Discerning Questions

Brandon Bouldin

Discerning the Will of God • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

Romans 12:1–2

1 Thessalonians 4:3

Discernment

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Ten Questions to Ask When Discerning God’s Will

Notes

Transcript

Scripture

Romans 12:1–2 NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Introduction

My aim today is to finish our series on this year’s theme for our church. On first Sunday Pastor Taylor talked about “Walking by Faith.” On second Sunday he preached from the subject “You Can Trust God.” And my aim this Sunday is deal with the third part of our theme, which is “Doing God’s Will.”

And anytime I think about preaching on doing God’s will, Romans 12 is what comes to mind because it is such a foundational Scripture when we are talking about doing God’s will.

Back in May of last year, you all heard me preach on this passage from the subject “Discerning God’s Will.” And though I am still going to journey down that road today, I want to take a different approach. Last time I preached on this, Romans 12 was the focal point of my message, but today, Romans 12 is simply going to be a launching pad because of its foundational principles when we talk about doing God’s will. So today, the skeleton of this message is not going to be three points, but rather a series of questions to ask while you are trying to discern God ‘s will.

And my goal is that these questions can help demystify some of the ambiguity around doing God’s will.

And so if I had to give this message a title, it would be “Ten Questions to Ask When Discerning God’s Will.”

Now before we jump into the questions, I want to briefly do two things. First, I I want to make sure we all understand the type of will that we are talking about when we talk about discerning God’s will. And second, I want to briefly highlight why we struggle with it.

Three Categories of God’s Will

First, let’s talk about the type(s) of will(s). God’s different wills have been categorized, broken down into smaller pieces and been referred to with different names throughout history, but for the most part when people talk about God’s will, I think there are three distinct types of wills that usually come to mind. There is God’s Sovereign Will, There is God’s Moral Will, and there is Directive Will.

Sovereign Will

God’s Sovereign Will is what God is going to do and nobody can stop it. God’s Sovereign will doesn’t need you or me to sign off on it, it doesn’t need our consent, it doesn’t need us to agree or say yes to it. It is what God is going to accomplish no matter what. Not even this pandemic can stop God’s Sovereign will. Jesus dying on the cross for our sins despite Jesus asking God to remove the cup or the responsibility from him in the garden, despite King Herod trying to kill him when he was a baby, and despite humankind’s continual disobedience is a good example of God’s Sovereign. It is the will of God that no one or nothing can stop.

Moral Will

God’s Moral Will is how God wants us to live. The ten commandments are a good example of this. The commands to “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, and with all of your soul and with all of your mind” and to love our neighbors as ourselves is a good example of this is a good example of this. But unlike God’s Sovereign will, God’s moral will needs our consent. God does not force us to obey, but instead he gives us the option to choose to obey.

Directive Will

Then there is God’s directive will. Where should I live? What job should I take? Who should I marry? What school should I go to? What church should I be apart of? What is God’s purpose for my specific life? These are typically the answers you want to know from God that are not always black and white. And like God’s moral will, will have the ability to say “no” to God’s directive will.

So today, we are not talking about God’s Sovereign Will, but we are going to be dealing with questions to help us discern God’s Moral and Directive Will for our lives.

Now where I think many people struggle in discerning God’s will is that we try to discern God’s directive will before we have a gotten a good grasp on God’s moral will.

In other words, we want God to tell us who to marry and what job we should have before we recognize that God’s will for our lives first and foremost is that we be holy.

Look at Romans 12:1-2 again.

Romans 12:1–2 NIV

When Paul writes this he uses a preposition that is translated to “then” “that” or “so that.” He says “Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is.” Paul says that before we can understand the details of what his good, pleasing and perfect will is, we must first present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.

Sometimes the reason why a decision is so confusing is not because the nature of the decision is hard, but simply because we have not submitted to God’s moral will which has caused us to have other things at the table of consideration that shouldn’t be there.

