In the Bible, “favored” refers to receiving grace, approval, or special blessings from God or others, often indicating a unique relationship or calling, as seen in Luke 1:28 where Mary is called “highly favored” among women. It can also denote being shown kindness or preferential treatment, as in the cases of Joseph and Daniel.
Scripture
8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.
Meaning of “Favored” in the Bible
The concept of being “favored” in the Bible encompasses a profound understanding of God’s grace and the unique relationships individuals can have with Him. The term is often associated with divine approval and blessings that reflect a special calling or purpose. Mary, for instance, is described in Luke 1:28 as “highly favored” when the angel Gabriel announces that she will bear the Son of God. This designation highlights how God’s favor can elevate an individual’s status and purpose, marking the beginning of transformative events not only in their lives but also in the broader narrative of salvation history. It suggests that favor is not merely a token of good standing but a powerful anointing that sets one apart for God’s plans.
Moreover, the favor of God can also manifest through the experiences of His people, as seen in the lives of Joseph and Daniel. Joseph, who faced adversity, ultimately rose to prominence in Egypt due to God’s favor, as illustrated in Genesis 39:2-3, where it states that the Lord was with Joseph, causing him to prosper. Similarly, Daniel’s faithfulness in Babylon led to divine favor that culminated in his rise to power and the ability to interpret dreams, as detailed in Daniel 2:48-49. These accounts underscore that being favored by God often involves trials and tribulations, yet it also affirms that God’s favor serves a greater purpose—fulfilling His plans and revealing His glory through those He chooses. Ultimately, favor is a divine endorsement that shapes not just individual destinies but also the unfolding of God’s overarching narrative of redemption.
The idea of being “favored” further reveals itself throughout the scriptures in various contexts, often tied to acts of obedience, humility, and unwavering faith. The story of Noah illustrates this beautifully; in a time of great wickedness, Noah found grace or favor in the eyes of the Lord. This distinction led him to be entrusted with the monumental task of building the ark, thereby preserving a remnant of creation for the sake of future generations. Here, favor is portrayed as a divine selection based on one’s righteousness and character, involving a significant responsibility that impacts not only the individual but also humanity at large.
Additionally, the theme of God’s favor is evident in the life of Esther, who, through her courage and wisdom, becomes the queen of Persia. Her rise to favor in the king’s court places her in a strategic position to save her people from destruction. This account emphasizes that divine favor is not limited to personal benefit; rather, it often facilitates an individual’s ability to effect change for the greater good. Esther’s story highlights the cooperative dynamic of divine favor and human agency—demonstrating that when one is favored by God, they are often called to act in faith and boldness to fulfill His purposes, illustrating that the concept of favored encompasses both a gift of grace and a challenge to live accordingly.
Divine Approval and Blessing
In the Bible, being favored often signifies receiving God’s approval and blessings. This divine favor can manifest in various forms, such as protection, guidance, and provision. It indicates a special relationship between God and the individual, suggesting that the favored person is chosen for a specific purpose or mission within God’s plan. This concept emphasizes the idea that God’s grace is not arbitrary but is often linked to faithfulness and obedience to His will.
Empowerment for Purpose
Another broader meaning of being favored in the biblical context is the empowerment to fulfill a specific purpose or calling. Those who are favored are often equipped with unique abilities, wisdom, or resources to accomplish tasks that align with God’s intentions. This empowerment is not solely for personal gain but is intended to serve others and advance God’s kingdom on earth. It highlights the responsibility that comes with favor, as individuals are called to use their gifts for the greater good.
Favor as a Test of Character
Favor in the Bible can also serve as a test of character and integrity. When individuals experience favor, they may face challenges that test their faith and commitment to God. This aspect of favor underscores the idea that blessings can come with trials, and how one responds to these challenges can reveal their true character. It serves as a reminder that favor is not just about receiving good things but also about how one navigates the complexities of life while remaining faithful to God.
How to Embrace Grace and Live a Godly Life
Embracing grace is truly the cornerstone of living a Godly life, and it begins with recognizing that grace is a gift we don’t earn but receive through faith in Jesus Christ. As you navigate your daily life, remind yourself that God’s grace is sufficient for your weaknesses and failures; it’s in those moments of struggle that His love shines the brightest. Start each day with a heart of gratitude, acknowledging the unmerited favor you’ve been given, and let that gratitude fuel your actions towards others. Engage in prayer and scripture, allowing God’s Word to transform your heart and mind, guiding you to extend grace to those around you, just as it has been extended to you. Remember, living a Godly life isn’t about perfection but about progress—seeking to reflect Christ’s love and grace in every interaction, and trusting that His Spirit will empower you to grow in holiness and compassion.
Bible References to Favor in the Bible:
Genesis 39:2-6: 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.
3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands.
4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.
5 And from the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field.
6 So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. And Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.
Exodus 33:12-17: 12 Moses said to the Lord, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’
14 And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
14 And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
15 And he said to him, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.
16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?”
17 And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”
Deuteronomy 28:1-14: 1 “And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.”
2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God.
3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.
4 Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock.
5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
6 Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
7 “The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.”
8 The Lord will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake.
9 The Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways.
10 And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you.
11 And the Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give you.
12 The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.
13 And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them,
14 and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
1 Samuel 2:26-28: 26 Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.
27 And there came a man of God to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Did I indeed reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh?
28 Did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? I gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel.
1 Samuel 16:1-13: 16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.”
2 And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’
3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. And you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord commanded and came to Bethlehem.
5 And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”
9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”
10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.”
11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.”
12 And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.”
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.
2 Samuel 7:8-16: 8 Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel.
9 And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth.
10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly,
11 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house.
12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,
15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.
Psalm 5:12: 12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Psalm 30:5-7: 5 For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”
7 O Lord, by your favor you made my mountain stand strong; you hid your face; I was dismayed.
Psalm 84:11-12: 11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
12 O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!
Proverbs 3:1-4: 1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but let your heart keep my commandments,
2 for length of days and years of life
and peace they will add to you.
3 Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will find favor and good success
in the sight of God and man.
Proverbs 8:32-35: 32 “And now, O sons, listen to me: blessed are those who keep my ways.”
33 Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not neglect it.
34 Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors.
35 For whoever finds me finds life
and obtains favor from the Lord,
Isaiah 61:1-3: 1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;
3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
Jeremiah 29:11-14: 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.
13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
Daniel 1:8-9: 8 But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank.
9 And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs,
Luke 1:26-30: 26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”
29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.
30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
Luke 2:52: 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.
Acts 7:9-10: 9 “And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him”
10 and rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household.
Romans 8:28-30: 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Ephesians 1:3-6: 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,
6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
Reverend Ogunlade is a seasoned Church Minister with over three decades of experience in guiding and nurturing congregations. With profound wisdom and a serene approach, Reverend Ogunlade has carried out various pastoral duties, including delivering uplifting sermons, conducting religious ceremonies, and offering sage counsel to individuals seeking spiritual guidance. Their commitment to fostering harmony and righteousness within their community is exemplified through their compassionate nature, making them a beloved and trusted figure among the congregation.