[Steve Myers] God has an incredible purpose for your life. Your destiny, the reason you were born is to literally become immortal children in God's very own family. And that's the reality.

The reality is that God is a family. The Father and Jesus Christ are in that family right now and they will head up the family of divine children forever. You were born for a reason. There is a great God given purpose for life because God wants what's best for you.

Now here's something you haven't probably heard before. Your church isn't going to tell you this, your priest won't, your pastor, your minister, either. Most likely, you've never heard this before. God Himself is creating an extraordinary, spiritual family and He wants you in it. Now it might sound shocking but your incredible potential is to be literally born as spirit members into God's own family, to be His child, having His attitude, having His perspective, having His character, and understand this, His own divine nature. Could that be right?

Now you probably weren't taught that. I know as a child, I wasn't taught God's purpose. I was always taught that after death, you go to heaven. Maybe I'd, I'd even sprout wings and be like an angel or maybe stare into the face of God for eternity. But that is not what the Bible teaches. So I'd like to challenge you today, check it out, check out what your Bible says. Don't believe me, but I hope you'll stay with me and discover it for yourself because God's plan is about family.

There's a wonderful example of that in the book of Ephesians. In Ephesians 3:14, it says this, "For this reason, I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ from, whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named that He would grant you." It says in verse 19, "To know the love of Christ which passes knowledge that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." Now, what could that mean? Well, if we begin to break it down, if you're named after the Father, your family's name is now God. You're named part of God's family. And if you're filled up to all the fullness of God, well that can only mean that you can become a literal son or daughter of God, a full fledged member of His spiritual family. That's a divine spirit being. You can be like God in His eternal family.

Can you begin to see God's plan? He is in the process of fashioning and forming His family. In fact, you could say He is reproducing His own children. I mean, that's a reason God is called our Father. He's fathering His own spiritual children. So no wonder God places such value on life. And of course that purpose is probably very different from what you were taught, I know from what I was taught as well. I mean, how different is that from what your religion may have taught you.

Now I hope you don't just reject this, don't turn the channel, I hope that you'll discover for yourself. In fact, remember one reason why they threatened Jesus Christ? They threatened His life and it was connected to this very thing. They wanted Him dead for claiming to be a son of God. Jesus said, and He taught the things that I'm going to be talking about today. And God wants you to understand why, why. In fact, most likely you've wondered why. What's the purpose of your life? Well, I'd like to help you understand that by offering this free bible study the aid, "Why Were You Born?" I hope you'll call us at the number on your screen because we'd like to send you this free copy so that you can study this with your bible for yourself. So go to our website beyondtoday.tv. There you can read it online, you can download it. Because these are things that are critical to understand. It's important truth that will transform your life. In fact, it will help you to learn the spiritual worth of life. Because you know our great God places such incredible value on life itself. How much do you value life? I mean, do you understand the God given potential that every human being has. Of course in this world, not everyone gets a chance at life. All too many babies never make it to birth. So keep in mind, God uses the pattern of physical things like family to picture spiritual realities. So the human family is representative of what God is doing spiritually and even the process of human birth gives us insight into the spiritual plan of God.

Now for another perspective, to show the value of life I'd like you to listen to Pam Stenzel. Pam is an American speaker and she is known for her straight talk to young people about sex and its consequences and about life and death choices that are made every single day. She spent nine years counseling in crisis pregnancy centers. She can speak to the challenges of life, the issues of choice and those challenges that even unwanted pregnancies can bring. Now a few years ago, Pam gave a presentation for our church at a seminar for the United Church of God and that's where this video was done. So listen to her personal story as she speaks to the sanctity of life.

