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is a God-saturated, kingdom focused approach to our purpose in life.<\/p>\nWarren says we were created for a purpose. Tripp says we were created to be a part of something big. Warren leaves it to the individual to determine what his or her purpose is. Tripp makes it clear that humanities purpose is the kingdom of God, not in some prophetic, in-the-future, sweet-by-and-by framework, but right now, in the here and now, in the mundane routine of our lives. Not only were we created for something big, but the pursuit of that something big is hardwired into our natures by our Creator.<\/p>\n
This “hardwiring” for something bigger than ourselves is a result of what Tripp calls the “above and more” position of humans in the creation accounts of Genesis 1 and 2. Man is not the highest of animals. Man is above and apart from the animals and from everything else that God has made. Man was made for transcendence, to aspire to be a part of something outside of themselves, like a fan feels a part of a world championship without ever having participated in the success of the team. God’s purpose for us is not our own self-fulfillment and pleasure. God’s purpose for us transcends our own little kingdoms. Tripp says many believers have settled for “below and less” when we were created for “above and more.”<\/p>\n
Living for a purpose isn’t enough. The key, says Tripp, is to recognize that we are hardwired for glory.<\/p>\n
There are many people who have lived lives of purpose that didn’t really make much of a difference. Every person’s life is purposeful because every human being lives in pursuit of something. So, it is not enough to determine to have a purpose. Let me state it this way: it is a good thing to have a purpose, but\u00a0if your purpose isn’t tied to glory, you have still denied your humanity.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Our purpose in life must be tied, Tripp says, to “four transcendent glories\u00a0that were created to be the life-shaping focus of every human being. The first is the glory for which every human being is to live, and the following three are glories that flow from the first.”<\/p>\n
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- God glory.<\/strong> Our lives were designed to be shaped more by our attachment to the Creator than by creation.<\/li>\n
- Stewardship glory.<\/strong> The transcendence of human beings is expressed as people reflect God’s glory by their rulership and stewardship over the surrounding created world.<\/li>\n
- Community glory.<\/strong> Human being’s lives were meant to transcend the narrow glories of independence, autonomy, and self-sufficiency.<\/li>\n
- Truth glory.<\/strong> God did something with Adam and Eve he didn’t do with the rest of creation: He spoke to them.\u00a0 God spoke the secrets of His divine wisdom into the ears of the people He had made, calling Adam and Eve to transcend the boundaries of their own thoughts, interpretations, and experience.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Have you ever dreamed of being part of something big? What are you settling for?<\/p>\n
Paul David Tripp will be my guest on Monday’s edition of The Paul Edwards Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On many levels I have always found Rick Warren’s Purpose-Driven Life problematic. Warren opens his book with the words, “It’s not about you,” and then proceeds for about 300 pages to talk about nothing but you under the guise of … Continue reading