FINDING GOD’S WILL

Psalm 143

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness. 2 And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified. 3 For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead. 4 There-fore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.

5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.6 I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.

7 Hear me speedily, O Lord: my spirit faileth: hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit. 8 Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. 9 Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.

10 Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness. 11 Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name's sake: for thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble. 12 And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.

Some will read this Psalm and say it is about a man who is barely Surviving; I see it as about a man who is on the brink of Thriving.

If you’ve never cried out to God like this man – your relationship with the Lord is not maturing.

This Psalm reveals a man who is Seeking not Sinking; Resting not Resisting.

What does God want me to do?

·       How much should I rely on good old common sense?

·       What if the Bible doesn't say anything about my particular situation?

·       What about when there seem to be many options or no good option?

Common decisions:

·       Should I lease or purchase a car, home; where should I go on vacation?

·       Selecting a college, career, church; who to marry?

Heart wrenching decisions:

·       What should you do when your child strays?

·       Removing life support on a terminally ill loved one?

Our lives can be changed forever by one decision.

·       No committed Christian wants to choose outside of God’s best.

·       Is there a way to find out what God wants us to do in a given situation?

The methods are many. People try all kinds of ways to determine destiny’s.

·       Ancient Biblical methods: Fleeces (Gideon); Fasting; Casting lots; Dreams; Urim-thumam; Angelic revelation.

·       Secular methods:

­   Flipping coins (leaving it to the toss).

­   Feelings (if it feels good it must be okay).

­   Default (letting events or others decide).

­   Que sera sera (what will be will be).

­   Flow (taking the path of least resistance).

The consequence of our decisions can be extreme. We need a clear understanding of how God expects us to find His will.

I’m confident God doesn’t want us frustrated and defeated in the process of finding His will for our life. God has a clear, sure method of making His will known. He does not want us to miss what He has planned for us.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”

Why is it so frustrating? Because doing God’s will doesn’t come natural!

Galatians 5:17 “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.”

I want to share four steps that will guide us in finding God’s will for our life.

1.    DECIDE TO DEPEND ON GOD: Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ⁶In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Psalms 5:8 “Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness…make thy way straight before my face.”

Why do we need to trust God? Because…

·       He’s our creator.

·       He knows us better than we know ourselves.

·       He knows the end from the beginning.

·       He has never been taken by surprise.

·       He is all-powerful.

·       He is able to provide all we need.

·       He has our best interest in mind.

What does it mean to trust Him?

·       Trust means we will NOT depend on our exclusive insight (Prov 3:5).

·       We exhibit trust as we put into practice God’s revealed will.

King David wrote, “The LORD is my shepherd” (Ps 23:1). David knew that as he followed like a sheep, the Lord would lead like a Shepherd.

2.    VALUE WHAT GOD VALUES: In life, our guide is the Bible and it covers all the big issues. It contains everything we need to know about right thinking and right living (2 Tim 3:16-17).

God has revealed His will concerning primary life issues. Deut 29:29 “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

253 times God says “thou shalt not.”  This means “don’t go there.” Don’t lie, cheat, steal, covet, maim, murder, commit adultery, marry the wrong person, dishonor your parents, gossip, slander, etc...

1250 times God says “thou shalt,” which means “have a great time.” Be holy, be honest, be kind, be loving, be patient, be generous, be forgiving, be filled with the Spirit.

The Bible is full of clear direction for most of life’s decisions. The more familiar we are with God’s Word, the more quickly we will know what God wants us to do.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴ For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”

Psalms 119:89 “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven… ¹⁰⁵ Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path… ¹⁴⁰ Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it… ¹⁶⁰ Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.”

You CAN’T VALUE what God VALUES until you VALUE God. Dan 11:32 “The people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.”

3.    PRACTICE BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES: Many areas of life aren’t addressed by clear commands from God. That doesn't mean that we’re left entirely on our own. It’s in those areas that God offers “Principles of Life” to guide us.

