How Do you Define - Succeeding in Life

“Succeeding in life or to some of you, living really well!” What images come to your mind when you hear that phrase? Is it a garage filled with luxury automobiles? Maybe for you it would mean snagging that big promotion. For some it could be accumulating so much stuff you need a bigger house or having a need to renting a few storage units.

Could it be saving enough cash to take a year off from your job and spend a year traveling the world? Or maybe it would be experiencing a fulfilling marriage or raising children who walk with the Lord.

Regardless of how you define “succeeding in life,” I have some good news and some bad news for you. The bad news is that you probably will not acquire all of the material possessions, achieve all of the vocational goals, or experience all of the fabulous relationships you are dreaming of.

Ready for the good news? Your life can be substantially better than it is right now. The success “secrets” we are going to examine together are not based on my observations, the advice of experts, or the accumulated wisdom of the ages. Instead, these secrets for “succeeding in life”—as well as the guarantee that they really work—come from the Word of God.

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Today, I want to talk to you on the subject of: How Do you Define - Succeeding in Life

SCRIPTURE

Our Scripture is taken from The Book of Proverbs, Chapter 2 verses 1 through 6 and I am coming from the New Living Translation.

Proverbs 2:1–6 NKJV

1 My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, 2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; 3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, 4 If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; 5 Then you will understand the fear of the Lord, And find the knowledge of God. 6 For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;

1 My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands.

2 Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding.

3 Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding.

4 Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures.

5 Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God.

6 For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

The Meaning of “Succeeding in life”

Success is defined by Merriam Webster as

suc·cess [səkˈses] NOUN

the accomplishment of an aim or purpose:

the attainment of fame, wealth, or social status:

a person or thing that achieves desired aims or attains fame, wealth, etc.

Hold up, there is a problem, when we try to link the words success and God in the same breath, we cannot help but think of the many disreputable televangelists who were undone by their excessive greed.

The proponents of the so-called prosperity gospel that promises health and wealth to every Christian were not only guilty of bilking their followers out of millions of dollars but also they stole from us a truth that needs to be reclaimed: God DOES want us to be successful!

If that statement causes you to flinch, just consider the following verses straight out of the Bible.

From the Old Testament—Deuteronomy 29:9 (NLT) states

9 “Therefore, obey the terms of this covenant so that you will prosper in everything you do.

Joshua 1:8 says, (NLT)

8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.

Psalm 1:3 says (NLT) 3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

Now I know some of you are thinking: Those verses come from the Old Testament and no longer apply to Christians today. So are you saying that God’s promises of success in life are limited to Old Testament characters?

Before you answer too quickly, consider the apostle John’s prayer for his friend Gaius.

From the New Testament— 3 John 2 says 2 Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.

The New King James Version says Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.

The word prosper is a synonym for succeed. John certainly wanted his friend to succeed in his spiritual life (soul), but notice that John didn’t limit “success” to spiritual maturity. He wanted Gaius to experience the joy of succeeding in life.

It is not God’s will for every Christian to be a millionaire, but God wants you to have financial stability, enjoy fulfilling relationships, and achieve worthwhile goals.

“Succeeding in life” Defined

The Biblical definition of “succeeding in life” is experiencing God’s best for every area of my life. As you think about your marriage, your career, your bank account, your children, or your spiritual life, can you honestly say, “Yes, this is everything God wants for my life. It just can’t get any better than this.”

The Key to “Succeeding in life”

Let’s take a moment to look at a few identifiers that are key to biblically being successful in life. I believe that we must look at both our worldly success along with our spiritual success as a single equation.

Tony Evans in his book “Kingdom Race Theology” writes; If a person has the best food to eat, the nicest clothes to wear, and the greatest job at which to work and yet still dies without a relationship with Christ through His atonement, he ends up not having any thing at all

The Key Biblical Identifiers—

Proverbs 29:18 (NLT)

18 When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.

Proverbs 29:18 (NKJV)

18 Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law.

The first key identifier is found in Proverbs 29:18: (NKJV) The word revelation means vision or word from God. Without instruction from God, people are doomed to a miserable life. The reason most people are perishing in unfulfilling relationships, unnecessary financial pressure, and unrealized dreams is because they have not acquired the necessary skill for succeeding in life. The Bible calls that skill wisdom. Wisdom is the key that unlocks the door to experiencing God’s best in every area of my life.

Exodus 28:3 (NLT)

3 Instruct all the skilled craftsmen whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom. Have them make garments for Aaron that will distinguish him as a priest set apart for my service.

The second key identifier is found in Exodus 28:3: In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for wisdom is hok-mah. The word was originally used to describe the work of weavers who wove the elaborate garments for the high priest, Aaron. The weavers’ abilities to follow God’s exact specifications for manufacturing the garments was labeled wisdom.

