Finding the Will of God
Note: I am not ashamed to acknowledge my debt to two authors from whom I have borrowed extensively in the preparation of this sermon. The book, Decision Making and the Will of God, by Garry Friessen and Robin Maxson, is one of the ten most influential books I have ever read. I purchased a copy in 1980, have read it many times, and have taught through it more than once. I encourage you to buy it and read it carefully. I have not tried to footnote the many points at which I have been influenced by this book.
Introduction: Some sermons have as their principal characteristic that they are convicting. Others are encouraging. Still others are motivating. I warn you in advance today that the message today will be principally thought-provoking, but you must pay attention. It could do one of two things to you. (1) It could liberate you in an important area of practical Christian living, or (2) it could blow your mind and upset your whole spiritual applecart. Someone has said that sacred cows make the best hamburger, but it’s easy to choke on it. I may be slaying someone’s sacred cow today, but I don’t ask that you digest it all at once. I just want you to taste it, and I want you to remain my friend even if you disagree.
To begin I want to read our text for today, Acts 21:1-14:
Now when we had parted from them and had set sail, we ran a straight course to Cos, and on the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara; 2 and having found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. 3 When we came in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to Syria and landed at Tyre; for the ship was to unload its cargo there. 4 After looking up the disciples, we stayed there for seven days; and they kept telling Paul, through the Spirit, not to set foot in Jerusalem. 5 When our days there were ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all, with wives and children, escorted us until we were out of the city. After kneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another. 6 Then we boarded the ship, and they returned home.
7 When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting the brothers and sisters, we stayed with them for a day. 8 On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and we entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. 9 Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses. 10 As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 And he came to us and took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews in Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and hand him over to the Gentiles.’” 12 When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul replied, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” 14 And since he would not be persuaded, we became quiet, remarking, “The will of the Lord be done!”
One of the most popular statements in Christian circles over the past 25 years has been, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” That’s a happy, reassuring thought for sure, but an awful lot of Christians are wondering, “If God has a wonderful plan for my life, why isn’t He telling me what it is? I’ve followed all the steps that I’ve been given as to how to find God’s will, as to whom I should marry, or where I should go to college, or whether to invest in a particular company, or how much I should give to the land fund, but honestly, sometimes I have missed His will by a mile and most of the time I lack the real certainty that I have made the decision that God wanted me to make. I think I have, at least sometimes, but I don’t have the assurance that most other Christians seem to have. Friends of mine are always claiming, ‘I prayed about this decision and God showed me clearly what the answer was.’ Or, ‘the Holy Spirit led me to do such and such.’ What am I missing?”
I have a sneaking suspicion that you may not be missing anything. Rather you may be suffering from unnecessary frustration and guilt because a lot of other Christians may be claiming they have something you don’t have, when the fact is they don’t have it either. They claim to have it because they think Christians are supposed to have it. See, I told you this sermon might rattle your cages.
We read Acts 21:1-14 earlier, and while I won’t be doing a detailed exposition of the passage this morning, I do want to show why it triggered a sermon on finding God’s will for your life. The common thread through these first 14 verses is the Apostle Paul’s decision to go to Jerusalem and the reaction he receives from numerous counselors against that decision.
If you’ll turn back to chapter 20, verse 22, you’ll find Paul expressing his intention: “And now, behold, bound in spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me.”
Chapter 21 opens by telling us about Paul’s journey from Miletus, where he met the Ephesian elders, to Tyre on the coast of Palestine, where he stayed for seven days while the ship unloaded its cargo. Verse 4 reveals that the disciples there “kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem.” Now isn’t that interesting? Paul is determined to go to Jerusalem, but fellow believers, speaking “by the Spirit,” are telling him not to. Is the Holy Spirit telling Paul one thing and telling the others something else?
The next major stop on the trip was at Caesarea, further south on the coast and only a day’s journey from Jerusalem. There Paul stayed with Philip the evangelist, who was one of the deacons appointed in Acts 6 to relieve the apostles of administrative duties. He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophecy. While Paul was at Philip’s place, he received a visit from the prophet, Agabus, who acted out a pantomime. Look at it in verse 11: “He took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, ‘This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles’'”
Then in verse 12 we learn that Luke was also begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Notice the word “we” in verse 12; Luke is the author of the book and on occasion he speaks in the first person when he was personally involved in an event. But instead of saying “I” he says “we,” no doubt to include Philip and possibly Philip’s four daughters and the rest of Paul’s traveling companions.