We are trying to figure out who to marry, what job we should have and where we should live, before we have figured out who we are in Christ.

We are trying to make spiritual decisions with a carnal mind. That is why Romans 12 says that before we can discern God’s will for our lives, we have to renew our mind. And part of that renewal process is our submission to God’s moral will.

Once we have submitted to God’s moral will, it is then, and only then, we can begin to inform God’s directive will for our lives.

So with that being in the background let’s get into the questions:

Disclaimer on Prayer

Now for my real spiritual people out there please know that none of these questions will I talk specifically about prayer, because none of these questions should be treated separate from prayer. These questions should be apart of your prayer life not separate from your prayer life.

Discerning Questions

1. Is this decision consistent with the Word of God?

The first question I want to give you when discerning the will of God is “Is this decision consistent with the Word of God?”

Now when you ask this question I want you to think about this on two different levels.

1) The first level is “Will this decision cause you sin?” (James 1:13)

James 1:13 tells us that God does not tempt us to sin. Which means that God will never have you make a decision that leads to sin.

2) The second level is “Is there a principle in the Word of God that this decision may conflict with?

When the Bible doesn’t mention a particular subject and you are trying to find some guidance, that is not the time for you to say “Well if the Bible doesn’t say anything about it then I can do it.” Because though the Bible may not mention every thing, it does have principles that can be applied to everything. For example:

Smoking Weed - You will not find “thou shall not smoke weed” in the Bible. But the Bible does talk a lot about being sober minded. It talks about being controlled by the Holy Spirit and not by things like drunkeness. So though the Bible doesn’t mention weed specifically I can apply the principle of sober-mindedness to smoking weed.

Social Media - Another example is social media. The Bible doesn’t say anything about social media, but it does say “Bad company corrupts good character.” So what that means is that who I follow matters, because who I follow on my social media page I invite to be apart of my company. And if bad company corrupts good character then I need to watch who I follow.

Though it is not specifically talked about in Scripture I can still use the principles of Scripture to help me discern the will of God.

And if your concern is that I may not know enough of the Bible to apply principles to every situation…Guess what?....Much of the research has already been done for you. In the palm of your hand you can go to google, type in “What does the Bible say about your particular subject,” and articles will pop up, blogs will pop up, sermons will pop up and lists of Scriptures will pop up. And you can take that, study it, grab the principles and ask yourself if the decision you are making is consistent with both the explicit things found in Scripture and the principles found in Scripture.

2. Is it a wise decision?

When you think about your decision, what are the consequences? Every decision we make, whether they be good or bad, they all have consequences.

Have you done your research, have you weighed the pros and cons.

And then what are wise people around you saying? Proverbs 11:14 says:

Proverbs 11:14 NKJV

Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.

The book of Proverbs teaches us over and over again that when are making decisions we ought to have some wise people around us that we can talk to.

If you are the person that finds it hard to take advice from other people or like to make all your decisions on your own, then you will find yourself making mistakes and tripping over rocks that you never had to trip over.

Is it a wise decision?

3. Do I have genuine peace about the decision?

Philippians 4:6-7

Philippians 4:6–7 ESV

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Though we shouldn’t always rely on our emotions in making decisions because they can they can be unpredictable, one thing is true: When you are doing what God wants you to do you will have peace. Even when everyone else is looking at you like you are crazy, you will still have peace about it.

Now sure there might be a little anxiety in the beginning because it is natural to feel a little anxiety when we are making tough decisions, but when the dust settles, there won’t be regret, there won’t be unrest, and it won’t keep you up at night.

When God called me from public accounting, people thought I was crazy, but I had peace knowing that no matter how crazy it was, this is what God wanted me to do.

4. Is this consistent with the way God works?

Now understand this question has less to do with whether or not the decision is sinful, and more to do with how God seems to move in particular situations. For instance....

1) 1 Corinthians 14:33 tells us that God is not a God of chaos.

