Gospel-centred life

Principle: My top priority is serving Christ.

Consider this

‘I want to be sure this is God’s will for my life’, Colin said to no one in particular. He knew it didn’t contravene anything in the Bible. He’d prayed about it. Did he feel peace in his heart about it? He wasn’t sure. He’d phoned his pastor, who had said either option was OK. In fact, his pastor hadn’t seemed very interested.

Maybe he should open his Bible at random and point to a verse. He didn’t want to step outside God’s will. But God didn’t seem to be revealing his will very clearly. If only God would zap it down in some way. Colin checked his voicemail just in case. Finally he decided. He’d take the bus and not the train to work this morning.

Biblical background: read 1 Thessalonians 4.3-12.

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‘How can I know who God wants me to marry?’ ‘We shouldn’t just ask God to bless our plans — we should ask him to show us his plans.’ ‘Make sure you don’t miss God’s will for your life.’

Statements like these appear very spiritual and often they’re driven by a good desire to obey God. But their premise is unbiblical. They assume God has a specific and unique plan for the life of each Christian. God has chosen a partner, a job, and a ministry for you, it’s assumed, and your job is to discover God’s will so you can act upon it. The problem is God doesn’t always seem to make this will very clear. Some people are left in a state of paralysis. Others look for signs or special words, while some try to read God’s will from circumstances, the advice of others or a sense of peace in their hearts. In fact, the Bible never calls on Christians to seek a specific direction that is unique to them.

Decisions and the will of God

The Bible speaks of God’s will in two senses.

1. God’s sovereign will. God rules over all things so that nothing happens that he doesn’t allow. In this sense, both good and evil events are part of his sovereign will. We can’t know God’s sovereign will for our lives ahead of time.

2. God’s moral will. God’s will also refers to the godly life that reflects God’s character. It’s God’s will, for example, that people should love him and love one another. God’s will in this sense is universal — it’s not specific to me. It’s God’s will that all of us should lead holy lives that bring Him glory. God’s moral will for our lives isn’t hidden from us because it’s revealed in the Bible. We may be worried about whom we should marry or what job we should pursue, but God is more concerned that we be a godly husband or wife and a godly employee.

Decisions and the wisdom of God

The book of Proverbs repeatedly traces the link between actions and their consequences to help us understand the likely outcome of different courses of action. Wisdom is being able to make decisions with a realistic assessment of their consequences.

But true wisdom goes even deeper. ‘The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline’ (Proverbs 1.7). We like to think of ourselves as consistent, rational beings making rational decisions, but the reality is that our reason is shaped by our hearts. We find reasons for doing what we want to do. There’s not necessarily anything wrong with this when the desires of our hearts are pure. The problem is that our reasoning processes are often corrupted by our sinful hearts. We all too easily ‘rationalise’ impure desires. So true wisdom and wise decision-making begin with the fear of the LORD. It begins with a recognition of the holy God, who knows the secrets of people’s hearts.

Decisions and the family of God

In our culture we’ve grown used to making decisions on our own, according to what suits us.

God, however, says, ‘In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others’ (Romans 12.5). We are members of one body. We belong to one another. Our principle should be: we involve the Christian community in decision-making to the extent that our decisions affect the community. This doesn’t mean that the community or its leaders tell people what to do in their personal lives, but it does mean that we should:

* make decisions with regard to the implications for our Christian community; and
* make significant decisions in consultation with members of our Christian community.

Questions for reflection

Can you think of an example when wrong motives clouded your ability to make a godly decision?

The Gospel-centred Life is published at £3.00 by The Good Book Company: http://www.thegoodbook.co.uk

Ninth of a series of extracts