We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Returning to the New Testament teaching on marriage, we may not know the details of if or when or who, but we do know that we shouldn’t choose to marry an unbeliever when we are a Christ-follower (2 Cor 6:14). Living with God and not for him is the foundation of everything that follows. And it was all sin. For example, 1 Corinthians 5:7: “Cleanse out old leaven that you may be a new lump of dough, because you are really unleavened.” What a paradoxical way to talk: You are unleavened, so get the leaven out. Half a dozen things that you are going to do. You cannot have a God who in anyway would ordain that it come to pass. It includes God’s desires, but his will is far bigger and more complex. These five ways will teach us to know God’s will and live in the fullness of joy with him. So what is with you? I call this first will the will of decree. The Holy Spirit was sent into the world to magnify Jesus Christ off the pages of this book so that looking at Christ, at his glory and his beauty we would be changed into his likeness so that when I turn now to live my afternoon, there is a more natural, free inner spontaneous doing of the will of God. Other disciples will see things about us we don’t, our gifts and spiritual impacts in ways we can’t. So you need two things. He spoke personally to me. The most obvious answer to the question, “How can I know God’s will for my life?” is to ask Him. We shouldn't be so anxious to get it exactly right that we're too paralyzed to act. What do we need the Spirit for? Now there is another meaning for the term “will of God” that we probably use more often. That those two things are in the Bible corresponds to profound longings and needs that you have in moments of crisis and loss. Jesus did two things as a discipline. What does he command me to do? The Bible will not tell you what person to marry. But when you ask Him, be sure that you really expect Him to tell you. The Bible doesn’t tell you where to take a vacation. He will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him. And most of your actions, they are just there. Yes. If you want to know what the will of God is, you must first be willing to surrender your life to Him. He’s already for you. As part of John 5:30, Jesus declares that he didn’t live according to his own will but submitted to the Father. The will of God can be discovered in various ways—through the advice of a confessor or the blessing of your parents, by reading the word of God or by casting lots, and so on. The invitation is not for us to live FOR God but WITH him. He will be useless. We must be intentional to reach out and invest in close, trusted spiritual friendships within the Body of Christ. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. You will now be left with no God to help you deal with this and turn it good. That is what worship is: showing God’s value, supreme value over all other things. Suppose you were abused as a child and it has borne sad fruit for many years. So clearly “the will of God” here isn’t the same. We’re so blessed. We may not be able to see the road ahead, but our Shepherd is faithful and will lead his sheep in the way they should go. - Crosswalk the Devotional - January 6, 20 Prayers to Keep God First in the New Year, When the Resolutions Fail - New Year Devotional - January 7, 32 Uplifting Quotes for When Your Spirits Are in Their Darkest Valley, 5 Things a Wife Really Needs (But Doesn’t Know How to Ask For), Why We Need to Look to God after National Calamity, 5 Things Christians Should Know about QAnon. Wisdom does not only reside in our individual relationship with God but also in our connection with other disciples. The rest of your life and you are going to make hundreds and hundreds of actions between now and the time you go to bed tonight that are just going to flow out of you, like Jesus said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks and you will give an account for every idle word.” And you didn’t plan 95 percent of them. So now we are at verse two and we are asking: Which is it? Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” What does that mean? Hebrews 13:20, 21 — “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will , working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. That makes sense, right? But we do need those trusted spiritual voices in our lives. At the same time, we know the kinds of things that please God–the fruit of the Spirit, generosity, forgiveness, humility, etc. But now we have got some renewing to do. I don’t pray: Let me win. Yet that is how sovereign God is. It is not like Jesus just jumped up on the cross and died and God said, “Well, I didn’t know that was going to happen. God wants us to know the will of God. I heard his very words. The will of God did not happen in your life, because you looked. The ones we share with intimately shouldn’t be a big group. And he is acting upon us. … Paul’s response to that is: Yes, you do! be renewed in your mind.” You have got to be a new person. God is not a masochist. The disciple will learn some of the specifics and non-specifics about the will of God. God is not evil. God gives gifts to people to build up the whole Body of Christ (1 Cor 14:12). Now that is a process for the