God's Will I. Introduction A. Let us direct our attention to a matter of critical importance in our lives B. Matthew 7:21-23, 1 John 2:17 1. Those who do not do the will of God the Father are condemned 2. Those who do the will of God will live forever! C. Therefore it is good for us to consider God's will D. Unfortunately, a topic fraught with some difficulty 1. Much confusion has persisted for years about the nature of God's will 2. Many theories involving speculations about the nature and attitude of God 3. Many false expectations, understanding about the will of God E. Let us seek to understand God's will F. What is it, how can we accomplish it, and how does it relate to each of us? II. God's Will A. First of all, what is a "will"? B. Not a document saying who gets what when one dies, although that word is based on the idea of a "will" C. "Will": choice; determination; pleasure; command; direction; disposition; power; especially divine determination, counsel (Webster's) 1. Greek noun form is thelema: what one wishes or has determined shall be done: will, choice, inclination, desire, pleasure (Thayer's) 2. A very fluid and various subject! D. A will, then, is a determination, a choice, an inclination, or a pleasure of some sort E. With such a vague concept here, how shall we understand what God's will is? F. God's will = God's divine determinations, counsel G. As we will see, the term is used for all types of things about God's actions, His intentions for Jesus, believers 1. Some have attempted to make sense of all of this by positing that God has multiple wills 2. Yet there is no textual indication of this-- all the different dimensions are spoken of as "God's will" 3. Ephesians 1:11: God works all things by counsel of His will 4. Therefore, best to speak of different dimensions or aspects of God's will rather than suggesting multiple wills! H. Let us investigate the dimensions of God's will III. God's Will: God's Inviolable Purposes A. There are some dimensions of God's will that are firm, true, and inviolable 1. God establishes certain purposes for Himself-- none can alter them or change them 2. Humans might benefit from some of these aspects of God's will, but whether they obey God or disobey God, it will not matter-- God's will, at least in these aspects, must be done! B. Revelation 4:11 1. The twenty-four elders are envisioned praising God, declaring Him worthy of power and honor 2. The reason: God created all things, by His will they exist and were created 3. All of this in no way dependent on the actions of creation: God's will in this case is firm, true, inviolable 4. The creation and the continued sustenance of creation, therefore, all established by God's will C. Matthew 6:10, Luke 11:2 1. In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus prays that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven 2. God's will, therefore, done in heaven-- this is fixed and certain 3. What is not as fixed and certain is for His will to be done on earth D. These are just some of the inviolable aspects of God's will 1. Deuteronomy 29:29, Isaiah 55:8-9 2. Plenty of aspects of God's will unknown to man 3. God is doing His thing in the heavenly realm-- His sovereignty need not be dependent on man at all E. Theological conundrum: why is not all of God's will inviolate? 1. After all, if God is truly all powerful and sovereign, should not His will always be accomplished no matter what? 2. That God is able to accomplish His will in any and all circumstances is undeniable 3. But God's will features God's determination-- His choices 4. God has chosen, in His dealings with His creation, to give free will-- to not compel or coerce humans into believing in Him 5. Thus, God has determinations for people, but people may not accomplish those determinations 6. There are consequences for such (cf. Matthew 7:21-23), but it is not a violation of God's sovereignty, for He has willed man to have the ability to choose (cf. Deuteronomy 30:15-20, etc.) IV. God's Will: God's Purpose for Man in Christ A. God's Will for Christ 1. While Jesus accomplishes the will of His Father (cf. John 4:34, 5:30, 6:38, 19:30), such was not inviolable: Jesus had to obey God's will, and the possibility existed that He could have turned aside from it (Hebrews 4:15, 5:7-10) 2. Matthew 26:39-42/Mark 14:36: Jesus prays that not his will, but Father's will, be done 3. Galatians 1:4, Hebrews 10:7-10: Jesus' life and death according to will of God, as is redemption through His death B. God's Overarching Will for Mankind 1. Matthew 18:14, 1 Timothy 2:4 2. God wills for all men to come to knowledge of the truth, be saved 3. God's will is for all "little ones" to be saved 4. Yet, as Jesus makes evident, not all shall be saved (Matthew 7:13-14, 21-23, etc.) 5. Thus, God's will here is His desire for