| Introduction The Jewish people just accomplished an incredible feat of engineering. They rebuilt the wall that encircled Jerusalem in 52 days! Under Nehemiah's leadership, the Jews worked day and night to get it done. Now it's done, but it is not doing much as far as protection goes because most of the people who were living in Judea prefers the countryside. So, the Lord puts in Nehemiah's heart to call for a census in order to evaluate who could move into Jerusalem. We may have beaten this dead horse almost back to life now. What I want to focus today is the expression used by Nehemiah in order to express the leading of the Lord to do something: "Then my God put it into my heart…." Although it is used here in a good, righteous, and inspired way, it concerns me when people say, "God put in my heart …" because it is impossible to verify the source of whatever was put in one's heart. In addition to that, the Scriptures warn us that "The heart isdeceitful above all things, and desperately wicked…" (Jer. 17:9a). So, I want to say somethings about the expression itself and how it is used. Then, I want to look at this idea of God's helping us to figure out what to do next, what some call finding the will of God. I. What the Lord Puts in the Heart. A. God will never put in anyone's heart to do something that is contrary to his Word. 1. God will always put in our hearts to die to self. 2. God will always put in our hearts to hate sin. 3. God will always put in our hearts to love people. 4. He will not, however, contradict himself by telling us in our hearts to do something that is contrary to the Bible. a. I know the Bible says that I must be a one-woman man, but I really feel like that the Lord wants me to get close to this other woman, you know, for ministry purposes. b. I know the Bible says that I must not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, but I really feel like the Lord wants me to listen to the advice of the godless person. B. Emotional desires are not foolproof. 1. I find interesting that God doesn't seem to put in people's heart to do things that they really don't want to do – it seems that he only puts in their hearts what was already there. 2. All subjective feelings about God nudging us one way or another must be tested against the Scriptures and with wise, godly brothers/sisters. a. The emphasis here is on godly and not on pre-established agreement. b. It is tempting to bounce our ideas off people we already know have the same opinion as we do just to check that box and be able to say we sought out counsel. c. What we should be looking for in counselors is godliness, not agreement. C. God may enlighten us to see things in his Word. 1. He may help us to think wisely about decision. 2. He will not, however, give us information about moral decisions that is not already in his Word. 3. We should look for the sure guidance of the Word of God through his Spirit. 4. We should not be looking for signs as a way to discern what we should do. a. That's what the Pharisees kept on asking for and Jesus kept on pointing them to the Scriptures. b. Here people tend to point to Gideon's fleece in the book of Judges, but I think we need to be careful about taking our cues about decision making from a book with the theme, "And every man did what was right in his own eyes." {TRANSITION: This brings us to this whole subject of discerning God's will for us. I want to challenge the idea that God wants us to try to figure what his precise, subjective will for us is. I want for us understand that God's will for all of us is very clear in the Bible and it has nothing to do with whether we should move here, or there, or marry this person or that person, or go to this college or that college.} II. There Are Three Ways to Talk about God's Will. A. God's decreed will – God has ordained all that happen. Eph. 1:11-12 – In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 1. We can't really figure out in advance what this is, and we are not called to figure out what this is. 2. God's decreed will becomes obvious in hindsight because whatever happened was the will of God. 3. The only way to know it is through providence. Dt. 29:29 – The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. B. God's declared will – this is all that he says in the Bible. 1. These are all the things that we are supposed to believe and do. 2. We called to figure what this is – search the Scriptures. Dt. 29:29 – The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. 3. God's declared will is objective and knowable. C. God's subjective will – what God wants for each individual that must be sought out by each person separately. 1. This is probably where most Christians who are thinking about God's will spend their time. 2. You probably have heard it said that you should place yourself in the center of God's will for your life. a. This saying describes God's will for your particular life as a bull's-eye. b. If you don't hit the center of it, you are not quite in God's will for your life. 1) If you don't choose the right college, you might miss God's will for your life. 2) If you don't marry the right person, you might miss the one that God has for you. 3) If you don't get the right job, you might as well just give up on life because you missed the center of God's will. 3. I want to tell you today that this idea has more to do with the daily horoscope section of your local newspaper than with the Bible. 4. God's will for your life is that you love him with every fiber of your being and that you love people around as you love yourself. a. Within the framework of these two requirements, it really doesn't matter whether you go to college A or college B, whether you marry Christian A or Christian B. b. If you are loving God and loving people according to the Scriptures, you are in God's will and you don't need to worry about finding out from him some specific details. 5. Have you notice that the quest for the perfect will of God for our lives tends to focus on non-moral decisions? Decisions between two or more options, none of which is forbidden in the Bible. a. The Bible doesn't tell us whether we should live in Winlock or Seattle. b. It doesn't tell us if we should attend UW or WSU. c. It doesn't tell the girls whether they should marry a wonderful Christian named Arnold or a wonderful Christian named Bartholomew. d. The Bible doesn't tell us to be a doctor, lawyer, carpenter, teacher, or whatever other lawful trade. e. It tells us that whatever we do, we are to do for the glory of God. 1) If what we want to do or are doing can be done for the glory of God, then we are in the will of God. 2) We don't have to waste our time and energy trying to figure out if it is his will. 3) And if we decide to change and go do something else that can be done for God's glory, guess what? We are in his will still! 