The will of God

« Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)

What is God’s will for our lives? If we already have a clue because it has been revealed to us, so much the better; if we are still searching, we need to look harder. For the one who does not know God’s will for his/her life is like a ship that is adrift on the high seas. S/he is tossed about in all directions and has lost complete control of his bearings.

Even though we do not have a say in the matter, we were created for a purpose. We were created for God’s pleasure and not to follow our own inclinations – whims and fancies. When God calls us He wants to use us to perform His will and when we surrender our will to Him, He can use us mightily for the accomplishment of His works here on earth.

Isaiah beheld the glory of God as it was revealed to him in the temple; thereafter he willingly took on an assignment that God entrusted to him. “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send and who will go for us?” And I said, ‘Here am I send me!” (Isaiah 6:8) Prior to this revelation Isaiah could not see his way clear. It was when king Uzziah died that he had an encounter with God. Is any obstacle standing in your way and preventing you from seeing your way clear in the things of God? What has blinded you or is holding you back from accessing your rightful claim to a place in His kingdom? The opportunities abound, the invitation is open-ended; what could slow down the commitment that we have to make? We can no longer continue to put it off. 

Our willingness is not tied to the immediate gains that could be derived from our attitude. We cannot bargain with God on this matter either. When he says ‘go,’ we must go. “…go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19) Whom have you taught the love of God and His Word? The first step begins with our willingness to serve, without counting the costs.

Duty bound, we should be ready and willing to carry out God’s assignment, whatever it takes. One thing is certain though, He would see us through. While making reference to Jesus the psalmist declares: “Then I said, ‘Here I am, I have come – it is written about me in the scroll. I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:7-8) Again we read in Psalm 143 verse 10 alluding to Jesus: “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”

Nobody that has trodden this earth is reputed to have complied with God’s will more than His Son would have. At the age of 12, Jesus already knew what constituted His Father’s will. Once on returning home from Jerusalem his earthly parents lost sight of him and had to conduct a search back in Jerusalem for him. “After three days they found him in the temple’s court, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.” (Luke 2:46) When they questioned him about his behaviour his response was. “Why are you searching for me? Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49) In other words, Jesus was saying ‘first things first. I had to take care of my Father’s business.’ His mission on earth was purpose-driven. “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.”(John 6:38)

When God revealed himself to Abraham and asked him to relocate ‘to a land I will show you,’ we are told: “So Abram left, as the Lord had told him;…” (Genesis 12:1,4) He willingly, without hesitation got all his belongings together and was on his way, leaving family and friends behind. On another occasion, God required of him to “walk before me and be blameless.” (Genesis 17:1) Total commitment is what God desires from us in the mission field.

The height of Jesus’ desire to fulfil the will of God is manifested during the moments of mental torture that he traversed as he approached the cross. He had announced to his disciples that he was going to face a cruel death as part of his mission on earth but that did not go down well with Peter who pulled him aside to rebuke him in these terms: “Never Lord! This shall never happen to you.” (Matthew 19:22) But Jesus said to him, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” (verse 23). Peter would have become a hindrance to the realisation of Jesus’ mission and the accomplishment of God’s will, if Jesus had listened to him.

The one who taught his disciples to pray “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” cannot during his last lap in the course of his journey to the cross do otherwise. In these dying minutes, his resolve was challenged; “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39) Then as the tension heightened, Jesus became decisive: “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” (Matthew 26:42)

It is important that we go to the very end, not looking back. It is a phase in our lives that we have to go through before we can claim “it is finished.” Jesus prayed to the Father, “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father save me from this hour? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” (John 12:27)

Isaiah, the prophet had prophesied: “Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer…,” (Isaiah 53:10) Jesus was obedient to His Father unto death because he found great pleasure in doing his will - for our sake. He alone could pay the price of sin.

God’s will for our lives is a supreme call that all should heed if we want to live a life of plenitude. Have you found out yours?