And not only that, but verse 12 also indicates that the local residents, presumably the Christians in Caesarea, also begged him not to go. So here we have the Christians in Tyre and Caesarea, Agabus, Philip the evangelist, four prophetesses, and Luke all speaking with one accord (and some, speaking by the Spirit of God), saying to him, “Don’t go.”
And what is Paul’s response? He says, in effect, “I’m going anyway.” Look at verse 13: “Then Paul answered, ‘What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.'” Now here’s the key verse, verse 14, Luke speaking for everyone else: “And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, ‘The will of the Lord be done!'”
Now what I see here is the Apostle on one side and a whole group of Christian people on the other side, with both sides sincerely desiring to know God’s will on the issue of whether he should go to Jerusalem. He is convinced he should; they are convinced he shouldn’t. My own opinion is that Paul was wrong and the others right, for reasons I will share later. But I’m not so concerned this morning with the rightness or wrongness of this decision as I am with the way in which it was made. How did Paul decide that it was God’s will for him to go to Jerusalem and how did the others decide that it wasn’t God’s will for him to go. And what did the others mean when, after Paul decided to go against their understanding of God’s will in the matter, they said, “The will of the Lord be done!”
I think the first thing we need to do is to wrestle with this phrase that is bandied about so much, namely “the will of God,” and try to establish what exactly it means. The fact of the matter is that people can mean at least three distinctly different things when they speak of “the will of God.”
His sovereign will. God’s sovereign will can be defined as “His secret plan for the universe which determines everything that happens.” Scriptures which speak of this sovereign will of God include Ephesians 1:11, which says that God “works all things after the counsel of His will.” And Proverbs 16:33 adds that “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.” (So even “chance” events are not really chance). And Romans 11:33-36 says, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways. For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to Him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.” The emphasis in these passages upon “all things” and “every decision” indicates that God’s sovereign will includes everything that happens.
Now we may be able to show that God has a sovereign will, but we don’t know what His sovereign will is until it has happened. It is secret, except for a relatively few prophetic events God has revealed in advance, and therefore, God’s sovereign will cannot be used by us in making decisions.
There are some Christians, of course, who do not believe that God has a sovereign will. They believe God foreknows what is going to happen but He doesn’t sovereignly cause it to happen. I would like to add for their sakes that I believe God’s sovereign will can be thought of as including both an active will (or direct will) and a passive (or permissive will). In other words, some things God actively and directly brings to pass and other things, like sin, He merely permits to happen. But either way you cut it, His plan for the universe covers everything, and nothing happens that is outside His sovereign will.
Quickly, however, we move to the fact that the Scriptures speak also of a moral will of God.
His moral will. God’s moral will consists of “His revealed instructions in the Bible as to how men ought to believe and behave.” In other words, God’s moral will equals His desires. His sovereign will includes everything, but His moral will includes only what He wants to happen. Again let’s look at three Scriptures. First I Thes. 5:18 exhorts us, “in everything give thanks, for this is God’s will for you.” It’s not His sovereign will that we give thanks, because sometimes we don’t; but it is His moral will or His desire that we do so. Then in I Thes. 4:3 it says, “this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality.” Again, the Apostle is speaking of God’s moral will, not His sovereign will.
But let’s also consider a negative example, as found in 2 Peter 3:9: “God is not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” Some universalists make the mistake of concluding that this verse is speaking of God’s sovereign will, so they conclude that no one will perish. But it should be clear to us from the Bible as a whole that some will perish. Their perishing is part of God’s sovereign will, while His moral will for them is to not perish.
The moral will of God that we have been talking about is sometimes referred to as His revealed will, called that because it has been revealed to us in conscience and in Scripture. Some of God’s moral will is revealed to man’s conscience, according to Romans 2:15, but the only place all of it is found is in the Bible. I believe that 100% of God’s moral law is found in this book.
We have looked so far at the sovereign will of God and the moral will of God, both of which are clearly taught in the Scripture. But in addition, there are quite a number of writers and Bible teachers who speak of still a third will of God, which they call His individual will.
His individual will. By this they are referring to “an ideal, detailed life-plan which God has uniquely designed for every believer, and which it is our duty to discern.” This wonderful plan for our life encompasses every decision we make and is the basis of God’s daily guidance. Sometimes this individual will is referred to as God’s “specific” will, for obvious reasons, and sometimes as God’s “perfect will.” The latter terminology is confusing, for God’s sovereign will and His moral will are also perfect, but generally what is meant is that this will of God is “perfect for the individual.”