Take note of this next statement … From that point on, the Israelites equated wisdom with a skill for living. The wise person is one who patterns his finances, his goals, his relationship, and every other aspect of his life according to the specifications revealed in God’s Word.

The Key Explained

Proverbs 15:1 shows that God’s wisdom is often opposite our natural inclinations. It is not uncommon to hear of people in even the highest echelons of achievement like business and professional sports who lose their job for something as petty as not controlling their temper.

What is their problem? Did they become a slave to their natural inclinations? You see, human wisdom says, “When you are upset with someone, unload on them. Learn how to give as good as you get.”

Yet Proverbs 15:1 (NLT) tells us just the opposite.

A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.

Proverbs 2:4–5 and 3:13–15 shows that wisdom requires effort. Solomon compares the quest for wisdom with a treasure hunt for riches. If you stumbled upon a map in your attic marking the location of a locked box full of money buried in your backyard, would you ignore it?

Maybe someday you’ll get around to digging that up. No! You would start digging immediately.

These insights are not available to the casual observer but only to those who search for them as “hidden treasures.” Since this skill for succeeding in life does not come naturally, but must be discovered and that requires effort.

Final Thoughts About “Succeeding in life”

I found this story written by Tim Hansel in 1987 titled Holy Sweat.

Holy Sweat, Tim Hansel, 1987, Word Books Publisher, pp. 188-189.

Clarence Jordan was a man of unusual abilities and commitment. He had two Ph.D.s, one in agriculture and one in Greek and Hebrew. So gifted was he, he could have chosen to do anything he wanted. He chose to serve the poor.

In the 1940s, he founded a farm in Americus, Georgia, and called it Koinonia Farm. It was a community for poor whites and poor blacks. As you might guess, such an idea did not go over well in the Deep South of the '40s.

Ironically, much of the resistance came from good church people who followed the laws of segregation as much as the other folk in town. The town people tried everything to stop Clarence. They tried boycotting him, and slashing workers' tires when they came to town. Over and over, for fourteen years, they tried to stop him.

Finally, in 1954, the Ku Klux Klan had enough of Clarence Jordan, so they decided to get rid of him once and for all. They came one night with guns and torches and set fire to every building on Koinonia Farm but Clarence's home, which they riddled with bullets. And they chased off all the families except one black family which refused to leave.

Clarence recognized the voices of many of the Klansmen, and, as you might guess, some of them were church people. Another was the local newspaper's reporter. The next day, the reporter came out to see what remained of the farm. The rubble still smoldered and the land was scorched, but he found Clarence in the field, hoeing and planting.

"I heard the awful news," he called to Clarence, "and I came out to do a story on the tragedy of your farm closing. Clarence just kept on hoeing and planting. The reporter kept prodding, kept poking, trying to get a rise from this quietly determined man who seemed to be planting instead of packing his bags.

So, finally, the reporter said in a haughty voice, "Well, Dr. Jordan, you got two of them Ph.D.s and you've but fourteen years into this farm, and there's nothing left of it at all. Just how successful do you think you've been?" Clarence stopped hoeing, turned toward the reporter with his penetrating blue eyes, and said quietly but firmly, "About as successful as the cross. Sir, I don't think you understand us. What we are about is not success but faithfulness. We're staying. Good day."

Beginning that day, Clarence and his companions rebuilt Koinonia and the farm is going strong today.

One final thought as I close today ….

The measure of “succeeding in life” is not money or material things. According to Matthew 16:26 (NLT) which reads:

26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?

Yes, the book of Proverbs has a great deal to say about earning, saving, spending, and investing money. One reason many people are not prospering financially is their failure to follow God’s timeless wisdom about money. Yet, we need to remember that there is more to life than money. Our life consists of more than our possessions.

“Succeeding in life” does not exempt us from problems (John 16:33b). The question may be asked, “Why do Christians seem to have more difficulty in this life than non-Christians?” The philosophy behind such a question is the assumption that obedience to God should solve problems, not create more problems.

Certainly there is a sense in which that is true. Nevertheless, succeeding in life does not guarantee a problem-free existence.

We see in Deuteronomy 4:5–7 that the purpose of “succeeding in life” is to glorify God. God has one overriding purpose in this world: that is to bring glory to His name.

The ultimate aim of succeeding in life is not to satisfy ourselves, but to glorify God. In Deuteronomy 4:5–7, God’s purpose in commanding Israel to live according to wisdom was so that He might bless them and other nations would see the result of their obedience.

In the same way, God wants your life to be a demonstration of the benefits of succeeding in life. When you follow God’s wisdom for setting worthwhile goals, handling money, raising children, and building a strong marriage, you receive the benefits and God receives the glory.