Understanding God’s Will

...Growing out of the Knowledge

the Holy Spirit Gives

 

The prayer this month deals with one of the most difficult areas of life there is, that of knowing God’s will. Given the uncertainty of the days we live in it has never been more important to know God’s will and to understand the importance of our security as Children of His Kingdom. Once His will is known, many souls find even more difficulty in submitting to it. This is the reason we are called on to pray. For guidance in prayer we go to Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians.

Colossians 1:9—For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding…

Again Paul has us praying about fullness. This time, it has to do with being filled with the knowledge of God’s will.

In addition to ...We pray that you'll live well for the Master, making him proud of you as you work hard in his orchard. As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work. We pray that you'll have the strength to stick it out over the long haul—not the grim strength of gritting your teeth but the glory-strength God gives. It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us.—Colossians 1:10-12 (MSG)

The Greek word translated will (thélema) has a beautiful feeling about it. It is more like the warm desire of a father for his children, or the highest good wishes of a king for his people. It’s not like the mandatory sentence of a judge from which one cannot escape. The will of God is beautiful and full of life. It lays out the highest expression of purpose that can come in any life. Yet, for many, it is elusive and fearful, difficult to understand, and far removed from their own personal desires. Then pray that a revelation in understanding will come and make clear what God wants.

Here the word knowledge is from the Greek epignósis. As we have sated time and again, its meaning goes beyond that of ordinary knowledge. Acknowledgement is a better interpretation. It is knowledge in its fullest measure. It is like knowing someone in authority and then submitting to their rule. It means knowing something to the point of confessing it is real. Ordinary knowledge can remain passive, but this kind of knowledge cannot remain passive.

If someone knocks on your door and you hear it, you have knowledge that someone is at your door. But, acknowledgement demands that the door be opened so the one knocking can be received. The knowledge of God’s means knowing it to the point of submitting to it.

The word epignósis has a further shade of meaning. It also means, “full knowledge,” complete in every aspect of a matter. We are learning to request the full knowledge of what God wants, with no shady areas of understanding. While there is some insight and understanding regarding His will that can come from a mental comprehension, the full knowledge of what God wants always reaches beyond the mental.

Paul also leads us to ask for spiritual understanding. Understanding is from sunésis, a word meaning “the faculty of quick apprehension.” It is the ability to put things together and make them fit. Many times the parts we are given are like a puzzle with little reason as to how or why they should fit. Our minds are too limited to put the pieces together.

By nature, we relate to the earthly and to what is temporal. We want immediate answers and solutions, along with instant guidance. Our vision of the present is limited to what we can see and feel. Our imagination falls short at the edge of fantasy.

But, the Holy Spirit can make up this lack because God’s wisdom works through His Spirit. What God desires to accomplish through us relates to the Heavenlies and to His eternal Kingdom. So, it is the work of the Holy Spirit to draw us into a divine cause that may reach beyond the grasp of human intellect. It is the Spirit’s commission to release within us a spiritual understanding. It is what we need to walk in that a day-by-day unfolding of what God wants.

The Spirit of God sees what is beyond our sight and knowledge and knows what is required if we are to come into God’s highest ordination. Therefore, we are learning to call for His help in acknowledging His will.

Paul asked that all wisdom and spiritual understanding would accompany the making known of God’s will. We learned from him to pray for the spirit of wisdom in January. Now have already learned to ask for all wisdom. This brings the release of all the practical knowledge necessary to walk in the ways ordained by the Lord.

Further insight regarding knowing the will of God comes in Romans 12:2. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind that ye may prove (discern) what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. From the word transformed we learn there must take place a “metamorphosis” in the soul of that person who discovers God’s will perfectly. This brings one to a new mind, a new way of thinking, a new way of responding to life. When one’s mind is renewed he or she can prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

The word, prove is from the Greek dokimazo. It means, to put something to a thorough examination in order to remove all confusion. A renewed mind is free from the darkness that will hinder any revelation of what God wants.

Years ago I saw something in Phil 2:13 that gave me confidence concerning God’s will. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Seeing this took away any fear I had of submitting to Gods will. I learned that when I allow my life to stay in line with what God wants He takes over to become the very energizing Force within me to perform His will. This has provided a continuing guidance for me as to how the will of God for my life can be carried out.

God does the willing. Then, He does the doing. What a release—and what a relief! For all of this, intercessors learn to hold others in prayer that they may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God—Col 4:12.

 

This Colossians 1:9 prayer from Paul is a Kingdom prayer. It leads to the building up of those who have been redeemed so they can become useful in God’s Kingdom. The wisdom and understanding for which we are praying, both of which are energized in us by God’s Spirit, are Kingdom qualities. Having them at work in us adds to the value of what we are to the Lord as we live in this present time with Him in His Kingdom.

