Your Will Be Done On Earth As It Is In Heaven
Nathanael Szobody on Ephesians 1:9-11 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,
God’ will is indeed a mystery, but he is making it known to us! When we pray that his will be done we are asking that what he plans to do for all creation might be realized through us according to his revealed plan.
I say revealed plan because what he wants us to know of it, and all that we need to know of it, has been revealed. This revelation was made in Christ and we continue to understand it better as we grow in faith in Jesus.
As was explained in the first phrase of the prayer, Our father in heaven, we are addressing God in the context of a close relationship with him, and we are told to address him in this way to develop that relationship.
So when we pray for God’s will to be done we are to immediately ask ourselves, “what is the will of our father in heaven?”
The passage from Ephesians tells us that his will is to unite all people to himself. This is his purpose and plan for all of creation; to dwell with his people.
The quality of this presence is the same love that is seen in Christ’s passion–and it had to be so, in order that we might be united with it. Out of this we get two applications of God’s will.
The first is the grand plan to unite all with himself through the sacrifice of his son; that is, to have a personal, eternal communion with man in a greater sense than what was enjoyed by Adam and eve. Of this will we believers are an integral part, having already been made one with him in Christ.
The second aspect is God’s particular will for the individual believer, which is the same in essence as the first, for it is a working out of it. We are told that it is God’s will that we by sanctified (I Thessalonians 4:3.), that we rejoice, pray, and give thanks at all times. For essentially these are all a part of dwelling in the presence of God’s love. If one wants to know the will of God let him read the book of James where there is a thorough explanation of how one should strive to live the justified life. Living this unity with him and fulfilling the prayer that his will be done is the life of the believer characterized by love and good works. (For a detailed exposition on the life of Godly works see Bubba’s blog).
As for particular decision-making there is much freedom for the Christian to apply godly wisdom as to how he should best glorify God by loving him and others. God’s will is not meant to be decoded, rather it is meant to be trusted and followed insofar as he has revealed it. Beyond that we simply ask that it be done.
Comments ( 6 )
I spend so much time attempting to decode God's will in my life that I completely pass over applying and trusting in His commands. I have a sneaky suspission that if I spent more time trusting and following the explicit commands he has provided, I would quite naturally discover that I was indeed living out God's will in my life.
A very convicting post! Thanks man.
It is so difficult for me to find words to encourage you, because I am not in your place and don't know the situation first hand. So my encouragement is that you endure, and find joy in it.
Luke 21:19:
19"By your endurance you will gain your lives."
Romans 5:3-4:
[3] More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, [4] and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,
Romans 15:4:
[4]For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:5:
[5]May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,
II Corinthians 6:4:
[4]but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities,
Colossians 1:11:
[11]May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy,
Hebrews 10:36:
[36]For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.
Hebrews 12:1:
[1]Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
Revelation of John 3:10:
[10]"Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth."
Revelation of John 13:10:
[10]If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes;if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain.Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.
Revelation of John 14:12:
[12]Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
Thank you also, Rob, for those passages. I hope those are a help to you Erzsebet. I would encourage you to read them before considering my thoughts below, as it is the Word of God that has the power to heal and strengthen you. My words are only a feeble attempt of a friend to encourage you.
I don't know why God allows some people to endure much harder trials than others. In his sovereignty he has continually brought you to him in prayer as you plead with him to understand his will. It is easy for me to say the things that I do about trusting in God's will when I myself have not experienced anything as difficult as a brain tumor. So I can only show you what is said in scripture.
In James 1:2-4 it is written "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
We know that when we are in the middle of a painful situation it is very difficult to hear someone tell us to count it all joy. Certainly we do not feel happy. But the joy of Christ is not a feeling of happiness all the time, but a willful acceptance of what he has given us in our lives because we know that it will produce the fruit of holiness.
You say that you bargain with God and promise to be a better Christian. According to this passage it is by this suffering itself that God is making you a better Christian. You did not save yourself; Christ saved you by his suffering and death, and by uniting you to himself. Just as you were incapable of saving yourself, so you are incapable of making yourself a better Christian. Only God can do this, and he choses suffering to do it.
In Philippians 3:8-10 the apostle Paul writes: "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith