Ultimate FavorParaugs

Unlimited Favor vs. Ultimate Favor

Today, when a lot of pastors preach on favor, their definition is limited to possessions, positions and acquisitions, better homes, cars and jobs, a happier family and a growing income. I do believe God favors his people this way, but there’s a danger here. When we live for this kind of favor, we risk losing something much higher. We shortchange ourselves when we live for anything but ultimate favor. Let me explain. 

Everyone knows about the biblical concept of a Promised Land. It’s the arrival place for anyone seeking freedom, relief from bondage and the joy of a blessed life. The original Promised Land was a gift God gave to ancient Israel, a literal place called Canaan, a fertile land bursting with oversized fruits and flowing rivers. 

It was the stuff of dreams for the Israelites. They’d been beaten down and exiled for generations, yet when they arrived at Canaan’s border—a land of plenty in every sense—God made an unusual statement to Moses. “Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go up among you, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people” (Exodus 33:3, ESV).

On the cusp of their entry to the Promised Land, God surprisingly declares, “I will not go with you.” 

He explains why in the next phrase, “For you are a stiff-necked people.” Even after all the miraculous things God did for the Israelites, they complained every time they faced a new hardship. Their experiences and the miracles he performed for them never translated into faith. Instead, the people attacked his character. They accused God of delivering them just to see them die in the desert. Every time Moses turned around, they were threatening to reject God and abandon his leading. 

Moses’ faith, though, was different. He knew the goodness of God as demonstrated in all his supernatural works for Israel. In fact, the Lord’s favor toward his people seemed unlimited. No matter what obstacle they faced or how impossible it seemed, God brought them through every time. 

Moses marveled at the character of a God who mercifully performed all these things on their behalf. When the Lord said he wouldn’t go with them into the Promised Land, Moses answered, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here” (33:15). In other words, “Lord, if you won’t be there, then I’m not going.” 

To mature in faith, every Christian ultimately chooses between seeking God’s unlimited favor and his ultimate favor.   

Moses knew how important God’s blessings were to Israel. His supernatural works had saved their lives. He sent manna from heaven when the people faced starvation. He brought water from a rock when their bodies were parched beyond their limits. Yet Moses recognized that even those vital blessings weren’t the point of these experiences. Rather, it was to know and trust the compassionate, loving God who bestowed them. 

Moses’ statement “Please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight” (33:13) comes as no surprise. Moses knew that, ultimately, God’s favor wasn’t found in the blessings he provided; they were found in knowing the Lord himself. 

A famous Christian writer posed a similar question. He asked, in essence, “What if heaven was a place where you could have everything you wanted—where all your dreams come true; every aspiration and desire is made a reality—but God isn’t there? Would you want to go?” 

It’s a legitimate question for any Christian. Do we desire God’s blessings apart from knowing him, the giver of all good things? Or, like Moses, would we prefer to have every blessing stripped away rather than lose God’s presence?