The will of God – Part II

We have seen in our last post that when we consider something as profound as the will of God we need to be looking at something deeper. The topic is more of a subjective than an objective issue per se. Mind you, I am in no way demeaning those objective issues of life. But at the heart of it, the topic is subjective. With this as the backdrop, let us now consider what God reveals about His will.

THE ULTIMATE

I think this is the point where we need to start. For most people the will of God for “their lives” is the ultimate thing and everything else diverges from “them”. “Their lives” are at the centre. But Scripture teaches us that “His will is ultimate” and everything else converges into Him. Amen! He is at the centre.

Ephesians 1:9-10 teaches us – “When he made known to us the secret of his will. This was according to his plan that he set forth in Christ to usher in the fullness of the times and to gather up all things in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth.” Wow! His will which was held secret has now been revealed; to gather up all things in Christ! Now, that is the ultimate will of God and everything else branches into it. You cannot possibly seek His will regarding your mate or a business proposal or any important decision in life, if you don’t start from this ultimate will of God. All that God does is with this intention. Christ must increase and everything else must decrease. ALL that stand opposed to Him will be destroyed – something for all of us to chew on.

My friend, allow me to ask this question, “Are you in Christ?” There is no escaping from the ultimate will of God, so this minute if you are not in Christ please mail any of us(authors) and we would love to tell you how to receive Him and make him Lord over your life.

JESUS

Once we understand that the Lordship of Jesus is at the centre of His will, we understand that this is what causes Him to act. Now it becomes easy for us to see that His will is characteristic of Jesus. Okay, let me break it down for you. Through Jesus he showed us His nature. So, to see the nature of God we just need to look at Jesus. Basically God will not do what Jesus would not do. For example people with sickness, who claim it to be the will of God, forget the fact that Jesus would not allow it. Then if Jesus would not allow it, what makes you think God does? God is slowly working to sum up all things in Jesus. No, He does not act contrary to what we have seen in Jesus. We need to understand His nature which he revealed in Christ Jesus. The question there being “Who do you say God is?”

It is not just sickness, people wrongly take solace in God’s will, attributing accidents and other tragedies in their life to God’s will. But it is not so. That which is against His nature, and hence not His will, He will not do. Yes, he may allow storms to steer you off things that are opposed to Jesus’ Lordship in our lives, but He will never kill your son or put you or your loved one in an accident to teach you a lesson!

STEERED AND NOT PROPELLED

Here is a key that I learnt and it has changed my life. I was at a decisive junction in my life and I did not know where to turn. I was there lying in bed and begging God “Show me the way…(repeats without end)”. Time was running out and God was not saying anything. Suddenly he reminded me of this verse in proverbs “…He will direct your steps”. It was as if someone had switched on the lights. What were I doing? Lazily laying down on my bed and asking God to move! It was equivalent to saying “God, please fit a rocket on my chair and take me wherever”. Nope! God definitely does not want it done this way. God directs your steps into His will. He does not walk for you. A humble and honest heart is what you need to ask Him to guide you.

HIS IMMEDIATE WILL

We know that the Bible elaborates on His will. Also, He sends prophetic words to help us in many specific decisions of our life. But for practically walking in His will, I will only mention the “corner stone”. That corner stone is found in I Thessalonians 5:18 “In all things give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you all.” Whether you are stuck or whether you are unsure about any situation in your life, this verse shouts out “Give thanks”. Give thanks, not for the circumstance but for His work which stands above any situation you will ever face in your life. Hallelujah!

Without obeying this specific will how or why would you expect God to reveal His bigger will for what you are seeking?  God says, “start with thanks and then I will move you on”. This will remain constant, whatever issue you face in life.  To give thanks to God, is His perfect will in every circumstance. You might be in some confusing situation today, but you can start by thanking Him for what He says in His word. So, let us first start obeying this and as we show faithfulness in small things, God will entrust us with bigger things!

CONCLUSION

The revealing of His will is always adorned with peace and God gives us His grace for walking in His will. Basically He equips us for it. We need to come to a point where we live our lives, not out of obeying this will or that, but we are so full of His will. We need to be totally immersed in it and then the other decisions we face will automatically fall into place. Many young people are so busy trying to find out God’s best partner for them that they fail to realize that as we are so full of His will, these specific things will automatically fit into the puzzle. Life does not start or stop with you finding the perfect partner, home or job. It starts and ends with Him!