Must Be God's Will!

Let's go right into the sermon. Title of today's sermon is, Must Be God's Will. Maybe the most overused reference to God in the churches of God, or even in mainstream Christianity, if I can say that. Didn't get the house I wanted, God's will. Didn't get the job promotion, must be God's will. Bill didn't get to marry J. Lo while he was here, must be God's will. I didn't win the lottery, must be God's will. Do we really know God's will? Every time? I doubt someone would raise their hand and say, I know it every time. If you will, go with me to Ephesians 5. I think this is a very important subject. That's what I want to cover it. Ephesians 5. Read from the New King James Version. Ephesians 5 and verse 15. See then that you walk circumspectly or carefully, you want to know those words, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil. Therefore, there's that link word, therefore do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is. So it's telling us we should understand it. It's also saying if we're foolish, we're not going to understand it. But we need to be wise, redeeming the time, recognizing what days we are in. So is it really possible that we can fully understand the will of God? We mere humans. We pathetic pieces of bone and skin can understand the will of God. It appears that way because everybody said, must be God's will. You've heard it? The will of God is laid out for us in His word many times. Sometimes it just goes over our heads and we don't always grasp it. How important is it to God? It's so important that even Christ, Matthew 6, verse 10, you remember what He said? When He said, this is how you pray? Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Christ is telling us that when we pray, we need to ask that God's will would be done on this earth, in our lives, on this earth today.

And that the will of God is very important. Otherwise, why would He say, pray for it? This is how you pray. The model prayer as it's called. Do you think Christ prayed? His will be done? Go over with me to Matthew 7. Matthew 7, verse 21. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the what? Will. We just touched on a very big, big word. Do you know really what this is saying? We're not going to be in the kingdom of God unless we know what God's will is. That's a huge statement because many are going to say, Lord, Lord, and they won't enter. They may throw His name out. They say, I know the Lord. But here it is the will of God. Boy, did that ever ratchet things up for me? Okay. Because I, like many of you, have thrown that phrase out. Must be God's will.

That becomes a very important side for us. Go with me to John 5, because I think we need to understand this even more, since our entrance into the kingdom is dependent upon knowing what the will of God is. John 5, verse 30. Christ said, I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous because I do not seek my own will but the will of the Father who sent me. It's about God's will. Even Christ, God on earth said, not my will, but the will of the Father. All my judgment will be done by the will of the Father. It was important to him, and it should be important to us. Let's go over a couple. Another chapter, John, chapter 6. John chapter 6, and let's do verse 38. 38 through 40. New King James, 38, for I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. Pretty important stuff there. 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. Okay, he said that's his will, but he's not done yet. He's about to say something so important, so heavy, that each and every one of us must feel the weight of the word will in our lives. Verse 40, this is the will of him who sent me. Trumpets, please. This is big stuff. That everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day. The will of God is that all of humanity will have everlasting life, will have eternal life. That is the will of God. That's big. I read over this two or three times, trying to, in my little office, trying to say, that's a wow. And that from now on, because I think I fully understand this, the lens of the will of God has forever changed in my mind.

