UNDERSTANDING THE WILL OF THE LORD
Postmodernism has infected virtually every religious
organization in the
Is it ever legitimate to refer to another person's literary
production as being juvenile? Tim Woodroof’s book, The Church That Flies:
A New Call to Restoration in the Churches of Christ (
Churches of Christ are not the only groups struggling with
the impact of postmodernism on their work and worship. Most conservative
religious groups are experiencing some difficulties with postmodernism,
especially with the
McLaren admits to being "mischievous and
unclear." He affirms that being clear is "sometimes overrated, and
that shock, obscurity, playfulness, and intrigue (carefully articulated) often
stimulate more thought than clarity" (p. 23). I wonder why the apostles
requested of Jesus: "If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly" (John
10:24). They were not interested in "shock, obscurity, playfulness and
intrigue." McLaren expresses "doubts about the long-term value of
highly emphasizing doctrinal distinctives" (p. 32). Is the death of
Christ for our sins a "doctrinal distinctive?" How can anyone who
claims to be a Christian doubt the long-term value of this great truth? He
betrays his motives when he confesses: "I cannot even pretend to be
objective or fair" (p. 35). So should we be subjective and unfair?
The most powerful refutation of the
Graham Johnston's excellent book, Preaching to a
Postmodern World: A Guide to Reaching Twenty-first Century
Listeners (
There is so much more I would like to say about the
Very briefly, let us examine this last verse. The King
James Version uses the word "be," but the Greek employs the word
"become." The word "foolish" means without understanding or
senseless. The word "understand" (suniemi) literally
means "the ability to bring things together and see them in relation to
one another" (Rogers &
Rogers, p. 444). In spite of the foolishness
being promoted by the postmodernists, the Apostle Paul believed the Ephesians
could and should use their reasoning power. If we do not have the ability to
reason or if the result of our reasoning is not dependable, why would Bible
writers urge us to reason? Isaiah quotes God as telling the Israelite people:
"Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins be as
scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they
shall be as wool" (Isa. 1: 18).
In our text, Paul urged the Ephesians to understand what
the will of the Lord is (Eph. 5: 17). If the postmodernists were correct, he
was commanding the Ephesians to do the impossible. But the postmodernists' view
falls into the category of utter foolishness. It certainly is true that men
cannot know or understand everything - only God can do that - but we can understand enough of God's will
to be saved from our alien sins and to walk in such a way as to be well
pleasing to the Lord. If we cannot understand the will of God, how can God hold
us accountable for doing it? Why will our Lord say in the day of judgment:
"Well done, you good and faithful servant: you have been faithful over a
few things, I will make your ruler over many things: enter into the joy of the
lord" (Mt. 25:21)?
The word "understand" (suniemi) appears
twenty-six times in the Greek New Testament. A review of some of the uses of
the verb should provide some insight into man's ability to understand. Five
times in the Parable of the Sower Jesus used the word "understand."
He points out that some do not understand because "their heart has waxed
gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed;
lest at anytime they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and
should understand with their heart, and turn, and I should heal them" (Mt.
13:15). Jesus further explained: "But he who received the seed into the
good ground is he who hears the word, and understands it; which also bears
fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some, thirty"
(Mt. 13:23). Was Jesus teaching in this great parable that men can understand
and will be judged for failure to understand?
On one occasion, Jesus warned his disciples about the
"leaven of the Pharisees." The disciples did not understand what he
meant. They "reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no
bread." Jesus knew what they were thinking and corrected their
misunderstanding. "0 you of little faith, why reason among yourselves,
because you have brought no bread? Do you not understand, neither remember the
five loaves and the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up? Neither
the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up? How is
it you do not understand that I spoke it not unto you concerning bread, that
you should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees? Then they understood how he
bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the
Pharisees and of the Sadducees" (Mt. 16:6-12).
If you are a serious student of the Bible, you know there
are some extremely difficult passages in it. I have struggled with some Bible
passages for most of my preaching life, and still have problems understanding
them. But is that true of those absolutely essential passages we must
understand to become Christians and to live for God? Think with me for just a
minute on this well known passage. "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you
the gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have received, and wherein
you stand; by which also you are saved, if you keep in memory what I have
preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you
first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins
according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the
third day according to the scriptures: and he was seen of Cephas, then of the
twelve" (l Cor. 15:1-5).
The Apostle Paul mentions four facts about our Lord. He
died for our sins; he was buried; he was raised from the dead; and he was seen.
