God's Will is Not Lost (Acts 21:1-14)
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1 And when we had parted from them and set sail, we came by a straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara.
2 And having found a ship crossing to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.
3 When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload its cargo.
4 And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days. And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.
5 When our days there were ended, we departed and went on our journey, and they all, with wives and children, accompanied us until we were outside the city. And kneeling down on the beach, we prayed
6 and said farewell to one another. Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home.
7 When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and we greeted the brothers and stayed with them for one day.
8 On the next day we departed and came to Caesarea, and we entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him.
9 He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied.
10 While we were staying for many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.
11 And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”
12 When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
14 And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”
Understanding the will of God
It is the will of God:
Saved
Spirit-filled “Do you see what the Spirit-filled life is? It is being saturated with the things of Christ, with His Word, His person,” (28). MacArthur is clear that being “spirit-filled” cannot be thought of in terms of the pentecostal “second-blessing.” Being “spirit-filled” is the result of diligent and careful study of the Scriptures.
Sanctified - set apart for Christ - the farmer, the athlete, the soldier
Submissive - serving
Suffering - there is a sacrifice
God’s will is that you be saved, Spirit-filled, sanctified, submissive, and suffering,”
Once you have determined that you are in God’s will in those areas, when you are faced with a decision, there is great freedom.
If those five elements are operating in your life, who is running your wants? God is!”
Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
I left my home and drove through Japantown. I made my way to Campbell and then finally arrived in Willow Glen.
400 miles from Patara to Tyre
(1) Loving family who want the best for us
No one wants a loved one to go through difficulties
The new neighborhood, the new school,
4 And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days. And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.
(2) The desire to see God’s will first
5 When our days there were ended, we departed and went on our journey, and they all, with wives and children, accompanied us until we were outside the city. And kneeling down on the beach, we prayed
We pray to conform our will to God’s will. We ask the Lord to protect us, to lead us, to guide us.
Philip
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts 6. On to Jerusalem (21:1–16)
There they stayed with Philip the evangelist (not the apostle Philip)—one of the seven who had been appointed in the early days of the Jerusalem church to take care of the daily distribution of food (cf. 6:1–6). He had evangelized in Samaria and the maritime plain of Palestine (cf. 8:4–40), after which he apparently settled at Caesarea for some twenty years.
9 He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied.
The four unmarried daughters who prophesied
The gifts of the Spirit poured out on all believers, male and female.
10 While we were staying for many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.
20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,
(3) Prophecy is about heralding God’s revealed truth
11 And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”
(4) Loving family who want the best for us
12 When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem.
(5) The will of God must be our highest goal
Not our comfort, not our convenience, not the opinions of others
13 Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
14 And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”
This is not a throwing up of the hands. This is Paul’s calling, this is the race that Paul is run, this is Paul the soldier obeying his orders, this is Jesus in the garden saying mot my will but thine be done.
Is this you? Do you look to Jesus in the fullness of his obedience and worship him?
Do you see your spiritual weakness compared to Jesus, who for the joy set before him endure the cross?
2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.