How to know the Will of God (2)
Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 6 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Bible Study
Bible Study
Point #1: God speaks to us through His Word
Point #1: God speaks to us through His Word
People who spend regular time with God, will get regular answers to their prayers.
People who spend regular time with God, will get regular answers to their prayers.
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good;
And what doth the Lord require of thee,
But to do justly, and to love mercy,
And to walk humbly with thy God?
For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many. Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready: Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting. Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
As we seek to understand what Scripture reveals about God’s will, it’s important to keep in mind the big picture that Scripture reveals about our purpose as human beings. Scripture reveals that God created us, in the first place, to be in relationship with him, and with each other. Jesus said that the greatest commandment of all is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourself (Mark 12:28–31). As we consider texts that speak more specifically of God’s will, it’s important to remember the overarching purpose of our lives: loving God and loving people.
As we seek to understand what Scripture reveals about God’s will, it’s important to keep in mind the big picture that Scripture reveals about our purpose as human beings. Scripture reveals that God created us, in the first place, to be in relationship with him, and with each other. Jesus said that the greatest commandment of all is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourself (Mark 12:28–31). As we consider texts that speak more specifically of God’s will, it’s important to remember the overarching purpose of our lives: loving God and loving people.
Point #2: The four Wills of God: Discovering God’s Purpose for Your Life
Point #2: The four Wills of God: Discovering God’s Purpose for Your Life
Believe in Jesus Christ.
Believe in Jesus Christ.
Abstain from sexual sin.
Abstain from sexual sin.
Give thanks in everything.
Give thanks in everything.
Submit and do what’s right.
Submit and do what’s right.
Point#3: Counting the Cost of Following Jesus.
Point#3: Counting the Cost of Following Jesus.
Cost is About Personal Surrender, Not Religious Acts
Cost is About Personal Surrender, Not Religious Acts
God will Only Ask of You What He Personally Gave to you.
God will Only Ask of You What He Personally Gave to you.
I learned to say and live by this: “Lord, here I am. I choose to walk in your ways and do Your will. You will always have my yes”. I want my daily life to count for the Kingdom, no matter what it costs me”.
I learned to say and live by this: “Lord, here I am. I choose to walk in your ways and do Your will. You will always have my yes”. I want my daily life to count for the Kingdom, no matter what it costs me”.
Within God’s sovereign will, He chooses to permit many things to happen that He takes no pleasure in. God’s allowance of certain things—even sinful things—that indirectly accomplish His will is often called God’s permissive will.
Within God’s sovereign will, He chooses to permit many things to happen that He takes no pleasure in. God’s allowance of certain things—even sinful things—that indirectly accomplish His will is often called God’s permissive will.
Example of God’s Permissive Will
In the beginning, God created a perfect world (Deuteronomy 32:4) as part of His perfect plan. God also created spiritual beings and humans with a will and the ability to make decisions. This was all “very good” (Genesis 1:31). As God’s moral creations exercised their free will, however, they chose disobedience, and sin entered the world. God’s perfect world did not include death, suffering, disease, and other consequences of sin, yet God allowed these things as part of His permissive will.
God is omniscient and sovereign over all things. Because God is omniscient, He knows everything that has occurred and all that will occur until the end of time (Isaiah 46:9–10). Because God is sovereign, He must at least “permit” all events and happenings. God does not make mistakes. He intentionally made humans with the ability to make decisions, and He placed the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden, even though He knew Adam and Eve would choose to sin. Within God’s sovereign will, He chooses to permit many things to happen that He takes no pleasure in. The fall of man is one of those things God permitted.
God does not force us to carry out His commands (His preceptive will). Rather, in His permissive will, God allows us to make decisions—even sinful decisions that are not God’s best for our lives. At the same time, not following God’s preceptive will comes with consequences. In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelites demanded Samuel give them a king. This was not God’s will for them, and He warned them that their decision would bring negative consequences. “But the people refused to listen to Samuel. ‘No!’ they said. ‘We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles’” (1 Samuel 8:19–20). So, God, in His permissive will, allowed them to have what they demanded. He gave them a king like the other nations.
