Jesus sought God’s will above all else. One of the first things that Jesus prayed for in His model prayer was: “Your kingdom come Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10) Paul desired God’s perfect will as well. In the last devotional, I shared Apostle Paul’s explanation on how we discover and abide in God’s perfect will.
While we all desire God’s perfect will, sometimes out of impatience, ignorance, pride, or fear we step into a realm that it is not God’s perfect will for us.
The Lord has given man the power to choose, and He does not overrule people’s will when He does not like their choices. This is God’s permissive will. God honors His own governmental system by giving room for each person to choose regardless of the quality of their choice.
The most important thing that God desires is that all to come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. However, He still does not force people to choose His son, even though there are eternal consequences to their choice. Instead, the Lord continually pursues us with his love, kindness, and patience with the hope that we will come to repentance.
“Everything is permissible for me,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me,” but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Corinthians 6:12 (CSB)
“Everything is permissible,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible,” but not everything builds up. No one is to seek his own good, but the good of the other person.1 Corinthians 10:23-24 (CSB)
In the above scriptures, Paul is stating that there are many choices given to us. However, just because something is permitted, it does not mean that it would be beneficial to us or others. Those areas or people that have the potential to trap us emotionally, spiritually, physically, relationally, or financially, we should pay close attention to them. Those things that tear us down or hurt others are not beneficial to us.This kind of evaluation has to do with being sensitive to the Spirit of God and being in tune with what is happening in us and around us.
God’s permissive will does not mean that He has pleasure in what we do, but He gives us a choice. This could be in the areas of entertainment, relationships, personal habits, employment, or even conversations. Choosing what is beneficial means that we continue as a living sacrifice not seeking our own pleasure or dreams, but we pay attention to what is good, true, and noble. This allows us to turn away from bad choices that could lead to years of pain and distress, it gives us the opportunity to live a life that is simple and peaceful.
Some questions that we can ask ourselves about our choices are as follows: What are the long term affects of my decision? Do my decisions please and honor God? Do I reflect the character of Jesus by what I am involved in? Do my actions distract me from my intimacy with Christ?
