KNOWING GOD'S WILL

Brethren:

Am posting a message of David Cloud on "Knowing God's Will".

I pray that you, the reader be blessed, encouraged and more so
challenged in your heart and spirit to pursue this most important
aspect of the believers' life.

Don't fail to know and pursue God's Will for your life. It is the
only life worthwhile living and pursuing. The opposite is a waste
and will be full of regrets of what might have been.

Manny

KNOWING GOD’S WILL

December 8, 2009 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org;

“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. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness” (Romans 12:1-8).

We see here that God has a great work in this world and He has called on His people to participate. There is a perfect will of God for each believer. If you are saved, you are called.

We see that the will of God must be proven. Salvation is a gift but God’s will is a prize to be sought.

Further, the will of God is not a future possibility but a present reality. If you don’t do the will of God today you can’t know the will of God tomorrow.

Following salvation, there are four steps that are emphasized in Romans 12 for those who want to know God’s will.

1. KNOWING GOD’S WILL REQUIRES SURRENDER AND DEDICATION.

“that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).

Presenting one’s body as a living sacrifice to God is a free-will decision. God does not force us to be saved, and He does not force us to devote our lives wholly to Him after salvation. He wants us to do this from a willing heart. Thus, there are hard choices that must be made for those who want to know God’s will. I must choose to dedicate myself to Christ rather than to the pursuit of selfish desires. I must deny the flesh and pursue the Spirit. Most people devote their lives to money, pleasure, ease, comfort, security, prestige, and such things. The child of God has the privilege of pursuing a higher calling.

This is a decision that is motivated by God’s love. We love God because He first loves us. We do not pursue the will of God in order to be saved; we pursue it because we are saved and we want to please the One who has saved us by His grace through the great price that was paid on Calvary.

This is a reasonable decision. It is reasonable because knowing and serving God is the purpose of life (Ecclesiastes 12:13). It is reasonable because life apart from God’s will is vanity. That is the theme of the book of Ecclesiastes. It is reasonable to dedicate my life to Christ because God’s will brings great reward (Heb. 11:24-27). A missionary once said, “A man is not unwise to give up that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

This is a personal decision. Young people are often deeply concerned about what other young people are thinking and doing. There is “peer pressure,” but if I want to know God’s will I must move beyond that and focus my attention on pleasing God alone.

This is also a daily decision. Dedicating myself to the Lord’s will is not something that can be done once; it must be done repeatedly. Many times a young person will get fired up at a church meeting or a summer camp or a youth or missions conference, and he or she will surrender to the Lord’s will, but due to the pressures of life and spiritual warfare this decision can fade away if it is not renewed daily.

2. KNOWING GOD’S WILL REQUIRES SEPARATION.

“and be not conformed to this world” (Romans 12:2).

At the very heart of knowing God’s will is the issue of separation from the evil things of the world. It is not optional, because God is a holy God.

The word “conformed” implies that we are weak and can be molded. The world is evangelistic. It is not content to mind its own business. It seeks to conform the believer to its philosophy and lifestyle.

Separation is thus absolutely necessary to know God’s will.

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:15-16).

“Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:12).

“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4).

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them” (Ephesians 5:11).

The world has poured into Christian homes and churches through the rock & roll pop culture, but the believer that wants to know God’s perfect will must reject it and pursue holiness and righteousness. We deal with this extensively in the new book “KEEPING THE KIDS” in the chapter on “Separation: Unplugging from the Pop Culture.”

There we have noted that according to 2 Timothy 2:22, separation is not just a “negative” issue.

“Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22).

We see, first, that separation is a matter of spiritual and moral protection. Timothy was told to “flee also youthful lusts.” That gives the image of running from some great danger. God does not want to take pleasurable things away from His people. He is the Author of every good gift (James 1:17). When He made Adam and Eve, He put them in the loveliest Garden one could imagine. He designed it for them to provide them with every wonderful and pleasurable thing. God is not some cruel person who wants to harass people with meaningless laws. His command to separate from the evil things of the world is designed to protect us from spiritual and moral destruction. It is designed to keep us out of the devil’s cruel clutches.

