Paul's Plans

After these things were finished, Paul purposed

in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem after he had

passed through Macedonia and Achaia, saying,

After I have been there, I must also see Rome.

And having sent into Macedonia two of those who

ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus, he himself

stayed in Asia for a while. Verses 21 and 22,

by way of introduction, I want us to consider

the circumstances that bring about and surround

Paul's plans that he establishes in verse 21

and verse 22. 21, we read, Now after these things

were finished, Paul purposed in the Spirit to

go to Jerusalem after he had passed through Macedonia

and Achaia, saying, After I have been there,

I must also see Rome. What Paul is doing in this

text is he is establishing plans for future gospel.

for future missionary labors in the world. But

I want us to consider the circumstances briefly

of these plans. This text says, now after these

things were finished. It's clearly alluding to

Paul's time in Ephesus and the events that we've

been walking our way through in Ephesus. It's

talking about the disciples and the Spirit of

God being poured out on the disciples. It's talking

about Paul and the synagogue. It's talking about

Paul at Tyrannus. It's talking about the seven

sons of one Sceva. It's talking about the blessed

miracles that have occurred. It's talking about

this fear, this reverence, and the exaltation

of Christ's name in Ephesus. It's talking about

many of the practitioners. those who practice

magic and wicked things, repenting of their sin

and forsaking those things, and publicly burning

their books and their scrolls. It's talking about

the success and the effectiveness of the gospel

in Ephesus. It's talking about Paul's ministry

in Ephesus. The text is telling us, and Luke

is telling us, that there was a point in time

When these great events found a conclusion, Paul's

ministry in Ephesus had to conclude at some point

in time. The way it's put in the text seems to

put forward the idea that there was a natural

transition that occurred and takes place in Paul's

ministry. It was time for him to move on. It

was time for Paul to move on to other missionary

endeavors. And this is incredible when we think

about the reality of the great success that the

apostle had in Ephesus. Now, why would we say

that Ephesus was a great success? Well, brothers

and sisters, because the church... is established

firmly in Ephesus. It's a great success because

true, vital, powerful, authentic Christianity

has been established in this place in Ephesus.

Men and women have been converted and born again.

They've been brought into the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of God has gone forth and expanded

and grown in this place. It's a success for many

reasons. It's true revival. God was pleased to

pour out His Spirit in Ephesus. We read a little

bit later of the effects, the indirect effects

of the gospel in Ephesus when Demetrius stirs

up a riot a little bit later in Acts chapter

Acts 19 · chapter mention

19. And what does he say in that text? He talks

about... How Paul was trying to persuade everybody

in Asia to turn away from worshipping Artemis.

And that he was seemingly being pretty successful

at it. That men and women everywhere, all over

this area, all over this region, were turning

from idols to the living God. We would call that

a successful ministry. God blessed the work there.

God's blessing was upon Paul's preaching there.

God was acting and God was working. God was moving

in that place. Yet we find in the text that a

point in time came that Paul had to move on.

That he knew his ministry there had ended. Success

oftentimes leads, and it can lead, to... over

-realized attitudes of satisfaction. Success

can oftentimes lead to negative effects in our

lives if you think about it. We can become idle

and complacent as a result of God's blessing.

We can become idle and complacent and it can

lead to over -realize leisure and recreation

in our lives. One might say, well, Paul, he deserved

a good, long, long vacation after this Ephesian

period. Man, it was a rough period. And here's

the thing about the text. It wasn't just success.

It was success mixed with hardship and adversity.

So we read a little bit later, In the New Testament,

we read specifically in 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 15:32

chapter 15, verse 32, Paul says this, he says,

If from human motives I fought with wild beasts

at Ephesus, what does it profit me? Paul's saying,

listen, I fought, I wrestled. With men as though

they were wild animals. Those were my enemies.

What does the prophet mean? He had great difficulty,

great adversity, great opposition in Ephesus.

We read a little bit later in the same book,

in 1 Corinthians chapter 16, verse 9. He says,

1 Corinthians 16:9

starting in verse 8, But I will remain in Ephesus

until Pentecost. for a wide door for effective

service has opened to me, and there are many

adversaries. He's referring to Ephesus there.

He's talking about the reality that, yeah, there's

great success in Ephesus, but brothers and sisters,

there's great opposition, there's great adversity,

hardship, tumult, and trial in Ephesus as well.

So it's not just that success can lead to...

