5/4/13 Doing God's Will

³⁵ Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35)

³ It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; (1 Thessalonians 4:3)

¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) 

Thoughts:  It is clear from the above passages and many others that doing God's will is very important and a blessing in life.  We are included in God's family when we are one with God- showing that by doing God's will.  It is not a matter of doing things, or just being a scholar of scripture, but having our will knit to His will- having our hearts right with God.  As Luther said, "Love God and do what you will."  He could say that because if we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength then we will find God's will and will want to do God's will- not the will of our flesh alone.
     For those who are making a decision about their lives- the very basic question is "What has God already said on the topic?"  Or, what do the scriptures teach?  If the scriptures are clear on something, and we disobey them, then we may need to ask ourselves if our heart is right- or if we really wanted to hear what God has to say in the first place.
     If a person is asking, "Should I move in with my girlfriend before marriage?"  They may want to look back at I Thessalonians 4:8 (above), or Ephesians 5:3, or 1 Corinthians 6:9, or the myriad of other verses related to the topic.  The teachings are uniform that sexual relationships are holy to God and are to be reserved with deep commitment- not just for our protection but to please God.  To just look at secular studies and statistics may help- but studies and polls are often skewed to show what the majority want to hear.  If we cannot listen to what God has said then we need to recognize that we are rebelling against God's will- not following it.  
    If we cannot hear what God has told us plainly, how can we ask God to answer us in the less clear issues?  We must have a listening heart.  

Prayer: Above all else, help me, O God, to listen to you.  Help me O Lord to protect my soul and honor as well as your name. 

For further study.  At the end of Jeremiah is a perfect illustration of asking but not listening.  The city of Jerusalem has been destroyed and some mean people assassinated the appointed governor.  The rest of the people were trying to decide whether they should stay there or escape to Egypt.  They asked Jeremiah and he told them he wouldn't tell them because they wouldn't listen.  They promised to listen but then when he told them what they didn't want to hear (that they should stay), they told him he was crazy and they went to Egypt anyway- probably killing Jeremiah in the process.