Dharius Daniels - The Favor Factor

I want to discuss the subject of family during our time together as we conclude this series, «The Favor Factor.» Clap your hands if you’re ready to receive God’s word. Today, we’re wrapping up this sermon series, which I have affectionately entitled «I’m Building Something.» This sermon series, ladies and gentlemen, is based on a revelation I shared with you in week one, and it’s worth repeating: God has plans for you. While I know that may sound like religious rhetoric or a church colloquialism—a filler we often throw out—I want you to know that I am saying this with conviction and confidence because I read my Bible.

When I was reading my Bible, I came across something God said through a gentleman named Jeremiah to His people, which I believe includes you and me. In Jeremiah 29:11, this is what God says: «I know the plans I have for you,» declares the Lord. Watch this; He does not go into detail about what those plans are, but He does get specific regarding their nature. He says the plans are to prosper you and not to harm you. Come on, church! What you need to know is that even if you don’t know every detail, or like every dynamic, or understand every nook and cranny, what you must remember is that when I finish doing for you what I plan to do, you will be better off in the end than you were in the beginning. My plan is to prosper you. So, if you haven’t entered a season in your life that you can call «prospering,» know that you have yet to reach the point where I am finished doing what I’m preparing to do. Because when my plan becomes your reality, the word you will use to respond to people when they ask how you’re doing will be «better.» Somebody say, «Prosper!»

He continues, «I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you—plans to give you hope and a future.» I will say that one more time because it is extremely important yet often overlooked: plans to give you hope and a future. Somebody say «hope.» Yes, hope! Malcolm Mulk and Maltman say hope is simply expectation. They note that faith and hope are distinctive but not separate; hope is faith’s cousin. You don’t get one without the other. Faith believes what God says is true; hope anxiously anticipates Him bringing that truth to pass. Faith believes He can do it, while hope wakes up and says, «Today might be the day He does it!» I want to know if there’s anybody in this room or online who will admit, «I have more than faith; I have hope! I have expectation! I believe that any day now, God can do just what He said.»

He has plans to give you hope and a future. Why is He articulating this? It’s because hopelessness is the premature anticipation of the non-fulfillment of God’s promises. It happens when someone anticipates too soon that God won’t do what He said because He hasn’t done it yet. But just because He hasn’t done what He promised doesn’t mean He won’t fulfill it. He is clear in communicating that He is not a man that He should lie, nor the son of man that He would change His mind. If He says He will make it happen, He will!

Watch this: It may not happen according to your timetable, but just because it’s late on your schedule doesn’t mean it’s late. Whenever He shows up, it’s on time. Do you not remember in John chapter 11 when a man named Lazarus had been dead for four days? Jesus’s disciples said, «Jesus, you should have gotten to him while he was sick. It’s too late now.» What Jesus says to them blows my mind. He says, «Lazarus isn’t dead; Lazarus is sleeping.» In other words, He tells the disciples, «We can be looking at the same thing and not see it the same way. You might call it dead, but from my perspective, I call it sleep. The reason I’m not rushing to the situation the way you think I should is that I don’t see it how you see it. You feel like he’s dead; I say he’s taking a nap, and when I get there, I’m going to wake him up. Whenever I arrive, it’s on time.»

I don’t know who this is for, but I want to speak to someone wondering when God is going to come through—when He will open a door on time, close the deal on time, or bring into your life what you’ve been praying for. He may not come when you want Him, but He’s always on time! He is an on-time God, yes He is! I want someone to praise Him right there because He is indeed on time. He says, «I have plans to give you hope and a future.» You need to have hope. You need to have an…