The presumptuousness of assuming that God's going

to bless our ministry, or that God's going to

continue working in and through us, or an over

-realized sense of satisfaction, the need for

leisure and rest. But brothers and sisters, great

success mixed with hardship could also lead to

despair. It could lead to being disheartened.

It could lead to doubt. But that's not what we

see happen to... The apostle in this text. We

don't see these negative effects coming into

the life of Paul and his ministry. What do we

see take place in Paul's life and his ministry

in verses 21 and 22? What's he do? His time at

Ephesus comes to an end. God has blessed him.

God has been with him there. God has used him.

The gospel has flourished. But what does he do?

Now he's planning for future work. He doesn't

slow down. He keeps going. He presses on. He

made plans for future gospel ministry, and he

continued in that work. He maintained a holy

and a relentless zeal for the work of God in

this world. He understood, and I think this is

the key for Paul. He understood his calling as

an apostle. We read in several places throughout

the New Testament that Paul's philosophy of ministry

was this, that he would not build on another

man's foundation. So that whenever the point

in time came where the church was strong enough,

that it could function and it had its own identity

in itself, and elders were raised up, and we

see that in Acts chapter 20, that that's the

Acts 20 · chapter mention

reality, that he would move on and he would look

for other areas that he could plant and establish

churches where there were no churches. That was

his philosophy of ministry. That's what he believed,

his calling as an apostle, and that's what Christ

had revealed to him, and he sought to be faithful

to that. He understood his calling as an apostle,

and what did he do? He persevered in it. He continued

in it. He pressed on in his calling as an apostle.

He wasn't satisfied with what God had done in

Ephesus. He was eager and excited and he was

looking forward to what God would do in the future

through his ministry. He wasn't presumptuous

of God's blessing, but he understood and he knew

that God uses people for his purposes and his

plans. Last week we considered how God works

in and through the Word. God blesses the Word.

God accompanies the Word. God works in this world

through the Word of God. But we also have to

remember, and this text helps us balance it out,

that God doesn't just work through the Word.

God uses servants. God uses people to distribute

and to proclaim and to minister that Word that

He works through. Paul understood. That if God

was going to continue working in this world,

that Paul would have to continue working hard

in this world. He would have to continue being

diligent and faithful as an apostle. Brothers

and sisters, Christian, I wonder, do you understand

your calling in life? Do you know? Do you understand?

Do you have a sense? of what your calling in

life is as a father, as a husband, as a man of

God? Do you know what your calling is as a church

member, as a brother and sister in Christ, as

a believer in Jesus Christ? Do you understand

the weight of the calling that God has placed

on your life by converting you and causing you

to be born again and entrusting you with the

gospel? of Christ and making you a part of the

church? Do you know your calling? Do you know

what you're called to do in your home? In your

marriage? In your church? In your relationships,

brothers and sisters? Listen, that's not going

to be an easy thing. There's going to be successes,

but there's also going to be great adversity

and difficulty at times. What do you need to

do if you understand your calling as a believer

in Jesus Christ? Persevere. Press on. Continue.

Keep moving forward. Work and labor for the kingdom

of God in whatever area God has given you. It's

going to be hard, brothers and sisters. But listen,

God uses people for His purposes and for His

plans. If you aren't willing to be the husband

your wife needs, brothers and sisters, who's

going to do it? If you're not going to wash your

wife in the Word, who's going to do it? Listen,

if you're not going to submit to your husband

with love and reverence, who's going to do it?

You are the wife and you are the husband. Listen,

God has called us to do these things. If you're

not going to be a father in the home, Who's going

to do it? God has called people to work and labor

and to be faithful for his kingdom and for his

purposes. Your son, your daughter, your wife,

your husband, your fellow church members, your

fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. They need

what God has called you to do in your life. They

need to be blessed by it, to be encouraged by

it, to be edified by it. God uses people in his

work in this world. And we have to continue in

that work. Historically, one of the things we

can see about the men and the women that God

uses in this world to do great and mighty things

for his purposes, for his plans, for his kingdom.

There is one. There's a lot, but there's one

unifying factor. They were all very, very diligent.

They were all very, very resilient. None of them

were lazy believers. I think we can honestly

say, brothers and sisters, God does not use and

God does not bless lazy Christian believers.

people. That's hard, isn't it? Paul understood

this. Paul knew this. Brothers and sisters, listen.

