We all require God’s favor to experience a life filled with victory, abundance, good health, and more. In this article, I will discuss how one can activate the favor of God. While it is often said that God’s favor is unmerited, this is only partially accurate.
The Scriptures are rich with examples of individuals who activated God’s favor by meeting specific conditions. We will delve deeply into the conditions that ensure the favor of God in one’s life.
1. What Is Favor?
Generally, favor is an act of kindness that exceeds what is expected or customary. It also encompasses the idea of blessing—a form of divine favor.
It is interesting to note that the word blessing appears over 1000 times in the bible. Showcasing that God is truly invested in His children being blessed and enabling us to experience a life of divine favor.
2. What Is Key To Activating Divine Favor?
Simply put, the key to activating divine favor is obedience. God is unequivocal about the importance and priority of obedience in our spiritual journey with Him. Even the first two commandment is centered around obedience:
Exodus 20:3 NLT
You must not have any other god but me.
Exodus 20:4 and 6 NLT
You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.
2.1 Obedience
Obedience is the act of submitting your will to God’s will or God’s commands. This act activates the favor of God. Solomon after exploring all of life’s vanities came to the final conclusion that obedience is the key to a fulfilled life:
Ecclesiastes 12:13 NLT
That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.
As a believer I’m glad Scripture is filled with people who lived before us. They tried and tested all the worldly approaches to life, recognizing their futility. Like Solomon, he observed that everything is meaningless, but fulfillment comes from fearing the LORD and obedience.
1 Corinthians 10:11 NLT
These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age.
Obedience to God gives us the boldness to ask great things. Like Jabez, who was honorable prayed a bold prayer, and God granted his request.
When Hezekiah was about to die from an illness, he prayed to God. Citing that he has always been faithful, serving God single-mindedly and doing what pleases God. Then healed him of his sickness and added more years to life.
These two men exemplify how obedience brings us boldly into the presence of God, and allows us to make great requests before God.
1 John 3:21-22 NLT
Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.
2.2 Choosing The Way Of The Lord
In life, you will be approached with alternative ways to choose how to live your life. But I’d like to assure you that there is a way that leads to favor – it is the way of the LORD.
Jesus after fasting was approached by Satan who offered him alternative ways. And he opted to choose the way of the LORD as written in the Scriptures (Matthew 4:1-11). We all know how his life choices culminated into: seating at the highest place of honor at God’s right hand (1 Peter 3:22).
Proverbs 4:18 provides an interesting simile on the life of one who chooses the way of the LORD.
Proverbs 4:18 NLT
The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.
Let’s expound of this metaphorical expression. Have you ever seen how the first gleam of dawn looks like? It is absolutely glorious, with a blend of hues that make the sight so brilliantly breathtaking.
You may gaze at it in awe at the radiance. It’s symbolic of hope, new beginnings and the emergence of light from darkness. As the day progresses, the sun it moves from a lesser glory to greater glory – the light and brightness intensifies.
Another aspect is that, in respect of the earth it, the sun always rises from the east and travels on a set path. It never deviates from its path such that everyday at midday, it is at its fullness of glory.
This is analogy is akin to the life of one who has chosen the way of the LORD, one who has made Jesus their Lord and whose eyes are forever looking onto Jesus. They never deviate but walk in the ways of the Lord. Like the sun, they never stumble or regress along the way when focused on the Lord they go from glory to glory.
2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJV
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
3. Obedience Guarantees Blessings
If you are living with obedience to the LORD, the prayer for blessings should fall out of your prayer points. It is a biblical principle that obedience leads to blessings and favor.
Luke 11:28 NLT
Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”
Each time the King of Israel or Judah disobeyed God by worshiping other foreign gods, there would be distress and famine in the land. But each time the nation obeyed and worshiped God, they would experience blessings and abundance.
In the New living Translation, the 28th chapter of Deuteronomy is titled: Blessings for Obedience. This is where God lays out His promises to those who obey Him and His word.
Deuteronomy 28:1 NLT
If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world.
Dear reader, I urge you to read and meditate on the chapter that it becomes part of your expectations as you live in obedience to God.
4. Final Remarks
We have explored how divine favor is activated by obedience. Even Jesus’ placed a priority on obedience in his Sermon on the Mount citing thus:
Matthew 6:33 NLT
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
Living righteously is living obediently, and it is through him that we are able to exercise obedience to God through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
Now that we have found the key to activating God’s blessings, discover what a blessed life looks like by reading the following article: The Truth About What Being Blessed Really Means.
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