Dedicated To The Men of God Who Preach the Word of God As It
Is To Men As They Are
"Preach The Word"
Living Life in View of God’s Will
James 4:13-17
WARREN WIERSBE TELLS OF A YOUNG MAN HE SPOKE WITH AT A YOUTH CONFERENCE WHO SAID, "Preacher, I would give my life to the Lord, but I am afraid." TO WHICH HE REPLIED, "of what are you afraid?"
"I am afraid the Lord will ask me to do something dangerous."
THAT IS THE ATTITUDE OF MOST CHRISTIANS I KNOW TODAY...
AFRAID OF WHAT THE LORD MAY OR MAY NOT ASK THEM TO DO!
THE DANGEROUS LIFE IS NOT IN THE WILL OF GOD, BUT OUT OF THE WILL OF GOD!
WHEN JAMES BEGAN THIS CHAPTER HE WAS TALKING ABOUT WAR WITH GOD, BUT HE ENDS IT BY TALKING ABOUT THE WILL OF GOD.
THESE TWO THEMES ACTUALLY GO HAND IN HAND TOGETHER; BECAUSE WHEN A PERSON IS NOT IN THE WILL OF GOD, HE BECOMES A TROUBLEMAKER AND WAGES WAR WITH GOD!
GOD IS A GOD OF WISDOM AND IT SHOULDN’T SURPRISE ANYONE THAT HE SHOULD HAVE A PLAN FOR EACH OF OUR LIVES. HE KNOWS WHAT OUGHT TO HAPPEN, AND WHEN IT SHOULD OCCUR.
HE IS A GOD OF LOVE, AND HE DESIRES NOTHING BUT THE VERY BEST FOR HIS CHILDREN!
SADLY THOUGH, MANY CHRISTIANS LOOK ON THE WILL OF GOD AS SOMETHING THEY MUST TAKE, INSTEAD OF SEEING IT AS THE EVIDENCE OF HIS LOVE TOWARD US.
LET ME ILLUSTRATE WHAT I AM SAYING; A YOUNG MAN IN MY FORMER CHURCH WAS STRUGGLING WITH A CALL TO THE MINISTRY. ON MANY OCCASIONS WE TALKED ABOUT HIM SURRENDERING HIS LIFE TO CHRISTIAN SERVICE, BUT HE WAS NEVER WILLING TO SUBMIT HIMSELF TO GOD’S WILL. HE DISCOVERED THE HARD WAY THAT WHEN GOD CANNOT RULE, HE OVERRULES! HE WENT THROUGH SEVERE FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES, SEVERE MARITAL PROBLEMS, AND SERIOUS MENTAL DIFFICULTIES... ALL BECAUSE HE REFUSE TO SUBMIT TO THE WILL OF GOD! THEN ONE SUNDAY NIGHT, YEARS LATER, HE CALLED TO TELL ME THAT HE HAD FINALLY SURRENDERED HIS LIFE TO THE MINISTRY, AND THAT HE NOW HAD THE PEACE HE HAD BEEN LONGING AND SEARCHING FOR THESE PAST SEVERAL YEARS.
WHAT I AM SAYING IS; THE REASON SO MANY CHRISTIANS ARE UNHAPPY, WITHOUT JOY, WITHOUT PEACE, AND CONSTANTLY AT WAR IN THEIR HEARTS IS BECAUSE THEY ARE OUT OF THE WILL OF GOD!
IN THE VERSES WE HAVE READ TODAY, WE FIND THREE DIFFERENT VIEWS TOWARD THE WILL OF GOD. AND I BELIEVE THAT ALL PEOPLE HOLD AT LEAST ONE OF THESE VIEWS FOR THEIR LIFE.
THE FIRST VIEW IS...
I. TO IGNORE THE WILL OF GOD (13,14,16)
Here was a group of people that measured success in life by how many times they got their own way and accomplished what they had planned. (13)
But James gives us four arguments that reveals the foolishness of ignoring the will of God, and living life without him!
A. The complexity of life. (13)
Here is a description of earthly life at its best; planning, buying, selling, making money, and enjoying the material world.
Life is made up of people and places, activities and goals, days and years. And each of us makes crucial decisions everyday concerning our future.
Life is never easy! It is always more complicated that we are able to figure out and plan for. But God brings order, meaning, and unity to life, because He is a God of order.
B. The uncertainty of life (14a)
Proverbs 27:1 says; "boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth."
They were planning a year in advance. Counting their chickens before they hatch. No one but God knows what the future will be.
Tomorrow never comes! WE ALWAYS LIVE IN THE PRESENT, NEVER THE FUTURE. No one has been promised tomorrow! There is nothing wrong with making plans, but we would do well to remember that God, and God alone holds tomorrow in the palm of His hand.
C. The brevity of life (14b)
I read the other day of a woman 114 years old. That seems like a long time, but when compared with eternity, life is truly a vapor!
When I was a kid it took forever for a birthday to come, now they seem to come every few months.
We count our life in years, but God tells us in Psalms 90:12, to count our days.
No has the promise of tomorrow, all we have is this moment. We cannot afford to merely "spend our lives" and we certainly don’t want to "waste our lives". What we must do is "invest our lives" in the things that are eternal.
Do you remember the story Jesus told in Luke 12 about the man who had the bumper crop. His barns were too small, so he built bigger barns. REMEMBER WHAT HE SAID?
"I will say to my soul, Soul thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry."
But God’s reply to this man’s boasting was; "THOU FOOL, THIS NIGHT WILL THY SOUL BE REQUIRED OF THEE."Life is not uncertain to God, and when we know him, and are in his will, we can always be confident of a tomorrow... (here or there!)
