When Two Wills Meet

-Introduction

-Matt 7:21

-Story regarding Abraham Lincoln:  He and a friend were walking down a very narrow

 path - so narrow that they had to walk single file.  When another person approached

 from the opposite direction, seemingly unwilling to step aside, President Lincoln (and

 then his friend) moved over and allowed the other man to pass by.  The friend told the

 president that he should have made the other man move.  Lincoln responded, “But had

 I not stood aside, there would have been a collision.”

            -lesson on humility

-Bulletin from Rena Road - “Anyone who follows Christ will be characterized by one

 important trait:  Submission to the Father’s will.  Jesus was perfect in every way, but one

 characteristic of His life that you and I can set out to imitate is faithful obedience to the

 Father.  Christian living, then, means searching the scriptures for God’s will, and then

 humbly, reverently, and lovingly obeying that will.  A Christian stays close to the Word of

 God.  He reads it daily, and tries to put into practice what he learns from it.”  (from the book,

 Becoming a Faithful Christian published by Truth for Today)

-Our study of Jeremiah 18 and a question that was asked:  What is always the chief

 obstacle between man and God?”

-Jer 18:12

            -the answer:  mankind placing self-will before/above God’s will

-Matt 20:26-28

            -“Here’s a very good question that we ought to ask ourselves - “What can I do to be a

             better servant to the Lord?’”

-Abiding God’s Will

-We need to place an emphasis upon the importance of seriously contemplating the

 wonderful attributes of our God.

            -By doing so, we better realize our responsibility of submitting to His will - something

             we simply must do in order to have hope of eternal life.

                        -Matt 7:21, 12:48-50; 1 John 2:17

-By contemplating God’s wonderful attributes we also become more aware of our own

 shortfalls.

            -Because we fall short, we sin - Rom 3:23.

            -sinned - (Vines) - “harmatano - lit. ‘to miss the mark’...”

-Why do we miss the mark? - because we place our will before/above God’s

            -Sometimes that is accidental - perhaps we don’t know the will of God pertaining

             to that specific situation/scenario.

                        -Yet, as with the law of the land, ignorance is no excuse.

                        -That’s why God has given us His word in which we find His will for us.  We

                         must learn it.

                                    -The first occurrence of “learn” in God’s word - Deut 4:9-10

                                                -We must learn God’s will, abide by it and teach it.

-Important Words to Consider - Submit, Humility, Priorities, Commitment

-We could talk for weeks upon weeks upon weeks regarding these four words.

-This evening, I want to consider them very briefly and then look at a similarity that

 they each share.

-Brief facts:

            -submit - (Merriam-Webster) - to commit to the discretion or decision of

                                         another or of others

                        -James 4:7

            -humility - (Merriam-Webster) - the quality or state of being humble

                        -humble (ibid) - not proud or haughty - syn. meek, modest, lowly

                        -James 4:6; 10

            -priorities - (Merriam-Webster) - taking precedence logically or in importance

                        -Matt 6:33; Eph 3:9-11

            -commitment - Don’t we usually commit to that which we perceive as a priority?

-Hold those thoughts for just a moment and think about the cross of Christ.

      -The Son of God allowed sinful men to nail Him to a cross where He died an

 absolutely, agonizingly, horrifically painful death that He didn’t deserve.  But, He

 willingly suffered such on our behalf in humble submission to the will of the Father.

            -Now, notice something about each of these important words we’re considering:

                        -submit, humility, priorities, commitment

                        -Don’t think of the “t” as a letter but as an object represented by its shape - the cross.

                        -What letter is next to it in each of these words? - the letter “i.”

-Here’s what we need to consider:  In view of the cross that Christ endured for me, what am I

 going to do in return?  Am I going to humbly submit to the will of God and therefore

 commit to the proper priorities in life?

            -There’s another important word that enters into the equation here but I’m not going to

             take the time to consider it this evening - the word “time.”

-Summary and Invitation

-Let’s personify a couple of items for our consideration:  God’s will and my will were

 walking toward each other on a narrow path.  Which one did I expect to stand aside?

            -When God’s will and my will are not traveling together in harmony on the same

             path, will I humbly submit and give God’s will the right of way?

-Amos 3:3 (NIV) - “Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?”

            -We don’t walk in submission to the will of God by accident.  It requires purpose and

             planning.  What do you plan to do?

-To begin your walk with God, you must submit to Him through obedience to the Gospel:

            -Believe (John 3:16, 8:24), Confess your Faith (Matt 10:32, Rom 10:9-10), Repent of

             your sins (Luke 13:3,5; Acts 17:30), Be Baptized into Christ (Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38)

-To continue your walk with God, you must continue to humbly submit to His will.  If

 you have placed your will before God’s and have strayed from Him, confess your

 shortcomings, repent and pray for God’s forgiveness (1 John 1:7-9, Acts 8:22-24).