Second, in 2 Timothy 2:22 we are reminded that separation is a heart matter. Timothy was instructed to pursue holiness “with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” If the heart is right, the believer will respond positively to the Lord’s command to separate from evil. Before I was saved, I grew my hair out long as a flag of rebellion and pride. I refused to cut it for love or money, but after I was saved I cut it when I was challenged by an elderly woman that long hair was not befitting for a young man claiming to be a follower of Christ. I cut it because my heart was right with God and I wanted to do His will instead of my own. That is why I gave up smoking and quit listening to rock & roll and many other things.

Third, we see in 2 Timothy 2:22 that separation is a replacement matter. Timothy was instructed not only to flee from sinful things but also to “follow” godly things. It is not enough to give up sensual music and worldly fashions and friends that hinder one’s spiritual walk and such; the child of God must add godly friends and sacred music and edifying literature and wholesome activities.

3. KNOWING GOD’S WILL REQUIRES TRANSFORMATION.

“but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2).

Knowing God’s will requires not only dedication and separation; it requires spiritual transformation. This is the way of victory over the world. By transformation the image of Christ can become fashioned in the believer so firmly that the world cannot mold him into its own foolish and corrupt image.

Spiritual transformation comes by the renewing of the mind, and the renewing of the mind comes through the Bible. We must learn to think God’s thoughts and that is what transforms the life, and that comes through the reading and study of and meditation on God’s Word.

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalms 119:9).

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).

“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2).

It has been said that a dusty Bible indicates a dirty heart, and the Bible will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from Bible.

Spiritual transformation comes by the power of the Holy Spirit. We must yield to Him, put Him in the driver’s seat. This is what it means to “be filled with the Spirit.”

“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30).

“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18).

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would” (Galatians 5:16-17).

Further, spiritual transformation is a process. It doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time and persistence and dedication.

4. KNOWING GOD’S WILL REQUIRES MINISTRY.

“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us...” (Romans 12:3-6).

To know God’s perfect will it is not enough to surrender to Christ and to separate from the world and to read the Bible; we must also get busy serving the Lord. Knowing God’s will is not a matter of waiting around for something to happen; it is a matter of getting busy doing what we know that we should do at any given time, and God leads us in His perfect will step by step, day by day, week by week, year by year. As we read the Bible we must obey the Bible, and if we do this we are walking in God’s will.

In Romans 12 we are reminded that there are two aspects to the ministry, general (Romans 12:9-21) and specific (Romans 12:6-8). Every believer has a particular gift and ministry, and we find that particular calling by getting busy in God’s general calling, which involves walking in obedience and holiness. As the believer obeys the things that he knows God wants him to do, such as obeying one’s parents and loving one’s wife and honoring one’s husband and being faithful to church and sharing the gospel, God leads him along and reveals His particular calling more and more clearly.

We see in Romans 12 that knowing God’s will requires sober thinking (Rom. 12:3). This means I must not think too highly of myself. It involves humility. I must not think that God has given me more than He has. For example, there is a three-foot-tall man in Nepal. He is currently the world’s shortest man. The Bible says that God made him, and if he were to put his faith in Christ and seek God’s will, he would find that he has a specific spiritual calling, but he would have to accept his place. If he were to aspire to be a professional basketball player, he would doubtless be sorely frustrated and disappointed! There are people who can’t sing well that want to be singers, and people who aren’t good with children who want to work in children’s ministries, and men who can’t preach who want to be preachers, and men who aren’t qualified to be pastors who want to be pastors. I have seen many men who have not been content to be what God has called them; they want to be something else, and as a result they cause frustration in their own lives and confusion in the church.

To think soberly also means the believer should not think too lowly of himself. Every believer has a special calling and an important place in the Lord’s work in this present world. In the human body there are many members, and each one of them is important to the overall function of the body. The same is true in the church.

We are also reminded in Romans 12 that the church is essential for knowing God’s will. Paul mentions “the body” in verse 4. That is a reference to the church. It is the pillar and ground of the truth and the house of God (1 Timothy 3:15). It is the God-ordained institution of training and discipling. It is the place of spiritual protection. It is the headquarters for world evangelism (Acts 13:1-4).

Knowing God’s will is not complicated. It simply means starting where you are and obeying God step by step. “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way” (Psalms 37:23).

I have never met a person who regretted finding God’s perfect will, but I have met many that have regretted missing God’s perfect will. Young people, don’t be foolish and throw away the wonderful opportunity that you have to surrender your life to God in your youth and to pursue His perfect will.

To make major decisions, such as about marriage and job and education, apart from God’s perfect will is dangerous in the extreme.

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