A Truth to Believe

God Wills

The God of the Bible is a willing God (Rom. 9:18; 1 Tim. 2:4). The Bible speaks about God's will in two distinct ways. God's will is both his purposeful plan (his sovereign will or will of decree) and his holy and good desires (his revealed will or will of command). One way to keep these meanings distinct is that God's sovereign will means what will be (God's enteral decree that will come to pass) and his revealed will is what should be (God's commands that people ought to obey).

God's sovereign will or will of decree is that which he brings about (Isa. 46:9–10). It is God's purposeful plan that includes all that God ordains to happen. God's will of decree arises from the triune Godhead and undergirds all things in the universe (Eph. 1:11). If God wills, then it will happen (Acts 18:21; Jas. 4:13–16), and none can resist this will of God (Rom. 9:19; Ps. 115:3).

God's revealed will or will of command is that which he commands. It is what God delights in, loves, or instructs. We, as followers of Christ, are called to follow God's will (John 9:31). We want our desires to be in sync with God's revealed will (John 7:17), and God's will of command provides us with specific ways to live in accordance with him. (1 Thess. 4:3; 5:18). God's revealed will can be obeyed (Eph. 6:5–6) or disobeyed (1 Kgs. 13:21).

These two wills are never in contradiction but at times work in unison. At times God ordains something in one sense (he purposes it to happen) that he disapproves of in another sense (it breaks his will of command) in order to fulfill his greater purposes. The clearest example of this is Jesus's death on cross. Jesus's betrayal (Luke 22:3) and murder on the cross were sinful––thus, breaking his will of command (Matt. 26:59; Luke 23:36), yet God willed it to come about exactly as it took place––thus, fulfilling his sovereign will (Isa. 53:10; Acts 2:23; 4:27–28).

At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?”

Daniel 4:34–35

A Quote

“If any reader of this paper really feels that he has counted the cost, and taken up the cross, I bid him persevere and press on. I dare say you often feel your heart faint, and are sorely tempted to give up in despair. Your enemies seem so many, your besetting sins so strong, your friends so few, the way so steep and narrow, you hardly know what to do. But still I say, persevere and press on. The time is very short. A few more years of watching and praying, a few more tossings on the sea of this world, a few more deaths and changes, a few more winters and summers, and all will be over. We shall have fought our last battle, and shall need to fight no more. The presence and company of Christ will make amends for all we suffer here below. When we see as we have been seen, and look back on the journey of life, we shall wonder at our faintness of heart and shall marvel that we made so much of our cross, and thought so little of our crown. We shall marvel that in ‘counting the cost’ we could ever doubt on which side the balance of profit lay. Let us take courage. We are not far from home. It may cost much to be a true Christian and a consistent holy man; but it pays.”

J. C. Ryle

Something about Living

"Persevere and press on," are helpful words from J. C. Ryle. They echo other calls for endurance in the Bible such as "fight the good fight of the faith" (1 Tim 6:12) and "do not grow weary in doing good" (2 Thess. 3:13).

We are all in need of encouragement at times to stay the course. This is part of the reason the Bible holds out promises for the future. In Revelation, John speaks of persevering in the faith as conquering, and he motivates his recipients by promising what God will do for those who hold fast the confession of faith.

...To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. (Revelation 2:7)

...The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death. (Revelation 2:11)

...To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it. (Revelation 2:17)

The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations. (Revelation 2:26)

The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. (Revelation 3:12)

The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. (Revelation 3:21)

And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. (Revelation 21:6–7)

So Keep fighting the good fight of faith.

Keep looking and savoring. Keep enjoying and delighting. Keep obeying and following.

Keep trusting the one who keeps you trusting and coming to him for more.

He who called you is faithful. We are not far from home.

He will bring us safely into his eternal kingdom.

A Resource

Persevering and pressing on reminds us of the short but excellent book Finishing Our Course with Joy by J. I. Packer.

Whether you are in your 20's or 80's it is a helpful read about keeping the faith to our last breath.