Obedience to the "Heavenly Vision"

Verse:

Acts 26:19

"I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision."

Lesson:

1. If we lose "the heavenly vision" God has given us, we alone are responsible — not God. We lose the vision because of our own lack of spiritual growth.

2. If we do not apply our beliefs about God to the issues of everyday life, the vision God has given us will never be fulfilled.

3. The only way to be obedient to "the heavenly vision" is to give our utmost for His highest — our best for His glory.

4. This can be accomplished only when we make a determination to continually remember God's vision.

5. But the acid test is obedience to the vision in the details of our everyday life — sixty seconds out of every minute, and sixty minutes out of every hour, not just during times of personal prayer or public meetings.

6. "Though it tarries, wait for it ..." (Habakkuk 2:3). We cannot bring the vision to fulfillment through our own efforts, but must live under its inspiration until it fulfills itself.

7. We try to be so practical that we forget the vision. At the very beginning we saw the vision but did not wait for it. We rushed off to do our practical work, and once the vision was fulfilled we could no longer even see it.

8. Waiting for a vision that "tarries" is the true test of our faithfulness to God. It is at the risk of our own soul's welfare that we get caught up in practical busy — work, only to miss the fulfillment of the vision.

9. Watch for the storms of God. The only way God plants His saints is through the whirlwind of His storms. Will you be proven to be an empty pod with no seed inside? That will depend on whether or not you are actually living in the light of the vision you have seen.

10. Let God send you out through His storm, and don't go until He does. If you select your own spot to be planted, you will prove yourself to be an unproductive, empty pod. However, if you allow God to plant you, you will "bear much fruit" (John 15:8).

11. It is essential that we live and "walk in the light" of God's vision for us (1 John 1:7).

Most Meaningful Statement :

If we do not apply our beliefs about God to the issues of everyday life, the vision God has given us will never be fulfilled.

Thoughts :

1. If we do not have spiritual growth, it is not likely that we are able to achieve the vision that God gives us. Without a vision, the people perish.

2. We need to apply our beliefs to the issues facing us on a daily basis, especially when the rubber hits the road. Otherwise, we believe one thing but do another when it comes to daily living.

3. The only way we can live out the vision of God is to always do our best for Him. We need to have a determination to remember that vision.

4. The acid test of our faithfulness to the vision God has given us is obedience to the vision in all details of our everyday life. Not just during our quiet times or church services and events.

5. We cannot fulfill the vision through our own efforts. It is also not something that is instant. We must live out our lives under its inspiration until it fulfills itself. This may take years, but we must tarry and wait. All this tarrying is a true test of our faithfulness to God.

6. We need to let God use storms in our lives to plant us where He wants us to be. If we select our own spot to be planted, we will prove ourself to be unproductive. We also find ourselves in the wrong place and out of the will of God.

7. However, if we allow God to plant us, we will "bear much fruit" (John 15:8).