Bible Readings: Isaiah 48:17-22, 1 John 2:27, John 14:16-26
The desire to succeed is common to all of mankind as every person wants to profit in life. As such, people seek success in all areas of life be it in their career, business, school or spiritual life among other pursuits. This phenomenon should not be strange, rather it is perhaps to be expected of every human being because the first blessing God conferred on the human race was to “be fruitful” (Genesis 1:28). Despite ones lack of awareness of this scripture, I believe it is this blessing that compels man to desire to profit in life because, through it, God empowered man to prosper or succeed in all areas of life. Every human being, therefore, has the potential to succeed in life despite their background or current circumstance.
I would, therefore, like to begin by encouraging you that God wants you to be fruitful, He wants you to succeed and profit in this life. When I say this life, I mean all areas of life, that is, everything you are involved in (see 3 John 2). Matter of fact, God does not only want you to succeed, He goes further because, through that blessing of Genesis 1:28, He has empowered you or given you the necessary resources for you to be fruitful and succeed in life (consider also Ephesians 1:3, and 2 Peter 1:3). The fact that it is the first blessing means that His first desire for your life is to see you become fruitful in all that you do.
Success can be, and is, defined in many ways by each one of us but I believe true success only occurs when one discovers his or her God-given purpose for living and fulfills it. In this light, it is important for us to go back to the Source, the Creator to discover our purpose and then get his instruction on how we can fulfill it and thus succeed in life. In other words, we will only be successful if we go back to God, who is our Source, and receive counsel from Him on how we can succeed in life.
The aim of this post is, therefore, to highlight what I believe is the key for our success. Let me encourage you to spend some time studying the scriptures on your own after you read this, asking God to bring light as you read the word (Psalm 119:130). Ask Him to grant you a personal revelation of this word such that it will be truly inscribed upon your heart and mind so that you walk in light of it.
The major scripture we are going to study is Isaiah 48:17-22. As we study, I urge you to pay close attention to the tenses and ordering of the words. Remember, 2 Timothy 3:16 says all scripture is breathed by God and is useful for teaching, instruction, correction, and rebuke so that the man of God is fully equipped for every good work. If such are the scriptures, then we need to pay close attention to every word and the structuring of every sentence.
Isaiah 48:17-22 (Amplified), hear what God is saying, “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way that you should go. Oh, that you had hearkened to My commandments! Then your peace and prosperity would have been like a flowing river, and your righteousness [the holiness and purity of the nation] like the [abundant] waves of the sea. Your offspring would have been like the sand, and your descendants like the offspring of the sea; their name would not be cut off or destroyed from before Me. Go forth out of Babylon, flee from the Chaldeans! With a voice of singing declare, tell this, cause it to go forth even to the end of the earth; say, The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob! And they thirsted not when He led them through the deserts; He caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them; He split the rock also, and the waters gushed out. There is no peace, says the Lord, for the wicked.”
Consider His description of Himself in verse 17. He is first of all “the Lord,” but He is also “your Redeemer”. He begins by stating His Lordship and, therefore, His authority and power. If He is Lord then He is Master and is speaking as one with such authority and power. That alone should make us pay close attention to what He is about to say. His second description informs us of the people He is talking to, He is talking to a people He has redeemed. If you know that God has redeemed you from the power of sin and Satan then He is talking to you. Furthermore, if He has redeemed you, then it means that He is your Lord. Remember 1 Corinthians 6:19,20 you are not your own, you were bought or redeemed with a price. In a sense, the one who redeemed you now owns you because He paid a ransom for you as such He is now your Master and Lord. So pay close attention to His words.
“I am the Lord who teaches you to profit…” This is a deep truth and we must, therefore, carefully consider it. Most will read this statement as a promise, that is, they will read it as “I am the Lord who will teach you to profit…” But that is not what the scripture is saying. Take a closer look at the tenses, does that statement look like a promise, is He talking about the future? God here is declaring that it is He who teaches us to profit in the present, not that He will teach us in the future. Consider the rendering in Young’s Literal Translation “Thus said Jehovah, thy redeemer, The Holy One of Israel, `I am Jehovah thy God, teaching thee to profit…” He is Jehovah your God, teaching you to profit, it is in the present tense not future. In other words, God is saying that if you ever want to profit in life, He is the one who provides the instruction for you to profit. He knows the necessary steps that need to be taken for you to succeed/ profit and will show them to you right now in the present.
