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The Will of God

The exact phrase will of God occurs 23 times in the Bible and all are only in the New Testament. In every one of those references, except one, the exact phrase is actually the will of God. The Biblical definition of the word the is 'there is only one and here it is'. That definition is best understood when we consider John 14:6 which says: Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. There is only one Biblical truth, life and way and all are in Jesus Christ.

With this definition we can see that there is only one will of God and the various references to this phrase tell us about that single will. The one exception, which does not use the word the, is in Romans 12:2 and it gives us three qualifiers for the single will of God and does not dispute that there is a single will of God. With this in mind, we will look at these references but not in the order that they appear within the Bible but in the order that they are applied to our life and teach us about this doctrine. That order is:

Correct doctrinal error taught about the will of God.
Salvation related to the will of God.
Sanctification related to the will of God.
Jesus Christ paid for our salvation and sanctification according to the will of God.
The Holy Spirit works according the will of God.
Positions within the church given by the will of God.
Blessings come to all who do the will of God.
Joy only comes from doing the will of God.
We are to seek the will of God in every little part of our life.
We are to do the will of God with all of our heart.
We are to know that everything which happens to us is the will of God.
Our suffering is part of the will of God.
The will of God tells us how to deal with the problems of life.
The will of God has promises attached to it which are given to those who do the will of God.
Corruption comes in spite of doing the will of God.

With this order presented, we will now look at the references.

First, we must correct doctrinal error taught about the will of God. Romans 12:2 says And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

People like to preach about the good will of God, the acceptable will of God, and the perfect will of God as if they were three different things, which they are. However, they also preach that these are three different levels of the will of God, which they are not. The grammar of our sentence makes it clear that there is only one will of God and it has all three of these attributes. Please consider that the Biblical definition of good is: 'that which comes from God'. Therefore, the good will of God cannot be less than the perfect will of God because God does not give anything that is less than perfect. Likewise, we already saw in that God commands us to be holy. We are also told to be perfect in: Deuteronomy 18:13; 1Kings 8:61; Matthew 19:21; 2Corinthians 13:11; Philippians 3:15; 2Timothy 3:17; James 1:4. Therefore, the acceptable will of God can not be less than perfect will of God. While that preaching is popular and well accepted, the only thing that it does is allow people to believe they are in the will of God even while that know that they are not doing the perfect will of God. This preaching actually excuses the sin of God's people and is very subtil while doing so, just like Satan is subtil. (Subtil is the Bible spelling for subtle.) Giving God's people and excuse for holding onto sin is a doctrine of the devil and a major reason why there are lots of people in America who claim to be Biblical Christians, and yet lack the power of God within their lives.
Questions to ask yourself:

Do I have a Bible reference to support what I believe about the will of God or am I just trusting what some preacher said that sounded good? The first thing that God always wants you to do is verify what you are told against the word of God using the Spirit of God.

Salvation is part of the will of God.

Mark 3:35 says, For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. True salvation requires obedience to the will of God.
1John 2:17 says, And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. This sentence is added (by the And) to: For all that is in the world -- the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life -- is not of the Father, but is of the world. Once more we see the Bible making a distinction between those who seek all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life and those people who truly do the will of God. The word doeth means: 'keep on keeping on doing'. Our sentence literally tells us that we must 'keep on keeping on doing' the will of God if we want the assurance that we are saved (abideth for ever). Just like Peter, this chapter of 1John is telling us how to distinguish between the truly Biblically saved and other people. All who are truly Biblically saved will 'keep on keeping on doing' the will of God.
Questions to ask yourself:
1. Do you have true Biblical salvation which means you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord?
2. True Biblical salvation gives you an ongoing personal relationship with our Lord. Are you doing your part in in this relationship?
3. Do you pray for guidance and read your Bible every day?
4. Do you look for how you can obey what God showed you in your personal daily Bible Study?
5. Did you know that everyone who doubts their salvation or that is confused by most of the Bible is either newly saved or neglected this basic requirement of our salvation?

Sanctification is part of the will of God.

1Thessalonians 4:3 says, For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication. This sentence should be obvious on the face of it. Please see the note for this sentence, and the notes of the contextual sentences, for more details. One thing that should be obvious is that we must abstain from fornication if we want to have God's sanctification and the blessings that go with it. Please see the note for this sentence, especially for the true Biblical definition of fornication, which is different from what most people think.
Colossians 4:12 says, Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. Here we see that it is the will of God for us to stand perfect and complete. Our current note already dealt with the perfect will of God. Basically, our sentence tells us that the will of God is for us to spiritually mature and receive all of the spiritual gifts and blessings (be complete) that God wants to give to us but can only do so after we become spiritually mature enough to handle them.
Questions to ask yourself:

When you have a choice to make, which choice allows or encourages sin? That is always the wrong choice.
As your salvation gets older, are you doing less sin?
When you have a choice to make, which choice makes you more like God in holiness and righteousness? That is always the right choice.
As your salvation gets older, do people see Christ in your life more than they used to?