So if I know that God is not a God of chaos, then anytime I find myself making a decision that has lead to be chaos, then it means one or two things: either I completely made the wrong the decision, or made the right decision, but I went about it the wrong way. What do I mean by that.

In I Cor 14:33, Paul is trying to bring order to the Corinthian church because there were multiple people prophesying in the church all at once. It was becoming chaotic so he was trying to give them some order because God is not a God of chaos.

The prophesying or the decision to prophesy is not the problem. It is the way they are going about it that is the problem.

If God is not the author of chaos and chaos is present, something is wrong.

2) Instructions for the Tabernacle - Here is another example when we are thinking about how God works. In Exodus God gives Moses chapters of detailed instructions on how to build the tabernacle and everything in it. And at the end of God giving him this intricate and detailed vision, he tells them I have called Bezalel, not Moses who was leading them, but Bezalel, and I have filled him with the Spirit, with wisdom, with the craftsmanship skills and “the know how” to create blueprints and to get the job done.

So what this tells us about how God works is that when God gives vision, he will give provision. So if I have had a vision and I put my hands and my feelers out, but I haven’t received any provision, then there is no doubt that I had a vision, it just may not of been God’s vision.

Why? because the way God tends to work is that when he gives you vision, he will give you provision.

5. Does this fit who I am as a follower of Jesus Christ?

Since we have been in the pandemic, some of us, including myself, have gained new inches around the waste and there are some clothes that don’t fit like they used to.

Likewise, when we become Christians, we become new, and because we become new, there are some things that don’t fit who we are as followers of Jesus.

When you think about your wardrobe, how does that reflect you as a follower of Jesus?

When you think about your language, how does that reflect you as a follower of Jesus Christ?

When you think about your job, how does your job reflect you as a follower of Jesus Christ?

When you think about the places that you want to go to and be a part of, ask yourself how do those things reflect you as a follower of Christ?

When you think about your friends, how do your friends reflect you as a follower of Jesus Christ? And yes Jesus did sit with sinners, but he didn’t have to do sinful things in order to be at the table.

There are a lot of decisions we go to God for that we really don’t have to go to him for because we already know they don’t fit.

When we are walking in the will of God, things are going to fir, but when we are not walking in the will of God, things are not going to fit.

6. How are my attachments, insecurities, fears, and addictions influencing my decision?

Matthew 6:24 says:

Matthew 6:24 NIV

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

In the last sermon I preached in 2020 I told you that sometimes we have to choose between our joy and our stability. Likewise, sometimes the decision that God wants you to make

may mess with your money

may mess with your relationships

may mess with your comfort,

and if you have attachments, insecurities, fears, and addictions around those things then it will be hard for you to make the decision that God wants you to make.

Or lets’s say you are like Moses who was insecure about doing something God asked him to do simply because he couldn’t speak well or like Jeremiah who thought he was too young.

It is important for us to understand where our fears and insecurities lie so we can know how to silence when we are trying to discern the will of God.

7. How will the results of my actions impact other people?

1 Corinthians 8:9

1 Corinthians 8:9 NASB95

But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.

In the context of this passage there are two different types of believers. In the first group there are some believers, that Paul refer to as weak, who believe that eating food that has been sacrificed to idols is sin. And in the second group, there is a group of believers that know and know well that through their freedom they have in Jesus they are free to eat whatever they want regardless if it has been sacrificed to idols or not.

And what is going on is that when the second group exercises their freedom to eat food that has been sacrificed to idols, it would cause some of the weak believers in the first group to stumble in their faith.

And so what Paul is trying to get the second group to understand, is that even though they have the right to eat whatever they want to eat and even though they do have that freedom, they should still out of love refrain from eating those things around other believers that are not there yet.

In other words, there are some decisions in our lives that though they may benefit us, it may hurt other people. And so if we are going to be loving, then we must not be selfish in our decision-making, but we must think about the interest of others.

