Every Christian wants to do God’s will. But sometimes we don’t know what God’s will is for our lives. Our old desires from our life before Christ can get in the way. How can we embrace God’s will and work with Him in our world
Jesus sacrificed His life to pay for our freedom in Christ. The Bible calls us to obedience and surrender to God’s will. We can live for God’s glory when we live a life that reflects the redemption we have through Christ.
1. How Can I Know God’s Will?
Some Christians ask if we can know God’s will. It’s unclear to us what God’s will is and how we can work with Him. Theologians and scholars suggest three lenses to see God’s will.
The first lens of God’s will is His sovereign will. Even the Bible does not reveal all of God’s sovereign will. We know the basics, like the plan of salvation throughout history. But there are things God is doing that we are not aware of.
The next lens of God’s will is His proclaimed will in the Scriptures. These are the things we know are God’s will. Examples of these are God’s will that everyone be saved (2 Peter 3:9).
We also know that God’s will for our lives is that we are being continually sanctified in our lifestyle, being made holy in our thoughts, speech, and actions (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8). Paul specifically talks about sexual purity, but we can apply this principle to our whole life.
In another place, Paul says that we should always give thanks to God in every circumstance as part of God’s will (1 Thessalonians 5:18). God’s will is also that we do good to others (1 Peter 2:15).
2. Continuing God’s Will at the Cross
God’s will is a big topic. The whole Bible continues to reveal God’s will in phases. The further you read from Old Testament to New Testament, the more God’s will is made plain.
One way to see God’s will as a big theme in Scripture is to follow salvation history. This shows how God began in the garden of Eden with what He wanted for His creation. When that didn’t happen, God was not surprised. He had a plan.
God reacted to rebellion and sin by raising up a man, Abraham, to choose a people and nation of His own, Israel. That also did not work the way it should have. Out of the nation of Israel, God raised up a Messiah, one Person chosen by Him to finally accomplish His will for a people of His own.
This man was named Jesus. His name means “Yahweh saves.” Jesus is God in the flesh. He came to begin God’s Kingdom and save people out of their sins into His kingdom. He taught us how to live for God.
Part of His mission on earth was to become a sacrifice in our place. He died on the Cross and then three days later was raised from the dead. This showed that Jesus took authority over sin, death, Hell, and the grave. He gave us who choose to follow Him as His disciples, have freedom from sin, eternal life, and a personal relationship with Him.
Because of Jesus’s death on the Cross, we can know God’s will and be partners with Him in accomplishing it. Jesus taught us to pray, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).
3. Surrender to God’s Will
In the garden of Gethsemane the night before Jesus died on the Cross, He asked the Father three times to let this cup of judgment pass from Him (Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46). But Jesus and the Father knew this was the only way for Him to bring us salvation.
Jesus surrendered to God’s will by saying, “Not My will but Yours be done.” Just as Jesus surrendered to the Father’s will, we need to surrender ourselves to God’s will.
It is our joy to search out God’s will and commit ourselves to doing it (Romans 12:1-2). Part of the renewing of our minds is to know what God’s will is in every situation. We can do this through prayer, reading God’s word which reveals God’s will, and growing in godliness.
When we surrender to God’s will, we can learn more about it and put it into practice. Through prayer, obedience to God’s Word, and growing in godliness, we can surrender even more.
4. My Sacrifice and Obedience to God’s Will
The more we learn about God’s will, the more we need to embrace it and surrender more of ourselves and our lives to fulfill God’s will for this world, our communities, and our lives.
It is not easy to surrender to God’s will. Sometimes we will go through trials and persecution. We need wisdom and discernment to know if we are doing something contrary to God’s will as we go through hard times, or if this is part of God’s will to stretch our faith.
Christians face three enemies in this world. The first is the devil and the world that opposes God. The second is our flesh, those desires we used to have that still creep up. Our third enemy is the temptations of our desires and the world. Jesus left us in the world to change it for His glory. This is also part of God’s will.
James says we can face our trials with joy not because we like suffering and pain that comes with trials but because we know God is working a greater purpose through them (James 1:2-8).
We want to get out of trials like anyone else. Sometimes we try to work through trials on our own without God’s help. But it’s in surrendering and obedience to God’s will even in trials that pleases God.
5. Living out God’s Will in My Life
God has a will for your personal life. Jeremiah tells us that God’s will is for your peace, hope, and future (Jeremiah 29:11). God wants the best for you, as long as it moves you toward godliness (1 Timothy 6:6-8).
God has given you a mission to accomplish for Him. This requires a lot of personal seeking of God’s will for your life. It will be different for you than anyone else. Do not be envious of other Christians. God made you different because His personal will for you is different.
God has a plan to make you more like Jesus (Romans 8:28-30). He wants you to show people how much He loves them and wants them to be part of His family. Will you stumble along the way? Probably. But you should be getting better and better at being more like Jesus.
The Bible promises us a blessing when we do God’s will (Hebrews 10:36; 1 John 2:17). Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit into our lives to help us do God’s will. Trust His counsel and do whatever He puts in front of you and you are well on your way to seeing God’s will happen.
Author Bio:
Jonathan Srock is a quadriplegic ordained minister in the Assemblies of God. You can find his books and blog posts at JonathanSrock.com. When he’s not writing, doing Bible studies, or preaching, Jonathan enjoys watching baseball and football, spending time with his family, and reading.