Jesus Christ paid for our salvation and sanctification according to the will of God. Galatians 1:4 says, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father.

Here we see that it was the will of God for our Lord Jesus Christ to give Himself for our sins. However, we also have the qualifier that the will of God was that His sacrifice was to deliver us from this present evil world. People who claim salvation while holding onto the sins of this present evil world are out of the will of God and, quite possibly, are not saved.
Questions to ask yourself:

Are you less drawn to the things of this present evil world? If no, then your life testifies that Jesus Christ wasted His sacrifice for you. When we have a choice, the option that does less to lift up this present evil world is the right choice.

The Holy Spirit works according the will of God. Romans 8:27 says, And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
1. Here we see that God's Holy Spirit pays attention to the desires behind our prayers and perfects our requests to God. Sometimes we thing one thing or one way is how we will reach a goal, but we are wrong. When we pray for the wrong thing or the wrong way, but God's Holy Spirit knows the true goal that we have, He perfects our requests to God so that we end up at the desired result even though God does it a different way than we had in mind.
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. When you pray for one thing and God gives you something else, do you thank God for perfecting your request?
  2. When you pray for something, do you acknowledge that God knows best and thank God for any changes that He makes to your request?
  3. Do you do it every time that you pray for that request?
Positions within the church are given by the will of God.
1. 1Corinthians 1:1 says: Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother. This is the same as the notes for 2Corinthians 1:1, Ephesians 1:1, Colossians 1:1 and 2Timothy 1:1. Here we see that people are supposed to receive positions in the church by the will of God. We also have a number of problems in the church because people take these positions but their having the positions was not by the will of God.
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Do you ask God to show you the position He has for you in the church?
  2. Do you thank Him for jobs like janitor and nursery worker?
  3. Do you realize that the humble jobs are to help us get a godly attitude before we are given more and that someone who is lifted too high too fast is easier for Satan to destroy?
  4. Do you thank God for His protection when He makes you submit to another person?
Blessings come to all who do the will of God. 2Corinthians 8:5 says: And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
1. In other places in the Bible we read how these people were blessed because of what they did. These people include the Philippians, who are the only church to receive an epistle from Paul, which also made it into the Bible, where there was no correction because of doctrinal error. Here we see that doing the will of God helps us to avoid doctrinal error (but does not completely prevent it). Here we see that it is the will of God for church members to give themselves to the pastor and church leaders by submitting to the pastor and church leaders. In this case, these people went so far as to leave home and to move to the mission field where they could get the lowest jobs and support the missionaries who were preaching the gospel to the lost people. Please note that they had to give their own selves to the Lord first, by agreeing to any command which He gave them, before they could give their own selves to the (ministers of the) Lord.
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Do you realize that the best blessings are spiritual and not physical?
  2. Do you realize that 1Timothy 6:7 tells us that we will leave all physical blessings behind when we leave this world? Therefore, eternal blessings that are not given until we get to Heaven are better than physical blessings now.
  3. Have you given all of yourself to God's service? The simple test is in giving. If God has all of you, then he has your money.
  4. Are you willing to go anywhere and do anything in the service of God? These people moved to a strange place and took the lowest level jobs in order to financially support the missionary preachers? Would you go to Thailand and do the same? What about Brunei?
Joy only comes from doing the will of God. Romans 15:32 says: That I may come unto you with joy by the will of God, and may with you be refreshed.
1. Once more we see that whatever we do we are to pray for guidance from God and do what is in the will of God. Paul did go to them and probably had joy, but also was probably not happy because he was arrested and facing death. However, he was in the will of God because God was changing Paul's ministry from active teaching to writing the majority of the New Testament. Thus, we can be in the will of God even while things are going terrible from our human fleshly perspective.
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Do you know the difference between joy and happiness?
  2. Do you realize that joy is most experienced in the middle of suffering and problems?
  3. Are you willing to accept suffering and problems so that you can experience true Biblical joy?
We are to seek the will of God in every little part of our life. Here we see Paul practicing what James teaches. He recognizes that the will of God is to control every part of our life, even what we consider to be the 'little things'.
1. Romans 1:10 says: Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.
2. James 4:15 says: For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that
3. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Do you realize that your prosperity is dependent upon the blessings from God?
  2. Do you ask for God's guidance and protection in all of the little things of life?
  3. Do you always recognize that God's will may be different than you think?
  4. Do you thank God every time that He changes your plans because you trust that He has something better for you?
We are to do the will of God with all of our heart. Ephesians 6:6 says: Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
1. Here we see that it is the will of God is something that we must do and we must do the will of God in a way that displays Christ. That requirement for quality eliminates any possibility of our being menpleasers or of only making a show (with eyeservice).
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Is there something that you have which would enhance the service to God but you are holding it back for yourself?
  2. Is there a different attitude or a different way of doing that would display Christ more in what you do?
  3. Are you really giving your service to God your all?
We are to know that everything which happens to us is the will of God. 1Thessalonians 5:18 says: In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1. Here we see that it is the will of God for us to go through everything that we go through, especially the suffering. When we accept suffering as the will of God in Christ Jesus, and maintain a proper attitude, we receive eternal blessings which we are told are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us (Romans 8:18).
2. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. When problems, trials and suffering come your way do you thank God for the opportunity to let people see Christ working through your life?
  2. Do you keep your mind on the eternal blessings or on the physical trials, frustrations and suffering? If we don't keep our mental ere on the blessing then we will quit early and lose the blessing.
  3. Do you keep the lesson from Joseph in mind? That is: others may do things to us because they want to do evil but God only allows it if He can use it for our good.
Our suffering is part of the will of God.
1. 1Peter 2:15 says: For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. Here we see one of the main reasons why God lets us suffer.
2. We can only put to silence the ignorance of foolish men if we do the will of God even when that will of God involves suffering and shame. This thought is explained more by Peter in the sentences which follow this one within this chapter. It is also dealt with in the next reference.
3. 1Peter 3:17 says: For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing. This sentence should be obvious on the face of it. Please see the note for this sentence, and the notes of the contextual sentences, for more details.
4. 1Peter 4:19 says: Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator. Where the verse above started Chapter 4, this one is the conclusion. All throughout this chapter Peter points out differences between the truly Biblically saved and the lost. Good and bad circumstances happen to us all. It is not the things which we experience but how we react to them which give us a testimony of being truly Biblically saved. Without suffering, we would not need the help of God and would not have a testimony of God working in and through our life. Therefore, it is the will of God that we suffer so that we have the opportunity of having God work in our life and give us this testimony. In addition, Peter adds commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing. We claim to be saved, but how do we truly know this if we don't have the ongoing interaction of a personal relationship?
5. 1John 1 tells us that God's Holy Spirit gives us the assurance of our salvation. we can not lose our salvation but we can lose the assurance of it. Peter is telling us that as we suffer according to the will of God, we also experience God working in our life and, at the same time, God's Holy Spirit gives us the assurance of our salvation to help us through the experience. However, we only receive this benefit when we do it in well doing. Finally, Peter adds the last phrase as unto a faithful Creator. God created us knowing what we would experience and gave us the ability to handle it. No matter what we go through we can know that God gave us the ability to handle it if we rely upon Him. Therefore, it is the will of God that we show the world what God made us able to handle and show how a loving Creator gave us the ability to do what He wants us to do.
6. Questions to ask yourself:
  1. Do you keep in mind that eternal blessings are given in proportion to how much we suffer in the service of God?
  2. Do you use this truth as a basis for thanking God for suffering?
  3. Do you keep in mind that Christ suffered for us and, therefore, our suffering for others, in the service of God, is displaying Christ through your life?
The will of God tells us how to deal with the problems of life. 1Peter 4:2 says: That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

