The Will of God – Part 2
August 24, 2003
Dear Friends,
Second Peter 3:9 tells us “The Lord is…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Yet, we know that people perish every day by the thousands. This brings us back to the question from last week: Wouldn’t you think that if God “willed” it, whatever “it” was would be an automatic? In other words, if an all powerful being willed that something be done, doesn’t it, by definition, have to be done.
We have to look at the will of God on two levels. The first level is what God is going to do regardless of what we do. For example, He is going to bring about a kingdom on this earth and fulfill his promises to the patriarchs no matter what we decide to do. This is sometimes referred to as God’s Sovereign Will. The prophet Daniel refers to God’s Sovereign will when he says “And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?” (Dan. 4:35)
Yet, it is part of God’s Sovereign will that mankind has the exercise of choice or, as it is styled, “free will.” This choice is, of course, restricted by God’s will and the natural laws that He ordained to govern this planet. However, because we have unlimited choices within the natural framework provided by God’s will and natural laws, we have “free will” to exercise those choices. When the Bible says things like “The Lord is…not willing that any should perish”, it should be understood by the reader that man has a choice in the matter. God wants all of mankind to serve Him but at the same time allows us the choice to serve Him or not to serve Him with the resulting consequences for each chosen path. God granting us choices — including the wrong choices — limits God’s will in such things as His will that none should perish. In a natural example, I might be willing to have you over to my house for dinner, but if you do not accept my invitation, my willingness does not result in the event. Likewise, God wills for us to accept His gift of salvation, but also gives us the right to turn it down.
The key here is to get the two wills – God’s will for us and our free will — to be in alignment. The closer our will is to God’s will and the more we subject our will to God’s will, the better off we will be. Take an alignment of automobile tires as an example. When you car’s tires are all parallel, they are said to be properly aligned. The more they are not in alignment, the worse the car rides and behaves. If the car is too far out of alignment, it can become dangerous to operate and can result in a catastrophe. We are not too different. We are seldom in perfect alignment with God. The more we are out of alignment with God’s will, the more difficult it is to steer down the straight and narrow path. It is the commandments of God that tell us what God’s will us. Obedience is the key. Speaking of God’s commandments, Solomon said “When you walk, they will guide you; when you sleep, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you.” (Prov. 6:22)
We are born out of alignment. Only by understanding God’s will and humbling ourselves before Him can we get ourselves in alignment. We have to be like the Psalmist when he said “”I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.”(Ps. 40:8) We also need to have the determination counseled by Paul when he said “”So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” (Eph. 5:17)
God’s will is ultimately going to be done on earth. Yet, for the time being, we have the choice to make God’s will a part of our lives or not.
Have a great week!
