Living in the Will of God

LIVING IN THE WILL OF GOD
“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”  (Colossians 3:17)

            The will of God is a wonderful place to be.  Most Christians have experienced the difference in being in the will of God and being out of it.  The consensus is that the most satisfying place for the Christian to live life is in the center of God’s will.  Paul reminds the Christians in Rome that the Christian life properly lived will reveal the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. God’s will is good, acceptable and perfect.

            The Bible not only admonishes us to live in the will of God, it also gives the guidelines by which we can know that we are in the will of God.  In Colossians 3:15-17, Paul gives three clear guidelines for knowing the will of God.

            First, is the peace of God, verse 15.  Let the peace of God rule in your heart. The word rule carries the idea of umpire.  In other words, let the peace of God umpire your heart.  God has given boundaries and standards for Christian living.  When the child of God is living within those boundaries and is living according to the guidelines of God’s word, peace will be an obvious state of mind.  But when he steps outside God’s boundaries, the absence of peace is the indicator, the alarm, the “umpire’s whistle” indicating that he is out of God’s will.

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            Second, is the word of God, verse 16.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you.  There is no way to know the will of God apart from time in the word of God.  And this does not mean an occasional lucky dip, grasping for guidance in a panic method.  It means that there has to be a continual, systematic relationship with the Scriptures whereby day by day the Lord reveals Himself.

            Third, is the name of the Lord Jesus, verse 16.  Can you ask Jesus to sign off on the activities of your life?  Can He endorse what you are doing?  When the child of God is in the will of God, his life is endorsed by Jesus.

            Remember, God’s will is good, acceptable and perfect! Roger D. Willmore is a contributor to our Real Victory for Real Life and a popular speaker at America’s Keswick

GPS – God’s Positioning System: Hosea 1-7; Psalm 7; Proverbs 8

Compass Pointers: There is no test of faith so true as the grace of thanksgiving. Are you praising God enough? Are you thanking Him for your actual blessings that are more than can be numbered, and are you daring to praise Him even for those trials which are but blessings in disguise? Have you learned to praise Him in advance for the things that have not yet come? Anonymous

Navigation Rules to Memorize: Level 1: Proverbs 27:1; Level 2: Proverbs 27:17-22

Anchored to the Rock: The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. C. S. Lewis