Guidance: How do we find God’s will for us today?
It has always interested me how there are many people who read a newspaper every day, knowing there are many things in it that are not true. Yet they rarely read the Bible where every word of it is true, even when it provides information that can give them excellent guidance in making wise decisions about many important things. Even many Christians are more faithful to reading a daily newspaper than they are in reading the Bible. However, even if you are faithful in reading a Bible, it will only make complete sense if you will learn the principle I often speak of called “rightly dividing the word of truth” and recognizing “things that differ.” The whole Bible is for us, but it is not all to us or about us. To correctly understand the Bible, this is the principle you must master and relate to everything you read in the Bible. If you do this, you will understand what is being said to you, and what is not. This also means, that apart from understanding and relating that principle to all you read in the Bible, your growth as a believer will be seriously hindered. This is because you will do such things as the following:
- You will try to apply things that were never meant for you.
- You will try to obey things that you are not commanded to do.
- You will disqualify yourself for receiving numerous eternal rewards.
- You will get your hopes up from promises that were not given to you.
- You will miss out on the joy that comes from promises that are to you.
- You will not understand what you are to believe to become a Christian.
There is all this and much more. Now when I say the Bible will give you wise guidance, that, of course, doesn’t mean you will accept it. So here is what you must decide. Are YOU going to run your life or are you going to let God do it? I can’t even begin to tell you how important, how significant your answer to that question will be. You would probably never admit this, but if you think you are smarter than God in decision-making, you have a serious problem. Another way of putting this is to say that if you think you don’t need to spend time “listening” to God’s words to you from the Bible, you are going to make a lot of bad decisions, bringing on a lot of problems that could have easily been avoided. In other words, if you think your opinion about things and your “wisdom” surpasses God’s, you are going to miss out on a lot of wonderful things. This will be because your life will be filled with many poor decisions. Oh, yes, you may make a lot of money and gain the praise of the whole world, but you will still come up far short of where you could have been, both in life here and especially in eternity. Life is so much better with the Lord’s wisdom than it is without it. If you haven’t already, I hope you will come to the place in your life where you will realize that. A lot of people have to go through some tough times to finally accept that. Some of our best lessons in life are learned by some of our worst decisions and resultant experiences. It is a fact that if you do choose to let God run your life by following the directives of Scripture, you will have to start investing a whole lot more time studying the Bible to get His viewpoint on things. It is in this manner that you’ll be able to fulfill the principle set forth in the following command.
Philippians 2:5
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: [Emphasis added]
Just yesterday one of my neighbors asked me why I thought we should prefer to have Christians in political offices. My first thought was that apart from the Bible, the Word of God, all we have is our opinion about things with nothing solid as a standard to base it on. However, Christians have an infallible book called the Bible to work with. A passage of Scripture I came across around sixty years ago that made a huge difference in my life was this one. Note the words of our Lord—
Matthew 7:24-29
24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:
29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. [Emphasis added]
Even though this passage is in the context of our Lord talking about a coming kingdom on Earth, the general principle stated applies to us today as well as it has in any generation. We’ve been given a “rock” foundation for our beliefs. Unbelievers do not have this readily available to them! All they have is their so-called common sense, which seems to become more uncommon every day.
When I was nineteen, I made a strategic decision about how I needed to look to God and to the Bible for guidance in all my thinking and decision-making. I admit that I have made many bad tactical decisions since then, but strategically I have already won the war. I have also won a lot of battles. Altogether that is going to prove to be to my advantage forever. Note the apostle Paul’s comment about this.
Philippians 3:13-14
13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. [Emphasis added]
Then note some of the apostle Paul’s last words on this.
II Timothy 4:8
8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. [Emphasis added]
Paul is not bragging; he is simply stating a fact about his relationship and his status with God. Where do you stand? Do you have rewards “laid up for you” in Heaven? How you answer this next question will determine that. Will you let God direct your life through His Word, or are you going to go it on your own?
The Bible will give you guidance on so many things.
If you are going to let God direct you, you are going to have to get to know Him so you can have His insight, His mind, on things. This is going to demand some conscientious study of the Bible on your part. And that’s by no means a bad thing. It is a good thing, even a fun thing! You are going to find that the Bible is a supernatural book like no other. It is loaded with many helpful and practical things that will serve you well.
When Janet and I married, we had not known each other for very long. But after half a century together, we know each other very well. On nearly every subject you can think of, I wouldn’t have to call her to find out her opinion about it. I probably already know. Why is that? Simple! It is because we have spent a lifetime getting to know each other and have become the best of friends. Something similar is going to be the situation with you and your relationship with God. It is through “listening” to Him through the teachings of the Bible that you will have a chance to get to know Him very well. He is such a great and wonderful God; you can grow to love Him and appreciate Him more than anything else in life.
God’s standards need to become your standards.
As you grow in your knowledge of Him, the objective is to let His standards become yours. You need to accept His position on things. You will find Him to never be wrong. Again, His standards need to become your standards. In so doing, you will know a lot about His will, His wisdom in every situation and in every decision. Again, it is of utmost importance that you devote time regularly to the study of the Bible. In doing so, you need to make up your mind to let God and His Word [the Bible] be the primary source of guidance in all your beliefs and in all your decision-making. This replaces human viewpoint with what I call divine viewpoint.
The next verse we are going to look at lets us know that the whole Bible has been provided for our learning and to give us understanding about all kinds of things we need to know. As you can see on this website, all the promises in the Bible are not to us, but the whole Bible is for our learning. A generous portion of the time God has given us on this earth is to be devoted to learning these things. Because of all He has done and is going to do for us, it is something we should be eager to do.
Romans 15:4
4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope [ELPIS = confidence]. [Emphasis added]
This next passage has always been one of my favorited.
Proverbs 3:5-6
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. [Emphasis added]
We all need to be reminded that our opinion about things is not that valuable, but God’s understanding of things is totally reliable. These words of Proverbs are beautifully framed on a wall in my office. “Trust,” the word that is commonly used in the Old Testament, is the same as the word “faith” or “believe” in the so-called New Testament portion of the Bible. We simply must learn that we cannot trust our own judgment. We have to learn and trust [or believe] what God’s Word says about things. We have Scripture that reflects on this.
Proverbs 15:32
32 He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding. [Emphasis added]
The “hearing of reproof” is going to come through your study of the Scriptures. Your knowledge and application of it will protect you from a lot of suffering in life. So much of the misery people live through is self-induced in the sense that it is caused by poor judgment on decisions they could have avoided if they had “listened” to the reproof, correction and instruction of the Word of God.
II Timothy 3:16
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: [Emphasis added]
Your decision as to who will run your life will be reflected in the time you spend learning the Word of God and applying it. Learning what it says is so important. You can’t apply what you don’t know. Your first step, your key step to getting your thinking and your life in order, is by learning. Whoever said, “What you don’t know won’t hurt you” did not know what they were talking about.
Christians are famous for talking about how much they love the Lord. I hear it all the time. There is a passage that talks about this that I saw many years ago that stood out to me in a big way. It made a huge impression on me, as I hope it will on you. At that time, I didn’t even understand “right division” and what it meant to “rightly divide the word of truth.” I was clueless about all that. So even though the “commandments” spoken of in this passage refer to The Mosaic Law that we are not under today, the principle I’m referring to in the first part of this verse [verse 21] does.
John 14:21a
21a He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: [Emphasis added]
Truly loving God is tied to our knowledge of Him and our application of His Word. That only comes through faithful study of the Bible. You can’t personally love someone you don’t know. Furthermore, again, you can’t apply what you don’t know. Applying is the most important part, but if you don’t KNOW God’s Word TO YOU, you may try to “apply” some things that were never applicable to us in this present Dispensation of Grace. There are many things I could mention as examples of this, but one of the best I can think of is water baptism. Many people will emote all over a “baptismal service,” thinking it has great significance, even thinking it’s an expression of their love for the Lord. I understand the emoting, the “spiritual” experience they “think” they are having, etc. This is all because of what they have been taught and come to believe. But was the command for water baptism directed to us? It certainly was to Israel, but not the church of today which is The Body of Christ. As you’ll see in articles on this website, only one baptism is for us today.
Ephesians 4:4-5
4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, [Emphasis added]
I always want to ask people, what is there about “one” that you do not understand? Which of the many baptisms given in Scripture is that? That “one” baptism is the baptism of the Holy Spirit that in our time enters every believer into a permanent union with Christ. It is this that is our “one baptism.”
I Corinthians 12:13
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. [Emphasis added]
Furthermore, water baptism is not a part of our commission.