rest of your life, but here is a few pointers and we will be done. Therefore, we have two meanings of the will of God in the Bible. From Matthew 7 quoted above, the person Jesus is talking to was surprised. God once told me that there are some things he will only give me in secret, and there are other things he would only show me through relationship with his family. Even if I should, according to Paul’s personal example (1 Cor 7). Here is a couple of reasons why I should be. It is a passive verb, right? And Jesus in his human nature is simply saying, “In my human nature, I don’t relish the thought of nails going through my hands tomorrow. Matthew 10:29: “Not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from our Father in heaven.” Proverbs 16:33: “The lot, the dice, are cast in the lap and every decision is from the Lord.” In Reno, Las Vegas, Atlantic City, every dice rolled God decides what turns up. What you need in order to discern what will happen tomorrow is not a renewed mind, but a crystal ball. Then you can open your Bible and quickly see verses that apply. David did this in Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a clean heart, O God. As you will? And even when I get there, who exactly? In order to see God's will in life, you must receive His plan, believe, obey and follow Him. On a practical level, we must be diligent to study Scripture. Here are ways how to know God’s will: 1. Britt Mooney (with his amazing wife, Becca) has lived as a missionary in Korea, traveled for missions to several countries, and now lives in Suwanee GA as a church planter that works bi-vocationally with Phoenix Roasters, a missional coffee company. God says: don’t be angry. As a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. His will couldn’t be involved in it. God says: don’t be proud. Understanding God’s character and incredible love for us allows us to relax and trust Him in every area of our lives. He could just stop it and you don’t lose your job. Both of those are needs that I think God meets by being this kind of God. The policy in your mind is an evil policy. "For we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit . Only a tiny handful you think about before you do them. We all need the Holy Spirit. This is a marriage issue. When Jesus was baptized, he went under the water for us — so that he might represent us, and so that we might be with him forever. In other words, you must choose to do many things where the Bible does not give you explicit instruction. But we surrendered our will to God. It doesn’t call for mere change your external behavior. How God Shows the Way. With that basis, let us return to verse two. And if you say something he is going to be exposed. You could lose your job. What does he delight in? We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will. And in the way he governs and runs the world this text says: it may be God’s will that you suffer for doing good, which always involves somebody sinning against you. So I think those two truths correspond to pretty profound needs that we all have. We’re on a mission to change that. And you need two things: a God who can empathize with you as a high priest and hates sin. Part … He shows you the way. This book was originally published in 1979 by Tyndale House under the title, Decisions! And if you try to solve the problem of God’s sovereignty at the moment of crisis and push him so far out of that moment of causality, so far to the edges, you know what is going to happen? Within a few weeks, another opportunity came our way and God said yes, that was where he wanted us. That is contrary to my will. So last week dozens of you probably broke that will. And we need to be changed. And that is, I am suggesting, 95 percent of your life. No silly little sparrow falls, nor does a letter come out of the bag apart from God’s will. I need to be more loving, more joyful, more patient, more kind, more good, more self-controlled. You are new. One is that God does not intend for us to know most of his sovereign will ahead of time. First John 2:17 says, “The world is passing away and all of its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” Some do, some don’t. Pray about this. God says: don’t be anxious. That this how deeply we need to be renewed. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. They are more than just interesting, they are precious. So start there and ask the Lord for a renewed mind that is a mind that when it reads the Bible can see what it means. And keep this in mind: God expects you to obey what you already know before he shows you something new. You are a new creation in Christ. Ephesians 1:11 is the most sweeping statement of all in this regard to the sovereign will of God. I need a “Z.” She is way ahead. Or I think I will be anxious here. That is not the point of verse two. In fact, it says in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for correction, for reproof, for training in righteousness that the man of God may be fully equipped for every good work.” Wow. Trump Supporters Storm Capitol: 'As Close to a Coup Attempt as This Country Has Ever Seen', This site is a proud member of the Salem Web Network, a subsidiary of, Copyright © 2021, Crosswalk.com. What a Surrendered Hearts Looks Like. As you know, chapter 