“…according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.” Galatians 1:4-5
The Will of God is found in the Word of God. Those who seek His will, but ignore His Word are led astray by all kinds of detour signs, and deceptive voices. Perhaps the greatest danger to the individual believer and The Body of Christ is the heart attack. This self-inflicted constriction of the heart robs the believer and The Body from a healthy focus on The Word of God. Those who follow their heart, but ignore His Scripture are flirting with death, and pulling the plug on what is left of life in the heart of the believer and the church.
“…According to the will of our God and Father,” offers a picture of the Sovereign Lordship God that He exercises over His creation and His family relationship that exists with His children. God, as Sovereign provides direction. God, as Father provides correction. Where God leads, He also guides. The Word of God is not offered to His children in a vacuum. The Hand of God is provided to lead to understanding it and obeying it.
Note to self: When God’s hand on you starts to feel like His thumb on you, check your obedient quotient. God is not likely to let you up, until you are willing to get on the right track.
Praying leads to obeying. When prayer fails to inspire obedience to the Sovereign will of God, prayer does not reflect glory on God. It only invites the correction of The Father. When the discipline of prayer is hijacked by righteous rebels, intent on disobeying or ignoring God’s Word, it becomes a subtle form of deception, not a genuine sign of devotion.
Jesus prayed to conform His will to the will of The Father. His power for public ministry was rooted in His private intimacy with His Father. God entrusted all of Himself to His Son, because Jesus prayed and obeyed. His praying led Him to a willingness to be “under authority” not a greediness to be “in authority.” Big difference.
“yet not My will, but Yours be done." Jesus - Luke 22:42
Praying reflects consistent companionship with God, and brings joy to the person who will listen to God’s Word intensely, and obey His Word immediately. A frantic search for truth may not start with The Word of God, but it needs to lead there. If a person is serious about knowing The Will of God, their search will lead them to intimacy with God, in His Word and in prayer. The two go hand in hand. Prayer and The Word of God are the double-edges of The Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.
“Knowing God’s will in specifics comes out of consistent companionship with God.” Lloyd John-Ogilvie, Former Chaplain to the U.S. Senate
“16 Rejoice evermore. 17 Pray continually. 18 In all things, give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus toward you.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 1599 Geneva Bible (GNV)
There is little hope of knowing God’s will without reading and obeying His Word. Without cultivating the discipline of prayer, as intimate conversation and consistent companionship with The Father, there is no hope that our heart’s desire will be His desire. Don’t trust your heart. Exchange it for His. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
“Prayer is the intimate communication between the Heavenly Father and His child.” Don Miller
“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4