Why is it important for me to follow God's will?

Knowing God’s Will: Review

Last week we discussed the topic “Is it possible to know God’s will?” https://robert-a-l-blake.com/is-it-possible-to-know-gods-will/ We reviewed the rather complex story of Baalam. We found that even though God’s will appeared to change depending on the scenario, it was consistent throughout the story. God wanted to bless Israel and perhaps even minister to a heathen king. He chose an instrument of questionable standing, but used him. This week, we will look at our third topic in the series, entitled “Why is it important for me to follow God’s will?”

Follow God’s Will: Overview

We will explore four (4) answers to the question. There are many more, but four (4) examples should suffice. As before, we will use biblical references for our discussion, and each answer will explore the life of a father.

Why is it important for me to know and follow God’s will?

It shows obedience to God.
Following God’s will shows love for God.
It avoids confusion.
The life I save may just be my own.

Philip the Deacon

We find a classic example of obedience to God in the New Testament story of Philip. There are at least two followers of Jesus named Philip in the Bible. The first mentioned is in Matthew 10:3. Jesus chose this Philip as one of His twelve (12) apostles. After Peter, James, and John, he is perhaps the most quoted or referenced apostle in the Gospels. We see Philip in the feeding of the 5000 (John 6:5-7), as well as introducing the Greeks to Jesus (John 12:20-22). We finally see him showing a bit of misunderstanding as he asks Jesus to show him God the Father (John 14:8-10).

The second Philip does not appear until after the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ during the formation of the Christian church. Luke, the author of Acts, lists him after Stephen, the first martyr, as one of the seven (7) deacons (Acts 6:5). He describes him as a very active evangelist throughout Acts 8—preaching, baptizing, healing, and exorcising. He had four (4) daughters (Acts 21:8, 9). The man was busy!

One day, the angel of the Lord sent him on a long walk. There were no reasons given, just a specific instruction to get up and go (Acts 9:26). He obeyed and came across a government official from Ethiopia. This is interesting not only to people of color but also that this encounter occurred before Peter’s conviction on the race and ethnicity issue. The Holy Spirit gave one last instruction to minister to this official, which led to his baptism (Acts 9:29-39).

There is a strong Christian presence in Ethiopia today, which is perhaps because of this encounter and one man’s obedience to follow God’s will.

Love for the Father

We recognize I Corinthians 13 as the love chapter, whereas we know the apostle John as the apostle of love. His writings ring full of love for God and for each other. I John is a classic example of this as there are several passages where he ties love to doing God’s will. These chapters reflect Christ’s words in John 14:15, where He states without reservation, “If ye love Me, keep My commandments.”

Jesus shared a parable in Matthew 21:28-32 about a man that had two sons. The father asked the first son to handle a request of him. That son adamantly replied that he would not do it. However, perhaps as he became repentant, he completed his father’s request. He assigned a task to the second son, who readily responded that he would get it done. However, for whatever reason, he did not accomplish his assignment. Jesus then posed a question to his listeners—“Whether of the twain did the will of his father?” Of course, the answer is the first son, as he is the only one who complied. Willingness was not enough for the second son, but actually doing his father’s will showed love for him.

There are many biblical examples of individuals that brought unnecessary confusion into their circumstances. David is one that readily comes to mind. He was the youngest of eight (8) sons of Jesse the Bethlehemite (I Samuel 16), a man who I’ve entitled a “Man of War”. Five of Jesse’s sons and three of his grandsons were soldiers. His grandsons and his son David were uncontestable on the battlefield.

A Confused Man

David, in his youthful years, was an amiable and peaceable lad who the prophet Samuel anointed as king to succeed Saul. Fast forward to his days of battle and his years as a king and there you find quite the contrasting picture. He was a fugitive frequently and a formidable warrior, as mentioned. He had multiple wives simultaneously, and a divided household. The Bible stated that “the sword would never leave his house” (II Samuel 12:10)! Later, we know him as “a man after God’s own heart” (I Samuel 13:14), but somewhere in his life, he misunderstood and did not follow God’s will.

Towards the end of his days, he reflected on how life could have been very different if he had just trusted God more and sought to do His will. In Psalm 71, he attempts to reset the trajectory of his life by stating, “In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion” (Psalm 71:1). David is a classic, but not the sole case, to support that by doing God’s will, we can avoid a significant amount of confusion in our experience.

Life or Death

Finally, knowing and doing God’s will can be a life or death matter. Pastor Jamond Jimmerson, expounded on the call of Moses found in Exodus chapters 3 and 4 in his sermon “Your Excuses don’t Work with Me” (South Central Conference camp meeting, 6/10/2023) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puUvCFd3KkE&t=51s. After a direct and personalized call by God to lead His people, Moses said “no” to God (Exodus 4:13). Pastor Jimmerson’s first point in his sermon was, “It’s dangerous when you tell God ‘no’!” The story goes on post-acceptance speech, and the scene is unrelated to the call or sermon, to Moses’ journey to Egypt with his wife and son. In Exodus 4:15-23, God lays out the detailed instructions for Moses’ assignment.

In verse 24, the story takes an abrupt and dramatic turn for the worst—“the Lord met him, and sought to kill him”! Where did that come from?! For what, saying “no”?! Like the second son in Jesus’s parable, Moses had initially said no, but then complied with God’s request. Verses 25-26, detail that he had not followed God’s command to Abraham, his forefather, to circumcise his son as a sign of the covenant with God, as outlined in Genesis 17:9-14. Why was Moses and not his son threated with death? This is because Moses was supposed to have completed this ritual for his son at eight days of age. Moses, a man called by God, almost lost his life by not following God’s will.