* "What should I do?" is a broad question! However, it is a beginning point for answering more specific questions. What should we do in general? We should do "God's will."

What is "God's Will?"
* What does the term "God's will" generally mean in the Bible? Based on consideration of over 40 occurrences in the New Testament, the meaning of "God's will" can be placed in one or both of the following categories:

§ God's "determinative will" - what God will do (or has done) according to his purpose
§ God's "desired will" - what God wants us to do (especially, God's moral will)

¶ "God's will" might also fall into one of the following categories:

§ God's "revealed will" - what God has chosen to reveal, primarily through the Scriptures
§ God's "hidden will" - what God has chosen not to reveal

Knowing God's "Revealed Will"
* The foundation of knowing "God's will" is knowing His will revealed in the Scriptures (the Bible). Through the Scriptures, God reveals both his determinative will and his desired will.

§ God's determinative will - for example, God's purpose and plan in redeeming the fallen creation through his Son Jesus Christ.
§ God's desired will - for example, God's commands, instructions, and moral principles to guide our thinking and acting.

Reflection/Application
† If you are not a believer, God's will for you is to "seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us" (Acts 17:27).
† If you have not received Jesus as Lord and Savior, God's will for you is "believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31).

* While some of God's "hidden will" in history has become his "revealed will," God has chosen not to reveal much of his determined will (we couldn't handle it anyway!). Still, God is working out his purpose and plan, and that purpose and plan involves individuals.

¶ "And [God] made known the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ" (Ephesians 1:9, NIV)
¶ "… continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and act according to his good purpose" (Philippians 2:12b-13, NIV)

Does God Have a Specific "Plan" for My Life?
* In answering this question, we must define the term "God's plan."

? How would you define the term "God's plan" (for individual human lives)?

* The above question leads to the tension between God's sovereignty (rule, control) and human responsibility (or "free will"). This tension is explained in different ways. In any case, the majority of Christians would agree that "God's plan" for our life is somehow interwoven with his "determined will" (his ultimate purpose and plan for creation). In other words, God will somehow work through our lives (including our decisions) to accomplish his purpose.

The story of Joseph (Genesis 37-50) is a wonderful illustration of the interplay of God's sovereignty and human responsibility. Years after his brothers had sold him into slavery, Joseph told them, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20, NIV).

Can I Know God's Specific "Plan" for My Life?
* God is all-knowing. He knows the future of each human being. He knows the decisions we will make and the roads we will travel. God is also sovereign. He will accomplish his purpose and plan. Only God knows his "plan" for us. We can only know what he reveals to us, and what he reveals is adequate.

* We do not need to know God's "hidden will," and we can get carried away attempting to "discover" it. Instead, we should seek to know and love God! We should seek his kingdom. In that context, we should desire to know and do God's revealed will. Having done that, we can trust that God will accomplish his purpose in our lives.

¶ "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28, NKJV)

¶ "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)
How Can I Know God's Specific "Will" for My Life?

* This question concerns God's guidance for our lives. Though we cannot fully know "God's plan" for our lives, we still want to know what God wants us to do with our lives. We still want God's guidance in our decisions (especially the big ones!). How does God guide us?

Seeking God's Guidance
1. Read your Bible.

¶ "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV).

¶ "Your word is a lamp to my feet and light for my path" (Psalm 119:105, NIV).

§ Pray. Realize that the Holy Spirit helps us understand and apply God's word.
§ Learn to interpret.
§ Memorize.
§ Meditate (Think about, reflect on).
§ Humbly obey.

2. Develop a heart for God.

¶ "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2, NIV)
& "Jesus said, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:37-39, NIV)

¶ "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things (that we need) will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33, NIV)

§ Key ideas: love, devotion, relationship, desire to be changed

¶ "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4).

§ If we have heart for God, the desires of our heart will be more consistent with his will. We will be more sensitive to the Spirit's guidance. If our motivations are pure, God will use the deep desires of our heart to lead us in the direction he wants us to go.

3. Seek wise counsel. Seek guidance in the context of the church.

¶ "Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise" (Proverbs 19:20).

¶ "The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice" (Proverbs 12:15).

¶ "Let us not give us meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching" (Hebrews 10:25, NIV).

4. Look for God's providence (the ways God is working around you).

¶ "Jesus said to them, 'My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working" (John 5:17, NIV).

¶ "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails" (Proverbs 19:21, NIV).

5. Use sound judgment.

§ Make your decision in light of Scripture.
§ Consider your gifts and abilities.
§ Consider your circumstances. (1 Corinthians 16:5-9)
§ Consider an overall strategy. (2 Corinthians 1:15-18, 23-34, 2:1)

6. Be open to the possibility of divine intervention.

Application to Life
† Consider these questions: "What career should I choose?" "Whom should I marry?" Consider other questions or decisions in your life. How does "God's will" apply to these questions? What should you do? As a Christian, what should you do?