The process of finding God’s individual will might be likened to aiming for the bullseye in an archery target. If you don’t hit it, then you’ve missed His best for you, but God is gracious and will not wipe you out just because you missed the bullseye. He’ll give you points for getting close, or He’ll give you additional shots, but of course you will never again have a perfect score. For example, if you marry someone other than the mate God has chosen for you, then your chances of hitting the bullseye are over, but God will help you make the best of a bad choice. Even His 2nd best is good, though perhaps not great.
Now perhaps you’ve already sensed that I feel there’s something wrong with this concept of the individual will of God, but before I challenge it, I must say a word about how we have traditionally been taught to discern God’s individual will. At the risk of oversimplification, I will just say that generally we have been taught that God has provided road signs to discover His will. We have the Scriptures, common sense, prayer, circumstances, godly counsel, etc. If and when these signs all line up, then we can be pretty sure that we’re in the center of God’s individual will regarding that particular decision.
If they don’t all line up, however, or if one still has some doubt, an alternative way of finding God’s individual will is by means of a fleece. It is very easy to be fleeced by a fleece, but basically it involves asking God to speak directly through a providential sign agreed upon beforehand. Like, “Lord, if you want me to go to such-and-such a college, help me to get an acceptance letter by Tuesday.” But then there are some people who have an even quicker way of determining God’s individual will—they get a direct word from the Lord. They are the ones from whom one frequently hears words like, “The Lord told me to do such-and-such,” or “The Spirit led me to do thus-and-so.”
The real issue, however, is this: does the Scripture teach that God has an individual will for our lives, which He is eager to reveal to us, a bullseye which we must try to hit if we don’t want to settle for His second best? Let me read just three passages which are frequently used by advocates of the “individual will” concept.
Proverbs 3:5,6: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.”
Psalms 32:8: “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye.”
Isaiah 30:20,21 (N.A.S.B.): “Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher, will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. And your ears will hear a word behind you, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right or to the left.”
Having briefly described these three wills of God, I would like now to challenge the “individual will” concept, for it is here that problems arise for so many believers.
Challenging the concept of God’s individual will
Before going further, I need to make it clear that I do not doubt that God gives direct guidance to some individuals occasionally, but I must say that I believe such claims are often carelessly made in an effort to clothe decisions in a spiritual aura. Instead of saying, “I decided to do such-and-such,” we prefer to say, “The Lord led me to do such-and-such,” especially if the decision has obvious spiritual implications. Almost no one will say, “I decided to turn down the nomination for Elder.” We seem to be so much more comfortable saying, “The Lord closed the door to that option.” Did you ever hear a pastor say, “I’ve decided to leave this church and accept another pastorate?”
The principal question we need to be asking is, …
Does the Scripture support it? The fact of the matter is that most of the biblical examples and biblical passages that are used to prove an individual will fall far short of proving the point. True, some of the prophets and apostles received very specific and direct leading from the Lord; Paul Himself, for example, was at times directed to certain places of ministry and forbidden to go to others. But if one examines the N.T. examples of individual guidance carefully he will discover that nearly all of them have a direct bearing on the spread of the Gospel. One looks in vain for a single example of specific guidance from God on the more ordinary decisions of life, like “whom should I marry?” or “which donkey should I purchase?” or “how many denarii shall I put in the offering?”
But, you say, what about the passages you read a few moments ago that clearly teach that God is in the business of revealing to each of us His “individual will” for our lives? What about Proverbs 3:5,6? Virtually every modern translation of the Bible has corrected this K.J.V. translation so that it accurately reflects the original Hebrew. It really says, “In all Thy ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” The word “path” describes the general course or fortunes of life, so the meaning is “He shall make the course of your life successful.” It does not suggest that God will do so by specific guidance into an individual path marked out by God.
What about Psalm 32:8? Turn to it, if you will. In the K.J.V. it reads, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye.” It is assumed by many people that the Lord is speaking here, but Psalm 32 is a Psalm of David, and David is clearly speaking up through verse 7 and again in verses 10-11. Why assume that God begins speaking in verse 8? But even if God is speaking it still doesn’t teach a specific will, for the Hebrew word translated “guide”really means to “counsel” and “the way you should go” is probably a reference to the moral law of God rather than an individualized plan.
