Having a great regard for the will of God
Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. James 4:15-17 NIV
We cannot be presumptuous about the will of God. In fact, we are called upon to live our lives by faith guided by this principle, “If it is the Lord’s will.” Such expression is a manifestation of complete trust in God. The Lord Jesus Christ provided us an example regarding this principle. “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me” (John 6:38). The admonition about doing the will of God is related to what James said previously; “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22). When we claim we have faith in God it must be expressed in our actions showing that we trust His word. Our good deeds must flow out of our faith in God. Life is lived only if God wills. Our deeds as well are done only if God wills. Our knowledge of God should not be disconnected from our behaviors or else we will be charged as double-minded. A person who claims to be a believer in Christ and doubts His word is “like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind...Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do” (James 1:6-8). When we are struggling doing what we know is the will of God, we should place before God all the intentions of our hearts and ask Him to help us trust Him with all our hearts. It is true that God has a great plan for each of our lives. “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT). Our God is a God of wisdom and knows what ought to happen and when it should occur. He is the God of love and He desires the very best for His children. We should not look on the will of God as a bitter medicine we must take, instead we should look at the will of God as the gracious evidence of His love for us.
Blessings,