Still some will say; "I have the rest of my life to live for God!" Friend nothing could be further from the truth.
D. The frailty of life (16)
We think ourselves to be so strong, so in control. Yet if one cell in our brains mutates and becomes abnormal it can leave us totally insane. One tiny microscopic virus can utterly destroy our lives. (HIV, Cancer)
Still we take credit for who we are and what we are. We totally ignore the hand of God at work in our lives.
Man cannot control the future, (which is why we worry). Man doesn’t possess the ability to see the future, much less the power to control it.
For us to boast about our successes is to make ourselves to be God, and James says that kind of boasting is evil! (16)
As frail a creature as we are, to ignore the will of God, would be like trying to find our way through a dark jungle without a map, or a stormy sea without a compass!
THE SECOND VIEW IS...
II. TO DISOBEY THE WILL OF GOD (17)
Here is where most Christians fit in. They know the will of God, but they chose not to obey it! This view is worse than the first; for this person says to God;
"I know you want me to do this (preach, teach, testify, witness, etc.) But I prefer not to do it. I know more about my life and what I need than you do!
2 Peter 2:21 says; "For it had been better for them to have not known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them."
SO WHY DO PEOPLE DISOBEY GOD’S WILL?
1. PRIDE-- man likes to boast that he is the "master of his fate", "the captain of his soul." Man has accomplished so much he thinks he can do anything-- alone!
2. Ignorance-- we act as though the will of God is something we can accept or reject. But in reality, the will of God Is not an option, it is an obligation!
To treat the will of God as such is to invite the chastening hand of God into our lives!
The will of God is not a formula for misery! It is the disobedience to the will of God that makes people miserable!
Luke 12:47 says; "that servant which knew his lords will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes."
According to Hebrews 12:5-11, the discipline of the Lord is evidence of His love, not his hatred. Chastening bring comfort and evidence that our salvation is real!
Disobedience may not seem like a big thing now, but the day will come when you stand before the Lord, then the Bible says "he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong he has done." (Col 3:25)
THE LAST VIEW IS...
III. TO OBEY THE WILL OF GOD (15)
"If the Lord will" is not just a statement on a believers lips; it is an attitude of the heart.
Jesus said, "My meat is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work."
(Jn 4:34)Obeying the will of God does not shackle the Christian, it is the key that opens the door and sets the Christian free!
Everything in this universe operates according to laws! Cooperate and obey these laws, and the universe works with us.
Fight and disobey these laws, and the universe works against us.
(Illus.. Laws that govern flight. The engineer obeys in design and construction of the airplane. The pilot obeys and flight is achieved. Disregard these laws and the result will be a crash with loss of life, time, and money!
The laws God gave this universe are general, but the will He has planned for our individual lives is specific. No two lives are planned the same.
Some things are true of all Christians, like yielding ourselves to Him (2 Cor. 8:5) Avoiding sexual immorality (1 Thes. 4:3). Rejoicing, praying, and thanking God (1 Thes. 5:16-18).
And every word in this book addressed to believers is part of the will of God, and is meant to be obeyed!
If we disobey God’s will, it doesn’t mean we remain out of His will the rest of our lives. The will of God is meant to be a living relationship between Him and the believer!
When you get out of God’s will, you can expect to suffer. Because God will bring you back into his will, ask Jonah or Peter.
I want to close by giving you 5 things God wants you to have.
1. He wants you to know His will. (Acts 22:14)
"The God of our Fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will..."
If you are willing to obey it, He will reveal it. He doesn’t reveal it to the careless or to the curious, but to those Who are ready to do it.
2. He wants you to understand His will (Eph. 5:17)
"Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is."
Here is where wisdom comes in. A child can know the will of his father, but he may not understand his will. God wants you to have both!
3. He wants you to prove His will (Rom. 12:2)
"And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."
The Greek means to "prove by experience". We learn to determine the will of God by working at it. The more we obey, the easier it is to know what god wants us to do.
(Illus.. Swimming, playing an instrument, practice makes it second nature to us.)
4. He wants you to do His will from the heart. (Eph. 6:6)
"Not with eye service, as men pleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart."
He wants you to do His will because we love Him, not because we are afraid of getting a whipping.
The whole secret of a happy life is to delight in duty! When duty becomes delight, then burdens becomes blessings.
You may serve the Lord grudgingly or out of obligation, but you are missing the blessing. What you are doing is toiling, not ministering!
5. He wants you to have eternal life (2 Pet. 3:9)
"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all men should come to repentance."
Jesus died so that "whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord". He died for you, and friend God’s will for you is have a place reserved in heaven with Him. Do you have that promise?
Don’t think you are never going to fail, and that your failure is going to permanently effect your relationship with the Lord.
We can confess our sin and receive forgiveness. (I Jn 1:9) We can learn from our mistakes. The important thing is having a heart that loves God and wants to do His will and glorify his name.
WHICH O F THESE VIEWS DO YOU HOLD TOWARD THE WILL OF GOD?
DO YOU IGNORE IT AS YOU MAKE PLANS AND DECISIONS?
DO YOU KNOW WHAT GOD WANTS YET REFUSE TO DO IT?
EITHER VIEW IS CLEARLY WRONG, AND BOTH BRING SORROW AND RUIN TO THE LIFE OF THE PERSON WHO HOLDS IT.
FOR THE CHRISTIAN WHO KNOWS, LOVES, AND OBEYS YOU WILL ENJOY THE BLESSING OF GOD. LIFE MAY NOT BE EASIER, BUT IT WILL BE HAPPIER AND HOLIER!
SERMON FROM PASTOR MATT MILLS
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