Garry spoke this morning about God’s will from Genesis 45:4-8. We see very specifically in Joseph’s life how God worked out his will through every circumstance and trial. We often find it harder to believe God has a specific plan and will for us.
Sometimes, like the US army bomb disposal engineer returning to the US after deployment in Iraq in ‘The Hurt Locker’, we feel overwhelmed by choice and wonder where free will and human choice fit into God’s plans. Making choices is a vital part of growing up, and as we grow spiritually, we learn to understand God’s way of working. Rom 12:1-2 reminds us that we should live to please Him given what He has done for us; Micah 6:8 tells us that God wants us to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with God. Doing this will mean we are walking in the will of God.
Joseph tried to live a life pleasing to God. As we do this too, we will discover that not everyone sees things the same way (see Rom 14:5-9), but we do not need to fear differences of opinion. We may find it hard at times to know what God wants for our lives and can often ascribe ‘mean motives’ to Him. Jesus shows us the difficulty that can come as we submit to God’s will (Matt 26:39-42), but as we submit our wills to His and live to please Him, we can know His leading and help as Joseph did. God is working for our good all the time and wants the best for us in every situation. His will is that we should be conformed to the image of His Son and become like Him. (Rom 8:28-29)
