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Friday Night Message – “God’s Will – Part VII” July 31, 2020

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Friday Night Message – “God’s Will – Part VII” July 31, 2020

Friday Night Message – “God’s Will – Part VII”

July 31, 2020

Good evening brethren …

 Sue and I are back from our road trip, and we had a lot of good family time.  The weather also cooperated, so we frequently ate outdoors.  We drove through the very heart of the country, fields of crops and pastures interspersed by forests and rivers and rocky cliffs.  We live in a land that is so beautiful and productive, but with all that is going on, it is hard to know how much longer before much of that is taken away from us because of the lack of our people doing the will of God.

 When one of His disciples asked Jesus for guidance on how to pray, He responded with what many term “The Lord’s Prayer”…

Matt. 6:9-10 – In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

After a brief introduction, the first item Jesus mentions is the kingdom, by which God’s will shall be done and accomplished.  So God’s will is something to be included in your daily prayers to your spiritual Father in heaven.  So now let us seek to increase our understanding of the will of God.

Part I – The doctrine of the will of God

 This first half of these messages focuses on the basic Biblical teaching of the will of God.  What is it, exactly …. How do we define it?  The second half of these messages will deal with the practical application …. How do we do the will of God?  How do we live our lives to fulfil that perfect will?

 1. What is the will of God? (in broad terms)

 2. What is the will of God? (more specifically)

 *      Creating a Family

 *         Sanctification

 *      The key to salvation

 *      The Will of God is irresistible. 

 *         What are the options?

 → God’s will can be known.

  → We have free moral agency.

 After freeing the Israelites from bondage in Egypt, God brought them to the doorstep of the Promised Land.  The book of Deuteronomy (a Greek word, which means the second giving of the law) clearly lays out for Israel the choice that they have before them.  The urging of Moses and the powerful commands from God left the people of Israel no excuse for not knowing and/or not obeying the word of God.

 Deut. 30:15, 19 – See, I have set before you today life and good, and death and evil; in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statues and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.  But if your heart turns away, so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess.  I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;

 Based upon how the Israelites behaved, the new nation would either enjoy physical blessings from God, or reap a bitter harvest of physical curses.  For New Testament Christians, this same choice is before us, but on a spiritual level rather than physical.  Therefore the stakes are higher … much higher.

 Heb. 10:26-27 – For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins; but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.

 The apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Ephesus instructed the brethren to “do the will of God from the heart” [Eph. 6:6].

 So in the messages these past two weeks we have shown that God’s will can be known, and that we have free moral agency … the ability to choose between options.  Next week we will discuss the idea of conforming our lives to the will of God.  That will be the last message on the doctrine or teaching of God’s will, and we will then have numerous messages about the application of the will of God.  In other words, HOW do we perform the will of God in our daily lives?

 Have a peaceful Sabbath,

Fred