We have the gospel of Christ. We know eternal

truths, eternal realities. We know who Christ

is. We know what he's done. We know what he's

accomplished. We know what we need to do because

the Word of God has revealed it to us and He's

given it to us in His divine revelation. Now

we need to give ourselves to faithfulness and

service to our great Master and our great King.

That's our job. To be faithful in this life and

to keep being faithful in this life for His purposes

and for His plans, for His kingdom and for His

glory, brothers and sisters. Regardless of whether

we've been successful in the past, whether we're

enjoying success now, or regardless of whether

there's adversity or difficulty or hardship,

we must press on in our Christian service for

the kingdom of God. So we see the circumstances

surrounding these plans that Paul makes. Now

there's two things I want us to consider in this

text. One is Paul's plans. The second is the

Spirit's work in light of these circumstances

and what's taking place. The text says in verse

21, Now after these things were finished, Paul

purposed in the Spirit. So Paul made up his mind.

Paul earnestly gave himself to these plans. He

had determined, he had fixed it and set it in

his mind that he was going to do these things.

So what was it that Paul purposed to do in the

coming days? What were his ministry plans, we

could say? It really involves three things. The

first, was passing through Macedonia and Achaia.

Now, these were all areas that Paul had already

established churches. So what he wanted to do

was circle back and visit churches like Philippi,

Corinth, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, and a few

others most likely. He wanted to circle back

and visit them to strengthen them and encourage

them and to exhort them and appeal to them and

persuade them to continue on in the word of Christ

and to see how they were doing for his own soul.

So that was the first thing he was determined

to do. He was determined to look after the churches

he had planted because his heart was bound to

those churches and to those believers. And as

an apostle, he had... universal authority over

those churches. He had a right and a privilege

and an obligation, a duty to oversee those churches

as one who took part in as an apostle of Christ.

But we also see that the second part of his plans

were going to Jerusalem. Now we read again in

the last part of 1 Corinthians chapter 6, the

1 Corinthians 6 · chapter mention

last part of 1 Corinthians in chapter 16. We

read in verses 1 through 5. Now concerning the

collection for the saints, as I directed the

churches of Galatia, so do you also. On the first

day of every week, each one of you is to put

aside and save as he may prosper, so that no

collections be made when I come. When I arrive,

whomever you may approve, I will send them. with

letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem. And

if it is fitting for me to go also, they will

go with me. In this text, we see that Paul was

eager to bring this fund, this relief fund, to

the poor and needy saints in Jerusalem. That

was his primary purpose, to bring this gift.

to Jerusalem church. But there was another purpose,

and that was that he wanted to bring solidarity

between the Jerusalem church, which was primarily

Jewish, and the Gentile churches from which he

was collecting the funds. He wanted to show them

that they were all serving the same Lord and

the same Master, and they were all indwelt by

the same Spirit, working for the same kingdom

and for the glory of God. He had to go to Jerusalem

after passing through Macedonia. That was the

second thing that he was determined to do. But

we also see a third thing. He says that he must

see Rome. Now, this is interesting. Paul longed

to go to Rome. And we read in several places

in Romans. That this was something he wanted

to do for a very long time. We read in Romans

Romans 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1, starting in verse 8. And listen to

the heart longings of the apostle. First, I thank

my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because

your faith is being proclaimed throughout the

whole world. For God, whom I serve in my spirit

in the preaching of the gospel of his son, is

my witness. As to how unceasingly I may mention

of you. Always in my prayers making requests.

If perhaps now. At last by the will of God. I

may succeed in coming to you. He wants to go.

He wants to come to the brothers and sisters

at Rome. And he hopes that he is successful in

it. For I long to see you starting in verse 11.

So that you may impart some spiritual gift to

me. and that you may be established. That is,

that I may be encouraged together with you, while

among you, each of us by the other's faith, both

yours and mine. I do not want you to be unaware,

brethren, that often I have planned to come to

you, and have been prevented so far, so that

I may obtain some fruit among you also, even

as among the rest of the Gentiles. Paul wanted

to go to Rome. He wanted to see those Christians.

He wanted to preach the gospel. He wanted to

encourage them and strengthen them and edify

them. And he wanted, brothers and sisters, to

be edified and strengthened by them as well.

