Knowing God's Will
Acts 22:10
"What shall I do, Lord?" I asked.
G. Campbell Morgan in "His Workmanship" in reference to Deuteronomy 1:33 "(God) went ahead of you on your journey...to show you the way you should go."
Psalm 16:11, Acts 2:28
You make known to me the path of life...
Psalm 23:3
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Does the way you are choosing lead to righteousness (right-ness, holiness and wholeness) and God's glory?
A.B. Simpson The Christ of the 40 Days: Experiencing the Risen, Triumphant Lord
Luke 24:31 “Their eyes were opened.”
Often God keeps us from seeing His way until just before He opens it, and then, immediately we find that He was walking by our side all along.
W. Hay Aitken, author of Temptation and Toil. Sermons on the Battle and the Work of Life, 1895
There is always the shadow of His cross resting upon the Christian’s path.
A.W. Tozer The Size of the Soul
https://www.cmalliance.org/devotions/tozer?id=976
The Christian's one concern is with God’s will.
His one question in any set of circumstances is “What does God think of this?”
Psalms 25:4-5
Show me your ways, Lord,
teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
Robert Mossom, Bishop of Derry 1666 - 1679, quoted in C.H. Spurgeon's The Treasure of David
There are the "ways" of men and the "ways" of God; the "paths" of sin and the "paths" of righteousness; there are "thy ways" and there are my ways; Thine the ways of truth, mine the ways of error; Thine which are good in Thine eyes, and mine which are good in mine eyes; Thine which lead to heaven, and mine which lead to hell. Wherefore, "Show me Thy ways, O Lord; teach me Thy paths" lest I mistake mine own ways for Thine; yea, lead me in the truth, and teach me, lest I turn out of Thy ways into mine own: "show me Thy ways" by the ministry of Thy Word; "teach me Thy paths" in the guidance of Thy Spirit; "lead me in Thy truth" by the assistance of Thy grace.
v. 12 Him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose.
C.H. Spurgeon
Those whose hearts are right shall not err for want of heavenly direction. Where God sanctifies the heart, He enlightens the head. God does not violate our will, but leaves much to our choice; nevertheless, He instructs our wills, and so we choose that which is well pleasing in His sight.
Psalm 32:8, 10b
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.
The LORD's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.
Psalm 37:5 (AV)
Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him...
Psalm 43:3
Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me.
Psalm 138:8
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me...
Psalm 143:8
I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Isaiah 30:21
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (Genesis 17:1 ...walk before me...)
Isaiah 42:16
I will lead the blind by ways they have not known,
along familiar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light before them
and make the rough places smooth.
Isaiah 48:17
I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
Jeremiah 6:16
Stand in the ways and see,
And ask for the old paths,
where the good way is, and walk in it;
Then you will find rest for your souls.
Jeremiah 10:23
I know, O LORD, that a mans life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.
Proverbs 16:9
In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.
Romans 12:2 (HCSB)
Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
Start with this prayer
Thomas à Kempis
O Lord, Thou knowest what is best for us, let this or that be done, as Thou shalt please. Give what Thou wilt, and how much Thou wilt, and when Thou wilt. Deal with me as Thou thinkest good, and as best pleaseth Thee. Set me where Thou wilt, and deal with me in all things just as Thou wilt. Behold, I am Thy servant, prepared for all things; for I desire not to live unto myself, but unto Thee and Oh, that I could do it worthily and perfectly!
Then exclude all options that are in conflict with God's Word.
Geneva Study Bible
Spiritual discernment is rooted in the apprehension of divine revelation (in His word).
William Gurnall The Christian in Complete Armour
Bernard’s (of Clairvaux) three questions are worth the asking ourselves in any enterprise. Is it lawful? may I do it and not sin? Is it becoming me a Christian? may I do it, and not wrong my profession? Is it expedient? may I do it, and not offend my weak brother? There are some things we must deny ourselves of for the sake of others.
Ask thy soul this question seriously before thou engagest in any work, "May I hope that God will bid me good speed? Can I look for his countenance in it, and his blessing on it?"
Blaise Pascal
He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God's providence to lead him aright.