Isaiah 30:20,21 is another passage I would like for you to turn to. It reads in the N.A.S.B. as follows: “Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher (capital T), will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. And your ears will hear a word behind you, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right or to the left.”
Now before we even discuss this verse, I want to ask you a question. Be honest. Have you experienced what this verse speaks of? Have your ears heard a word behind you telling you which way to turn? And if you have, has it always turned out to be right? If you haven’t, could it be because this verse has been misapplied? As a matter of fact, the NASB has here made an inexplicable translational blunder, and the KJV is correct, as is the NIV. The word “teacher” should not be capitalized as though it refers to God, because in the Hebrew it is not even singular, but plural. These teachers are the prophets, who had been in hiding for their safety (vs.8-11). The eyes and ears are the literal eyes and ears of the prophets. “The way” is God’s moral law from which Israel had strayed and to which the prophets would recall them whenever they turned to the right or to the left in straying from the straight and narrow.
Having examined some of the key passages used by the advocates of a special individual will of God, I want to ask another question:
Does experience support it? It is my contention that is does not, for I don’t believe anyone can consistently practice it. Everyone abandons the bullseye approach to the will of God and to decision-making at some point. Did you seek and find God’s perfect will about what clothes you would wear this morning, which cereal you ate, what route you took to church, or what row you sat in this morning? (Some of you apparently have found God’s perfect will a long time ago concerning which row to sit in because you never vary).
But the point is, the only time most of us talk about finding God’s perfect will is in regard to the relatively major decisions of life. For other decisions we use our brains, our experience, our desires, our instinct, etc. My question is, “Why aren’t those same factors sufficient to decide the major decisions also?” After all, small decisions sometimes turn out to be large ones and large decisions sometimes turn out to be quite insignificant.
The fact of the matter is, in my estimation, the reason many of us “seek God’s perfect will” in the major decisions is that we are uncomfortable assuming the responsibility of those decisions, which requires accepting the blame if they are wrong. So we want God to make them for us. God, however, wants to promote maturity in us and wants us to learn to make wise decisions.
It seems to me that when faced with several options (so long as they are all within the moral will of God) we should not worry about possibly missing the bullseye, but rather we should rejoice that we have more than one option.
Several years ago I was talking to a man in our church in Wichita who was unemployed. He said, “Pastor, I have three job offers. I want you to pray that the Lord will close the doors to the two jobs He doesn’t want me to have.” I said, “Why?” His answer was, “What do you mean, ‘Why?’ I don’t want to miss His will.” I said, “What’s the matter? Is one of those jobs for a crime syndicate or a liquor store?” “No,” he answered, “they’re all legitimate jobs which would help me take care of my family.” “Then why,” I asked, “do you want any of the doors closed?”
Do you know why? Because he didn’t want to have to make the decision and accept the consequences if it turned out to be less than satisfying. His immaturity was showing.
My point is not that he should leave God out of the decision-making process. I think he would be wise to thank God for the options, examine His Word for any evidence that God’s moral law might be violated, pray that God would help him not to overlook any relevant facts, ask God to help him evaluate his motives, etc. But to pray that God would make the decision for him may be illegitimate.
Now most of my time is gone this morning and I have yet to give you any positive guidance about how to properly understand God’s will for our lives. I’ve explained some of the problems with the traditional view, but I haven’t really given an alternative, and I want to do that.
Suggesting an alternative way to make right choices
God’s “moral will” as revealed in the Scriptures has to be considered foundational and absolutely authoritative. If God has left the decision-making process up to us, then there is no substitute for knowing the moral boundaries within which that decision must be made. I am personally convinced that if some Christians spent less time trying to discover God’s perfect individual will for their lives and more time ascertaining God’s moral will as revealed in the Scriptures, their lives would be more productive, happy, and pleasing to God.
Within God’s moral will there is a large “freedom area” where we are free and responsible to make choices. To put it another way, we have “freedom of choice within revealed limits.” Any issue not addressed in the Bible either by commandment or by principle is an area of freedom which God is not normally going to decide for us. Any decision within the freedom area is acceptable to Him. One option may be wise and another foolish, but neither is sinful.
God’s Word indicates by example and by doctrine that the normal way to make decisions is to use the wisdom He has made available to all of us. Consider these passages:
1. Romans 4:15: “Where there is no law, neither is there violation.” The only way a person can sin against God in a decision is to break one of God’s moral laws or principles–all of which are in the Bible!