Now read this in light of the blessing He made on mankind, with that blessing He was essentially empowering man to be fruitful or to make profit in life. But, He does not only just empower you or give you the needful resources in order to be fruitful or make profit, He says for you to truly profit, He must be the one who teaches you. God has, therefore, given Himself the duty to teach you to profit and thus to succeed in life.
We can, therefore, conclude that in order for us to profit in life, there is a teaching that we must undergo. That is to say, if we are to succeed we must sit under God’s teaching. What does God mean when He says He teaches you to profit? According to Noah Webster’s Dictionary, to teach means “To instruct; to inform; to communicate to another the knowledge of that of which he was before ignorant.” This is what God does in your life and mine once we sit under Him. He instruct us, points us to or shows us how we can profit for outside of Him we are ignorant of what true success is and therefore do not know how to attain it.
As you read further you find that He will not only teach us, He will also lead us in the way He has taught us to go. Now if you remember, in Psalm 23 He says He is our Shepherd who leads us in paths of righteousness, to green pastures and besides still waters. Sheep are most happy when they find themselves in an area that has lush green pasture with a source of water nearby. So God is saying, as our Shepherd He will lead us to where we can thrive, where we can make the best use of every resource He has given us. From this you can see that He will truly lead us in the way of success. Noah Webster’s Dictionary defines to lead as “To guide or conduct, as by accompanying, going before, showing, influencing, directing with authority.” This is what God means when He says He will lead you in the way you should go, He will accompany you (through the Holy Spirit who goes alongside you), go before you (remember Isaiah 45:2), showing you what to do through His word, and directing you with the authority of one who is Lord over all.
Here, again there is a part we have to play which is to submit ourselves to His leading. He cannot lead us if we are not submitted to Him and do not trust Him to lead us the right way. He cannot accompany you if you have not agreed to walk with Him. Amos 3:3 says two cannot walk together unless they have agreed to do so. So we see that God has given Himself the duty to teach us to profit and lead us in the way we should go, but there is a part we have to play for Him to be successful. We have to submit to Him and allow Him to go about His duty.
The question now becomes how will He teach and lead us? In the New Testament, Jesus informs us that God will teach us through the Holy Spirit whom He has deposited into every believer. The Holy Spirit is the one who has been mandated to teach us all things as well as guide us in the way we should go (John 14:26 and 16:13, Romans 8:14). John the Apostle calls Him the anointing that teaches us all things (1 John 2:27). Now, remember that the Holy Spirit is given as a seal to everyone who is Born Again (Ephesians 1:13,14, 2 Corinthians 1:22). This means that everyone who is Born Again has got the capacity to be taught and lead by the Holy Spirit, who is God Himself, and can therefore, be taught by God to profit in life.
Let us go back to the text and now read Isaiah 48:18,19. The Bible says, “Oh, that you had hearkened to My commandments! Then your peace and prosperity would have been like a flowing river, and your righteousness [the holiness and purity of the nation] like the [abundant] waves of the sea. Your offspring would have been like the sand, and your descendants like the offspring of the sea; their name would not be cut off or destroyed from before Me.”
Even though the scripture is written from a position of regret, we can infer the fruit of submitting to God’s teaching and leading. He says here that the results of submission or, to be more precise, obedience are peace and prosperity that flows like a river and righteousness like the waves of the sea. I am sure as child of God you have a desire to live and walk in peace, prosperity and righteousness. Romans 14:17 says the kingdom of God is a matter of righteousness and peace in the Holy Spirit. Again we see the link to the Holy Spirit whom we have said is our teacher, He comes with a reward of righteousness and peace that are found only in Him.
The key is to hearken to His voice and commandments. You can only profit in life if you are submitted to God and this means obeying His every instruction. All throughout scripture we see that God places a huge emphasis on obedience, in fact a simple definition of sin is disobedience to God’s commands. Remember the song, “Trust and obey for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.” Well I think this is the key to success through Christ. You see obedience is a manifestation of our trust in God. If you truly trust Him and truly believe that He is the Lord your God then you will obey His every instruction.
