Good News: God’s will: a two-fold revelation

Anytime you find employment it’s always a good idea to know what the boss expects of you. A good boss will lay out his plan for employees and explain the company’s benefits. He’ll project his plans and how you can be part of them. God does that for us when we become believers in Jesus.

The Bible speaks to two areas of God’s will; the revealed will of God for all humanity that is found in the scriptures, and then there’s the personal will of God that is specific for each believer that is discovered through prayer, Bible reading, and listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. God’s revealed will is that everyone would have eternal life. Jesus said in John’s gospel “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. He also said, “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” (NIV) That’s why the Gospel is called the Good News, it’s God’s will that everyone be saved. You and I have a major role to play in making that happen in our little corner of the world.

God has also revealed that He wants us to defend the gospel and have a good reputation among unbelievers. The apostle Peter wrote, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, but do this with gentleness and respect.” (NIV) Defending the gospel doesn’t mean you become a theologian, it simply means you are willing to tell people what Jesus has done for them.

The second part of the two-fold will of God is His personal will for each believer. That’s discovered by taking the time to get orders from headquarters, seeking God in prayer and getting quiet enough to hear His leading. Scripture doesn’t reveal to us whether it’s God’s personal will for our life to buy that house, move across country, marry that person, or any other big decision. In those matters we must pray and seek God’s will and move according to what He will show us. Phillip the evangelist heard that still, small voice of the Spirit in Acts 8:29 when a caravan carrying an Ethiopian official came by and the Spirit said, “Go join yourself to that chariot.” Phillip did, and he led that man to salvation in Christ. There were no thundering voices from heaven, no fireworks, just a silent yet firm Holy prompting that you and I can experience today if we will take the time to hear his leading. But discovering God’s personal will for your life will be much easier when you obey His revealed will in the Bible.

Romans 12:2 says, “No longer imitate the behavior and customs of this Christ rejecting world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Only then will you be able to discern God’s perfect and pleasing will for you.” (RMV) If we neglect reading His revealed will in the scriptures, or worse, deliberately ignore it, it’s unlikely we will get the answers we need for discovering His personal will for us.

Oh, how good God is to us by giving us His word and His Spirit and wanting us to know His will for our lives!

Ken Staley is the pastor of Faith Church of Pleasant Grove 9:30 a.m. and Harrisville Methodist Church 11 a.m. Both are Global Methodist congregations. You can text Ken at 918-852-9797.