2. I Cor. 10:23: “All things are lawful but all things are not expedient.” In other words, where God hasn’t laid down restrictions, you’re free to do what you want, but some choices are dumb.
3. Romans 14:5: regarding the decision as to which day one should set aside for worship, “Let each one be fully convinced in his own mind,” not “pray that you will find God’s will in this matter.”
4. 2 Cor. 9:7: speaking of the issue of stewardship: “Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart.” The actual amount is a personal decision, freely made.
5. Phil 2:25-26, regarding what to do with a sick pastor, “But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus.”
6. 1 Thes. 3:1,2, regarding a possible journey, “We thought it best to be left behind at Athens alone, and so we sent Timothy.”
7. 1 Cor. 16:3,4, regarding a journey to Jerusalem, “If it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.”
8. Acts 6:2-4, regarding the daily distribution of food to widows, “And the 12 summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, ‘It is not desirable for us to neglect the Word of God. . . to serve tables.'” They analyzed the problem, reviewed their assignments and came up with a wise, practical plan that would meet all the relevant needs.
In each of these verses and dozens like it the issues at hand are the ordinary decisions of life, some very important and some less important. In case after case the decision is not made by seeking God’s perfect individual will; in fact, it is not even prayed about, except perhaps in the sense that believers are to bathe their whole lives in prayer. No, the decision is made after considering all the options and using the wisdom God has made available to all of us.
Making wise decisions involves gleaning all available data from such sources as Scripture, reason, experience, counsel, circumstances, strong conviction, and prayer. There may be times when the data seem to yield two equal options, in which case I think St. Augustine’s advice is appropriate. He said, “Love God and do what you please.” John MacArthur has said the same thing in a slightly different way: “If you’re saved, Spirit-filled and sanctified, then do whatever you want to do.” Now those are some big “if’s,” but I think I agree. If your life is right with God, then what you want will be what He wants.
Within the “freedom area” decisions are best not viewed as God’s “first choice,” “second best,” etc., but simply as “wise” or “unwise.” Perhaps an example will help us think through this matter. A young married man decides he needs to go back to college and finish his degree. He can pray that God will reveal His will to him regarding exactly which school to attend, or he can set out to make a wisdom decision.
Conclusion: Let me return to the case of the Apostle Paul and his decision to go to Jerusalem as found in Acts 21. Was it a wise decision for Paul? I think not because reason, counsel, and circumstances all voted against it. I suspect he made his decision on emotional grounds, based on his intense love for his countrymen; Luke and the rest probably made their decision on wisdom grounds. Though Paul had a strong personal conviction about going, he evidently had no direct leading from the Holy Spirit to go and he would have been wiser to listen to counsel.
But was it sinful for Paul to go? No, for his going violated no moral principle of God’s revealed will. And God graciously used the Jerusalem visit for good, as it was there that he was arrested and eventually shipped off to Rome to preach the Gospel in the heart of the Roman empire.
One final point. What did Luke mean when he said in verse 14: “And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, ‘The will of the Lord be done!'” Which will of God was he talking about? Not the individual will of God for Paul’s life, the bullseye so to speak, because Luke believed that his going was unwise. Not the moral will of God, for that was not even an issue here. I believe he was referring to the sovereign will of God. In essence he was saying, “Though we cannot agree on what is a wise decision here, we have one thing to fall back upon, namely that God has a wise plan for this universe and in that plan, He is able to bring good even out of unwise decisions.”
As we close, allow me to clarify what I am challenging. I am not questioning whether God knows in advance all that I will ever do or whether He has sovereignly willed (either directly or permissively) that it be so. I believe that He does and has. I am questioning whether God has uniquely designed for me an ideal, detailed life-plan which I must discover if I do not want to settle for His second best. I believe that God can give special guidance anytime He wants to, and He does do that on occasion for some people. And when He does, they’d better follow it, because that would be God’s perfect will for that person at that time. But I do not think that is God’s normal way of dealing with all believers, nor do I believe we should feel spiritually inferior if God doesn’t seem to deal that way with us.
I can tell you one thing that is God’s individual will for your life, and that is that you come to know forgiveness of sin through the gift of His Son.
Tags:
Will of God
Sovereign will of God
Moral will of God
Permissive will of God
Individual will of God
Freedom