He wanted to be in their midst. We read in Romans

Romans 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15 a little bit more about Paul's longing

to go to Rome. As an apostle, we read in Romans

Romans 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15, starting in verse 20, And thus I

aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ

was already named, so that I would not build

on another man's foundation. But as it is written,

They who had no news of him shall see, and they

who have not heard shall understand. For this

reason I have often been prevented from coming

to you. Paul's tried to go, but he hasn't been

able to go. His plans have fallen short. His

plans, as an apostle, have fallen through. They've

not worked out at times. It's clear that Paul's

plans aren't always perfect, and they're not

always carried out and carried through perfectly.

It's just not possible because of providential

hindrances and various things. But now with no

further place for me in these regions, and since

I have had for many years a longing to come to

you, whenever I go to Spain, for I hope to see

you in passing and to be helped on my way there

by you when I have first enjoyed your company

for a while. So it's not just that Paul wants

to go to Rome to preach the gospel and to be

encouraged. And to encourage them. But Paul also

wants to go to Rome because he wants to plan

for another mission. And where is that other

mission? Spain. Paul wants to go to Spain, the

Latin speaking world, where the gospel has not

been. Where churches have not been established.

So it's not just that Paul wants to go to Rome,

brothers and sisters, but he wants to go to Rome

because he's thinking about what is to come for

the gospel. He wants to go to Rome to plan for

what is ahead. Now, these plans that Paul has

made, what do we see and what do they show us

about the great apostle? They show us his love

for the church. He loves the church deeply. They

show us his longing to preach the gospel. They

show us his desire to establish the church in

unreached places. Where they don't know the gospel

and where there are no churches. They show us

the reality that the apostle lived under a constant

sense of divine purpose and call in his life.

Do you know why Paul is making these plans? Do

you know why Paul is thinking about Macedonia

and Philippi and Corinth? Do you know why Paul...

is thinking about Jerusalem and the saints in

Jerusalem. Brothers and sisters, do you know

why Paul is thinking about Rome and even Spain

after Rome? Because he knows that he lives before

a God who sees all that he does. He knows that

he ministers before a holy and righteous God

who sees him and watches him and he wants to

honor that God and he wants to please that God.

He lives under a sense of divine call and divine

purpose because he walks before a living God.

all the day long. He's conscious of God's presence

in Christ's watchful eye. He's conscious of wanting

to please His Lord and walk in accordance with

the law of God. He's conscious of the needs of

the saints. He's conscious of the weight of lost

souls. He lives with this sense of divine call

and divine purpose in his life at all times because

he walks. Before the living God. And he knows

it. It keeps him faithful. It compels him forward.

It drives him forward. And he can't not do this.

Because he's been so drastically changed. We

think about this. Brothers and sisters, consider

the reality that this is the man whose life mission

used to be to obliterate Christianity. This is

the man who used to be Saul of Tarsus. This is

the man who was determined to destroy this movement,

the way, these Christians who claimed that there

was a Messiah. But then, this man is confronted.

By that very risen Lord. And he's born again

to a living hope. He's changed drastically. And

all of a sudden, the one who hated Christians

and wanted to destroy Christianity is now in

submission to that Lord and that Master. He is

now called with divine purpose and divine calling

in his life to work. for that king and that Lord

to labor for him. He's given faith to believe

the blessed promises. He's given eyes to see

and understand the gospel, brothers and sisters.

He's changed and he's transformed. And now he's

able to say one chapter later that he considers

his life to be nothing. Why? Because Christ has

so drastically changed who he is. Christ has

caused him to be born again. He's been made a

new creature in Christ. We see in this text that

Paul, the great apostle, made plans. But we also

have to understand that those plans, though they

were established by the apostle himself, were

fallible. They could have error in them. We see

in this text, and we know from later spots, 1

1 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

Corinthians chapter 1, the book of 2 Corinthians,

and we also see in tidbits from Romans. Brothers

and sisters, we see that the apostle changed

his plans multiple times. He doesn't follow this

plan. It doesn't come about exactly as he wanted.

Yes, he goes to Jerusalem, but do you know how

he goes to Jerusalem? In chains. Yes, he goes

to Rome. But do you know how he goes to Rome?

As a prisoner. That's where we last see Paul.

They come about, but not the way that he plans.

His plans as a man were fallible and subject

to error and issues. Because Paul was fallible.

Why weren't these plans perfect? Why were these

plans fallible? Because he was not God. That's

the reality of it, brothers and sisters. Paul's

plans were altered and changed and adjusted because

Paul couldn't see the future. Because Paul wasn't

sovereign. He wasn't perfectly holy like God

is. He didn't declare the end from the beginning.