Rowland Williams Psalms and Litanies, Counsels and Collects for Devout Persons, 1872
Though we know not what is best, give to us, Lord, what Thou seest fit; only fit us for what Thou givest, and let it bring to our souls health and peace, with some good to our neighbor and the world, for Thy goodness’ sake, O Lord.
Jeremy Taylor, An Exhortation to the Imitation of the Life of Christ
https://books.google.com/books?id=m09OAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA21
Since our way is troublesome, obscure, and full of (obstacles) and dangers, apt to be mistaken, and to (discourage our effort), Jesus commands us to mark His footsteps, to tread where His feet have stood. He not only invites us forward by the argument of His example, but He hath trodden down much of the difficulty and made the way easier and fit for our feet.
He knows our infirmities, and Himself hath felt their experience in all things but in the neighborhoods of sin; and therefore He hath proportioned a way and a path to our strength and capacities…(in) the comfort of His company and the influence of a perpetual guide.
Rev. James Smith, C.H. Spurgeon’s predecessor at New Park St. Chapel, London, in his Daily Bible Readings for the Lord’s Household
Our journey is through a trackless desert; we know not a foot of the road, all before us is untrodden path; the road is lined with snares and dangers, there are many bypaths, let us therefore lay hold on this precious promise, “The Lord shall guide thee continually.” (Isaiah 58:11)
He knows the path. He knows our frame. He knows every foe. He knows what we want, when we want, and how much we shall want; let us therefore put the hand of our faith into the hand of his special providence.
Archibald Brown “The Teaching of the Holy Spirit”, A sermon delivered in the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, London September 6, 1891.
John 7:17 “If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God…”
The Spirit of God will only guide into truth as we obey the truth which he has already revealed. I do not believe that the blessed Spirit will guide me into any further truth until I have yielded obedience to that truth which he has already brought home to my conscience.
Henry P. Liddon, Professor of the Exegesis of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford
It is a condition of enjoying continued insight into the laws which govern spiritual truth, that we should conform our moral being to that measure of truth which we already see. A deliberate rejection of duty prescribed by already recognized truth cannot but destroy, or at least impair most seriously, the clearness of our mental vision.
John Murray “The Guidance of the Holy Spirit” Collected Writings of John Murray, Vol. 1: The Claims of Truth (Banner of Truth Trust, 1976)
The word of God in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments is the only infallible rule of practice, as it is also the only infallible rule of faith. Complementary to this basic premise is another, namely, that the word of God is a perfect and sufficient rule of practice. The corollary of this is that we may not look for, depend upon, or demand new revelations of the Spirit.
Yet, (the Holy Spirit) may and does provide us with some direct feeling or impression or conviction which we are to regard as the Holy Spirit’s intimation to us of what his mind and will is in a particular situation.
The word of God is relevant to every situation in which we are placed, and in one way or another bears upon every detail and circumstance of life. We must rely upon the Holy Spirit to direct and guide us in the understanding and application of God’s will as revealed in Scripture, and we must be constantly conscious of our need of the Holy Spirit to apply the word effectively to us in each situation. The function of the Holy Spirit in such matters is that of illumination as to what the will of the Lord is, and of imparting to us the willingness and strength to do that will.
Our dependence upon an infallible rule and our reliance upon the infallible Spirit do not eliminate all error in judgment or wrong in decision on our part. We are always fallible, imperfect, and sinful.
F.B. Meyer on Jeremiah 1:5 “I formed thee...I knew thee...I sanctified thee; I have appointed thee.”
GOD HAS a plan for each of his children. From the foot of the Cross, where we are cradled in our second birth, to the brink of the river, where we lay down our armour, there is a path which He has prepared for us to walk in. God also prepares us for the path He has chosen. We are His workmanship, created unto the good works which He has before prepared. There is nothing in the path for which there has not been provision made in our nature. From the earliest inception of his being, God had a plan for Jeremiah's career, for which He prepared him.
Ask what your work in the world is, that for which you were born, to which you were appointed, and on account of which you were conceived in the creative thought of God. That there is a Divine purpose in thy being is indubitable. Seek that you may be permitted to realize it, and never doubt that you have been endowed with all the special aptitudes which that purpose may demand. God has formed you, and stored your mind with all that He knew to be requisite for your life-work. It is your part to elaborate and improve to the utmost the one or two talents entrusted to your care.