These people, they get what they deserve. They get what's coming to them. Really? Must be God's will? No. God's will is for everyone to have eternal life, to have the opportunity for eternal life. That is why when the disciples said, oh, Christ, they won't welcome you, let us call fire down and burn those people up. They're just thinking Samaritans. I said, you have no idea. I have to go die. I have to go die. Peter said, no, not you. I'll take care of you. Get behind me, because this is the will of God, that all humanity can have eternal life. Every enemy that you have that I have, it is the will of God for them to have eternal life. Wow. If everyone knew this, if everyone truly understood this, don't you believe the whole world would be celebrating? People would be celebrating like no tomorrow. That, oh, God, what thinks about is motivated by its will is that everyone, all God's children, could live with him forever and ever and ever. Can we see that a lack of understanding, that spiritual immaturity, can make us sound blasphemous when we use the wrong words when it concerns God? God's will and purpose and direction for mankind to the kingdom of God is his will. Must be God's will! I ran out of gas. I think that, remember those words, time used, a personal story. I was dating Mary and lived in Tennessee. She lived in Alabama. We were actually engaged. And the wedding was probably six months off. I don't remember what, but I went down to visit her. And as I was driving that 210 miles on a Sunday evening, usually night, I came through and about a little less than halfway, my car just stopped. It was cold. Cold on Interstate 65. Didn't know what to do. It was like eight o'clock at night, Sunday. Had to be at work the next morning. Didn't know much about cars, still don't know much about cars. That's why I know the word mechanic. So I fiddled with my car and I do. And I happened to be less than a mile from the exit. So I walked to the exit and there was the old phone booth. Nobody had cell phones back then. Stick in a quarter. It's like, who do I know? Oh, I do know. I do know someone that lives in this town. I'm going to call them. It was an old girlfriend of mine. His parents. And I had dated her and I dated her before I dated Mary. And I remember calling because I didn't know what to do. I called her father. Thankfully, I still had a good relationship with them. Might have been better since I didn't marry their daughter. I don't know. But she was already married the year before, whatever. So I called him and said, I'm broken down right off the interstate. Could you help me? Yeah. Yes. Okay. I'll come. I said, I'm at the service station right at the exit. He came and picked me up. Drove me to the house. I remember the house because I dated her for six months, nine months. I remember. And I walked in the house and there she was. And there she was. Her father had just gone to pick her up because her and her husband had had this fight. And he had been not very well to her. And they were going to separate. So she hadn't been home in a long time. So here I was. She was. And I remember her mother came out and said, hmm. Must be God's will. I remember telling Mary that the next day she wasn't too happy about it. We stayed up and talked for two or three hours. And but that was that. A friend came and got me. We started the next day. You were worried about the car.

The Dolphins. Been watching them this year? If they don't win the Super Bowl this year, it must be God's will. That's what some people will say. But you know, I don't think he cares who wins. As the saying goes, there's bigger fish to fry. Was it God's will for Abraham to sleep with Hagar? Was it God's will for David to look out that night and see this beautiful woman? That would be the future mother of his children. At least four children. Was that God's will?

But you see, God does care about you and he cares about me. He wants us to be in communication with him. He really wants us to know his will. Do we pray for even the small matters in our lives? Philippians 4 and verse 6, I'll just quote it. It says, In everything by prayer, let your request be made. In everything by prayer. All the small stuff? Big stuff? Yes! That's what Scripture says. Think about it, brother. What was it a week ago? I think Vic had to remind me of this last Sabbath. About a guy who won the lottery. $1.9 billion in Altadena. I checked that, Altadena, California. $1.9 billion is not good for any of us.

None of us needs $1.9 billion. It would destroy any one of you. How do I say that? You couldn't be meeting here anymore with us. Your life would forever change. You're going to have to have a bodyguard. Because it's too easy to kidnap. It's happened many times before. You're not going to be able to go. Or you want to go. Because of security. You're going to have everybody calling you. You're going to have to move. You can't live in the house. You can't even have some of the same friends you've had. I know this because I looked it up on all people who have won over a quarter of a billion dollars. Many ended tragically. It's not God's will for us to win the lottery. Because it doesn't fit. God's will. The fact of the matter is, if it was his will, you would already have it. Remember the story of the rich young ruler? I had a man. Fort Lauderdale. He moved to another area. But he just knew every week he was going to win the lottery. He just did. Call me every week, once or twice a week. Going to win. Vicki knows who I'm talking about. And if he did, just, oh, I know I'm going to win. He knows God's will. Because I'm going to give half of it to the church.

I knew him for 14 months. He didn't win one time. But he played! He just knew it. But you see, that was his will. Not God's will. God's will is for us to be like Christ. Take that to the bank. God's will is for us to be like Christ. The Pew Institute did a survey of Christians. And what does it say? Read behind me. This is Christians. One in ten actually live their beliefs. Is that God's will? No. It's not God's will. God's will is for us to follow his instructions. That's God's will. Does he work with us? Yes. You see the incredible story. Most of you know it in Exodus 16, verse 4. Remember what he did? Gonna have some manna. And gonna put it out on the ground. You could collect it every morning. Except Friday you got double. Because on the Sabbath you got none. And why did he do that? What? That I may what? Test them. That I may test them. Every day he tested them. Brethren, he's not done testing me yet. And I don't know about you. I don't live your life. But it is a daily thing to follow God's instructions. What does that mean?