“39 years ago in Michigan, a young 15 year old became pregnant. She had a lot of difficult choices to make, maybe more so than some 15 year old girls. She was raped. Abortion was legal in Michigan in the '60s for rape. But this 15 year old girl chose to give her child life and then to place that child with an adoptive family. And that child was me. My biological father is a rapist. I don't even know my nationality, but I am still a human being and I still have value and my life isn't worth any less than any of yours just because of the way I was conceived. And I did not deserve the death penalty because of the crime of my father. And I have not met my birth mom, someday I hope to. And if someday I get that chance, I'm going to wrap my arms around her and I'm going to tell her I love her, because she loved me. She loved me enough to give me my life. And then she loved me enough to give me the next most special gift I was ever given and that's my family. I'm the oldest of eight children, seven of us adopted, every color of the rainbow in my family. If you want to meet some very special people take the time to meet my mom and dad before you go, they're here tonight. My mom was one of 12 children, nine girls, three boys, six of those girls had fertility problems. There are 38 adopted children on that side of the family, 87 grandchildren altogether. I have seen adoption work, personally and in my family. And I know that the amazing Godly heritage I was given was a gift from a very scared 15 year old girl. And I will forever be grateful to her for that.”

An amazing story. Are we truly grateful for life? There are so many that just don't take life as precious. Life is so valuable. Family should be treasured. There is a great purpose for life yet our world is destroying family, our world is devastating children. According to the World Health Organization, every year there are an estimated 40 to 50 million abortions worldwide. Just watch that abortion clock tick. That's about 125,000 per day. In fact, 22% of all pregnancies in America end in abortion. So in America, over 3,000 abortions per day. Now Pam Stenzel had a chance but 3,000 potential Pam Stenzels, every day never even get an opportunity.

So let's be straightforward. Taking the life of an unborn baby is an affront to God's sovereignty over human life. He's the creator and the giver of life. His word, the Bible, shows very clearly that the unborn within their mother's wombs they're individuals, they are living human beings. God even said about Jeremiah, He said, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you. Before you were born I sanctified you." You see God views the killing of innocent children as an evil atrocity. Don't forget there is a spiritual connection to the plan of God.

In 2 Kings 17:13, we're reminded of the sanctity of life. Notice what God said to Israel. He says, "I, the Lord command you to stop doing sinful things and start obeying my laws and teachings." Verse 14 goes on, "But the Israelites would not listen. They were stubborn as their ancestors who refused to worship the Lord, their God." It goes on, "They ignored the Lord's warnings and commands. They worshiped worthless idols. They became worthless themselves and even sacrificed their own children."

The Israelites were determined to do whatever the Lord hated. You see these actions not only were, but they continue to be, utterly unacceptable. And now imagine, just read this and insert different names for Israel. Substitute America, substitute Canada, substitute Britain. These things apply today. You see, when we get down to it, the invasion of the mother's womb to remove a developing human life violates a space that God created to nurture life until it's fully brought forth in birth. So let's not minimize it. Let's not deceive ourselves. Our culture, our society has transgressed the eternal spiritual law of God. Oh, but we've made it palatable. It's become an accepted part of our culture. Don't fool yourself, it is a culture of death and this is a silent Holocaust. Yet we try to sweep it under the rug because well, you can't really see it. It's just a faceless entity, a stranger, an object, a thing. And yet the unborn cannot fight for life. And so we've taken it out of the arena of morality, haven't we?

I mean, today in our world now it's no longer a moral issue. Now we've made it a legal one. So we pass laws, permitting it. We pass laws encouraging it. We pass laws authorizing it and sanctioning it and legalizing it. But don't be fooled, it is still a moral issue. It is removing the opportunity and potential of a new human being. And remember the Bible uses the birthing process. It uses human life and the family represented a powerful example of what God's great purpose is all about. It's an illustration of what He's doing spiritually. And in fact, from the very beginning, God's purpose has been clear. All the way back in Genesis 1, God said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness." And so the Bible goes on and says, "God created man in His own image." So there's no doubt that men and women are created like God, in his likeness. Why, why would that be? Well, that's exactly what I hope you'll learn, what God's purpose is all about. How does God want us to be like Him? You need to know and so we've put forth this Bible study aid, "Why Were You Born?" It will help you answer those very questions. It'll help you get out your Bible and study from God's perspective. So be sure and call us at the number on your screen. We will send you your own free copy of, "Why Were You Born?" Or you can go to our website at beyondtoday.tv. On our website, you can read it online, you can download it to your smartphone, your tablet, and read it for yourself. Because ultimately you were born for an amazing purpose. You are in His image. And He gives us insight into His spiritual plan, an insight you want to discover for yourself. So be sure and order, "Why Were You Born?" You can begin to dissect God's word and really discover for yourself what it's all about and answer that special question, why, why.

