The Will - Part 1

The Will of God – Part 1

100% of all teens I have ministered to have had questions about the will of God. When do I know I’m doing it? Why won’t he just tell me? When will I know? I wanted to speak about this because Christians ought to make God’s will the practice of their life…nothing more, nothing less and nothing else. There are at least 10 specifics statements of God’s particular will in the bible. We will look at 3 tonight

1) Salvation (Repentance)
1 Timothy 2:3-6
3This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
2 Peter 3:8-9:
8But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

To know the will of God, to be in the will of God you must be saved. According to the scriptures, its God’s will for us to be saved. True saving faith is Repentance.

a) What does that mean for me?
• God desires I repent and be saved. To be in the will of God I must first repent and be saved from my sin.
• God desires that I share this truth also with others.
• God loves for me to pray for others to be saved as well.
b) What does it mean for my church?
• God desires my church to reach the lost as well, to pray for the lost, to share my story with the lost.

Police searched hard for the stolen VW. The reason was not because of the theft, but what was in the front seat…crackers. Because the old VW bug had become a 2nd home for mice, the couple had placed crackers on the front seat, laced with rat poison. The police were desperately searching for the perp because of the danger to himself.
Point: This is so like us! Many people turn and run from God thinking they are ok, all the while when God is trying to rescue them from themselves. To be in the “will of God” you must be saved! Salvation is the first step in all change.

2) Sacrifice
Romans 12:1-2:
1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

What does that look like?
It is said that on his retreat from Greece after his great military expedition there, King Xerxes boarded a Phoenician ship along with a number of his Persian troops. But a fearful storm came up, and the captain told Xerxes there was no hope unless the ship's load was substantially lightened. The king turned to his fellow Persians on deck and said, "It is on you that my safety depends. Now let some of you show your regard for your king." A number of the men bowed to Xerxes and threw themselves overboard! Lightened of its load, the ship made it safely to harbor. Xerxes immediately ordered that a golden crown be given to the pilot for preserving the king's life -- then ordered the man beheaded for causing the loss of so many Persian lives!

Xerxes was a mad man! Yet his men were yielded to him even to the point of death.

You and I are to be yielded to God. Our bodies are to be yielded to him. That is our sacrifice.
• A yielded mind – are my thoughts given over to God?
• A yielded body – Is all my lust and passion and attractions given over to God?
• A yielded emotion – All that frustrates me, all my anger, all my worry – given to God?
This is the will of God that we sacrifice ourselves to him.

Point: When looking for the will of God, start with sacrificing your needs for HIS will.

3) Spirit-controlled:
Eph. 5:17-21:
17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

We are called to filled with the Spirit. See it there in verse 18? This isn’t the Baptism of, (that’s at salvation) or being sealed by, (again salvation)…this is in the present tense. Its to be done daily. Notice we are not to filled with other things – like being under control of wine. (v. 17) Being drunk with wine means to be controlled by it in speech, body, mind, and emotions. We’ve all seen someone who has been there. We are to be filled with the Spirit. We can do nothing on our own as Christians. We are like empty gloves. Not able to lift anything, not able to do anything at all. But fill us with the Spirit! Look out. The results are in the verses to follow – Notice:
• Singing and playing music to God - v.19
• Giving thanks for who God is and what he has done – v.20
• Humbly submitting to others and God – v.21

Point – Being filled with the Spirit is God’s will. It pours out of us in this way: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and self-control…(Gal. 5:22-24)

Knowing God’s will isn’t some great mystery. It begins by being Saved. It continues by Sacrificing our bodies to God. The knowing of God’s will comes by being Spirit-filled…and that is just the beginning. Next week, 3 more…