“The Man Who Said ‘NO’”
Knowing God’s Will for Your Life, Part 1
- Introduction: Have you discovered God’s will for your life?
- Proposition: in Jonah 1:1-3 we will examine two facts concerning God’s will.
The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.”
Jonah 1:1-3
- Thoughts to consider:
- Have I ever run away from or ignored God’s will for my life?
- We must DISCOVER it.
Discover: transitive verb
a : to make known or visible : expose b archaic : display
2 a : to obtain sight or knowledge of for the first time : find <discover the solution>4
- We must actively seek to know his will.
- His will is revealed through His WORD.
- The Bible is our instruction manual, we must read it to discover His will.
- 2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”
- Some translations say “study to show thyself approved”, this means that we are to discern what behavior God approves of.
- Psalm 119:105 – “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” (Read all of Psalm 119 for further information!) His Word will lead us in the right direction.
- Eph 4:14 – “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.” (Read chapter for context)
- If we only talk to God and don’t read His word we are like a broken radio circuit, always transmitting but never receiving.
- James 1:22 – “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”
- General commands:The Word of God gives us principles that all Christians are to follow; these are the commands that all who claim to follow Him must obey and are not only for an individual. These are things that we do not have to pray about to find God’s will, it is clearly written for us to know.
- Love God and love Man:
- “28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating… he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[c] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[d] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[e] There is no commandment greater than these.”” Mark 12:28-31
- Gracious speech:
- Forgive as you have been forgiven:
- “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven [x]you.” Ephesians 4:32
- Be Holy, as He is Holy:
- “13 Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”[a] Peter 1:13-16
- Get rid of your old sins:
- ”Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.[b] 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” Colossians 3:5-10
- Love God and love Man:
- Concept: His will is not revealed through circumstances; you can be acting completely out of God’s will and still have positive circumstances.
- When someone runs from God, Satan is more than happy to provide transportation and accommodation.
- Example: Jonah just happened to find a ship bound for Tarshish; he could have believed it to be a sign from God that he should take that ship, when he clearly knew what God had commanded.
- Sometimes that “peace” you feel about a decision can be false.
- Thoughts to consider: How much of the Bible do you know is God’s will for your life?
- 2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”
- We all have a COMMISSION.
- “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 [e]Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you [f]always, even to the end of the age.””Matthew 28:18-20
- This should read “as you are going, make disciples.” It’s a given that people will be going about their daily business. As we do this we should be making disciples. Start in your Jerusalem, in your home town, the places that you go daily.
- It starts at home: make disciples and be witness to those around you.
- “ So we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. 9 Surely you remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. 10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. 11 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12 encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.” 1 Thessalonians 2:8-12
- By sharing your life and living according to God’s commands, you are a witness to those around you.
- “Be prepared to kindly give an answer for the hope that is in you. But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” 1 Peter 3:15-16
- Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes…”
- “ So we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. 9 Surely you remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. 10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. 11 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12 encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.” 1 Thessalonians 2:8-12
- We must OBEYit.
- Even when it is DIFFICULT.
- It is often difficult to obey when the task is unpleasant:
- Paul was beaten for preaching the Gospel. Acts 16:22, 2 Corinthians 6:3-10
- Jonah was commanded to take a message to Nineveh, telling them that the wrath of God would come upon them if they did not repent (Jonah 3). Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire, enemies of the Jews; Jonah did not want them to be saved, he wanted them to suffer and be destroyed. This would be as if a Jewish American were told during World War II that he needed to go to Nazi Germany to take a message to the Nazis so that they could repent and be saved.
- Other difficult tasks: love your neighbor, ask forgiveness, give forgiveness, be holy.
- Sometimes there are things we need to do that are difficult, like turn off that television show we shouldn’t watch (Psalm 101:3 “I will not look with approval on anything that is vile.”) or reach out to that person in need (James 1:27 “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”)
- Role-specific commands.
- God also has specific commands in the Bible that apply only to certain people. There are commands for husbands and wives, children, parents, unmarried women, leaders, pastors, etc. and there are general commands that all Christians must follow. (See the books of Ephesians, Colossians, 1 Timothy, 1 Corinthians, 1 Peter, Tutus 2, and Proverbs 31 for some specific instructions regarding your station in life. )
- Thought to consider: what is my specific role in life right now? Are there any specific commands for me in the Bible? Am I keeping them?
- Following instead of FLEEING.
- Jonah went completely the opposite direction of what God told him to do.
- Even if you do not run from His commands, inaction is still disobedience.
- Circumstances seemed right for Jonah to do his will, instead of God’s.
- It is best to be in God’s will now, to bring Him glory and follow His commands. God promises to bless those who follow His precepts. Psalm 103:17-18 “But from everlasting to everlasting
the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children— with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.”- Noah’s family was spared – Genesis 6
- Abraham was blessed – Genesis 18:17-19
- Lot was saved – Genesis 19
- God’s will does not go away if you ignore it, and whether you like the command does not change it.
- There was a story of a woman who would throw sticks in the air every time she came to a fork in the road to determine which way to go. Upon observing her repeatedly throwing a large number of sticks in the air one day, a man asked her why she threw so many. She replied “I throw them until they land in the way I want to go!”
- Thought to consider: Am I guilty of trying to conform God’s will to my desires?
- The Lord will discipline those who are disobedient, as a father disciplines his child.
- Jonah was swallowed by a great fish. Jonah 1:17
- Solomon’s Kingdom was taken from him. 1 Kings 11:10-11
- King David’s son died, other men slept with his wives, and his household was filled with calamity and violence. 2 Samuel 12:7-14
- Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land. Deuteronomy.
- Israelites forced to wander for 40 years.
- Conclusion: Mold me and make me after THYwill.
- Pray for God to show you His will for your life, and earnestly ask Him to change your heart and shape you according to his will.
- In summary, 3 ways to know God’s will: 1. Read the Bible. 2. Pray. 3. Seek Godly counsel from mature believers.
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