Do not be jealous or covetous; do not envy another his five talents, but answer the Divine intention in your creation, redemption, and call to service. It is enough for thee to be what God made thee to be, and to be always at thy best.
But in cases where the Divine purpose is not clearly disclosed, in which life is…heaped together with no apparent plan, we must dare to believe that God has an intention for each of us; and that if we are true to our noblest ideals, we shall certainly work out the Divine pattern, and be permitted someday to see it in its unveiled symmetry and beauty. To go on occupying the position in which we have been placed by the Providence of God, and to hold it for God till He bids us do something else!
“The Blessed Life”
https://www.gracegems.org/SERMONS/blessed_life.htm
When a man is right with God, God will freely use him. There will rise up within him impulses, inspirations, strong strivings, strange resolves. These must be tested by Scripture and prayer; and if evidently of God, they must be obeyed. If He lays anything on your heart, He will do so irresistibly; and as you pray about it, the impression will continue to grow, so that presently, as you look up to know what He wills you to say or do, the way will suddenly open, and you will probably have said the word or done the deed almost unconsciously.
A.B. Simpson
There are some things about which we do not need to pray as much as to take the light which God has already given. Many people are asking God to give them peculiar signs, tokens and supernatural intimations of His will. Our business is to use the light He has given, and then He will give whatever more we need.
Many difficulties and perplexities in connection with our Christian lives might best be settled by a simple and bold decision of our will to go forward with the light we have, leaving the speculations and theories that we cannot decide for further settlement. What we need is to act, and to act with the best light we have. As we step out into the present duty and full obedience, many things will be made plain which it is no use waiting to decide.
When we ask God for directions, we must allow Him to direct the steps which are to bring the answer.
God does give us impressions but not with the intent that we should act on them as impressions. If the impression comes from God, He will Himself give sufficient evidence to establish it beyond the possibility of a doubt. We read of the impression that came to Jeremiah concerning the purchase of the field of Anathoth. Jeremiah, however, did not act upon this impression until after the following day, when his Uncle's son came to him and brought him external evidence by making a proposal for the purchase - Then Jeremiah said, "I knew that this was the word of the Lord". (Jeremiah 32:8) He waited until God seconded the impression by a providence, and then he acted in full view of the open facts that could bring conviction unto others as well as himself.
God wants us to act according to His mind. We are not to ignore the Shepherd's personal voice, but are to listen to all the voices that speak and gather from all the circumstances the full mind of the Lord.
On Colossians 3:17 – “Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.”
This is our high calling, to represent Christ and act in His behalf and in His character and spirit under all circumstances and toward all persons. "What would Jesus do?" is a simple question which will settle every difficulty, and always settle it on the side of love. But we cannot answer this question rightly without having Jesus Himself in our hearts. We cannot act like Christ. We must have Christ and simply be natural and true to the life within us.
A.W. Tozer The Set of the Sail "How The Lord Leads"
The many choices that we Christians must make from to involve only four kinds of things: Those concerning which God has said an emphatic no; those about which He has said an equally emphatic yes; those concerning which He wants us to consult our own sanctified preferences; and those few and rare matters about which we cannot acquire enough information to permit us to make intelligent decisions and which for that reason require some special guidance from the Lord to prevent us from making serious mistakes.
If God gave a sailor a compass would the sailor please God more by kneeling in a frenzy of prayer to persuade God to show him which way to go or by steering according to the compass?
The Next Chapter After the Last
If our desire is legitimate and innocent, then there are three possible ways by which it may be obtained: one is to work for it, another is to pray for it and a third is to work and pray for it.
J.I. Packer
We are to order our lives by the light of His law, not by our guesses about His plan.
Confidence that one's impressions are God-given is no guarantee that this is really so, even when they persist and grow stronger through long seasons of prayer. Bible-based wisdom must judge them.
Bruce Waltke Finding the Will of God
God guides us first through his word (2 Peter 1:21), then through our heartfelt desires (John 14:25, 16:13), then the wise counsel of others (Ephesians 4:15), and then our circumstances. At that point we must rely on our own sound judgment…God gave each of us a brain, and he expects us to put it to good use.