Paul doesn't exercise the decretive will. like

God. He has to live according to the revealed

will of God, even as an apostle. His plans, and

ultimately the plans of all men, brothers and

sisters, are fallible. They're subject to change,

amalgamation, and adjustment. They will not always

stand and they will not always be blessed of

God. They will not always be used. But we do

see that the apostle is making plans. His plans

were fallible, but he did purpose. He did establish

and seek to do mighty and great things for God.

Even though he couldn't see the future. This

leads us to the last thing we have to consider.

The Spirit's work. Now, it's not just that Paul

purposed. But what does the text say? What does

the text say about Paul purposing? Now, after

these things were finished, Paul purposed in

the Spirit. Luke wants us to know. He wants us

to understand that the Spirit of God was actively

involved in the work of God in this world. The

Spirit of God was actively involved in Paul's

life. The Spirit of God was actively leading,

guiding, and directing. The work of God in this

world. There was a divine purpose underneath

all of these plans that Paul himself was establishing

and laying out and seeking to design. Luke wants

us to be clear about this. The risen Lord Jesus

Christ is working and establishing his church

from heaven in and throughout the book of Acts.

Let's go ahead and flip through several different

texts in which we see this. We read in Acts chapter

Acts 8:29

8, verse 29. Then the Spirit said to Philip,

Go up and join this chariot. The Spirit of God

is directing Philip to preach the gospel to this

one eunuch. The Spirit of God is involved in

working. We read in verse 39, When they came

up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched

Philip away, and the eunuch no longer saw him,

but went on his way rejoicing. Brothers and sisters,

God is involved in the spread of the Gospel in

the book of Acts. The Spirit of God is divinely

working. We read a little bit later in Acts chapter

Acts 10 · chapter mention

10. Verse 19. And this momentous occasion of

Peter going to the Gentiles in Cornelius' home.

While Peter was reflecting on the vision, the

Spirit said to him, Behold, three men are looking

for you. But get up, go downstairs, and accompany

them without misgivings, for I have sent them

myself. The Spirit of God is actively involved

in the progress and the advancement of the gospel

in the early days of the life of the church,

in the book of Acts, in the establishment of

the apostolic church. We read in Acts chapter

Acts 13 · chapter mention

13, and these are not all the references. I'm

just walking us through some of the prominent

ones. In Acts chapter 13, verse 2, while they

Acts 13:2

were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the

Holy Spirit said, Set apart for me Barnabas and

Saul for the work to which I have called them.

Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid

their hands on them, they sent them away, so

being sent out by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit

of God was actively involved in sending Paul

and Barnabas on the first missionary journey.

The Spirit of God was working, acting, moving,

guiding, directing, not just... The word in people's

hearts. But the missionaries. And the providential

situations. They were in. We read in Acts chapter

Acts 16 · chapter mention

16. Verses 6 through 10. They passed through

the Phrygian and Galatian region. Having been

forbidden by the Holy Spirit. To speak the word

in Asia. And after they came to Mysia. They were

trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of

Jesus did not permit them. And passing to Miser,

they came down to Troas. The Spirit of God is

leading, directing, and guiding the work of the

Gospel in the missionary labors in the world,

brothers and sisters. We see that clearly. There

was a whole group of people that were kept from

hearing the Gospel at that time in Acts chapter

Acts 16 · chapter mention

16. Why? Because the Spirit of God forbid Paul

and his fellow workers from entering that place.

Divine purpose. Divine call. We see that God

is divinely at work underneath, in, and through

the apostolic plans. We read in our text today

the same thing that Paul purposed in the Spirit.

We read in Acts chapter 20, verses 22 and 23.

Acts 20:22

And now. Behold, bound by the Spirit, I am on

my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen

to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly

testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds

and afflictions await me. It wasn't just Paul

who's at work. It wasn't just Paul and his fellow

workers who were at work. For the gospel is it

brothers and sisters. More importantly. More

vitally. More significantly. Than even the apostles

were. Is the work of the divine spirit of God.

In the life. Of the church. The spirit. Is guiding.

Directing. Leading. And initiating the work of

God. In this world. Christ from heaven. Is building

his church. by His Spirit, and by His Word. And

we see that clearly and progressively throughout

the book of Acts. So whereas we see that the

plans of Paul and the plans of man are fallible,

breakable, where they're subject to error, what

do we find taking place underneath those plans?

