How To Determine God's Will

Paul wrote that we should understand what the will of God is for each of us (Eph. 5:17). 

First, God's will is found in his Word.  It begins with our being saved (Eph. 2:8).  Then we are to join a New Testament church (Acts 2:47) that is to be followed by biblical baptism (Matt. 28:19).  We are to have Godly homes (Titus 2:3-5; Eph. 5:22-26; Eph. 6:1-3).

Obey our Government (Rom. 13:1-7).  Enjoy fellowship in the church.  Keep the world's evils out of our lives (I John 2:15-17).  Witness to the lost.  Tithe our income (II Cor. 9:6-8); I Cor. 9:4-14).

Learn our gifts and obey them (I Ptr. 4:10).  Love our neighbors.  Look for Christ's coming.  Put God's will first above all things (Rom. 12:1, 2).  Love God above all human regulations.

You Have the Mind of Christ

Paul wrote the Corintian church, "But we have the mind of Christ."

Before we were saved we had the carnal mind.  Romans 8:6, 7 tells us, "For to be carnally minded is death; but to spiritually minded is life and peace.

"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be."  That's why we were unsaved.  It put all kinds of sin thought into our brains.  It gave suggestions to our tongues.  It led us to do what we shouldn't have done.  Thus we face eternal hell.

But we accepted Christ, and every born again Christian received the mind of Christ. As a result, I Corinthians 2:12 tells us, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world; but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."

Our God gave us his Holy Spirit to teach us (I Cor. 2:11, 12).  We can know what God knows.  We can understand because God gave understanding of these truths.  II Timothy 1:7 tells us, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

It is our sound mind that understands what the Spirit causes us to read and hear the Word of God.  We understand because the Holy Spirit enables our sound mind to comprehend what we read and hear.  Thus we grow in knowledge of God's Word.  That's you and me!

Why Do We Have troubles?

It seems that every child of God has trouble in his or her life.  When in our teens or young adult years we may live without troubles and problems.  That's good.  Then some, in their senior years, also have few, if any physical trials.

But, most people have some aches, pains, and even surgeries.

One reason we suffer is that we reap what we sow (Gal. 6:7).  We can do some things in our young years that produce illness in later years.  We can't stop it.

Another reason is that some people inherit diseases from their parents.  They didn't do something to cause the illness.  They just inherited it.  They can't stop it.

Another reason is deseases travels from person to person, from country to country.  Many of us have a weakness for that disease and we are inflicted with it.

Sometimes we don't eat right.  Or we are careless in our hygience.  As a result we get colds, or some other diseases over which we can conquer.

We need to do our best to conquer illnesses that we can get a victory over them.  But, some illnesses stay with us for the rest of our lives.

If we have highly infectious diseases that others can catch we need to be careful in our association with people.  But some diseases are not given to others.  So we can associate with other people and do not infect them.

We have diseases and sickness because we are sinners.  That weakens our bodies so we become sick.  After the rapture of us believers we will have no more sin in us to influence us.

But for now?  Let God comfort us.  II Corinthians 1:4 says, "Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."

Comfort means to accept God's will.  It means to accept what we are experiencing with a peace of mind that God has a purpose in what we are going through.  Comfort is an encouragement.  Yes, we may hurt of suffer at times.  But God is working on our attitude to draw us closer to him.  We learn to lean on him more.  He may later remove the suffering.

Why Persuade People?

We need to seek people to save them because Romans 3:11 says, "There is none that seeketh after God."  They don't seek after God because they are "...dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph. 2:1).  That is, they are separated from God.  But even more, they are lost, according to Luke 19:10.  According to that Scripture Jesus said, these person's cannot find God and eternal life.

According to II Corinthians 4:3, 4 Satan has blinded the unsaved person's eyes in unbelief.  He can't see the light of salvation in Jesus.  Jesus said this unsaved person is in bondage, and only through Christ can he be set free (John 8:32, 36).  As a result this slave of Satan has no hope (Eph. 2:12).  He is a stranger to God's promises to Israel (Eph. 2:12).  He can't, within himself, find his way to Christ.  Thus he is in bondage.

This individual is without excuse, because he judges someone else, and thus condemns himself (Rom. 2:11).  As a result, he is facing eternal death (Rom. 6:23).  All of his life's labors will be lost (Matt. 16:26).

Why should we reach out to the lost with the light of the gospel (II Cor. 4:3, 4)?  Because we know the terror of hell from God (II Cor. 5:11).  Because we also know God's love and tender grace (John 3:16; Eph. 2:8).