Do You Really Want to Know God’s Will?

Jeremiah 42:5-6 – “Then they said to Jeremiah, The LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the LORD thy God shall send thee to us. ⁶ Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.”

Jeremiah 43:1-4 – “¹ And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the LORD their God, for which the LORD their God had sent him to them, even all these words, ² Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the LORD our God hath not sent thee to say, Go not into Egypt to sojourn there: ³ But Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, for to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death, and carry us away captives into Babylon. ⁴ So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, obeyed not the voice of the LORD, to dwell in the land of Judah.”

 

Before diving into Scripture, let me just give you a short explanation as to why I haven’t written in a while.  For the last two weeks, I have been on vacation with my parents in the Mediterranean, visiting countries like Italy, Croatia, Sicily, and Montenegro.  It was a great time to just catch up on some good ol’ R&R (rest and relaxation) and get some great pictures to add to my collection of best pictures (by the way if anybody ever wants to see them, leave me a comment so I can post them up for you all to see).  Interestingly enough, even when we are on vacation, the Lord is never on vacation.  During these two weeks, well more like in the last week, the Lord really spoke to me about an issue in my life and is continuing to speak to me about it.  Let’s just say that we are all still on the road to becoming the best disciples of Jesus Christ we can be.  The issue He wanted me to wrestle with is surrendering to His will and plan no matter what.

 

Let me set up the background for you.  Have you ever really wanted something?  I mean really desired and longed for something where you would give almost anything to get it?  I ran into an opportunity during this trip that I felt this way about, but when I prayed and thought about it, I kept coming to the conclusion that it was just not the right time to take that opportunity.  It was as if the Lord was clearly telling me, “Let it go.  Forget about it.  Trust that I have a better plan for you than what you think.”  I, thankfully, obeyed, but after the next few days, I could only continue thinking about how I somehow missed an opportunity of a lifetime – how the Lord was cruel and horrible to do this to me, to make me miss out on something great.  The truth was that while I was praying for the Lord’s will to be done, I was actually just looking for His approval for something that I had in my mind already decided.  And because His will was not the same as mine, I harbored bitterness because I didn’t get what I wanted.

 

This same mindset was found in Johanan the son of Kareah and the remnant of the people of Israel when they sought the Lord’s will about their going into Egypt.  In Jeremiah 41, Gedaliah, the governor set over Israel, was killed by Ishmael an Ammonite assassin.  In addition, Ishmael was taking some of the Israelites captive back to his land in Ammon.  Johanan then led a group of rebels to combat and defeat Ishmael.  After their victory, Johanan and the remnant of Israel, in fear of reprisal from the king of Babylon for the death of his appointed governor Gedaliah, decided to run to Egypt.  They had made a resolute decision that they were going to Egypt, but before going they sought the advice of Jeremiah the prophet of the Lord, asking him to tell them the Lord’s will on this issue (Jeremiah 42).  What they were truly looking for was approval from the Lord for their decision to go into Egypt.  They had no intention of searching for and obeying the Lord’s will like they said in vs. 5-6 of Jeremiah 42 unless it coincided with their decision to go into Egypt.  Their intentions were made clear in Jeremiah 43:1-4, where they accused Jeremiah of treason, and then decided to go into Egypt anyways (vs. 5-7).  All they wanted was the “Go Ahead” from God for something they had made their mind up on.

 

So often, we as disciples of Jesus Christ come in prayer to the Lord asking Him to show us His will.  But just as often, we are actually just seeking His approval for something we have already made our minds up on.  That is not the right heart to come to God with, especially when we are seeking His will.  Instead we need to have our hearts and minds open to whatever His plan is even when it does not coincide with ours, for His ways and thoughts are greater than our thoughts.  A few weeks ago, I wrote about how God’s plans are bigger, better, and greater than what we can imagine.  I wrote about this topic because the Lord was speaking to me about it and is continuing to do so today, for I still struggle with relinquishing it all to Him.  But a disciple of Jesus Christ is one who has devoted his life to following God completely.  There are no ifs, ands, or buts – there is only a simple “Yes, Lord.  Your will be done.”

 

Do you really want to know God’s will?  Are you really willing to obey it?  Or are you just seeking His approval?  Come to Him with an open heart of obedience, knowing that the Lord will always do what is best for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.