You and I will only be successful if we take after the example of Christ who obeyed His Father’s every instruction and thus fulfilled His purpose (John 5:19,30, Philippians 2:8, Hebrews 5:8.) If we are obedient and do according to His instruction then we will truly be successful. Consider what God tells us in Deuteronomy 28:1,2 and Isaiah 1:19. In the latter scripture He says “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land.” The Prophet Samuel further stresses the importance of obedience in 1 Samuel 15:22 where he says to obey is better than sacrifice. God is not looking for what you can give Him out of yourself; rather He is looking for a people who will obey Him, not because He is a dictator but because He wants the best for you and me. For it is only in obeying God that you get the best out of life, and in line with the subject of this post, it is only as you obey His instruction that you will truly succeed and profit in life.
God has given Himself the duty of teaching you to profit, but you cannot profit if you do not obey or in other words, follow His teaching and leading. This is further emphasized in Psalms 32:8-11 (KJV) which says, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about. Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.”
The above scripture just confirms what we have read from Isaiah 48:17-19. God is again saying that He will instruct (or teach) you in the way you should go and guide (or lead) you. Note here it says He will guide with His eye, the NIV says He will counsel and watch over you. What He is saying is that He will watch your progress, His eye will be upon you, constantly watching to make sure that you are indeed following His instruction and taking the right way. Now that is very assuring for me, to know that He is watching my progress, not to just reprimand me when I go the wrong way, but rather to ensure that I keep on the right path. But again, there is a caution as is the case with Isaiah 48. Do not be like the horse or mule which have no understanding and must be directed using painful methods (bit and bridle). God does not want to use painful methods, but sometimes He uses them because we have not been obedient.
Let’s consider the fruit of submitting to God’s leading. Isaiah 48:21 says, “And they thirsted not when He led them through the deserts; He caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them; He split the rock also, and the waters gushed out.” Here is an account of the experiences of those who had been led by God. Under God’s leading, the Israelites never thirsted even though they passed through deserts because God went to the extent of causing water to flow out of a rock to sufficient satisfy the whole nation. Now if God was able to lead a nation in such a manner, what makes you think He cannot do the same for you? If you submit yourself to Him and allow Him to lead, even though you go through the desert, He will supply you with water.
Let me also highlight this, there will be times when, as you submit to God, you are led through a wilderness or as was the case with the Israelites, through a desert. Do not fret for He will surely supply for all your needs according to His riches in glory (Philippians 4:19). Remember Isaac, God told him to remain in a land where there was a famine and he reaped a hundredfold (Genesis 26:1-3,12-14). Where others did not reap anything, where they made heavy losses on their investment, Isaac had great gain all simply because he submitted himself to God’s leading.
Recall again Psalm 23, the Psalmist says the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. You shall not want when you allow Him to shepherd you through life. You shall lack for nothing even when all else around you lacks, because not only is He your provider, He is also the all sufficient one, indeed Paul says He is our sufficiency (2 Corinthians 3:5). As I have already said, He is able to supply for all our needs. The other thing is that God is omniscient which means He knows where He is taking you and the needs the road has. As a loving Father, He will not lead you to a place where you lack for that reflects on His ability to look after His own (remember Matthew 7:11). So trust Him and submit to His leading, He does not wish to harm you but to prosper you (Jeremiah 29:11). It has already been mentioned that God leads us through or by the Holy Spirit.
From all the above, we see that our success hinges on how submitted we are to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our teacher and the one who leads us in the way we should go. Interestingly, Jesus called Him a Counselor (John 16:7) making the Holy Spirit the one to give us counsel concerning the way we should go. We can therefore conclude that the key to profiting in this life lies with the Holy Spirit, He is our key for success in life.
The Holy Spirit is the key because, He is the one who has been given the mandate to teach and lead the Christian. He is the one who has been given the duty of ensuring that we make full use of the blessing of Genesis 1:28. For the Christian, the importance of knowing and understanding the voice of the Holy Spirit cannot be overemphasized especially in the area of living a successful life. I urge you then to develop a relationship with the Holy Spirit, learn to hear His voice, learn His ways and you will succeed in all of life. You see God is interested even in the “little things” of our life and wants to ensure that we are successful all round. He has thus come to dwell within us so that He can lead us, but He can only lead us to the extent that we allow Him to.
In the next post, I will highlight some of the ways in which the Holy Spirit speaks to us. In the meantime, take time to meditate on the scripture we have just studied. Think on it and begin to submit yourself to Him. Work on that relationship with the Holy Spirit by spending more time in prayer, seeking His leading in everything you do. Yes even concerning what to wear, what to eat, how to maximize your time, even which route to take when travelling. I assure you that you will be surprised by the results.
