If it is God's Will
Introduction. Sometimes while making plans for the future, we initially think only of our own needs. Then we remember James’ warning that when considering future plans, we ought to say “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” (Jas. 4:15). We say these words to remind ourselves that we are never in control. God is the only one who can know for certain what will happen tomorrow. We are only “a vapor” that can “vanish away” at any moment and “after this the judgment.” (Heb. 9:27). With faith and trust in “if the Lord wills”, we acknowledge Him as sovereign ruler over all. In Him “we live and move and have our being” because “He gives to all life, breath and all things.” (Acts 17:25-28). Only by His will can we plan and accomplish anything.
Yet there is far more to “if God wills.” After we say these words, what comes next? If all works out as planned, do we conclude it was the Lord’s will and if things fall apart, was it not God’s will? While some live their lives seeking God’s will by the way their life unfolds, the Scriptures nowhere teach this. God never promised His people that He would intervene in their lives to the degree where every outcome would be brought about by Him. Often our own decisions whether wise or foolish have an impact on the outcome. Not only do “time and chance happen to all” but “there is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous.” (Ecc. 9:11; 8:14). So trying to understand God’s will from the outcome of our plans is not only unwise, but is dangerous.
We ought to say “if the Lord wills” because we want it to be His will. We don’t want our plans to run contrary to what God wills. God knows far better than we do what is best for us. His will is based on His righteousness and His love. He wants all outcomes to be fair and in the best interests of everyone. We are greatly blessed to bring our plans to Him and seek for His will. No one wants to make a decision that leads to a terrible outcome and we want God to keep that from happening.
What we think is in our best interests at the moment may be a selfish desire that is unfair to our spouse or children. A better job that leads us to neglect our duty to our family and the church is not God’s will and it should never be ours. Our decisions can have many unforeseen consequences. We never know exactly what will occur. Wanting God’s will to be the outcome of all future endeavors means we want Him to overrule any plan that He does not approve. If God can see that at some time in the future our plans will bring harm, we want Him to intervene.
There are no greater examples of this than Balaam, Solomon and Hezekiah. Balaam was a good man and had served God faithfully. He went to God about the request of Balak the king of Moab to curse Israel. Whether Balaam knew it or not, there were two reasons God told him he should not go. First, Moab was in no danger. God had already warned Moses not to harm them (Deut. 2:8). Second, God had already sworn with an oath to bless Abraham and his seed, so there was no way Balaam could do what Balak wanted. If Balaam had stayed home, Moab would have been safe and Balaam would not have put himself into grave temptation that ultimately led to the loss of his soul. He knew it was not God’s will, but in forcing His own, he destroyed himself.
In Solomon’s case God’s will had been revealed in the Law of Moses, but he ignored it. God warned that it would be dangerous for any king to seek to multiply horses, wives or silver and gold (Deut. 17:15-17). Solomon did all three. He put His will above God’s in this matter and the very thing God warned against happened to him. “when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God.” (1Kings 11:4)
One can only imagine the deep regret and sorrow these foolish decisions created as his life came to an end. If only he had sought God’s will above his own by carefully searching the Scriptures to see if his choices were in harmony with God’s will. We learn from Solomon that if anything in Scripture must be violated for us to move forward, not only are we in sin, but unforeseen consequences will likely occur.
Hezekiah is another example of one who sought to overrule God’s will. After many years of faithful service to God, he was about to enjoy all the fruits of the victory over Assyria that God had wrought. God seeing into the future wanted His servant to leave this world before these terrible temptations began. Instead of accepting God’s will as being in his best interests, he begged God to spare his life. God graciously heard his prayer and 15 years were added to his life. But the price he later paid for setting God’s will aside was steep. “But Hezekiah did not repay according to the favor shown him, for his heart was lifted up; therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem.” (2Chr. 32:25).
He and all Israel fell away and turned to idols. God’s wrath was kindled against him. Much worse, his son Manasseh grew up to become the worst and most immoral king in the history of Judah. Since he became king at the age of 12, he was also the fruit of those 15 years. What might have been if Hezekiah had only trusted God and put God’s will above his own?
This is the essence of “If God wills.” We want God’s will above our own. We cannot see into the future to understand all the consequences of our plans. What if like those men above, the very thing we want so badly would ultimately bring grave harm to us as it did to them? What if it led to our falling away or the destruction of our marriage? What if it caused our children to fall away? If we could see this end would we still want it? This is one of the most important reasons why we should search the Scriptures to learn God’s will. “Do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:17). It is also why we should fervently pray that if this is not God’s will, then we would gladly say, “not my will but your will be done.”
Jesus also spoke of this thing as he taught His disciples to pray: “Your will be done. On earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus always practiced this. He never wanted His own will to interfere with God’s. “I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me,” and “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.” (Jn. 5:30; 6:37-39). We would live the best possible life and accomplish so many good things if we follow His example.