This verse is only half of a sentence and the full sentence needs to be considered in order to fully understand and appreciate what Peter is telling us. In this sentence, Peter tells us that the will of God is that we:

have the mind of Christ,
suffer in the flesh,
cease from sin,
no longer should live...to the lusts of men,
spend life doing the will of God.

Questions to ask yourself:

Are each of these points true in your life?
What can you personally do to increase each of these points in your personal life?

The will of God has promises attached to it which are given to those who do the will of God. Hebrews 10:36 says: For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Here we see that the will of God has a promise attached to it. Notice that we receive the promises personally (ye), which means that the results which other people have do not affect our reward. However, we must have patience because if we do not wait for God to keep His promise in His time then we have not really acted in faith and without faith it is impossible to please him (God) (Hebrews 11:6). Also, we see that we must do the will of God before we can claim any promise. We need to pay attention to the word might, which means that we might not get the promise if we don't do exactly what God requires.
Questions to ask yourself:
1. Are you truly waiting with patience for God's blessings or are you letting the world, your own flesh and the devil pester you into being fretful or doing other things to prove that you do not have patience?
2. Do you really understand that not having patience can cost you the blessing even if you already met other requirements to receive the blessing?
3. Does your patience tell you that waiting until you get to Heaven gets you the best blessings?

Corruption comes in spite of doing the will of God. Acts 13:36 says: For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption.

Our doing the will of God does not keep us from also doing sin. It does not keep us from suffering the consequences of sin, as can be seen within the life of David. However, it does get us blessings from God and can make us 'a man after God's own heart'.
Questions to ask yourself:

Do you realize that doing the will of God does not remove the consequences of sin?

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The Will of God

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