What is the ‘will of the father’? – 10th October 2007

A true Christian is one who “does the will of the Father”. Matthew 7: 21

What is that will? How do we find out?

One way might be to look at other Christians and see what they do. But be careful – some of what Christians do can be for their own personal benefit, much may be pleasing to God but is not actually “the will of the father”.

Trying to do some of the things that other Christians do can actually be a guilt barrier to developing your relationship with Jesus – for instance, if you feel you ‘ought to’ enjoy singing but actually don’t then you may feel that you can’t be a true Christian. Trust me, you can. There are other ways of expressing our worship and praise of God.

There’s only one sure way of finding out God’s will, and that is to listen to what he’s told us. And there’s an excellent place to look – you may have come across it, it’s called the Bible. When did you last open yours? In case it’s been a while, here are a couple of references:

“No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8)

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (James 1:27)
And if you are looking for more specific guidance then Matthew 5-7 will give a good solid foundation. Or how about John 6:28-9 Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
God bless