...through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. (2 Peter 1:3 NIV)
We want to be able to walk together with God and rely on God’s Spirit. So, we look for the knowledge of God. We want to know God’s will. We start that process by reading Scripture.
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2 NIV)
Being able to test and approve God’s will may begin with Scripture. Sometimes, though, we need to go beyond the context of Scripture to understand what God wants for us today. The internet, blogs, and email, for example, did not exist in the days of Scripture. Should they be used, then? How? What does God want with all this technology? How about medical technology? How about travel in things like planes, trains, and automobiles? Are talking pictures (television programs and movies) ok? Which ones? This is when we need to rely on God’s Spirit to directly “speak” with us.
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. (James 1:5-8 NIV)
God does promise to “speak” with us. All we need to do is ask. We may not hear an audible voice, like some do, but God does promise to give us the wisdom we need to navigate life – even today. God will most probably speak to you in a way that you understand and trust that it is God. That trust is really important, because God’s Spirit isn’t the only spirit who will try to guide us, giving us direction.
Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1 NIV)
There are several tests we can apply to determine whether the “wisdom” we are receiving is coming from God or not. For one, God’s wisdom never contradicts God’s wisdom. In other words, God’s Spirit-direction will never contradiction God’s Scripture-direction.
Secondly, God’s Spirit-wisdom will always acknowledge Jesus as God, God’s Son, The Messiah/Christ, who was born of a virgin, died without sin to pay the penalty for our sin, rose on the third day, ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through him.
True speakers for God will always walk the walk as they talk the talk. By their fruit you will know if they are walking with God. By their fruit you will know if they are talking for God as well.
Perhaps my favorite test, however, is the one John shares as he goes on further in his letter:
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. (1 John 4:7-13 NIV)
God’s Spirit always leads us to being people who love. When we love God with everything and love our neighbor as ourselves, people see God at work in and through our lives.
How about you? Do you gain knowledge of God’s will for your life through God’s Spirit? Do you ask for wisdom? Do you “hear” God’s answer?
No comments:
Post a Comment