Our lives should represent His

By Apostle Frederick K.C. Price

Christians should live a victorious life not a haphazard one. Our lives should be lived solely on Bible doctrines. If one wants to be a total overcomer, the biblical principles that govern success have to be clearly understood and applied.

There are too many Christians, including some ministers, who have the mediocre mentality. That is a mentality of just doing what everyone else is doing. In other words, such a person is content to merely survive as a Christian and in ministry. But that is not how the Bible tells us to live.

First, let’s cover scriptures that illustrate that God wants us to be successful, beginning with the book of Joshua. Here is a little background:

Moses was dead. The children of Israel were perched on the far side of the Jordan River before entering into Canaan land. The first obstacle they had to face was the city of Jericho. Just prior to going into Jericho, God gave Joseph a commandment.

I believe this commandment has universal application that will work with both the Old Covenant and the New Covenant, and whether you are a minister or a layperson.

Joshua 1:8:

"This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."

Notice what it says: ". . . that you may observe . . . ." But that does not mean to observe only, but, rather, " . . . observe to do according to all that is written in it."

The commandment is to not let the Word depart from your mouth. In other words, do not stop speaking God's Word. That is the first thing you have to do.

Meditate day and night. That is the second most important thing.

Observe. That is the third most important thing;

And to do, which is the sum total and most important part of all.

God says, "For then [notice, the then does not come until after the four things are done] you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."

This tells me that God wants me to prosper. He wants me to be successful, not mediocre and not barely making it. God wants me to be on top.

Good Success, Bad Success

Notice this very important statement: "For then you will make . . . . "

It does not say that the Lord will make. Too many people are waiting on the Lord to do something in their lives. No! God says if you are successful, it’s your fault. If you are a failure, it’s your fault. If you are mediocre, it’s your fault – not God's fault, not the devil's fault, and not anyone else's fault. It’s your fault.

One translation says to have good success means that thou shall deal wisely in the affairs of life. I like what the New King James version of the Bible says, because I believe there is a sharp revelation in it. It says, " . . . then you will have good success."

Why in the world would the Holy Spirit tell me I would have "good success"? What other kind of success could you have but good? Why say "good"?

Obviously, to distinguish from bad success.? Because there is bad success.

What am I talking about when I say bad success? Success, by virtue of its definition, implies good – not a negative but a positive. Yet, in the Book of Joshua, it says "good success" because there are many people who have bad success.

In our society, we equate success with big bank accounts, big cars, big diamond rings, big wallets, and other material things that stand for success. However, there are many people who have all those things and still have no peace. They cannot sleep at night. They cannot eat certain foods because ulcers caused by stress and worry eat up their stomachs. And they do not know who their friends are. They do not trust anyone. Nevertheless, they have what is considered success in a material way.

In my opinion, their success is not good, but bad. Their children are running wild; sometimes the parents do not even know where their children are. Their sons are on drugs, their daughters are pregnant out of wedlock. Yet, they have all the money in the world and all the acclaim, but their success is bad, not good.

It thrills me to know that no one can compromise my success. If I succeed, it is because I do it. I cannot blame anyone but myself.

We understand God is our source, but God is not doing anything in this earth realm. We are.  That is, the Body of Christ is. God works through the Body. He provides the power, the enabling ability, and the anointing to the Body, but it is the Body doing the work.

If I do not do something with my life, then I am not going to succeed, because God is not a failure. There is no way God can fail. And there is too much failure in the Body of Christ, too many mediocre Christians. Some believers remain mediocre throughout their lives, never really fulfilling what God has called them to do.

In Psalm 1, beginning with the first verse, this same principle is enunciated:

Psalm 1:1-3:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.

Whatever he does shall prosper

Notice that the shall prosper comes after doing the other things. In other words, we have to meet the conditions. God cannot meet them for us. All the ingredients are already here for us to develop our own prosperity.

Think about it from this standpoint: Airplanes were in the Garden of Eden with Adam. Electric lights were in the Garden of Eden with Adam. Aerodynamics were in the Garden.

God did not all of a sudden push aerodynamics into the earth realm when Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first flight near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. All the principles of flight and all the materials needed to make an airplane were in the earth realm, in the Garden of Eden, but no one knew it because no one had yet discovered them. The point is that if man were ever to fly, it was up to man and not up to God.

Likewise, if you succeed in life, it is not up to God; it’s up to you. All of the ingredients for success are already here, and He has given you a plan to follow so you can succeed. When you succeed, God succeeds. When you fail, God fails, because people cannot see God. They can only see His so-called representatives. If the representatives of God are failures, then in the eyes of the world, God is a failure.

God Needs Role Models

God needs role models, and Christians are to be God's role models. Unsaved people judge God by God's people. That is why I made up my mind years ago that I was going to represent God on a level that would be above reproach. If any man rejected Jesus, it would not be because I was so sloppily dressed, smelling bad, or driving some old beat-up, broken down, junky car. I determined that I was going to represent God to the best of my ability.

I remember seeing insurance salesmen in my neighborhood when they used to go from house to house selling insurance years ago. They looked good. I saw the Black Muslims out and about looking neat and clean, with trim haircuts and nice suits, all dressed up. I said to myself, "Why can't Christians represent God that way?"

That is another reason why I take care of my body. I am going to represent God in the best way I can. I am not going to be some big fat preacher with 99 ballpoint pens in my pocket, looking tattered and torn.

If that fits you, and you don't like what I am saying, change. You are the only one who can change it; God won't.