12 follows the first eleven chapters. This is the way to go. Like a legal document we call a will, there is power and authority to ensure that his desires and instructions are carried out. First, present your life to God. When God is speaking to you about something, He will often confirm it to somebody else. And I thought through how I should pray. The mind doesn’t just have thoughts. Attempting to carry out God’s will separate from our intimate relationship with him leads to dead religion and legalism. You don’t kill the Son of God without sin. He already loves you. That is not going to solve the problem. God specifies how He wants us to live as Christians. Pilate’s expediency, Herod’s mockery, the soldiers’ gambling for his clothes. That is the Christian life. We can’t. The way to know the will of God for the rest of your life is to do the will of God right now — obey what you already know. Let me try to explain why. What God decrees happens, including all the bad things in the world. So start here. How does this work? Since they also want the best for us, these saints can give further wisdom about life’s decisions. Not only do I discern the will of God but I like it. You disobeyed, contradicted, did not fulfill the will of God for your life. For newness. So what is the implication? So are you going to go out this afternoon and say: now here is an occasion where I could be anxious or not. That is probably the best one to use. And somebody is trying to help you, counsel you and work through the implications of that. I’m supposed to make disciples (Matt 28:19) but go where? Most of those decisions are not spelled out here, which is why Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to the world in the way it goes about those decisions, but have your mind so renewed by this word that you discern which of those things would accord best with what is here.”. If you want to know what God wants you to do, ask Him, and He will gladly tell you, for He is always ready to give a bountiful supply of wisdom to all who ask Him; He will not resent it. His extravagant love infuses his instructions on how to live (1 John 5:3). If it doesn’t taste great or they make a mess in the kitchen, should I yell and come down hard on them? Paul uses the term “the whole will of God” to describe the preaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom for salvation (Acts 20:27). I call this will the will of command. Abstain from all sexual immorality. You have just shoved him off into a realm where he can’t have anything to do with what happened. Don’t overstate the doctrine of the justification of the ungodly. There are guidelines on marriage, for one example, but I’m not told exactly who or when. Should I open the door with my left hand or my right? “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). A few texts that show what I mean by will of decree. In Acts 4:27–28, the church is praying in wonder to the sovereign God that has just ordained the death of his Son, they pray like this: Truly in this city, Jerusalem, there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed both Herod, Pontius Pilate, all the Gentiles, the peoples of Israel to do what your hand and plan had predestined to take place. I pray that by reading this, you'll find that out. I like it. What is the implication of that for proving what is the will of God in those? Then show His love and His forgiveness to others, through the work of the Holy Spirit in both your and their lives. The important thing is that, as we wait for further direction, we are busy doing the good that we know to … Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing that you may prove [or discern] what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfected and, thus, thus, live a life of worship. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that by testing you might discern [that you might prove or approve not just to know what something is, but to approve it] what is the will of God.” Both ideas of prove and approve are there. The Door that God Opens Will Never Contradict His Word. He called Jesus “Lord.” He did awesome religious things. Number two. Becca and I were young with promising careers when we were called to Korea. Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. It is a sinful policy. This extends to the details of all existence. And this one is the one we don’t think about as much even though I am going to argue 95 percent of your behavior is here, namely, you do not premeditate and decide to do 95 percent of what you do. Becca and I heard the call. You can’t just make new decisions, because 95 percent of what you are doing you are doing spontaneously and if you are not a new person, then out of the mouth the heart speaks wrong stuff. He works all things according to the counsel of his will. The Bible will confirm God’s will. Meaning: God, whose name is Jehovah, gives special attention to those who know his name and use it respectfully. Perhaps you felt that you should go visit someone, or that you should pray for another person, or confront an individual about a matter of concern. Does it tell us to live up to God ’ s will, life... Chapters 1–11 John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary us. 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