8. How has God equipped me and gifted me for that?

1 Peter 4:10-11

1 Peter 4:10–11 NIV

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

We bring the most glory to God when we are operating in the gifts he equipped us with. Now you might go through a season of experimentation when you trying to figure out what that is. But when you know what that is and you are operating in your gift, that is where you will bring most glory to God.

So when you are choosing a job, what type of business to start or even where you want to serve in the church, don’t do it just because its an option, but do it because that is how God has gifted you and wired you.

Because as the scripture says, all of our gifts are given we a certain level of grace. The foot does not have the flexibility of the hand and the hand does not have the strength of the foot. It is not that one is better than the other, but simply they have been graced differently.

If people easily get on your nerves, why are you looking for customer service jobs?

If you don’t like sitting at a desk, why are you looking for desk jobs?

If you want to be

When the feet are in their feet position and hands are in hand positions, that is when God gets the most glory.

9. Where does God get the most glory?

John 8:50 tells us that God actually seeks out glory.

And when I thought about this, I thought about God’s war tactics in the Old Testament.

Israelites & Egyptian Army - When God delivered the Israelites out of slavery, he could have easily led them through Philistine territory where they could have made it to the Promised Land in days. But because God seeks out glory, he parts the Red Sea, have them walk across dry ground, have the Egyptian army follow them into the sea, and then closes the water on them so he could wipe them out.

Gideon & the 300 soldiers - I think about how in the book of Judges, God took Gideon’s 32,000 man army and purposely reduced it to 300 because he didn’t want the Israelites thinking that they won because of their strength.

Jericho- I think about how in the book of Joshua, when the Israelites were getting ready to capture Jericho, the most fortified city in the land. He didn’t tell them to ambush it or to create some type weapon that could penetrate the walls, but he said just walk around Jericho once for six days and seven times on the seventh, and once you have completed your laps, blow the trumpets and give me a shout of praise and watch the walls come down.

2 Chronicles 20 - I think about how in 2 Chronicles, when three different armies had joined forces and come up against the Israelites, God didn;t tell Jehosaphat to put his best warriors on the frontline, but he said put me a choir or put me a praise team on the front line and watch me defeat your enemies.

It is in the places that are larger than you where God gets the most glory.

It is in the places that is going to take faith where God gets the most glory.

It is in the places where when it is all said and done, you won’t be able to say I did this by own strength and my own merit, where God gets the most glory.

So when we are trying to discern God’s will, ask yourself “Which decision is going to give God the most glory?”

10. How does this decision fit into God’s eternal plan for my life?

God’s eternal plan for our lives is for us to serve and glorify him. And once we understand that...

then when we begin to decide where to work, we begin to recognize that is not so much about the job, but rather how is the job going to help you serve and glorify God.

When we begin to ask where we should live, we begin to recognize that it is not so much about where you live, but rather how where you live is going to help you serve and glorify God.

When we begin to ask who we should marry, we begin to recognize that it is not so much about who you marry, but rather how that person is going to help you serve and glorify God and how you are going to serve and glorify God by being loving and faithful, and committed to that person.

There are many questions we wouldn’t have to wrestle with so much if we simply considered how that that thing, person or place fit into God’s eternal plan for our lives. Because if it doesn’t help you serve or glorify God, that most likely means it, he, she, or they shouldn’t be there.

Conclusion

Listen all of these questions are important questions to ask in the process of trying to discern the will of God, but these questions mean absolutely nothing if haven’t surrendered to Christ. Unless you have come to recognition that God is smarter than you and that he can do much better with your life in his hand then you can with your life in your hands, then these questions won’t help much.

These questions only help if you have decided to offer yourself as a living sacrifice to God, holy and pleasing to God. These questions only help if you have decided to repent and to not conform to the world but be renewed by changing the way you think. It is only then when we will be able to discern the will of God…his good, pleasing, and perfect will.