A WALK ON THE WISE SIDE: UNDERSTANDING GOD’S ELUSIVE WILL (2)

(Ephesians 5:15-17)

Our subject again this morning is Understanding God’s Elusive Will. I

have used the word elusive, not because it really is, but because we often
talk about finding God’s will as though it were lost – as though God were
playing hide-and-seek with us – as though God’s will were mysterious and
almost incomprehensible. We feel like that dog named Stay. Heard about
him? His owner had to take him to the mental hospital. It seems like
commands like, “Come, Stay. Stay, come” had him totally confused! He
didn’t know if he was coming, going or staying! Ever feel like that when
trying to determine God’s will?

Paul says in Ephesians 5:15, “15) Look carefully then how you walk, not as
unwise but as wise.” Far from being confused, we are to be walking as wise
people. He then gives us four introductory ways to do that. 1) Use time
wisely. Don’t squander opportunity. 2) Uproot foolishness. Don’t waste
your life on questionable pleasures. 3) Then in verse 17, Understand God’s
will. It’s a command, so it’s doable. It’s present tense, so it is to be our
constant occupation. Later we will see a fourth command in verse 18, 4)
Unleash the power of the Spirit. But for today – understand the will of
God. We started last week. Let’s review.

I. Its Perspective

Last week we saw that God’s will isn’t about me. It’s a massive plan as
revealed in Ephesians 1:10: “a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all
things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” God’s ultimate will is
profound – restore paradise. Redeem creation. Undo the chaos Satan
unleashed with his fall. It’s a big plan, and our little plans must fit His big
plan. God is going down a single road – and we must conform to him, not
vice versa. No sidetrips to accommodate us. We have to see our lives in
keeping with His overall objective and be asking how can I best fit into that
plan – not how can God best fit into my plans.

II. Its Price

Next we saw that understanding God’s will exacts a price. Romans 12:1-2
says: “1) I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to
present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which
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is your spiritual worship. 2) Do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern
what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” We all
want God’s will for us in verse 2, but we can’t just skip over verse 1 as
though it is not there. God’s first order of business – the presentation of the
whole person, body, soul and spirit – to Him. Then we can talk about
smaller issues like jobs, spouses, houses, etc. We may not expect to be
living in God’s will, understanding God’s will or benefiting from God’s
will unless we are God’s person. It’s impossible to say, “Well, I want
God’s will for a marriage partner, but when it comes to my entertainment
life, I’ll determine what is best.” It just doesn’t work that way. The price
for knowing and understanding God’s will is becoming God’s person.

III.Its Revelation

Is God’s will elusive? God’s will is not elusive. It is there all the time in
black and white – where? In His Word. The elusive part is that we don’t
want to accept that. We want to go straight to, should I make this
investment or should I leave this marriage, or should I send my children to
this school? No stop at the information center for us. We put our interests
and our concerns first. God says, Understand the Word – the rest will
follow. Neglect that Word – and I cannot help you. This is the burden of
Paul’s instruction -- “Understand what the will of the Lord is.” So last
week we began to look at just a few of things that the Bible reveals about
the will of God for us.

A. Our Salvation

First, as covered above, it is God’s will that we be saved – committed to

Him as Savior and Lord. He speaks to His people; He does not speak to the
unbeliever. God’s will is for God’s people. His first will is our salvation.
II Pet 3:9, God is“not wishing that any should perish, but that all should
reach repentance.”

B. Our Sanctification

A second part of God’s will is found in I Thess 4:3, “3) For this is the will of
God, your sanctification:” It is God’s will that we live holy lives, lives
separate from the loose sexuality of the world, lives dedicated to being holy
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as He is holy – lives that delight in His commandments and in representing
the Father by reflecting His character. Lack of care for this concern of His
heart means that we have no claim on His will concerning whatever is
near to our heart. It’s His will that we be saved, and then act like it.

C. Our Submission

Now, here is another thing that is God’s will for us. It is His will that we be
submissive. This one is so hard because it means to put the will of
someone else above our own. The very thought is repugnant to us, but that
is the true definition of submission – to put someone else’s will above our
own. From a human perspective, it’s not fair. I have only this one life and
it seems like I ought at least to be able to do what I want. Are you sure God
is asking for submission – and to whom?

Well, just look down to verse 21 of Ephesians 5: “submitting to one another

out of reverence for Christ.” The Lord is asking us to submit to one another
– to put selfishness aside when it comes to our community relationship.
Wow. Tough. Some sort of submission to others is lurking out there. But
today, I want to simply emphasize that it is submission to God that is
required first and foremost. It is the will of God that we subvert our will to
His. This has far-reaching implications.