Now when you begin to think about what happened at creation before God made man, before that He created plants and He created animals and, you know, He even tells us how they would reproduce. Do you remember? He said each according to its kind. So lions are going reproduce after lions and giraffes after giraffes and dogs after dogs. Okay, what's the point? It's no different for mankind. Your Bible shows that people were created according to the God kind to be a part of God's spiritual family.

Now that might take you back for a moment. But it's telling us very clearly, God is in fact, reproducing spiritual children after His own kind through humanity, that family relationship, becoming children of God the Father. Now that's at the heart and core of God's incredible plan for mankind and for you as well. And so right now, right now the God family consists of the Father and His son, Jesus. Jesus is described in the book of Revelation as first born. And of course, firstborn is showing there are many, many more to follow. Now you might think, "Well, hang on, hold on, why haven't I heard more about a literal family of God in my church? I mean, is it possible, my church could be wrong? I mean, there are all these churches wrong about what God's plan is?" Well, if you go to the source, go to your Bible, check out what your Bible says because you need to know the facts. And you'll find this family perspective and what God's purpose is, over and over and over again.

If you go to Acts 17, we'll notice very clearly in verse 28, something very powerful. Here's what it says in Acts 17:28. It says, "For in Him, we live and move and have our being." The apostle Paul says, as also some of your own poets have said, "We are also His offspring." And then your bible goes on to say, "Therefore since we are the offspring of God." There's no doubt about it, we are as offspring. So what are offspring? Family members, they're children. Now in one sense we are God's children now but there's so much more to the story. When you begin to respond to God's call, when you listen to His instruction it's like the process has begun. And in one sense you're like an unborn baby. Do you notice a connection?

First to begin that spiritual birth process, you've got to recognize sin and you've got to repent of sin, you've got to be baptized and receive God's Holy Spirit. Romans 8:9 makes it clear. It says, "If anyone does not have the spirit of Christ he is not his." Now you've got to make a choice. You've got to do choose to be converted. You've got to put on the mind of Christ. You've got to change your thinking in your heart and begin to choose spiritual direction for your life. A little bit later in Romans 8:16 it reminds us, "For His spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. And since we are His children, we are His heirs.” In fact, together with Christ, "we are heirs of God's glory." And so you see this connection to the birth process. And if God is calling you now you've got the choice.

God has a plan and He's given each and every one of us free moral agency. We have free will so we can choose to listen to God or not, we can choose to follow His commands or not, we can choose to respond or not, we can choose to continue that process of becoming a child of God or cut that process short. God wants to give you life, real life, eternal life in His family. Don't stop that process. Is there anything holding you back? I mean, sometimes we might think, "I don't deserve that, I'm not worthy, I've gone too far, My sins are too many and too serious. How could God ever forgive me?" And yet God's intent is not dependent on what's happened in the past. I mean you may think, "I've strayed too far, I've made too many terrible choices, I've sinned too much." Well, if you don't have hope God's saying He wants you to have hope. Because He tells us no matter what, no matter what our past is, no matter what's behind us, we can change, it is possible. God says He's going to be with you and help you to change and become that child of His. Now Pam Stenzel has counseled so many that were faced with the challenges of those bad decisions, those things that seemed unforgivable. But does that have to define who we are? Listen for a moment to her perspective.