We experience God’s permissive will every day. God allows us to make decisions: what we eat, how we spend our time, where we work, whom we marry, and much more. Some of our choices will have lifelong consequences, but some won’t. Some choices other people make affect us negatively, and sometimes unpleasant circumstances come our way. We should remember that whatever is happening is part of God’s permissive will. God is still on the throne. He has not lost control.
In God’s permissive will, evil is allowed a certain amount of freedom, but that freedom is curtailed. For example, Satan was allowed to torment Job, but God placed strict limits on how far Satan could go (see Job 1—2).
In God’s permissive will, evil is allowed to function, but God’s perfect plan triumphs every time. For example, God allowed the kidnapping and enslavement of Joseph. At every mistreatment of Joseph, God had the power to intervene, but He “permitted” the evil and, in that limited sense, He sovereignly “willed” it to happen. It’s important to note that God’s permissive will never counteracts His sovereign will or His overarching plan. God allowed the sins of Joseph’s brothers in order to bring about a greater good (see Genesis 50:20).
When Jesus was arrested, He told His enemies, “This is your hour—when darkness reigns” (Luke 22:53). Jesus’ statement suggests that evil had been granted a window of opportunity, and evil men were taking full advantage of it. That was indeed a dark night, but the end result was the salvation of mankind. All things work “for the good of those who love [God], who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). God only permits that which will lead to His sovereign will being accomplished.
Example of God’s Permissive Will
In the beginning, God created a perfect world (Deuteronomy 32:4) as part of His perfect plan. God also created spiritual beings and humans with a will and the ability to make decisions. This was all “very good” (Genesis 1:31). As God’s moral creations exercised their free will, however, they chose disobedience, and sin entered the world. God’s perfect world did not include death, suffering, disease, and other consequences of sin, yet God allowed these things as part of His permissive will.
God is omniscient and sovereign over all things. Because God is omniscient, He knows everything that has occurred and all that will occur until the end of time (Isaiah 46:9–10). Because God is sovereign, He must at least “permit” all events and happenings. God does not make mistakes. He intentionally made humans with the ability to make decisions, and He placed the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden, even though He knew Adam and Eve would choose to sin. Within God’s sovereign will, He chooses to permit many things to happen that He takes no pleasure in. The fall of man is one of those things God permitted.
God does not force us to carry out His commands (His preceptive will). Rather, in His permissive will, God allows us to make decisions—even sinful decisions that are not God’s best for our lives. At the same time, not following God’s preceptive will comes with consequences. In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelites demanded Samuel give them a king. This was not God’s will for them, and He warned them that their decision would bring negative consequences. “But the people refused to listen to Samuel. ‘No!’ they said. ‘We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles’” (1 Samuel 8:19–20). So, God, in His permissive will, allowed them to have what they demanded. He gave them a king like the other nations.
We experience God’s permissive will every day. God allows us to make decisions: what we eat, how we spend our time, where we work, whom we marry, and much more. Some of our choices will have lifelong consequences, but some won’t. Some choices other people make affect us negatively, and sometimes unpleasant circumstances come our way. We should remember that whatever is happening is part of God’s permissive will. God is still on the throne. He has not lost control.
In God’s permissive will, evil is allowed a certain amount of freedom, but that freedom is curtailed. For example, Satan was allowed to torment Job, but God placed strict limits on how far Satan could go (see Job 1—2).
In God’s permissive will, evil is allowed to function, but God’s perfect plan triumphs every time. For example, God allowed the kidnapping and enslavement of Joseph. At every mistreatment of Joseph, God had the power to intervene, but He “permitted” the evil and, in that limited sense, He sovereignly “willed” it to happen. It’s important to note that God’s permissive will never counteracts His sovereign will or His overarching plan. God allowed the sins of Joseph’s brothers in order to bring about a greater good (see Genesis 50:20).
When Jesus was arrested, He told His enemies, “This is your hour—when darkness reigns” (Luke 22:53). Jesus’ statement suggests that evil had been granted a window of opportunity, and evil men were taking full advantage of it. That was indeed a dark night, but the end result was the salvation of mankind. All things work “for the good of those who love [God], who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). God only permits that which will lead to His sovereign will being accomplished.