First, let’s get the general principle from James 4:13-17: “Come now, you
who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and
spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— 14) yet you do not know
what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears
for a little time and then vanishes. 15) Instead you ought to say, “If the
Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16) As it is, you boast in your
arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17) So whoever knows the right thing
to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”

What James is saying is that everything – absolutely everything – every

action, ever thought, every intention, every motivation of a true believer –
no matter how mundane – is to be subject to the will of God. Do you see
that? It is the subjection of my will to His. The truth is, this is wonderful
place to be though sometimes it’s tough to arrive. But even as small a thing
as I think I’ll go into town is subject to, “Lord willing.”

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There’s the story about the farmer who declared to his neighbor that he was
going to town to buy a cow. The neighbor tried to correct him, "You ought
to say, ’The Lord willing, I’m going to town to buy a cow.’" The farmer
replied, "Listen, I have the money, they have the cow, I’m going to town to
buy a cow." Off he went. But on the way he was beaten up by robbers, and
all his cash stolen. Wounded and disheveled, he stopped at his neighbor’s
on his way home. After listening to the story, the neighbor asked, "Now
what are you going to do?" "Lord willing, I’m going home." He learned a
lesson! Everything subject to the Lord’s will.

But most of us are slow learners. We don’t like the “everything” part of
that. See, we like to compartmentalize. We want God’s will for our job
interview, but we don’t need God’s help to go into town to sell. Or we want
God’s will concerning some problem that has arisen concerning our
children, but we are not so keen concerning His will regarding our out-of-
control gambling habit. Now, listen very carefully to this. God does not
compartmentalize! There is a fascinating verse in John 9:31. It says this,
“We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper
of God and does his will, God listens to him.” Do you see the implications
of that? If you want God’s will in one area of life, you must submissive to
Him in all areas of life. Listen, how would your wife react if you said,
“Honey, I got those gutters cleaned out, but I want to take Linda from work
to a romantic dinner tonight, and I really need your help. Would you mind
ironing my good white shirt?” How would that go over? You’d be lucky if
she didn’t iron the shirt while it was on your back, right? Or what if you
said to your husband, “Darlin’, I made Brownies for you, but I’m takin’ my
friend, Billy Bob, to the concert tonight, but would you mind getting the car
washed and waxed?” How would that fly? We all know faithfulness in
marriage means faithfulness in all points, right? Why would we think God
is any different?

I really want your will here, Lord, but don’t go meddling over there! Did
you know that it is God’s will that you be giving to His work? It is. Listen
to this in II Cor 8:1-5, “We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of
God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia (the
Philippians), 2) for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and
their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their
part. 3) For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond
their means, of their own accord, 4) begging us earnestly for the favor of
taking part in the relief of the saints— 5) and this, not as we expected, but
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they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.”
So, get the picture. The people in Philippi were afflicted (that’s where Paul
went to jail for preaching the gospel) and they were living for the most part
in extreme poverty. And yet Paul identifies them as the only church that
kept sending to his needs. And he says that their giving was by the will of
God. It is God’s will that we give, even though we have little.

The Bible’s teaching on giving is found in many places, but most clearly
summarized in II Cor 9:6-7, “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will
also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap
bountifully. 7) Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not
reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” God
wants us to give. Not because He needs the money, but because He knows
it is good for us. And so he says, first give yourself. I don’t want anything
until I have your heart. But then you need to express that commitment by
purposing a regular giving pattern and then give – cheerfully. That is His
will. Now – if you are neglecting this area of Christian life; if you are
refusing His will in this area, but still seeking His will about a job change,
you are being inconsistent. You are compartmentalizing. I’ll take your
blessing here, Lord, but I’ll go it alone over there. Only problem is, God
doesn’t divide Himself like that.

Here is another example of the expressed will of God for us all. It’s in
Ephesians 6:5-8: “5) Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and
trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-
service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God
from the heart, (and what is that will of God?) 7) rendering service with a
good will as to the Lord and not to man,” We’ll study it in more detail
when we get there, but do you see God’s will is that you serve your boss
just as though he or she were the Lord. That means giving your best at all
times. We’ll talk about applications later, but if you can’t look God in the
eye and say that you are fulfilling His will in your actions and attitude at
work, what right do you have to ask for His will concerning whether or not
to buy a new car, or what new car to buy. Beloved, we cannot
compartmentalize the will of God. It’s inclusive – all or nothing.

Here’s another one. It is God’s will as we have seen before that we be

sexually pure – words seldom heard in these days of moral laxity. It’s in I
Thess 4:3 which we’ve already read, “For this is the will of God, your
sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality.” Naturally this
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forbids adultery, which most would agree with. But the word Paul uses
here is inclusive and covers pre-marital sexual activity as well, something
that has really crept into our churches. So here we have a young man or
young woman seeking God’s will about a life’s partner – this at the same
time they are sexually active with a boyfriend or girlfriend. How is it that
we no longer see the inconsistency of that? We’ve compartmentalized.

If you are truly desirous of knowing God’s will in area B of your life, you
must be living it in area A where He has clearly revealed it. Anything less
and we are walking, talking hypocrites.