“If you're sitting in this room and you are a young person, I don't care who. It doesn't matter how old you are and you think that this talk isn't for you and maybe you've done too much and that there is no hope for you and now you can just continue to do what you've been doing, I need you to tune me in. I do not care what you did before you walked in here tonight. I care what you choose to do when you walk out. And tonight you can pick up your sin and you can continue to shake your fist in the face of a God who loved you enough to die for you, and you can keep right on sinning, and there's death at the end of that road, it's a choice you need to make. Or tonight, tonight, you could come to a God who loved you enough to die for you and you can ask for forgiveness, you can repent and you can sin no more.”

You see, you can make that choice. Past mistakes do not define who you are. God doesn't ask you to do something that's impossible. He promises to be patient with you and in fact wants all to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, that's what 1 Timothy 2:4 says. And so when you understand your ultimate destiny to be sons and daughters in His Kingdom it changes your thinking, it should affect the way you live your life right now and it should affect how you worship God.

Isn't a time for a change in direction? Isn't a time for a spiritual transformation? Turn to God, turn to Him in repentance. And that's not just feeling sorry, that's not just feeling shame, it's not feeling guilty, not feeling only regret. Instead it is a 180 degree turn from sin to righteousness. It's turning from the ways of this world to the ways of God. That's when you can finally look forward to a change into a literal spirit being, by God giving eternal life. That's what salvation is all about. In 2 Corinthians 6:18, we're told clearly, God says, "I will be a father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty." What a powerful promise. And you know what God means it. He intends to bring us forth as His spiritual children. He wants to transform us into the very kind of beings that He and Jesus Christ are right now and I hope you'll learn more about that.

In fact, that's why we have our study aid, "Why Were You Born?" This study aid will help you to learn the truth that's right there in the pages of your Bible. We hope that you'll call us at the number on your screen. "Why Were You Born?" can be sent right to your door so you can put it right down there next to your Bible and you can read about the plan and the purpose of God. Don't let the past define you. Be sure and understand what God's purpose is all about. So get our study aid, "Why Were You Born?" You can go to our website beyondtoday.tv. There you can read it right online, or you can download, read it later. Because this will help you, help you understand what God's plan and purpose are all about. It will help you in your spiritual studies as well. So be sure and order your very free copy today.

Now what you'll find out and as you study the pages of your Bible, you were born for incredible, amazing purpose and were given a powerful promise. We were in Genesis earlier front of your Bible, now go to the back of your Bible, go all the way to the end of the story. And in Revelation 21, we're told very clearly and given an amazing promise. Notice what Revelation 21:7 says, it says, "He who overcomes shall inherit all things." God promises, "I will be his God and he shall be my son." Does that make sense to you? God has as an incredible purpose for your life. Your destiny, the reason you were born is to literally become immortal children in God's very own family. And that's the reality. The reality is that God is a family. The Father and Jesus Christ are in that family right now and they will head up the family of divine children forever.

So today well, we may be just ordinary people but we have an extraordinary heavenly Father. So never underestimate the value of your life. Why were you born? You were born to receive God's very own nature. You were born to receive God's very own character. You are born to become a glorified, immortal member of God's family. You were born to become one of God's divine children and so you were born to live and to reign with the Father and with Jesus Christ. That is your incredible destiny. In fact, I pray that you will learn more about your spiritual potential and the reasons why you were born. And I hope you'll make the choice, make that choice to follow your loving Father and your Savior Jesus Christ your elder brother, and choose life.

[Narrator] Please call for the booklet offered on today's program, "Why Were You Born?" God has an amazing purpose for your life but do you know what that purpose is? This free study aid lays out what Jesus actually taught about your destiny. You will learn why mankind is a unique creation. What does it mean to be made in the image of God? What is God really telling us when He calls us His children? Order now, call toll free, 1-888-886-8632 or write to the address shown on your screen. When you order this free study aid, we'll also send you a complimentary one year subscription to our "Beyond Today" magazine. Six times a year, you'll read about current world events in light of bible prophecy and Godly principles to guide you toward a life that leads to peace. Call to receive your free booklet, "Why Were You Born?" And your free one-year subscription to "Beyond Today" magazine. 1-888-886-8632. or go online to beyondtoday.tv.