. When you live the good life you have a right to receive preferential treatment. People will go out of their way to help you and God will step in and assist you and make your every day life easier. Enlarge your vision and expect more of God’s favor in your life. Favor is the difference between your present and your future. Make the decision today to operate in the unseen realm of God’s divine favor. Get on the offensive and get favor-minded. Every day speak favor over your life. Favor happens to those who believe and expect it to happen, so choose to believe! Choose to be favor-minded! Choose to declare it every day of your life! Enlarge your vision. God wants to provide you with supernatural advantages. He wants to assist you and make your life easier, so expect more of the favor of God. Live the good life! PRAISE GOD BLESSED BE THE ONE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD