Discovering God’s Will

Seven Things God Expects of Every Person

Genesis 22

 

Pastor Craig Ledbetter

Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland

28 March, 2010  AM

www.biblebc.com

 

I.       Introduction (Ephesians 5:17)

 

A.     “What is God’s Will for My Life?”

B.     That’s THE question everyone should ask. That is the question to answer too!

C.     What if God has a design for your life, and you are missing it?

 

1.      We all know that if someone was a very talented pianist, and instead was locked into the rut of being a pothole filler, and never got the chance to develop their abilities, we would call that tragic, and a wasted life

2.      We all know that if someone could really sing, and would be world famous for their vocal abilities, but instead worked in a McDonalds, and never got “discovered”; it would be tragic, and a waste for sure

3.      We all would agree that if someone was designed to run, and climb, and scale mountains, but instead crawled, and just sat, and never went anywhere – we would call that a tragic waste

4.      The same is true for Christians, who have been given something far more valuable than some talent, or ability – every believer has been given the Holy Spirit of God, so that they can do something miraculous, something infinite, something far greater than they ever could before – and it would be tragic to never fulfil that destiny!

 

D.     I am speaking about doing the will of God!

E.      Last week I tried to express just how fantastic the will of God really is. How great is its design

F.      This morning, I want to take one final look at the Will of God, and help you discover your part in it. For there is only one will of God, and we all should live it!

 

II.    Message

 

A.     The Facts About the Will of God (Genesis 22) – As Seen in Abraham’s Life

 

1.      God’s Will is Perfect - Absolutely Perfect (22:1; Psalm 18:30) And God is going to prove it

                                                                                                                                                                                                      

a.       God’s will was perfect the day God called him out of Ur of the Chaldees

b.      And it was perfect when He asked him to sacrifice his only son

c.       Faith is not believing God simply because what He is doing makes perfect sense to you right now, but because it is HE that is working, and you know that He cannot fail!

d.      In other words, you believe God and trust God, because OF God!

e.       His will is an extension of Himself! Neither one can fail!

f.       I wish you believed that! But it is true, whether you believe it or now! No matter what!

g.       Abraham had to learn it

h.      When you start to believe this, then life starts taking on a whole different colour!

i.        You will love each and every day you live, not because it is easy, nor because it has no valleys, but because it truly is a gift from God for you to experience!

j.        Listen, We were Saved to Do God’s Will, not our Own (1Peter 4:2,3; 2Co 5:14,15)

 

1)      Doing our own will has ONLY gotten us into trouble, and into sin

2)      If you are born again…

 

a)      You should not live the rest of your life to the lusts of men in Hollywood, but to doing the will of God.

b)      That is your highest calling: discovering, and fulfilling God’s design for your life!

 

3)      If Jesus Christ truly died in your place…

 

a)      Then you should not henceforth (from this moment on) live unto yourselves (our own will, our own plans), but unto HIM, which died and rose again!

b)      The death, burial, and resurrection earned Jesus the place of Lord of your life (Philp 2:5-11). That means, the One who has the authority to direct your steps!

 

4)      Hey! Every Christian has been saved with a Purpose, and the Bible says that purpose is great! Greater than anything you could do on your own, no matter how talented you may be!

 

a)      Moses was second to Pharaoh, but that was NOTHING compared to what God saved Him to be – Moses the Lawgiver!

b)      Saul of tarsus was on his way to being one of the greatest Jewish theologians of all time, but that was NOTHING compared to what God saved him to be – Paul the Apostle!

c)      Abraham was nothing until he started to obey God’s will for his life! No matter what that was!

 

2.      God’s Will is Tough (Genesis 22:2-4)

 

a.       Abraham offering Isaac shows just how tough it can be.

 

1)      This was the hardest thing Abraham ever attempted!

2)      Isaac was not a toy, or a possession to throw away

3)      Isaac was Abraham’s only son, and Abraham was 113 years old here

 

b.      Haven’t you found God’s will to be tough most of the time? I have!

 

1)      Noah building a foolish Ark for 120 years in the face of such persecution and derision was tough

2)      Jonah offering repentance to his most hated enemies – offering them a chance to be saved from the wrath to come - that was HARD to do

3)      Joseph marrying Mary knowing that it would look suspicious, and that it was hard to believe anyway about her baby being the Messiah – it was hard!

 

c.       I don’t know when God’s will is easy to do, but to a soccer player, it is rarely easy to make a goal either! Yet he strives for such a goal, no matter how tough it may be!

 

3.      God’s Will is for Worship (Genesis 22:5-6) Not Profit

 

a.       Whatever God asks you to do will honour Him.

b.      Even if you seem to fail!

c.       Designing God’s will is up to God

d.      Doing God’s will is up to you.

e.       And only when you are actually doing God’s will, fulfilling God’s purpose for your life, are you actually honouring Him, and worshipping Him! When you obey Jesus Christ, and just follow Him, and do what he says to do in His word, that’s when you are worshipping Him

f.       And, obedience is better than all the singing, praising, praying, giving you could ever do in a 1,000 lifetimes (1Sam 15:22)!

g.       Has God asked you to do something?

 

1)      Witness to your Dad and Mom? tell them they must be born again and tell them how

2)      Humble yourself and apologize to someone?

3)      Gone back and made amends to someone

4)      Gotten into a church ministry, and gotten busy serving the Lord where HE wants you – not where you feel talented or able?

5)      Surrendered to becoming a pastor, a pastor’s wife, or a missionary?

 

h.      If you really want to worship Almighty God, then obey Him! No matter what he asks of you

i.        THIS is what Identifies You as a Christian (Mat 12:46-50; 7:21; 1Jn 2:17; Rom 12:2)

 

1)      What you DO identifies you as a Christian – as a Christ-follower

 

a)      Not a list of beliefs, or a creed you can recite, or a building that you enter every week

b)      And not doing good deeds – NO!

c)      It is when we do God’s will, THEN are we seen as belonging to Jesus

d)      When we are disobedient to God’s will, we are an oxy-moron – a contradiction!

 

2)      A person doing God’s will is a success! No matter WHAT God’s will may be! No matter how small may be their task!

3)      But a Christian ignoring, or disobeying God’s will is a failure, no matter what accomplishments they may attain, and no matter how great may be their earthly honour!

4)      Albert Einstein – failure

5)      The Rockefeller family – worth over $300 billion dollars – failures

6)      Bill Gates of Microsoft – dominates the PC world – a failure

7)      All the soccer greats put together – all failures if they are not doing God’s will for them

 

4.      God’s Will Stretches Our Faith (Genesis 22:7-12; Hebrews 11:17-19)

 

a.       Always does

b.      God always calls us to go beyond what we can do, trusting that it will be HE who enables us (1Thes 5:24)

c.       The principle is that God’s will always involves more of GOD than it does us

d.      What do I mean by that?

e.       When God calls us to do something, He always enables us to do it

f.       Faith is not doing what I know I can do – faith is knowing God will do what HE can do!

g.       Abraham knew somehow …

 

1)      That GOD would provide HIMSELF the answer to the problem in his life

2)      That God would work everything out for good

3)      That God would even resurrect Isaac

 

h.      Why could Abraham trust God so far? Because he knew that God was dependable!

i.        You Can Trust God’s Will Because it is Bound Tightly With

 

1)      His Promises to never fail you (Deut 31:6; Heb 13:5)

2)      His Faithfulness to his promises (Hebrews 10:23) - dependability

3)      His Love toward you (Romans 8:35-39) – it is not flippant, nor shallow

4)      His Presence (Psalm 23:4) – it is real. The person of the Holy Spirit in your life

5)      His Provision (Philp 4:19) – abundantly above all that we could ask or think

6)      His Blessings – God never leads to the defeat of anything but your pride (Ps 128:1)

7)      His Deliverance/Salvation (James 1:18; 2Peter 3:9)

 

j.        That is the testimony of absolutely everyone in the Scriptures

k.      It is the testimony of my life

l.        AND it is the testimony of every believer who has ever endeavoured to discover and obey God’s purpose for their life!

 

5.      God’s Will Ought to be Known, by Everybody! It really is Possible for anyone to KNOW God’s Perfect Will – and I will show it to you!

 

a.       Quit thinking you just have to struggle through life like a blind person

b.      Not if you are born again! Not if your eyes have been opened!

c.       All you have to do is WANT to know God’s will, and be willing to do it, no matter what

d.      Psalm 143:10

e.       Psalm 25:4, 12; 27:11,12

f.       Romans 12:1,2 – you can even prove it!

g.       David knew God’s will for his life! Moses knew it! Jesus knew it! Noah knew it! Jonah knew it!

h.      You can know it! And I mean KNOW it! Beyond the shadow of a doubt!

i.        But you have to have no limits on God’s will – not restrictions

 

1)      Anything but a missionary

2)      I’ll do anything except preach

3)      I’ll do anything except knock on a door and be a soul-winner

4)      I’ll do anything except put up with HIM

5)      I’ll do anything except go through sickness and disasters

6)      Nope! Can’t say any of that

7)      The resolve of the Christian is, “No my will, but thine be done!”

 

6.      Sadly, God’s Will Can be Missed

 

a.       How? How can that be true?

b.      God’s will does not just automatically happen in your life! God’s will is not sovereign!

c.       Because God’s Will is dependent upon some things.

 

1)      My Faith in God’s Promises – am I willing to trust God’s word? Most people blow God’s will for their lives because they really have no confidence in God at all!

 

a)      Take away their credit cards

b)      Take away their social welfare

c)      Take away their job, their health, their friends

d)      And most people will have nothing

e)      But a real Christian never loses anything, when they still have the Lord Jesus

 

2)      My Trust in God’s Love – do I believe He really loves me?

 

a)      You and I can blow God’s will by not resting in God’s love and care, and thinking we have to do something to fix the trials we may be going through.

b)      Too many people give up on God because they forget He loves them! And that those valleys do not change that love

 

3)      My Choice – am I willing to choose to do whatever God asks of me? I can blow God’s will by wrong choices.

 

a)      I can choose to marry the wrong person.

b)      I can choose to have the wrong friends and influences

c)      I can choose to disobey God’s word

 

4)      My Heart (Ephesians 6:6) – is my heart in it, or am I just dragging my feet, and only half-heartedly attempting to do what God asks of me? I can blow God’s will with a bad attitude, and most of us do!

5)      My Patience (Hebrews 10:36) – am I committed to see it through? I can blow God’s perfect will because of impatience

 

d.      I believe the saddest people are those who have never known the life lived in the middle of God’s will!

 

B.     The Revelation of the Will of God

 

1.      What Is God’s Will for Me? What is MY Purpose? I am going to tell you!

2.      No, I’m not going to tell you who you should marry, or where you should live, or what college to go to, or what car to buy. Nope! None of that stuff really matters. Not in comparison to what I am going to show you this morning!

3.      We are commanded to know and understand what God’s will is, and do you know what? God doesn’t leave us hanging. He shows us clearly seven things He expects of every person breathing today!

                                                                                                 

a.       Be Saved (1 Tim 2:4; 2 Pet 3:9)! Everyone must begin here!

 

1)      The most frustrating part of Christianity is trying to convince people they are in trouble

2)      And that they should care about being in trouble with God

3)      God’s will is NOT that ANY end up in hell (Ezek 33:11)

 

b.      Be Saturated/filled with the Holy Spirit of God (Eph 5:17,18).

 

1)      A surrendering of your life to the work and authority of God over your will and plans.

2)      People want a warm, fuzzy, good feeling

3)      But the filling of the Holy Spirit gives power to obey God AS we obey!

4)      If you lived on top of Mt Everest, and got very little oxygen, and could only walk 100 metres a day before collapsing from exhaustion, what do you think you would do if you could all of a sudden experience 100% oxygen? You would seek to live where you could constantly breathe pure oxygen!

5)      The same is true with the filling of the Holy Spirit

6)      In your flesh you can do nothing

7)      But by yielding to the power of the Person of the Holy Spirit in your life, you can do ALL things through Christ!

                                                                                                                                                                                        

c.       Be Satisfied/thankful in all things (Eph 5:19,20; 1 Thes 5:18)

 

1)      This is the will of God

2)      The greatest things happen in the life of a thankful person – not of a bitter and angry person

3)      If God is in control, then the least you can do is start seeing everything as good!

4)      Somebody said this, “One of the marks of spiritual maturity is the quiet confidence that God is in control - without the need to understand why He does what He does.”

5)      Just getting to the place where, no matter what is happening, God is doing something awesome! And you are just grateful He loves you, and includes you in His programme!

                                                                          

d.      Be Submissive as a SERVANT in everything you do (Eph 6:5-8), remembering "ye serve the Lord Christ” (Col 3:23,24).

 

1)      Everyone wants God’s will to be for them to be in charge, or to get the glory

2)      God’s will is always to make servants out of us

 

a)      David was a shepherd boy first before God made him king

b)      Jesus was a servant of all, before He comes one day to rule over all

c)      Paul’s greatest praise of himself was that he was a SERVANT of Jesus Christ

 

3)      Do you serve ONLY yourself? What an absolute waste!

4)      The will of God is for you to serve, give, wait on, assist, help others – even though they don’t pay you, or they take advantage of you, or they don’t thank you!

5)      Because one day, GOD will thank you, and make it all up to you!

 

e.       Be Sanctified (1 Thes 4:3-7).

 

1)      It means to be holy

2)      Sanctification means that we separate our-selves from sins and temptations so that we can be holy and clean objects in God's hands (2 Tim 2:21).

3)      This involves every Christian coming away from all the activities and influences that hinder us from serving the Lord with our whole heart (2 Cor 6:17,18).

4)      It is God’s will for me to depart from iniquity (2Tim 2:19)

                                               

f.       Be ready to sometimes Suffer (1Pet 3:14-17; 4:19).

 

1)      Going against the flow

2)      All that live godly shall suffer persecution, embarrassment, mockery

3)      Be ready for it

4)      Jesus said, rejoice and be exceeding glad (Mt 5:10-12)

 

g.       Be a Soul-winner (John 4:31-35; Acts 1:8)

 

1)      Christians think the Christian life is only about coming to church

2)      The Christian life is about FRUIT

3)      If all the people in the world were just consumers

 

a)      They just lived, and worked, and played, and collected things, and bought houses and cars, and lands, and toys…

b)      But never got married, never got pregnant, never had a family, never produced any real fruit…

c)      Then our species would die off in less than 100 years! Period!

d)      The only reason why humanity is still around is because people are still having families and babies – they produce fruit!

 

4)      The same with Christianity!

 

a)      If everyone is just takers of the blessings of God

b)      Only praying about themselves, and their wants and needs

c)      And never seeking the lost, and preaching the cross, and compelling people to get born again

d)      Then Christianity would die out in less than 100 years as well

e)      The only reason why Christianity is still here is because some Christians win souls!

f)       Just think what this world would be like if every Christian won a soul every year?

g)      The entire population of this world would be won to Christ in less that 60 years!

 

h.      Did you know that doing all of that actually blesses YOU?! Actually benefits YOU!?

i.        How? And Why?

 

1)      Because it puts you directly in line with the power of the Spirit of God

2)      Because it will end up being easier than if you lived in rebellion

3)      Because there are great blessings upon servants in God’s kingdom

 

4.      The Question is, WILL YOU OBEY God’s Will?

5.      If you ever get to obeying those seven things, all the other areas of life will fall into place! Absolutely Guaranteed!

 

III. Conclusion

 

A.     What if God has a design for your life, and you are missing it? Tragic!

B.     Oh I wish you knew God’s will for your life? Life is more than the job you are working, or the family you are raising, or the bills you are paying!

C.     We were Saved to Do God’s Will, not our Own

D.     Doing the Will of God Identifies You as a Christian

E.      We Have Learned from Abraham in Genesis 22:

 

1.      God’s Will is Perfect - Absolutely Perfect (22:1; Psalm 18:30) And God is going to prove it

2.      God’s Will is Tough (Genesis 22:2-4)

3.      God’s Will is for Worship (Genesis 22:5-6) Not Profit

4.      God’s Will Stretches Our Faith (Genesis 22:7-12; Hebrews 11:17-19)

5.      God’s Will Ought to be Known! It really is Possible to KNOW God’s Perfect Will

6.      God’s Will Can be Missed

 

F.      So, What is God’s Will?

 

1.      Be Saved (1 Tim 2:4; 2 Pet 3:9)! Everyone must begin here!

2.      Be Saturated/filled with the Holy Spirit of God (Eph 5:17,18).

3.      Be Satisfied/thankful in all things (Eph 5:19,20; 1 Thes 5:18)

4.      Be Submissive as a SERVANT in everything you do (Eph 6:5-8), remembering "ye serve the Lord Christ” (Col 3:23,24).

5.      Be Sanctified (1 Thes 4:3-7).

6.      Be ready to sometimes Suffer (1Pet 3:14-17; 4:19).

7.      Be a Soul-winner (John 4:31-35; Acts 1:8)