6. Why is it that this horoscopical approach to determining what the will of God for our lives has become the conventional wisdom in the church? Let me offer six answers to this question. a. We want to please God – we want to make sure that we are doing what we should be doing. b. We don't know the Bible. "Lack of guidance is a modern problem largely because today's Christians do not know their Bible as well as former Christians did. God guides through his Word, either by direct moral principles of what is right or wrong or by calling us to wisely discern the best goals for our life and the best ways to achieve them in a way that brings him the most glory." Derek Thomas c. We want to know the future before we live it perhaps because we don't trust that God is sovereign and that he is good. Mt. 6:34 – Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Phil 4:6-7 – Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. d. We have too many choices. 1) Think of how many colleges are around, how many people we come in contact with, how many different types of cereal at the supermarket. 1) What we really mean by wanting to know the will of the Lord is that we want to do whatever brings the least pain and challenges and inconveniences to our lives. 2) Have you noticed that the Lord tends to want for our lives what we want for our lives? 1) We hide behind the pious idea of finding God's will. 2) We don't grow up and live life. 3) We are contented to sit on our hands thinking about what the will of God is and we never do what he clearly says he wants us to do. III. The Indisputable Will of God for Your Life A. It is God's will that you believe in Jesus Christ. Jn. 6:39-40 – This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day. B. It is God's will that you are sanctified – God wants you to be holy. 1 Thess. 4:3a – For this is the will of God, your sanctification …. C. It is God's will that you rejoice, pray, and be thankful. 1 Thess. 5:16-18 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. D. It is God's will that you love people by doing good to them as a testimony of the glory of the Gospel. 1 Pt. 2:15 – For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men…. E. In a nutshell, God's will for you is that you love him and love the people he brings into your life – the rest of it is somewhat inconsequential. Mt. 6:33 – But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. F. Ultimately, God's will for all of us is that we become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. Rom. 12:1-2 – I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. G. This is the filter that we must use in determining if we should do or not do something, not some impossible, subjective standard. IV. Two Examples for Application: Getting a Job and Getting Married. A. Does this mean that we don't spend some time thinking about what we should do with our lives? No, it means that we don't spend our whole lives thinking about what to do with our lives. B. Does it mean that God doesn't guide us? 1. No, it means exactly that. a. God guides us. b. He does not reveal to us what our future is. 2. God gives us wisdom to figure out what we should do. 3. He does not work as a magic 8-ball. C. Let's work through the example of getting a job. 1. Whether you are facing a choice between two jobs or considering a career change or just beginning to explore what job you should get, how does this process look like? 2. The very first thing is to search the Scriptures. a. Now, remember the Bible won't say, "Take thou the cashier position at the Mattress Barn." b. You are looking for guiding principles. 1) Is the job itself in keeping with what God says concerning his glory in the Bible? 2) Assuming you are not considering to be a hit man for the mob or work for Playboy, most jobs can be God-glorifying. c. Besides figuring out if the job itself is ok, look at other principles that you need consider: 1) Can I provide for myself and my family? 1 Tim. 5:8 – But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 2) Is there a good, Bible-believing, Reformed church where this job is? 3) Can I be off on the Lord's Day in order to worship him with my brothers and sisters? 3. Get wise counsel a. Talk to people who know you well and who are not afraid of telling you what you need to hear. b. Ask them, "Can you see me doing this?" 4. Pray – Pray that you are guided to make a decision based on faith, hope, and love. 5. Make a decision a. You can serve the Lord in a thousand different jobs. b. We need pastors and missionaries. c. We also need business people, doctors, garbage men, carpenters, teachers, etc. d. You can be just about anything you want, as long as you are not lazy and you do it for the glory of God. D. How about getting married? 1. Perhaps we make getting married a bit more complicated than we need to make it. 2. Search the Scriptures. a. The Bible says some have the gift of singleness – is that you? b. The Bible says marriage is between one biological man and one biological woman. c. The Bible says a Christian will only marry a Christian. d. The Bible puts the emphasis on what you need to be in order to be a godly spouse, not on your list of demands for Mr. Right or Mrs. Right. e. The Bible recommends a certain amount of agreement beyond being a Christian. 3. Get wise counsel. a. Whether you are seeking to get married for the first time, or you are re-marrying, seek counsel. b. Do your parents think that this marriage makes sense? c. Do your friends think that this marriage makes sense? d. Do the elders of the church? 4. Pray. a. Ask God for pure motives. b. Ask God for help to be honest about who you are and that you would know the other person as he/she really is. c. Ask the Lord to make you the right kind of husband or wife. 5. Make a decision a. If the Scriptural requirements are all there, the family is on board, you are old enough to marry, then get married. b. Don't just wait around for some other Mrs. Perfect or Mr. Perfect as if there is only this one person you can rightly marry. c. Whoever you marry is THE ONE.
God has decreed all that is going to happen. He reveals to us in the Bible what he wants to do, and he guides us in applying that to our daily lives. At the end of the day, there is only one thing that we need to know about God's will for us: "… seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Love God. Love people. Live life.
http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-lord-put-in-my-heart-nehemiah-74-6.html
|
