FINDING GOD’S WILL
One of the greatest struggles shared by Christians today is seeking to discern God’s will for their lives. Whether to go to college and, if so, where? What vocation to pursue or job to take? Where to live? Whether to remain single or get married and, if so, to whom? How many kids to have? Whether to adopt? How much to give to the church? Where to serve in the church?
We’re overwhelmed with options and desperate for clarity. Unfortunately, believers have been given a tremendous amount of counsel in this area that sounds biblical and uses plenty of Bible stories and verses but actually contradicts the plain teaching of Scripture and undermines our trust in the Lord.
Over the next three Sundays, I’d like to help you see what God’s Word says about God’s will. My goal is for this sermon series to be intensely practical and thoroughly biblical. We’ll be drawing our strongest conclusions from the Bible and not from conviction, personal experience, or observation. In addition, we’ll endeavor to use biblical terms according to their intended biblical meaning.
No matter what you already believe about decision making and the will of God, I can assure you of one thing: this series will challenge you. For many of you, this will involve making a prayerful and critical examination of many strongly-held beliefs about God’s will. Ultimately, though, I’m confident that you’ll arrive at the end of the series thankful and more confident in the decisions you make. You’ll see decision making in a new light and experience a new sense of liberty when making tough choices.
Each sermon lays a foundation for the following weeks, so if you miss a week, you may want to download the podcast or watch the sermon online. We’ll also be providing some notes in the bulletin each week to help you follow along and give you a starting point for further study after each message.
There are several popular methods within the church today for determining God’s will in order to make decisions. If you’d like to get ready for the first sermon this Sunday, then I invite you to read through the following verses related to each of these techniques. Remember to read the verses in context to determine their intended meaning.
— Josh Hall
Internal Signs
Leading by the Spirit
- Matthew 4:1
- Mark 1:12
- Luke 4:1
- Romans 8:14
- Galatians 5:18
Hearing God’s Voice
- 1 Kings 19:13
- Psalm 85:8
- John 10:27
Inner Peace
- Philippians 4:7
- Colossians 3:15
External Signs
Open & Closed Doors
- Acts 16:26-28
- 1 Corinthians 16:8-9
- 2 Corinthians 2:12-13
- Colossians 4:3-4
Fleeces
- Genesis 24:12-14
- Judges 6:36-40
- Acts 1:26
Confirmations
- Deuteronomy 17:6
- Deuteronomy 19:15
- Matthew 18:15-16
- 2 Corinthians 13:1-2
- 1 Timothy 5:19-20
- Hebrews 10:28