I Corinthians 1:17
17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. [Emphasis added]
These passages have been completely ignored by so many. Water baptism was never presented anywhere in the Bible as something optional and something that was or is a testimonial to others. Where’s the biblical documentation for such thinking? There isn’t any! Neither water baptism as an optional ritual nor the testimonial part of it is taught anywhere in the Bible. Both of those ideas have been made up. When water baptism was a part of God’s program for His people, which was Israel at that time, it was required as an expression of one’s faith before God. So, when people try to be obedient to the command to be baptized, I understand and appreciate their sincerity [even though sincerity alone doesn’t count for anything]. I see that! But it is one big misapplication. As I sometimes mention, it is a ritual that has no more spiritual significance today than something like circumcision. A Jewish child’s circumcision was once a significant event, a major expression of obedience to what God had commanded. But neither circumcision nor water baptism are acceptable today as an application of God’s Word, even though there was a time when they both had tremendous significance. Compliance with either of these in our time by no means represents an expression of love toward God. Here, again, is this passage that expresses the meaning of the application of such things among believers in the household of Israel.
Again, John 14:21
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. [Emphasis added]
As believers today, we are loved equally with Christ because of our union with Him by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. But none of this would I know apart from diligent study of the Word of God. To “have” the “commandments” or the right principles, we must learn God’s Word. Paul gives us a command on this.
II Timothy 2:15
15 Study [SPOUDAZO = be diligent] to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. [Emphasis added]
As I mentioned in the introduction to one of my books—22 Key Promises You Can Count On, it was when I was just nineteen years old that my dad came to me and talked me into going to a church “revival” meeting. I’d left home in rebellion and was living on my own. Even though I was resisting him, I loved my dad, and I knew he loved me. That first night I went to the meeting, I can’t even remember the sermon topic. The evangelist was a man named Richard Hogue. Even though our beliefs on many things differ today, I so very much appreciate him and how God used him at that time in my life to get me turned around. The next night I didn’t attend, but I found my Bible and started reading it, something I wasn’t accustomed to doing at that time. Somehow the passage I ended up focusing on was this one.
Matthew 7:21-29
21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:
29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. [Emphasis added]
It was the last part of this passage on building a life on sand rather than rock that caught my attention. I realized then that there was a real sense in which I was building my life on sand, and that needed to change.
The next night I decided to go and listen to Richard again. Amazing as it was, the Matthew text I had just looked at the night before was the text for his sermon that night. Yes, I felt like God was letting me know I needed to make a change in direction. I knew very well that I was building a life on “sand.” It was time to make a change and I became so excited about the thought of it all that I told the pastor, a man named Pastor Mack Douglas, that I wanted to do the kind of thing Richard was doing. Yes, I wanted to go into the ministry as an evangelist. I’ll never forget the first words out of his mouth. He said, “Gary, let’s not make a commitment you are not going to keep.” I think he said that because he knew me, and he was in such shock I was telling him this. Whatever, Mack became a tremendous help to me. He helped me get back into college and on the road to a whole new way of looking at life. I will be forever grateful for these three men, my dad, Wade Googe, Richard Hogue, and Mack Douglas. I hate to think where I would be today if these men had not been there when I needed them. I’m convinced that it was God who brought them into my life at just the right time.
Over the last fifty years, my life has taken some interesting turns. I’ve served as an evangelist, a pastor, an U.S. Army chaplain, and a businessman. In all those situations, I can honestly say I’ve worked hard to represent Christ well. My main objective has been to make an eternal difference in people’s lives.
We all have this opportunity to make a positive and helpful difference in people’s lives. Who will God put in “your world”? Will you take the time to prepare yourself, so you are in a position to give them the information and the encouragement they need? You can begin now. God uses prepared people in wonderful ways. That’s a promise you can count on.
The Bible is the key book for your preparation to live a life that is pleasing to God. It will give you the DIVINE GUIDANCE you need in all your decision-making. It is also the key to you having a chance to have tremendous impact on others that will last forever. And, as I so often mention on this website, you will have rewards in heaven for it that you will enjoy forever. Here’s the name of one of those articles—
Rewards: For what will God wish to reward you in eternity?
God not only uses prepared people, but he rewards them well. That’s a wonderful promise of God that you can count on.
2 Corinthians 5:10
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. [Emphasis added]
You’ll find most of the information from this article in Chapter 20 of my book—22 Key Promises You Can Count On. You may order a copy of that book through this website— 4Us2UsMinistries.com There’s another article on this website concerning this subject that may also be of interest to you– Guidance: How does God speak to us today?
