The Word of God is the will of God
"O you who love the LORD, hate evil!" Psalm 97:10
The other day I saw a bumper sticker that read "Hate is not a family value!"
I'm sure you've seen or heard this slogan at some point--it's quite popular. But what is popular usually isn't godly. From the verse above, we can begin to see the error of this "bumper-sticker morality." First, the scripture above tells us that we are to "hate." (That may be a bit shocking!) This means that hatred in itself cannot be wrong; God commands it. But, second, scripture goes on to tell us what we are to hate: "hate evil." This is what determines the morality of hate;its object, or target. If we hate evil, our hate is good; if we hate good, our hate is evil. Hate itself is neither good nor bad; its morality is determined by whatever is causing it. Third, scripture shows us that evil exists; it is real, and external and objective. So it appears that hate--if it is directed toward or in response to evil--is one of God's "family values." If we "love the Lord," we are to "hate evil." This is in stark contrast to the current worldview of tolerance, and postmodern thinking.
But let's back up for a moment. Why is this devotional material? Isn't all this "worldview stuff" a bit too academic for a devotional? Well, perhaps...but here's my real point: our devotion to the Lord will lead to joyful obedience to him and his will for our life. "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." [John 14:15] Which means that a major part of our devotional life must be to learn what our Master's will is, cultivate a joyful obedience to those commands, and then seek to obey and apply them in our everyday life. The exercise above is just an example of "[destroying] arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and [taking] every thought [or slogan, or idea, or worldview] captive to the obedience of Christ." [2 Corinthians 10:5] Living a life of devotion means seeking to know and do the will of God in every aspect of our lives--all motivated by, carried out in, and aimed at, love to God. Isn't that the million dollar question: "What is the will of God for my life?"
The word of God is the will of God. If you want to know what the will of God is for your life, then turn to his word: meditate on the propositions of scripture while marinating in the presence of its Author. Too often, we think the "will of God for my life" is found in a voice from the clouds saying "work at Bob's auto mall," when in truth the majority of what he's revealed about his specific will for our life is found in scriptures such as "This is the will of God: your sanctification," [1 Thessalonians 4:3] or "...seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you," [Matthew 6:33] or Romans 12:2, or even Proverbs 16:9.
Have you grown weary of trying discover God's will for your life? We serve a God who “is good, and does good.” [Psalm 199:68] His will for my life and for yours is revealed to us in his word, and illuminated to us by his Spirit. He "gives [us] counsel; [and] in the night also [our hearts instruct us]." He will "make known to [us] the path of life." [Psalm 16] Meditate on his word "wherein is wisdom," marinate in his presence, and apply his will to all things--big and small. This is what a life of devotion to our King looks like.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Read Psalm 16 with Proverbs 16:9 in mind, and dig out a reason to be happy in the steadfast love and guidance of the Lord.
And Since we're still talking a bit about conflicting worldviews, I'd recommend reading any of the articles sent out last week that you might have missed. [see below.]
The other day I saw a bumper sticker that read "Hate is not a family value!"
I'm sure you've seen or heard this slogan at some point--it's quite popular. But what is popular usually isn't godly. From the verse above, we can begin to see the error of this "bumper-sticker morality." First, the scripture above tells us that we are to "hate." (That may be a bit shocking!) This means that hatred in itself cannot be wrong; God commands it. But, second, scripture goes on to tell us what we are to hate: "hate evil." This is what determines the morality of hate;its object, or target. If we hate evil, our hate is good; if we hate good, our hate is evil. Hate itself is neither good nor bad; its morality is determined by whatever is causing it. Third, scripture shows us that evil exists; it is real, and external and objective. So it appears that hate--if it is directed toward or in response to evil--is one of God's "family values." If we "love the Lord," we are to "hate evil." This is in stark contrast to the current worldview of tolerance, and postmodern thinking.
But let's back up for a moment. Why is this devotional material? Isn't all this "worldview stuff" a bit too academic for a devotional? Well, perhaps...but here's my real point: our devotion to the Lord will lead to joyful obedience to him and his will for our life. "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." [John 14:15] Which means that a major part of our devotional life must be to learn what our Master's will is, cultivate a joyful obedience to those commands, and then seek to obey and apply them in our everyday life. The exercise above is just an example of "[destroying] arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and [taking] every thought [or slogan, or idea, or worldview] captive to the obedience of Christ." [2 Corinthians 10:5] Living a life of devotion means seeking to know and do the will of God in every aspect of our lives--all motivated by, carried out in, and aimed at, love to God. Isn't that the million dollar question: "What is the will of God for my life?"
The word of God is the will of God. If you want to know what the will of God is for your life, then turn to his word: meditate on the propositions of scripture while marinating in the presence of its Author. Too often, we think the "will of God for my life" is found in a voice from the clouds saying "work at Bob's auto mall," when in truth the majority of what he's revealed about his specific will for our life is found in scriptures such as "This is the will of God: your sanctification," [1 Thessalonians 4:3] or "...seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you," [Matthew 6:33] or Romans 12:2, or even Proverbs 16:9.
Have you grown weary of trying discover God's will for your life? We serve a God who “is good, and does good.” [Psalm 199:68] His will for my life and for yours is revealed to us in his word, and illuminated to us by his Spirit. He "gives [us] counsel; [and] in the night also [our hearts instruct us]." He will "make known to [us] the path of life." [Psalm 16] Meditate on his word "wherein is wisdom," marinate in his presence, and apply his will to all things--big and small. This is what a life of devotion to our King looks like.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Read Psalm 16 with Proverbs 16:9 in mind, and dig out a reason to be happy in the steadfast love and guidance of the Lord.
And Since we're still talking a bit about conflicting worldviews, I'd recommend reading any of the articles sent out last week that you might have missed. [see below.]
posted by Unknown at 10/01/2004 01:23:00 PM
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