The coming of Heaven’s Kingdom and the acknowledgment of God’s will are two of the primary concerns toward which the Lord Jesus directed us in His first lesson on praying. We can see this in Matt 6:10—Let Thy Kingdom come. Let Thy will come into being, as in heaven, also upon the earth... (a literal translation). The ordination of God’s will for us has already come to pass in heaven. Now, we are asking Him to let it come to pass in us upon the earth. As we read this in the KJV, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. But it seems more exactly to say, “Let your will come into being, as in the Heavens, also upon the earth.” he work of God’s will is performed in Heaven, then to become a reality upon earth.

We present ourselves to Christ Who is waiting to live in us. This takes some spiritual learning and a great deal of spiritual understanding. It requires asking the Lord for this. Most of the time it means coming to the end of our own resources, only to find that He has been waiting to live in us.

Paul understood this and gave testimony to it. He said, “I am crucified with Christ—but I’m living! Not by my own ego, however; Christ is living in me.” In finding this, he discovered Christ’s faith (Gal 2:20) , Christ’s wisdom (I Cor 1:30) . He discovered the meekness and gentleness (II Cor 10:1) of Christ. He discovered that God will decide for us what is right (Phil 2:13) and then do it for us. When we see just what Jesus is leading us to pray, we can understand why Paul prayed asking for spiritual understanding.

 

Though we have been brought by grace to live in God’s Kingdom on earth, it is a Kingdom that has suffered violence, and will yet suffer more. When John the Baptist announced that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand (Matt 3:2), violence against the Kingdom began. For generations the Kingdom had been ignored. But, because God’s beloved Son had come into the world and was acknowledged by John as the Lamb of God (John 1:29), violence broke out.

In Psalm 2 we see that Jesus was the One anointed to receive the Kingdom. The serpent (Gen 3:1-15) has sought to take the Anointed One’s position since the dawn of time and has brought what violence he could against Him and His Covenant lineage. However, the enemy has always been limited by God’s Word, and always will be.

When Jesus came into the world, the forces of anti-Christ were more than ready to stand against Him. Satan supposed he might tempt Jesus to come over to his dark side. After he showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, he said to Him, all these things will I give Thee, if Thou wilt fall down and worship me. But Jesus said to him, get thee hence (Matt 4:8-10). Plans of violence continued however and remain in force.

With regard to all of this, Jesus said, And from the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force—Matt 11:12. Who are the violent? We are. What we are learning, however, is that the violence with which we take the Kingdom is a spiritual violence. Paul lays this out for us in Eph 6:10-12—Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

In Genesis 3:15 we find the first Word about the conflict, or the war, that would go on involving the devil and Christ—and us. See this. It’s called the First Word of the Gospel, The Protevangelion. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her Seed; it (literally, “He”) shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel.

The word bruise means “crush.” It indicates a mortal wound. The heel is not a place on the body where a mortal wound might be struck. The head is. The probable meaning of the attack on His heel is with reference to Christ’s Body. We who are joined to our Head in Heaven and who remain on earth till the Day of the Lord have a contest to face with the anti-Christ at this close of the age. With the Head of the Body now in the heavens, the serpent can only strike the least vulnerable part of Christ’s Body as it remains in the earth physically.

Revelation 20:2 makes it clear for us that the serpent who came to Eve in the Garden was Satan himself. And he (an angel that came down from heaven, perhaps the archangel Michael) laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years. The first two chapters of the Bible and the last two are the only ones without the devil. Like a clasp, these chapters join to form a belt around us, keeping us mindful how that old serpent holds a hopeless goal.

In the above Revelation verse the words laid hold on are from the Greek kratéo, which we have discussed many times before. It means, “to take governmental control.” The satanic government is more subtle than any terrorist organization. With the ultimate in clandestine maneuvers, it has opposed the Kingdom of God from the beginning. It will finally be brought under control, however, by the saints of the Most High.

See this complete statement from the Book of Daniel. It holds the above words. And he (the anti-Christ himself) shall speak great words (in blasphemy) against the most High, and shall wear out (use up all the energy of) the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they (the saints) shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time (the 3 and 1/2 year period closing this age). But the judgment shall sit, and they (the saints) shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the Kingdom and Dominion, and the greatness of the Kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High (our exalted Head and Leader, Christ Jesus), Whose Kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions (of the world) shall serve and obey Him.-Dan 9:25-27

We remind you again that the Epistle to the Ephesians is addressed to the saints. Its Word is closely connected with the Epistle to the Colossians and thus to the prayer of Colossians 1:9. As if giving a governmental stamp to the saints’ position in the earth, they are mentioned twelve times in Ephesians. Twelve is the number signifying that which is related to government. We see clearly that the word saints is a word of government. The saints will take the Kingdom and will reign with Christ.

