HIGHLY FAVORED

“HIGHLY FAVORED”

BY

RANDALL J. BREWER

　

　
In the parable of the sower Jesus spoke of three levels in which we may experience the goodness of God. Speaking of seeds that are sown He said in Matt. 13:8, “But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” There is a thirty-fold good life, a sixty-fold good life, and the ultimate hundred-fold good life.

A careful study of the Word also reveals to us that there are also three levels of relationships that we can have with God, and each level corresponds to a level of the good life that we experience in our every day lives.

When we get born again we become a child of God and when we make the commitment to be used by God for His purpose we get promoted to being a servant of God. There are “sons” of God and there are “servants” of God. A “friend” of God is a combination of the two.

Some people are “sons” of God but not “servants” while others are “servants” but not “sons”. The truth be told, neither one of these relationships by themselves fulfill totally what God wants to accomplish and do in their lives. That distinction is reserved for the “friends” of God. The better we understand the characteristics of these three relationships the better the opportunity for us to walk in the fullness of the good life.

Believers who call themselves “servants” of God will give you the shirt off their back and do whatever needs to be done. They are always available to do works of service or whatever it takes to get the job done.

The danger of being just a “servant” of God is that people run the risk of being so heavenly minded they’re no earthly good. They’re so busy serving God that they ignore the responsibilities they have toward their spouse and children. Many times they suffer burnout and some have tragically suffered an early death. Why did this happen? Because they did not have a clear understanding of their rights and privileges as a “son” of God.

On the other hand, there are those who have a clear understanding of sonship but wouldn’t lift a finger to serve God and help somebody else. These people are so earthly minded that they’re no heavenly good.

Those who are only “sons” of God will receive in their lives the blessing of having a nice car, home, job, and personal well-being. They’re exercising their rights and privileges as a “son” which they are entitled to from the Word of God. Sadly, they are so caught up in the material blessings that you don’t find these people doing much to advance the kingdom of God.

In order to experience everything that God has to offer there must be a balance between being a “son” and being a “servant”. Some people give their lives completely for the sake of the gospel and don’t receive anything in this life for it. The reason this happens is because they only saw themselves as servants and not sons. They didn’t know they had rights and privileges as a son.

They didn’t know that “all these things would be added” to their lives (Matt. 6:33). They just knew they were supposed to serve God but if they knew of the blessings of sonship then they would have become a “friend” of God and had it all. However, even though they missed out on the temporary blessings in this life, they’ll still receive eternal rewards in heaven which is the 60-fold blessing.

On the other side of the coin is the person who partakes of the rights and privileges as a son but pushes aside the call to become a servant. This person will only receive the 30-fold blessing of temporal blessings and will have nothing to show for it in eternity. In heaven the servants will live in mansions and sit on thrones but a son will only get a palm branch to wave around.

Remember, neither one of these positions by themselves will cause you to walk in God’s perfect will for your life. But the person who has the knowledge of a son and walks in the light of what he knows, coupled together with the heart of a servant, will walk in the fullness of the hundredfold blessing. He’ll have the blessings in this life and he’ll have the rewards in eternity. This is what happens to the friends of God. This is the good life.

Let us never forget that God’s best and ultimate blessing, His divine favor, is reserved for those believers whom He calls “friends”. Jesus began His earthly ministry by proclaiming to the whole world that this was the Father’s will.

We read in Luke 4:17-19, “And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah, And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.’”

Notice the phrase “the acceptable year of the Lord.” The Message Bible says, “This is God’s year to act!” and the Amplified translation says this is “the day when the free favors of God profusely abound.” Jesus then closed the book and “began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’” Jesus began to tell people two thousand years ago that God wanted to favor them with abundant blessings and He’s saying the same thing to each of us today.

We are living in the day of the favor of God. Jesus was reading from Is. 61 and vs. 6,7 says, “But you shall be named the Priests of the Lord, men shall call you Servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory you shall boast. Instead of your shame you shall have double honor, and instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double; Everlasting joy shall be theirs.”