Thomas Watson The Godly Man’s Picture
https://www.fivesolas.com/Watson/godlwlk.htm
Walking with God is the best way to know the mind of God.
F.B Meyer
Speak to me, Lord, by Prophet and Psalmist, by lyric and prose, by narrative and appeal. Speak through Thy Word to restore my soul, to rejoice my heart, and to enlighten mine eyes!
Sir John Bowring Matins and Vespers: With Hymns and Occasional Devotional Pieces
Thou, who kindly Smil'st on my path, conduct me still;
Conduct me, while fatigued and blindly I climb up life's deceitful hill;
Smile in Thy light of mercy o'er me, And form me to Thy holy will;
Thy hope shall sweetly beam before me, Thy rays my little lamp shall fill.
Thomas Thelluson Carter The Treasury of Devotion
O Eternal Wisdom, grant me the light of Thy Holy Spirit, that I may know what Thou wouldest have me do; I offer myself entirely to Thee, do with me what seemeth good in Thy sight; not my will, but Thine, be done. Correct whatsoever Thou seest amiss in me. strengthen my weak resolutions, restrain my wayward desires; remove all hindrances to the fulfilment of Thy will, and give me grace so to follow the leadings of Thy Providence, that my life may be spent to Thy honor and glory, in whatsoever way it pleases Thee.
George Matheson Voices of the Spirit, “Fetters of the Spirit”
Bind me to Thyself as Thou bindest the planets to the sun, that it may become the very law of my nature to be led by Thee. May I be content to know that goodness and mercy shall follow me without waiting to see them in advance of me (Psalm 23:6).
Joshua 1:9
Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.
CAUTION I
A letter from Abraham Lincoln to a group of Northern clergymen arguing from the Bible for Abolition, and after receiving a letter arguing for slavery, also from the Bible, from a group of Southern clergymen. September 1862
https://books.google.com/books?id=D9EtAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA7&lpg
“I am approached with the most opposite opinions and advice, and that by religious men, who are equally certain that they represent the Divine will. I am sure that either the one or the other class is mistaken in the belief, and perhaps in some respects both. I hope it will not be irreverent for me to say that if it is probable that God would reveal his will to others, on a point so connected with my duty, it might be supposed he would reveal it directly to me; for, unless I am more deceived in myself than I often am, it is my earnest desire to know the will of Providence in this matter. And if I can learn what it is I will do it! These are not, however, the days of miracles, and I suppose it will be granted that I am not to expect a direct revelation. I must study the plain physical facts of the case, ascertain what is possible and learn what appears to be wise and right. The subject is difficult, and good men do not agree.”
CAUTION II
Jude 21 (Living Bible) "Stay always within the (Biblical) boundaries where God’s love can reach and bless you."
CAUTION III
The voice of God can be drowned out by the noise of the world, the storms of life, and our fears and conflicts.
(1 Kings 19:12 "After the fire came a gentle whisper.")
A.W. Tozer “God’s Highest Will”
Let us consider three simple things reinforced in the Word of God for those who would discern God's highest will. First, be willing to put away known sin! Second, separate yourself from all of the attractions of the world, the flesh and the devil! Finally, offer yourself to your God and Savior in believing faith! God has never yet turned away an honest, sincere person who has come to know the eternal value of the atonement and the peace that is promised through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The only person who will never be cleansed and made whole is the one who insists he or she needs no remedy. The person who comes in faith to God and confesses, "I am unclean; I am sin-sick; I am blind," will find mercy and righteousness and life. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Savior, the Cleanser. He is the Purifier, the Healer. He is the Sight-giver and the Life-giver. He alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life!
CAUTION IV
G. Campbell Morgan "The Limitations of Liberty" on 1 Corinthians 6:12, 10:23
We make a terrible mistake if we imagine that we may exercise our liberty by indiscriminate use of the things that are lawful. The tender, strong love of God in Christ lays restrictions on our liberty; first, things lawful are to be exercised for our progress toward Christ's consummation; secondly, things lawful are to be kept under us while we are under Christ; and, finally, we make illicit use of the lawful things if we ever forget for a passing moment that we cannot live alone, that our brother's life and our brother's edification are part of our responsibility.
(How will this decision effect others?)