Ephesians 5:17
“Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
To be foolish is the opposite of being wise. How are we to be wise? Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” To fear God is to listen and obey what He says. This chapter in Ephesians says that we are children of the light, so we should walk in the light. Our old ways were of darkness. We aren’t to visit them. We aren’t to even talk about them.
Today’s passage says to understand the will of the Lord. His will is what He wants for us. Generally it’s to walk in the light. His will is to love Him and love others. His will is for us to read the bible and obey it. His will is for us to seek Him. David says in Psalm 5:3, “In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; at daybreak I lay my plea before You and wait in expectation.” David gets up early and seeks the Lord.
We are to include the Lord in our decisions. We should pray for wisdom and His guidance. How do we know what to do? There are several things to consider. It shouldn’t contradict the bible, it should be loving or not unkind, we will feel His peace
(Philippians 4:7), our conscience may have some input, He may open or close doors, sometimes we are to wait. Any of those are factors.
Pastor Buddy Owens would pray this prayer, “Lord, I’m gonna do this. If this is a bad idea, let me know.” Sometimes there is nothing, so proceed. Other times there might be a check in our spirits or other signs. Sometimes God doesn’t care what we do. We choose.
His will is His kingdom. We are to pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven”, (Matthew 6:10). He is establishing His kingdom everywhere. He is working in hearts. He nudges people to do this or that. Some obey, some don’t. He wants us to be kingdom workers. Those that spread His will.
He wants us to bring others into His kingdom. We are to love them, treat them well and with respect. Sometimes we share the gospel with them. God loves them and wants to save them and adopt them as His child. He wants to give them eternal life. That’s His will.
He will empower us to do His will. He’s given us gifts and talents and He also gives us the words and influence with others. We use that to His glory. When we pray, He moves. He can change hearts and influence circumstances. He won’t force people to come to Him, but He can altar things, so they want to. He’s a great and powerful God.
Lord, thank You for Your will. That wonderful way You guide us in. That holy and good lifestyle You give us. Help us to lead others to it.