This is a description of the good life. Vs. 7 says restoration will come to you twofold. You’ll get double for your trouble. Job 42:10 says, “And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.”

The favor of God brings restoration and prosperity to the level that others will recognize it and acknowledge that God provided it. Job lived the good life and was highly favored by God. He said in Job 10:12, “You have granted me life and favor, and Your care has preserved my spirit.”

What was it about this man named Job that made him the receiver of God’s immeasurable blessings? Consider Job 1:1, “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil.” Clearly he was a friend of God. Even God said “there is none like him on the earth” (Job 1:8).

There is so much we can learn from the life and character of Job that will shape and mold our lives to the point that we become a friend of God. After the first assault of Satan on his life “Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshipped” (Job 1:20). His world was crumbling around him but still he had the heart to worship God.

He then said in vs. 21, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Job had no idea what was going on behind the scenes and he wrongfully thought this destruction was coming from the hand of God. But he still held fast to his integrity (Job 2:3) and gave honor and praise to his God.

Yes, Job had some reasonable complaints but God knew that in his heart was unshaken confidence. Job knew that “God does great things, and unsearchable, marvelous things without number. He gives rain on the earth, and sends water on the fields. He sets on high those who are lowly and those who mourn are lifted to safety” (Job 5:9-11).

His friend Bildad said to him, “Though your beginning was small, yet your latter end would increase abundantly” (Job 8:7). Job then answered and said, “He does great things past finding out, Yes, wonders without number” (Job 9:10). This is the favor of God!

What makes Job stand out is that even when he was not experiencing this favor his heart still clung to his God. He said in Job 13:15a, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” Is it any wonder that before and after this nine month trial he was radically blessed?

Job had three friends who tried to comfort him but they weren’t very successful with their efforts. In fact, Job says in Job 16:2, “Miserable comforters are you all.” Notice, however, what Job went on to say, “I also could speak as you do, if your soul were in my soul’s place. I could heap up words against you, and shake my head at you; But I will strengthen you with my mouth, and the comfort of my lips would relieve your grief.”

In the midst of his trials Job still had the desire to serve God by reaching out to bless his friends. He was a “son” of God and this verse showed that he was also a “servant” of God, thus making him a “friend” of God. This is why he was so abundantly blessed. This is why he lived the good life.

Even though he was in a severe trial, Job knew better days were ahead. He said in Job 17:9, “Yet the righteous will hold to his way, and he who has clean hands will be stronger and stronger.” He went on to say in Job 19:25,26, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God.”

And let us not forget Job 23:10-12, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held fast to His steps; I have kept His way and not turned aside. I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.” With an attitude like that, how could the man not be blessed?

Over and over again the book of Job tells us why he was highly favored by God which caused him to live the good life. We read in Job 29:14, “I put on righteousness, and it clothed me.” This made him a “son” of God.

His desire to be a “servant” of God is revealed in vs. 12,15,16a, “Because I delivered the poor who cried out, and the fatherless and he who had no helper. I was eyes to the blind, and I was feet to the lame. I was a father to the poor…” Job spent his entire life being a blessing to other people and received in return the ultimate favor of God. You can’t live the good life without it.

Job’s friend Eliha says this about the righteous, “If they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures” (Job 36:11). What more needs to be said? The final verse in the book of Job says, “So Job died, old and full of days” (Job 42:17). This happened because he was a “son” and “servant” of God. This made him a “friend” of God and the receiver of the divine favor of God. Thus he lived the good life.

Jabez also was a friend of God and this is evident in the prayer he prayed, “Oh God, that You would bless me indeed and expand my territory.” To be “blessed indeed” is a blessing that comes on the sons of God. When Jabez prayed for God to expand his influence in the land he was openly declaring that he was a servant of God.

This prayer reveals that Jabez was a friend of God and this is why God granted his request. Like Job, he was blessed with the favor of God and was able to live the good life. May all of us follow their example.

　

　

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