For example, the Bible offers these concerning…

·       Angry men – Prov 22:24 “Make no friendship with an angry man ; and with a furious man thou shalt not go:” [29:22] “An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.”

·       Foolish persons – Prov 10:23 “It is as sport to a fool to do mischief:...”

·       A Lazy man – Prov 12:27 “The slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting:...”

·       The Scorner – Proverbs 22:10 “Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.”

These are only a few of the many principles that come from God's Word. Personal study and learning from gifted teachers will help us discover the biblical guide-lines we should implement in our lives.

4.    CONSULT CHRIST CENTERED COUNSEL:

Proverbs 27:9 “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.”

Proverbs 11:14 “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”

Ephesians 4:10-12 “He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) ¹¹And he gave some , apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; ¹²For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:”

SEVEN FACTS ABOUT GOD'S LOVE (Part 1)

Text: 1 John 4:7-21

The Bible says in numerous places that God loves us!

Jeremiah 31:3 “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee.”

Ephesians 2:4 “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, ⁵ Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) ⁶ And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:”

There are many today who talk about the love of God, but are strangers to the God of love. Many act as though God's Love is a type of cordial weak-ness; a sort of good-natured indulgence.

God's love is Foundational to His nature: The Bible makes 4 descriptive statements about God’s nature:

1.    “God is spirit” (John 4:24).

2.     “God is a consuming fire” (Heb 12:29).

3.    “God is light” (1 John 1:5)

4.    “God is love” (1 John 4:8).

1 John 4 is one those outstanding sections of Scripture that summarizes the principal facts of an important subject within the confines of a condensed portion of text.

Today, we'll begin examining Seven facts about “The Love of God!”

                                                             

1.    GOD IS LOVE (v 8, 16). “God is love.”

• On the throne of the universe is a God of perfect love. Every act of God, even His judgments, are a result of and guided by this central ingredient of His divine nature.

Verse 8 – Addresses the Essence of God’s love. “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”

Verse 16 – Addresses the Effect of God’s love. “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.”

Jamison, Faucet, Brown: “God is love” There is no Greek article to love, but to God; therefore we cannot translate it, “Love is God.” God is fundamentally and essentially LOVE: not merely “is loving.”

Romans 11:33, 36 “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! … For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.”

Proverbs 3:11-12 “My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; for whom the LORD loveth he correcteth;…”

2.    LOVE IS OF GOD (v 7). “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.”

• All that we know to be true of Love comes to us from God!  The phrase "is of" is a primary preposition denoting origin. In other words, God is the author of love! 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

⁴ Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, ⁵ Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; ⁶ Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; ⁷ Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. ⁸ Charity never faileth:

• If we are to experience pure (true) love, we must be born again! John 3:3-7, 15-17 “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ⁴ Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? ⁵ Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. ⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again… ¹⁵ That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  ¹⁷ For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

3.    WE ARE TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER (v 7, 11, 20). “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God;…Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another…If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”

John 15:12 “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”

John 13:35 “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

• The reason so many Christians do not get along with one another is because they choose to not practice the Love of God;…

Or it might be because…

4.    TO NOT LOVE IS TO NOT KNOW GOD (v 8). “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”

• “Knoweth not” implies “knoweth not now, and never knew God.” JFB
• “Knoweth not” implies this person has no true relationship with God; has no right views of him, and no correct feelings towards him. Barnes
• This verse says the loveless person is a person without God. A godless person is only able to practice a superficial level of love. The test of true love is revealed in the expression of that love.

CONCLUSION: God’s Love is…

• Undeserved: Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

•  Universal: John 3:16

•  Unfailing: John 13:1 “When Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.”

•  Unsearchable: Ephesians 3:19 “To know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge.”

•  Unequaled: 1 John 3:2 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”

•  Unselfish: John 15:13 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

•  Unrelenting: Jeremiah 31:3 “The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee.”