There is no question about Jesus being the head of God’s Kingdom in the earth. But what was Paul’s concept of the Kingdom? Did he perceive it as a present Kingdom? Or, did he just think in terms of the Church only, which has its purpose while the Kingdom is in abeyance (temporarily suspended) till the time of the Gentiles is over? Did he believe that the Kingdom is only for the Jews, to be known among them after the Church is raptured?

None of the above hardly seem to be the case. Paul preached the Kingdom everywhere he went to the very end of his ministry. The word to preach is from the Greek kerússo, which means, to proclaim as a herald. A herald does not proclaim something that is thousands of years away. He announces what is near at hand.

Paul proclaimed the Kingdom, and he also knew the violence that was coming against it. Though he received some of that violence himself, he never stopped proclaiming the Kingdom.

We are in the same age, or period of time Paul was in. There was opposition to the Kingdom in his day. That opposition—or, we could call it violence, as Jesus did—will increase as the time of the end (Dan 12:1-4) comes on. We will not take the space here to list all the Scriptures that lead us to believe this, except to quote the following from Rev 12:12. It strongly implies that the anger of the enemy will only increase as his time grows shorter. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

Listening closely to Jesus, then letting Paul instruct us, will bring us forward day by day in Kingdom living. Just a few verses down from the verse we’re using for our praying this month, Paul describes what the Father has done for us relative to His Kingdom. Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:—Col 1:13. He has “transferred” us from the authority of the darkness into the Kingdom of the Son of His Love.

When we open ourselves to the spiritual understanding that comes with the acknowledgment of God’s will, it will bring us forward in knowing His Kingdom and our purpose in it. With spiritual understanding, we can enter the violence against the forces that stand to oppose the Kingdom. We remember, however, it is a spiritual violence in which we do battle with the spirits of anti-Christ. Many of us are learning that the most important truth we can garner unto ourselves for the conflict is what is laid out for us in Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians, the Philippians and the Colossians..

 

When Jesus gave us “The Lord’s Prayer,” He taught us a way of praying that will bring about the development of those He calls, in Matt 13:38, the children of the Kingdom, a significant designation for His disciples at the closing of this age. In Matthew 13 Jesus makes it clear how the Kingdom becomes established in the life of a believer. Then, He tells in clear words how the Kingdom is to spread throughout the world. The Greek word He used for world, when telling where the children of the Kingdom will be “planted,” is kósmos. This means the secular order of affairs on the earth. The word children in Matt 13:38 is from the Greek huíos. This designates those who have grown to the point of maturity that qualifies them to receive the family inheritance.

The lives of the children of the Kingdom are filled with the acknowledgment of God’s will. There is no room for anything except what He desires. They are the ones in whom wisdom and spiritual understanding are energized by God’s Spirit. He imparts all the wisdom and understanding necessary for carrying out His will. They will be scattered like seed into the world, like a farmer who broadcasts seed into his field. There is a quality built into the seed, which is the hand of the Kingdom, that will make them sprout and grow wherever they land. This is because the germ of Kingdom Life is in each ——. Wherever a son or daughter of the Kingdom lands, there the Kingdom will be. As it was when Jesus came into the world; where He was the Kingdom was.

These children of the Kingdom, being hated and feared by the enemy, will become surrounded by the children of the wicked one. Indeed! Anti-Christ plants his seed in the same field with the children of the Kingdom. He fashions them to look and act like the children of God’s Kingdom. One thing he cannot imitate, however, is the Life the Lord Jesus Christ gives those in whom He lives.

In getting ready for the Day of the Lord and the spread of His Kingdom, we do need to take the prayers to heart that we learn both from Jesus and from Paul.

They are all Kingdom Prayers; Matt 6:9-13; Eph 1:15-22; Eph 3:14-21; Phil 1:11; Col 1:9-13.

 

Matthew 6:9-13

⁹Therefore, after this manner pray:
‘Our Father in the heavens:

Let Your Name be sanctified, now, in this very moment!

¹⁰Let Your Kingdom come—now, into this present situation!

Let Your will come into being—now,
in this present moment on earth, as it already is in heaven.

¹¹Give us what is needed for our sustenance today
—as You will through all our days.

¹²And, dismiss us from the guilt of our failures toward You,

as we also have dismissed the guilt
of those who have failed us.

¹³And, lead us not into trials which we have not the grace to bear, but rescue us from the evil one.

Because the Kingdom is Yours, and the Power,
and the Glory unto the end of the ages.

 

 The Lord’s Prayer as interpreted from the

Received Text of the Greek New Testament.

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