Why ask this question?
The question is a tough nut
So we seldom bother to ask this
question.
But there are times in which we
suddenly come up this question.
We know our way until we come to
a junction and are uncertain of the next move.
Three
different situations
1.
Clear
situations: there are right decisions and wrong decisions
2.
Grey
situation: something that's not necessarily right or wrong
3.
Difficult
situations: a choice between two good things
The
Kingdom
1Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen
people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you
may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his
wonderful light.
God
as King
When we are born again, we
confessed that Jesus is our Lord
Romans 10:9, 10
9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your
heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it
is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Lordship is right there in our
new life.
We are ‘free servants’ of our Lord.
Hence the will of our Lord is the
way of our life.
We live not outside the will of
God.
Whenever
does a King rule his country?
1.
In his presence and in his
absence
2.
While he is awake and is asleep
Mark
4. 26, 27 (The Parable of the Seed that grows by itself)
26 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man
scatters seed on the ground.
27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and
grows, though he does not know how.
What
is ruling a country mean
It is not just giving commands
always.
A King has two duties
1.
Maintain the country
2.
Guard the country from enemies
Adam was in the
office of the king to the Garden of Eden
Genesis 1:28 God blessed them and said
to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.
Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living
creature that moves on the ground.”
He had two duties to perform
Genesis 2:15 The Lord God took the man
and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. (NIV)
Genesis 2:15 And the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to tend
and guard and keep it. (AMP)
Adam was to maintain the garden
and guard it.
Adam was the designated king of
the garden
It is the responsibility of the king to
1.
Maintain his country
2.
To guard it from the enemies
How
does a King rule over his country?
A king rules his country by exercising his
will over it.
Matthew 6:9-10
9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our
Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is
in heaven.
There may be a host of ministers
in his court
All of them may have freedom to
express their thoughts and opinions
But always, the king takes the
decision
Only his orders are obeyed in the
country
Kingdom Vs Democracy
Kingdom is the
exercise of the will
of the King
Democracy is the
exercise of the will
of the people
Kingdom is the rule of a king
according to his will
Democracy is the rule of the people
according to the will of the people
In a democratic concept the will
of the people is correct.
The will of the majority decides
the way of life.
It does not matter whether it is
good or bad.
The will of the majority is
right.
In a Kingdom the will of the King
is the way of life.
None else can question it; none else
can alter it.
The King needs no explanation for
his will.
God’s will is not the will of the
people
God’s will is the will of the
King of Kings, the heavenly King.
To every question concerning our
way of life, the answer is: because it is the will of our King
The Kingdom of God is not a
democratic state
It is a Kingdom governed by a
great emperor whose Kingdom is eternal.
We have freedom of thought and
speech, but His will must is the final order.
The
Kingdom of God
A different Kingdom
Mandatory
and Optional
The Kingdom of heaven is
different in certain aspect from the kingdom of man
The will of the king is mandatory
in an earthly kingdom.
The will of the King is mandatory
and optional at the same time in the Kingdom of God.
We call it Free Will
1.
Free will is the freedom of Choice
God does not impose His Will on us.
He offers alternative ways and foretells us of the consequences.
2.
Free will is not pushing us out
into the darkness to grapple for the right way.
It is defined freedom with
responsibilities.
Defined freedom is freedom with
consequences.
Consequences are life and death;
blessings and curses.
Obeying
God’s Will is always optional
But
obeying God’s Will is Mandatory for heavenly blessings
Deuteronomy 30. 19 - 20
19 This day I call the heavens
and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and
death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may
live
20 and that you may love the Lord
your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life,
and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers,
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Preparing
to obey God’s Will
1.
Be
flexible
Flexible to change what we
believe is ‘right’
Flexible to change what we
believe as God’s way and purpose.
1.
Our “right” may not be God’s
will.
The only explanation for changing our path will be: ‘The Will of
my King is different.’
2.
God’s will is often revealed in
capsules.
It is a gradual revelation.
God knows the beginning and the
end
Because He has no beginning and
end
God is not time bound. God has
only now.
We do not know the end for sure.
God need not always reveal the
full picture.
He may tell only the “next step”
at one time.
The part is indispensable to the whole.
Part is blessing.
But part is not the whole
The Israelites were informed of
the end of their journey from Egypt, i.e. The Promised Land of Canaan.
Still the way and the procedure
remained a mystery.
We are called to walk by faith,
not by sight.
God may change:
1.
Path
2.
Assignments
Because of positive situations as well as of negative situations.
Exodus 13:17, 18
17 When Pharaoh let the
people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country,
though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change
their minds and return to Egypt.”
18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.
The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.
Acts 16:6 – 10
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia
and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the
province of Asia.
7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia,
but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.
8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.
9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing
and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”
10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for
Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
2. Be
available
All disciples, when they were
called by Jesus to follow Him made themselves available to His service.
Matthew 8:21, 22
21 Another
disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
22 But
Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”
Matthew 8:21, 22
21 Another
of the disciples said to Him, Lord, let me first go and bury [care for till
death] my father.
22 But
Jesus said to him, Follow Me, and leave the dead [in sin] to bury their own
dead. (AMP)
Mark 5:18-20
18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been
demon-possessed begged to go with him.
19 Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and
tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.”
20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much
Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.
3. Take
it from Him
Proverbs 1:23 Repent at my
rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my
teachings.
(All Bible verses are from NIV, if not
otherwise mentioned)
__________________
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