mankind that all might be saved, but it will be frustrated because many have chosen rebellion! C. God's Overarching Will for Believers 1. Ephesians 1:5: believers predestined according to the purpose of God's will a. Not violation of free will: Romans 8:28, predestination by foreknowledge b. God's will here same as for all people: to be saved c. Since time irrelevant to God (2 Peter 3:8), knows what people will do d. Purpose foreordained for those who will believe 2. John 1:13: Believers born by will of God, not will of any other 3. John 6:38-40: God's will for those who look to Son, believe in Him, will have eternal life, be raised up on the last day 4. Ephesians 1:9, 5:17: God has made known the mystery of His will to believers, wants believers to understand His will for them 5. Colossians 1:9: Paul prays for Colossians to be filled with the knowledge of God's will in spiritual wisdom and understanding 6. Colossians 4:12: Epaphras prays that the Colossians might be fully assured in God's will 7. Hebrews 13:21: Hebrew author prays that God might equip believers with all good things to do His will 8. 1 Peter 4:2: we are to live our lives for God's will 9. Ephesians 6:6: believers to do will of God from the heart 10. Hebrews 10:36, 1 John 2:17: those who endure and abide in God's will live forever D. God's Will for Believers 1. God has not abandoned man without any specific understanding of His will for them 2. Romans 12:2: believers are to discern God's will by testing; God's will is that which is good, acceptable, perfect 3. 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Hebrews 10:9-10: God's will for man is his sanctification a. Sanctification accomplished thanks to Jesus' death on the cross (Hebrews 10:10) b. Holy Spirit has role in sanctification (1 Peter 1:2); perhaps why part of "will of the Lord" in Ephesians 5:18 is to be filled with the Spirit c. Paul describes elements of this sanctification in 1 Thessalonians 5:3-7: abstain from sexual immorality, control body in holiness and honor, not in passion of lusts like Gentiles, no one transgressing each other in this, God calls us to holiness 4. 1 Thessalonians 5:18: will of God in Christ for us to give thanks in all circumstances 5. 1 Peter 2:15: will of God: by doing good, believers to silence ignorance of foolish people 6. Ephesians 5:17ff a. One can make a good argument that Paul describes the "will of the Lord" in the verses following Ephesians 5:17 b. Not be drunk with wine, be filled with Spirit; sing, speaking to one another; giving thanks for all things; submitting to one another in Christ (Ephesians 5:18-21) c. Instructions about husbands/wives, Christ/church, parents/children, slaves/masters would also be part of this (Ephesians 5:22-6:9) E. God's will for all, therefore, to be saved, believe in Christ, do what He says: cling to good, avoid evil, give thanks, accomplish sanctification V. God's Will: Particular Will for Individuals A. We have seen God's inviolable will along with His will for man in Christ B. Yet that will is generically true for all people-- what about for each person? C. Does God have a will for each one of us? Are we to inquire of the Lord about that will? 1. A very popular concept in many circles 2. Many constantly pray to God so that He will tell them His particular will for them 3. Many wonder whether their decisions about major and minor life events are consistent with God's will for them 4. Others are convinced that God does not have a particular will for individuals anymore-- just the generic will for all D. Philippians 2:13: God works in us to will and to work for His good pleasure E. Paul 1. 1 Corinthians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1, Ephesians 1:1, Colossians 1:1, 2 Timothy 1:1: Paul continually insists that he is an Apostle "by the will of God" 2. Acts 22:14: God appointed Paul to learn of His will, to see the Risen Christ 3. This is all God's will for him personally! F. John 21:22: Jesus' will for John 1. Jesus attempts to remind Peter that his job is to follow Jesus no matter what His will is for others 2. If Jesus' will was for John to live until He returned, that would not change anything about what His will was for Peter 3. Seems to indicate a level of individual will G. James 4:15: we live by God's will today! 1. All of our conduct, in the most overarching sense, willed by God 2. This is not to say that God desires us to do everything to do, but He has provided the environment and allowed all things to exist and subsist, down to this day, and without those factors, we could do nothing, either good or bad! 3. Thus, Apostles constantly speak conditionally of their actions on the basis of whether or not God wills it: Acts 18:21, 1 Corinthians 4:19, Romans 1:10, 15:32, etc. 4. If it happens that way, God has willed it, for the conditions were right for it to happen 5. 