Conclusion. God is love! Every decision He makes is in our best interest, not just in the present, but in the future and into eternity. We should feel greatly blessed to place all our plans before Him and seek His will above our own. What God wants for us is far better than what we want for ourselves. So with humility and hope we should preface our plans for anything that is in our future with “if God wills.”
Yet there is far more to “if God wills.” After we say these words, what comes next? If all works out as planned, do we conclude it was the Lord’s will and if things fall apart, was it not God’s will? While some live their lives seeking God’s will by the way their life unfolds, the Scriptures nowhere teach this. God never promised His people that He would intervene in their lives to the degree where every outcome would be brought about by Him. Often our own decisions whether wise or foolish have an impact on the outcome. Not only do “time and chance happen to all” but “there is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous.” (Ecc. 9:11; 8:14). So trying to understand God’s will from the outcome of our plans is not only unwise, but is dangerous.
We ought to say “if the Lord wills” because we want it to be His will. We don’t want our plans to run contrary to what God wills. God knows far better than we do what is best for us. His will is based on His righteousness and His love. He wants all outcomes to be fair and in the best interests of everyone. We are greatly blessed to bring our plans to Him and seek for His will. No one wants to make a decision that leads to a terrible outcome and we want God to keep that from happening.
What we think is in our best interests at the moment may be a selfish desire that is unfair to our spouse or children. A better job that leads us to neglect our duty to our family and the church is not God’s will and it should never be ours. Our decisions can have many unforeseen consequences. We never know exactly what will occur. Wanting God’s will to be the outcome of all future endeavors means we want Him to overrule any plan that He does not approve. If God can see that at some time in the future our plans will bring harm, we want Him to intervene.
There are no greater examples of this than Balaam, Solomon and Hezekiah. Balaam was a good man and had served God faithfully. He went to God about the request of Balak the king of Moab to curse Israel. Whether Balaam knew it or not, there were two reasons God told him he should not go. First, Moab was in no danger. God had already warned Moses not to harm them (Deut. 2:8). Second, God had already sworn with an oath to bless Abraham and his seed, so there was no way Balaam could do what Balak wanted. If Balaam had stayed home, Moab would have been safe and Balaam would not have put himself into grave temptation that ultimately led to the loss of his soul. He knew it was not God’s will, but in forcing His own, he destroyed himself.
In Solomon’s case God’s will had been revealed in the Law of Moses, but he ignored it. God warned that it would be dangerous for any king to seek to multiply horses, wives or silver and gold (Deut. 17:15-17). Solomon did all three. He put His will above God’s in this matter and the very thing God warned against happened to him. “when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God.” (1Kings 11:4)
One can only imagine the deep regret and sorrow these foolish decisions created as his life came to an end. If only he had sought God’s will above his own by carefully searching the Scriptures to see if his choices were in harmony with God’s will. We learn from Solomon that if anything in Scripture must be violated for us to move forward, not only are we in sin, but unforeseen consequences will likely occur.
Hezekiah is another example of one who sought to overrule God’s will. After many years of faithful service to God, he was about to enjoy all the fruits of the victory over Assyria that God had wrought. God seeing into the future wanted His servant to leave this world before these terrible temptations began. Instead of accepting God’s will as being in his best interests, he begged God to spare his life. God graciously heard his prayer and 15 years were added to his life. But the price he later paid for setting God’s will aside was steep. “But Hezekiah did not repay according to the favor shown him, for his heart was lifted up; therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem.” (2Chr. 32:25).
He and all Israel fell away and turned to idols. God’s wrath was kindled against him. Much worse, his son Manasseh grew up to become the worst and most immoral king in the history of Judah. Since he became king at the age of 12, he was also the fruit of those 15 years. What might have been if Hezekiah had only trusted God and put God’s will above his own?
This is the essence of “If God wills.” We want God’s will above our own. We cannot see into the future to understand all the consequences of our plans. What if like those men above, the very thing we want so badly would ultimately bring grave harm to us as it did to them? What if it led to our falling away or the destruction of our marriage? What if it caused our children to fall away? If we could see this end would we still want it? This is one of the most important reasons why we should search the Scriptures to learn God’s will. “Do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:17). It is also why we should fervently pray that if this is not God’s will, then we would gladly say, “not my will but your will be done.”
Jesus also spoke of this thing as he taught His disciples to pray: “Your will be done. On earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus always practiced this. He never wanted His own will to interfere with God’s. “I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me,” and “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.” (Jn. 5:30; 6:37-39). We would live the best possible life and accomplish so many good things if we follow His example.
Conclusion. God is love! Every decision He makes is in our best interest, not just in the present, but in the future and into eternity. We should feel greatly blessed to place all our plans before Him and seek His will above our own. What God wants for us is far better than what we want for ourselves. So with humility and hope we should preface our plans for anything that is in our future with “if God wills.”