Did you know it is God’s will that you be thankful? I Thess 5:18, “give
thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for
you.” God’s will in Christ Jesus is that we give thanks in all circumstances.
So do we? Do you eat well and give thanks? Good. Are you well-clothed
and thankful? Good. Are you single and thankful? Ailing and giving
thanks? Fearful and giving thanks? We compartmentalize pretty quickly
on that one, don’t we? We find it easy to be thankful for the good things –
though often we are negligent even there. But we cringe at the bad. We
count every supposed slight of others, rather than giving thanks in all
circumstances, do we not? Perhaps you heard about the school principal
who said to his harried second-grade teacher: “Miss Whitney, you simply
cannot send thank-you notes to your pupils when they stay home because
of illness.” I guess that was thanks in all circumstances, but now quite
what Paul had in mind I don’t think.

Listen – did it ever occur to you that whatever state and circumstance you
find yourself in today is God’s will for you today? That’s it for today.
Whatever He’s teaching you, and however He is using you, you have it for
today. It may change tomorrow, but how can you ask for His further will
until you are thankful for what you have? Don’t compartmentalize.

Okay – we’re on a roll, aren’t we? How about another one? God says in
Ezra 10:11, “Now then make confession to the Lord, the God of your
fathers and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and
from the foreign wives.” Couple that with II Cor 6:14, “14) Do not be
unequally yoked with unbelievers.” Just in case you wanted to know if it is
okay to marry an unbeliever, God wrote it down. It is not His will that you
do so. It is His will that you do not. You don’t even need to pray about that
one; you already have the answer. But, you say, she is so beautiful; she is a
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lovely person. She is unselfish and family-oriented and – she is beautiful.
And all that may be true, see, but now you are faced with the ultimate
question – your will or God’s? Submission or rebellion?

I gained the utmost respect for my brother, Jon, when he faced this very
issue. He was about to get out of college, around 23 years of age. He was
dating a beautiful girl that everyone loved, and most particularly Jon. But
she came from a non-Christian home and to the best of Jon’s knowledge she
did not know the Lord despite the fact that she had been going to church
and youth groups with him. She was not in any way outwardly rebellious,
nor was she into any of the wild things that kids sometimes are at that age.
But Jon didn’t think she was saved. Jon himself had a very rough
background – got into a lot of trouble during his teen-age years, but the
Lord had gotten ahold of his heart, and so, as he eventually told me the
story – after a lot of soul-searching, one night, with tears in his eyes, he told
this girl that he knew she wanted to get married and so did he, but he could
not marry her. Why? She wanted to know. And he told her – it was
because she was not a believer. Can you imagine the courage that took?
And Jon was no spiritual giant at the time, but he knew God’s will on this
issue and was committed to do it. I think it was one of his proudest
moments because he had made that most difficult decision. God’s will –
not mine. That is what submission means.

The good news to this story is that Anne, now with tears in her eyes,
assured Jon that she was indeed a believer. She had quietly invited the Lord
into her life one night a short time before after listening to a sermon by
Pastor Ken at our church, but she had been too shy to say anything. God
has used them both mightily in His work since, but I believe it is because
both were willing to submit to His will, regardless the cost.

So – it is God’s will that we not have permanent marriage, business or other

binding entanglements with unbelievers. But what if you do? What if you
were not aware, or willfully made the commitment anyway? What then?
Do you break the marriage or business or other entanglement? No. No,
you do not. Now you seek God’s principles and instruction regarding how
to live submissively in that relationship. You do not compound a first
mistake with a second. Do you see? There are always consequences to our
foolishness, but God’s grace is always there. Always flowing. Always
abundantly more than our sin. Now you work it out under His gracious

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control. But better if you be following His will all along before you make
such major mistakes.

Conclusion
All right. I thought we’d get further than this, but we will finish this next
week. Let me conclude with this today. God’s will is big; it extends far
beyond me; and it cannot be compartmentalized. I must be concerned about
what He is concerned about in the big picture. It is His will that I be
submissive to Him – that means to put His will above my own in every area
I know.

Some of you may have read the books by Jan Karon about Father Tim, an
episcopal minister, in the fictional town of Mitford. Patty thinks we moved
there and she loves it. In one of the books, Home to Holly Springs, Henry
Winchester, Father Tim’s half brother asks him, "May I ask if God called
you to the ministry?" Father Tim replies, "I didn't feel called in the usual
sense, not in the beginning. In the beginning, I thought it was about
being good, doing the right things, believing the right things. And, of
course, it is about all that, but it really doesn't work unless we're in
relationship with him. I was in my forties before God cracked open my
heart and revealed himself to me and I surrendered my life to him. That
was the breakthrough. Before that, I was merely a man with an agenda.
After that, I was God's man and it was his agenda. It changed
everything." Understanding God’s will is nothing less than submitting to
His agenda for my life. Let’s pray.