Through! What do we find the Spirit of God doing?

We see the divine purpose and the divine plan

for the church being established in the world

and the salvation of sinners, and we see that

His plans are infallible and unbreakable. They

cannot be thwarted. They cannot be changed. They

cannot be undone. They cannot be stopped, inhibited,

or taken away. The Spirit of God will be successful

in building the church of Jesus Christ in this

world. We're meant not to understand fully and

completely how the Spirit was leading. That's

the temptation of this text. The temptation of

this text is to read the words, Paul purposed

in the Spirit, and to think, well, how in the

world did this work? What are all the details,

and how is this interwoven and interchangeable?

How is this taking place? But brothers and sisters,

that's not what we're supposed to take away from

this. We're supposed to marvel at the reality

that God is working in the world. We're supposed

to marvel and be amazed at the reality that God...

is working to save sinners even though they don't

deserve it. That the Spirit of God is actively

working in that first century world through the

Apostle to save sinners. And in our day. We don't

know all the ins and outs and all the details

of everything about how it works, but we do know

this. God is at work to save sinners. God, who

doesn't have to be saving sinners, is saving

sinners, brothers and sisters. You don't deserve

it. I don't deserve it. But he's designed a plan

from before the foundation of the world to save

undeserving, elect sinners and to save them based

wholly and completely on his grace, on his mercy.

Therefore, he carries out that plan in time.

and history in the world. The most important

thing in this text is not Paul's plans. That's

not the most significant thing. The most significant

reality in the text of Scripture that we are

studying today is the reality that the Spirit

of God is acting, moving, leading, guiding, and

directing to save sinners and to establish the

church in this world. And that He will continue

to do so. So we look and we consider the cross

as believers. The premier work of Christ in atonement

and what He's accomplished to save sinners. And

we consider that work and we look at that work.

We think and we meditate on the cross of Christ

and what He's accomplished for us. We see the

grace of God, the mercy of God in saving sinners.

We think about it, we dwell on it, and what do

we do, brothers and sisters? We live unto the

glory of God. That's what we ought to do. And

we ought to live unto the glory of God, and we

ought to seek to do big, mighty things for the

glory of that God. We have to seek to do great

and mighty things for the glory of our King and

our God. To bring Him praise and honor. We have

to pour out our lives. We have to give ourselves

wholly and completely for His purposes and His

plans in our life. But listen, brothers and sisters.

Hold those plans loosely. Because the plans of

men are fallible. The plans of man are subject

to error. But take heart. Be encouraged. Do you

know why? Because his plans and his purposes

will not falter. They are not fallible. They

will succeed. They will persevere. They will

continue. And they will accomplish their divine

purpose in this world. Take heart, believers.

Some might say, Well, doesn't this discourage

the believer from working hard and seeking to

do great and mighty things for Christ? Why even

make plans? Why seek to plan for the glory of

God? But brothers and sisters, listen. One of

the most encouraging things about this text is

that God actually did use the feeble, fallible

plan of Paul. He used it for His kingdom and

glory even though it was a broken stick. Even

though it was a crooked stick. Maybe that's better

to say. God uses the plans of His people, their

desires, their longings, their zeal. Brothers

and sisters, He uses those things and He works

in and through those things. But listen, if we

ever find any success, If we ever have any fruit,

if anything ever comes of our plans, we have

to give all glory to our great God because they

would not succeed one single ounce or to one

single degree if He had not put His blessing

upon it. So we should seek to plan and be intentional

and to work and labor for the kingdom of God.

And we should seek... The guidance and the leadership

and the direction and the work of the Spirit

of God in and through those things. And we should

praise God and give Him all glory and give Him

thanks when we find any success. Because we know

it's from Him. We have to remember that we need

the Spirit's help in these things. We need God

to work, but we need to work too, brothers and

sisters. There's a quote, and this is what we'll

conclude with. There's a quote. It's been changed

like three or four times already. One rendition

of it is that what's done for Christ lasts. Something

similar. I saw it again. Somebody said what's

done for Christ and through Christ lasts. Now,

let me offer you my rendition of that quote that's

already been reworked so many times. What's done

by Christ lasts. What Christ alone does continues

and perseveres. But brothers and sisters, he

uses his people.