1 Peter 3:17: same with suffering evil for doing good 6. If we do good, as commanded (1 Peter 2:15), and we get evil in return, God has allowed such to take place, hence, it is willed H. We beg the question: does God have a will for us as individuals? 1. It certainly seems so, for God has given each of us different abilities! 2. Romans 12:3-8, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, 1 Peter 4:10-11 3. God certainly wills for us to understand what gifts He has given us, and then for us to use those gifts to serve one another 4. While elements of the miraculous have ceased (1 Corinthians 13:8-10), God's eternal plan continues (Ephesians 3:11), and He knows what will be our end I. How are we to understand God's will for us? 1. This is where the matter gets challenging 2. Many seem to think about God's will for them as some big secret that only God knows, and He capriciously may or may not reveal it, like some fortune teller 3. Such is not the case! 4. As we have seen, God has already declared His will for us: to believe in His Son, do what is good, avoid what is evil, be saved 5. Acts 16:6-10: Even the Apostles, guided by the Spirit, acted according to what they thought was best under the circumstances; sometimes God provided specific directions other times not J. An example of God's will in action: Joseph 1. Joseph provides an illuminating case study about the operation of the will of God 2. Genesis 37: Joseph sees dreams of power; foolishly tells others; brothers get mad, sin against him, sell him as a slave: bad things happening on account of bad actions 3. Genesis 39:1-20: God is with Joseph, blesses him. Joseph decides to do what is right, does not commit adultery, but is imprisoned for it: bad things happening despite good actions 4. Genesis 39:21-41:57: Joseph interprets dreams, eventually comes before Pharaoh, made second-in-command of Egypt with power and glory: good things happening on account of good actions 5. Genesis 45:5, 50:20: Brothers' actions re-interpreted: they meant evil, God meant it for good: good things happening despite bad actions 6. We can see God's will operating here under every possible scenario: bad for bad, good for good, good for bad, bad for good! K. God's will: Working in Life! 1. All of this goes to show that the will of God is not some nebulous thing we must demand to see before we move forward! 2. God is able to accomplish His will according to His good pleasure in whatever circumstance we are 3. Questioning over and over whether x or y event in life is God's will is folly, for such a judgment is subjective 4. Remember: Satan has a will, too (Luke 4:6, John 8:44)! 5. How would we be able to discern if a given possible path is the "will of God" or the "will of Satan"? 6. Consider Joseph's story again: Satan did things, but God made it all work out according to His will (cf. also 2 Corinthians 12:7-10)! 7. Therefore, we ought to go through life seeking to live according to God's circumstances and advancing what we know to be His will for all mankind according to the gifts He has given us, and all glory is His! 8. If at times we succeed, God is praised 9. If we fail at times, we must first examine ourselves to make sure that it is not based on our own sin; we must remain open that, as with Joseph and many others, our sufferings or failures are really getting us ready for some greater good! L. We should not expect, therefore, that God shall explicitly declare His will for us in specific ways in specific situations M. But we should pray and ask for wisdom! 1. James 1:5, 1 John 5:14 2. When faced with various decisions, opportunities, conflicts, and the like, we do best to pray to God not for Him to reveal His will but to give us wisdom to make the best decision according to His will N. We also ought to remain open to God working His will for us in our lives 1. It might be obvious, it might not be 2. It could be through serendipitous circumstances (cf. Esther 4:13-16) 2. He might speak through Scripture or prompt you through the words of others 3. While we should not think that God will make specific revelation today beyond the Word, we should also not presume that He does not at all communicate in any way to believers, either! VI. Conclusion A. We have investigated matters of God's will B. Elements of that will are inviolable C. But many elements of God's will are for us to obey and follow: believe in Jesus, do what He says to do, avoid what He says to avoid, give thanks, etc. D. God's particular will for each of us may not be fully understood in this life or ever at all, but we can know what He would have us to do, and we should seek to do those things in whatever circumstances in which we find ourselves! E. Let us abide in God's will and live eternally! F. Invitation/songbook