Bible Study: Are You Really in The Will of God? 03.06.10

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Today is Saturday March 06, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 14-16. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-6

Title: Bible Study: Are You Really in God's Will?
Faithful Christians take a vow to love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, and mind, they confess their sins, accept Jesus into their hearts, and are eager to live their lives for Christ. Now, we grow a little each day in our Christianity, so, not everyone is going to grow at the same time as others, but over time learn to trust in Him more and more, and are eager to follow His will. When we get to the point that we want to know what His will is for our lives, this is where many people hit a wall and do not grow. Following His will means that we are to slowly let go of the things of the world and replace it with things God wants us to do, even things like music, clothes, movies, and tv shows are to be replaced. Moses reminds the new generation of Israelites of how important it is to let go of these things. “For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.” - Deuteronomy 14:2. We are holy, peculiar people of God and have been chosen by Him personally and are above all who are upon the earth. That alone should get us excited, we should be honored to know that we are chosen by God Himself. Sadly, many people do not want to give up the things of the world, it is amazing how many churches bring the world into the church, loud music, rewritten Bibles, and every religion imagined are coming together to compromise with the worldly Christians. However, this is not following God's will, while God loves every one of us and accepts all who come to Christ, that does not mean He condones things He despises. Things like intoxication, adultery, fornication, and homosexuality are still things He will not tolerate. If we truly want to be blessed by God we need to remove all of the world from our lives, of course, it takes time, but as long as we are truly trying, God will show us how to get out of it. I know people that have by the power of God overcome alcohol and drug addiction, and even homosexuality. So, it is not an option to say this is how God made me, it is how you made you, not God. You can get yourself out of any situation that you are in, but you must be willing to do it for yourself, no one, not even God can make you change, this is something that only you can make happen, but once you do, God is willing to help you and send people to help you along the way.

Perhaps another act that keeps people out of the will of God is tithing, this has always been a very controversial subject. I agree that many people have been deceived by churches and so called men of God that do nothing, but take peoples money, but giving tithe is very important to be in the will of God. Moses explains, “Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates: And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.” - Deuteronomy 14:22-29. While the common tithe during the Old Testament was animals and food from the harvest, those who did not have these things were to bring money. They were required to remember the Levites because they were God's servants, those who served Him in the church. As long as they gave tithe God blessed them with more. The prosperity of Israel in the promised land did not depend on advanced agricultural techniques, but on its obedience to the Word of God. Tithing reminded the them that they, as well as the land, belonged to the Lord. Since all they possessed was the result of His loving provision, before all other considerations, their tithes to the Lord were to be given first. Furthermore, no Israelite could come before the Lord without an offering commensurate with his income. To merely bring what was left over would be an expression of disobedience and ingratitude. Today, the Lord's ministries, missionaries, churches, Bible schools, translators, and other agencies are God's servants and being sustained through the tithes and offerings of His people. Most people fear giving tithe because they have so many bills and expenses already that to give would anything would be impossible. However, this is where trusting in God comes to play. Jesus addresses this issue, “And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.” - Mark 12:41-44. God knows what we are going through and as long as we think of Him and do what we can He will bless anything we give. God loves a cheerful giver, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” - II Corinthians 9:7.

Knowing and following God's will comes down to this, are we willing to trust Him and do the things that He calls us to do. I know people that have come to our church and no longer do because of one reason, they do not like the music, they say it is too boring. Are we willing to give up blessings that God has waiting for us because we do not want to listen to music we think is boring? When we follow God's will we develop a longing for the so called boring music. When I first came to my church I thought the music was a little on the country side, old time stuff, but the more I learned the words, the more I came to love the music that keeps me going every day. Today, I have thrown out all my rock and heavy metal music and replaced it with music God wants me to listen to. Without God's music I would not know how to get through the day. We all have a choice, if we want God's blessings upon our lives we must be willing to give up the world, keep it out of the church, and commit to doing everything God asks us to do. Then He will send us so many blessings we would be encouraging others to seek God as well. “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” - II Peter 2:1-3. God's Word is the only thing that can help us know His will, the more we learn it, the more we grow, the more we lose the world and learn to desire the things God wants for us.

Enjoy the rest of your day/night and weekend.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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