I'm 100% sure God's will is for us to read his word daily. Remember what physical Israel had to deal with? Man shall not live by bread alone. They cared about the bread!

But we don't live by bread alone. But by what? Every word in his book. This book is not going to be a book. We are past to the pearly gates, the entrance to the kingdom, and say, oh, I've got my Bible with me. Not good enough. He wants you to know it, to live it, to breathe it, and to what? Live it. Live it. God's will. How important is it? Go with me to Psalm 32. Back to the Psalms. Beautiful pieces of Scripture. And there's Psalm 32 and verse 8, New King James version. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. It's God speaking. It's God's will. I will guide you with my eye. I will guide you with my eye. You know, unless you know somebody well, it's hard to read what they're thinking through their eyes. You're close enough you can actually see your reflection in their eye because you're that close. God asked us to be that close, that close.

His eye.

Makes you wonder. Parents, think about it. To know or to read and to see eye instruction, it needs to be like parents and their children. I could tell my father's eyes. When I was about to be disciplined, his eyes got big. He also didn't want to do it, but he had to do it. I also knew the kindness of my mother's eyes when she would almost tear up. And I knew I'd hurt her feelings. I knew I'd said something I shouldn't say. It's that relationship.

See, that's what God wants us to be able to do. Be so close to him. How do we get close to him? We know him. He talks to us through his word, through the Spirit. The Spirit's a conduit that is plugged right into here and then into us. And it brings stuff to us. Scripture says we don't even know how to pray so many times except by the Spirit. It's pretty important. I read a commentary one time about this verse. And I actually went back and quoted it. The eyes of the Lord go to and fro across the whole earth, looking for those whose hearts are closer near to God.

And it's talking about the angels. Some made a reference here that that's perhaps he's sending his angels as his eyes. Because they are messengers. They return things to him. They return every little story, every little thing. I don't know. I just know it's important to God that we're close enough to him. That we know what he wants us to do.

No, no, no. What his will is for us. That's what's so great about the spirit of the law of the Ten Commandments. Because it's just not a thing about obedience. He gave it because if you understand God, you understand the will, his will for those commandments. His will is for us to be like Christ. So, if he says, I will guide you with my eye, are we close enough yet? Are we really close enough? We go through a period of time here, this country and others that I had to travel in.

Where we had to wear a mask, certain times. And you know, a lot of us got pretty good at reading other people's eyes. I did at the bank. I did at my doctor's. I did with other people. Why is that? Because that was important. And we could see if somebody had delight when the rest of us were covered. So, is it possible to follow somebody's instructions? Yes. With God, it's not only possible, it's expected.

It's expected of us. To know his will. We'll go to one last scripture. All of you always, you know it. It's been quoted so many times. I've quoted it many times. It's Romans 12, verse 2. You all know it. Do not be conformed to this world. We'll be transformed by the renewing of your minds. Okay? But I don't want to focus on that because I have done that before. But I'd like to look at the rest. Transformed by the renewing of your mind. That, it's that connection word, that you may prove. You ready to prove?

What is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God? Not just the will of God. What is that good? Because his will is nothing but good for us and the entire world. That's what's good. Acceptable. It's, you know what he asks of us. Asks of the world, but they don't know. We do. We do know what's acceptable and what's not. Don't we? We're not ignorant. We've been around here long enough to know. And then finally, the perfect will of God. Because you see, it is perfect.

The will of God is perfect. Each and every time. Not running out of gas. Not winning the lottery. Not some stupid ballgame. But it's about eternal life for every single person. And whether you realize it or not, we all play a part in it. Every neighbor. Every person you see. Everyone at the grocery store. Everyone that gives you a certain salute in your car when you are cut off.

It's God's will that they be in his kingdom. Can we remember that? Because you see, Dad's eye is big. And he wants everyone. That's his will. And the beauty of it, he's never going to force someone to do something against their will. That's the beauty of free moral agency. That's the beauty of God. He just wants you to try and see from his viewpoint.

He wants us to try and understand the perfect will of God. And that's perfect each and every time. Not about a ballgame. Not about money. It's about his love for his creation. We are to be led by God. His instructions over our will. Instead of saying, brethren, must be God's will. Why don't we be a little more Christ-like? And say as he said, thy will be done.