We may not understand why Jesus had to die. In fact, there is an enormous body
of literature about the reasons Christ had to die. But we should have no
problem understanding that he died for our sins according to the scriptures.
Obviously, there should be no problem understanding Christ's burial. When
people die, we bury them. We cannot understand the great power God used in
raising Jesus from the dead, but we know God raised him from the dead. We
should have no difficulty understanding the expression, "he was
seen." The witnesses to Christ's resurrection establish beyond doubt that
he was physically raised from the dead. Should anyone have difficulty
understanding these great truths?
I am fully aware of those theologians who deny that men can
know the will of God, but not one Bible writer ever took that illogical
position. Do you remember how Jesus taught his disciples to pray? "Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Mt. 6:10). In
the same great sermon, Jesus said: "Not every one who says unto me, Lord,
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he who does the will of my
Father who is in heaven" (Mt. 7:21). If lowly human beings cannot
understand the will of God, how can God hold us accountable for not doing it?
Our Lord assured his listeners: "For whosoever shall do the will of my
Father who is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother"
(Mt. 12:50). And did not Christ say to the Jews: "If any man will do his
will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak
of myself' (John 7:17)? Charles Williams take the tenses of the verbs into
consideration in his translation of this verse. "If anyone is willing to
keep on doing God's will, he will know whether my teaching comes from God, or
merely expresses my ideas."
There is great confusion in our world about the plan of
salvation. Is that because the Bible does not speak clearly enough about it?
Our Calvinist friends continually stress the so-called "sinner's
prayer," although the Bible does not say one word about it or even furnish
a hint about it. Universalists teach that all men will be saved regardless of
their beliefs or behavior. What does the Bible specifically and emphatically
teach? The church of our Lord was established on the day of Pentecost. The
Apostle Peter concluded his divinely inspired sermon by declaring: "Let
all the house of
I am not going into detail about the purpose of baptism
-"for the remission of sins"-but I ask you with utmost seriousness:
Do you have any difficulty understanding what Peter told the Jews on Pentecost?
Did he not command the believing Jews: "Repent, and be baptized every one
of you?" What do the terms, "repent" and "be
baptized," mean? Is the language so obscure, so complicated that the average
person cannot understand it? Are not the other steps to becoming a Christian
also plain and simple? Do you have any problem understanding faith and
confession? What about becoming a Christian is so ambiguous that ordinary
people like you and me cannot know what we must do to be forgiven of our sins
and to be added to the Lord's church?
Can we also know what we must do as Christians so that we
are able to enjoy God's approval as we do the will of God? If men cannot know
the will of God, why would an inspired apostle write: "For this cause we
also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire
that you might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and
spiritual understanding; that you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all
pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of
God" (Col. 1:9-10)? Would it not be foolish for Paul to pray that the
Colossians "might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom
and spiritual understanding" if we human beings are incapable of knowing
the will of God? Paul adds: "Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of
Christ, salutes you, always laboring fervently in prayers, that you may stand
perfect and complete in all the will of God" (Col. 4: 12).
The Apostle Peter urged his readers to submit to civil
government. "For so is the will of God, that with well doing you may put
to silence the ignorance of foolish men" (1 Pet. 2:15). The same apostle
reminded his readers of the persecutions they would have to endure. "For
it is better, if the will of God be so, that you suffer for well doing, than
for evil doing" (1 Pet. 3:17). Peter encouraged his readers:
"Forasmuch then as Christ has suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves
with the same mind: for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin;
that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of
men, but to the will of God" (1 Pet. 4:1-2). Does the Apostle Peter mean
we can know and understand the will of God? I repeat what I said two times: If
we cannot understand the will of God, how can a just God hold us accountable
for not doing his will?
I have one final question for you to consider: What is the
will of God? If you have the slightest doubt, a careful reading of Hebrews
should remove that doubt forever. Following are the very words of Jesus Christ:
"Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me)
to do thy will, 0 God. Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt
offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure
therein; which are offered by the law; then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will,
0 God. He takes away the first that he may establish the second. By the which
will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once
for all" (Heb. 10:7-10). The will of God for the Christian era is the New
Testament, the new covenant, the gospel of Christ. We can understand it and
must obey it. If you have not obeyed the gospel, will you not this very day
confess your faith in Christ, repent of your alien sins and be baptized
according to the will of God to have your sins remitted?
Winford Claiborne
The International Gospel Hour