A.  Introductory comments on the problems involved in knowing the will of God.

Some Bible stories describe divine guidance as a clear directive.  E.g., Acts 10 (Peter sent to Cornelius). Sometimes these come to an individual and the direction goes against the collective judgment of the group.  But we should be careful of viewing these rare events as the norm—the way one should normally obtain guidance from God.  The idea that I should go off alone somewhere and just pray whenever I want direction can be a rather dangerous approach.

It would be great to get a vision every time I want to know God's will about something.  No struggles.  No need to think.  Just wait for God to tell what I'm supposed to do.
    Examples: leaving Montana for Kentucky
                      deciding to marry Lynne
                      going to Emory for doctoral studies
                      moving to Pennsylvania.

B. Use of Acts 16 to illustrate the frustrations of seeking the will of God

Read Acts 16:6-10
Explain distance walked (800 miles).

1. The text does not say how the Spirit blocked them from going south to Asia and then north to Bithynia.
2. Frustrations of long journey with no concrete understanding of their destination.
3. Don't get the vision to go to Macedonia until they reach Troas.
4. Paul still had to decide where in Macedonia to go.
5. Once he got to Philippi they are beaten and thrown into jail.

C. For many Christians, knowing the will of God seems to involve a lot of hocus pocus.
     Example of the visiting evangelist in Missoula, Montana, who said he never knew what he was going to preach until he stood in the pulpit (God got the credit for a string of lousy sermons).

Problem often stems from viewing God's will like a road map.

1. God has a particular set of plans for my life
2. my duty is to discover this plan and follow it like a map
3. not important that God's will need not make any sense to me
4. important thing is to be obedient, not to use my head.

1. Only the shepherd knows what is going on
2. the dog's job is strictly to follow orders
3. the sheep have a painfully frightening experience that the shepherd subjects them to for their own good
4. likewise, God causes many painful things to happen to us, and our job is to graciously accept all these things as gifts from a loving heavenly Father.

True that we are incapable of understanding how all the parts of our lives fit together. Does that mean that our job is, like the sheepdog, only mindless obedience?  This sort of theology can lead to a warped view of God.
    Example: Basic Youth Conflicts seminar led by Bill Gothard in Portland, OR.

1. Taught that Christians should thank God for everything that happened in our lives because these events come as God's way of shaping us from rough stones into beautiful, cut diamonds.
2. Used the example of a young woman who had came to him after a session and said, "I was raped when I was 14.  Am I supposed to thank God for that horrible experience?"
3. Said that he asked the woman, "Were you tempted to fornicate when you were a teenager?"  "Yes," she replied.  "Did you?" he probed further.  "No," she answered.  "You see," he concluded, "God had you raped so that you would not fornicate when you were older."

D. Example from the early church to see how the Apostles reached a difficult decision.

Acts 15:1-35:  major debate in Jerusalem in AD 49 on allowing Gentiles into the church.

Decision-Making Process in Acts 15

1. 15:1-7: Frank discussion (heated argument in which sides state their positions).
2. 15:7-12: Peter appeals to their experience of what God was doing in their midst. Individual and group experience forces reconsidering Scripture.  Incorrect beliefs are challenged in light of what God is doing in the world.
3. 15:13-21: Re-evaluation of Scripture.  James explains how Amos 9:11-12 confirms their experience.
4. 15:28: Witness of the Spirit in the community.  Decide on a course of action and conclude that God was part of the process and is behind their decision.

E. Practical Application

Use our brains responsibly

1. Not just sheep dogs who only know obedience to their master's commands.
2. Would be nice to have the security of hearing God's commands audibly (difficult decisions of life made for us -- not burdened with decisions), but God typically gives us the responsibility for determining what to do. We need to accept responsibility for our actions. Nothing unspiritual about being practical.

    Example of four men at Canadian Bible college who each confided with the dean of students that God had told him that he was to marry a certain coed, who just so happened to be a very good looking cheerleader on campus.

Problem of couples saying, "God told us to get married."

1. Need to consider mundane things: "Can I live with this person harmoniously?"
2. Christians can find themselves in bad marriages because they have not asked if they are compatible
3. Ask others, including parents, to evaluate relationship. Seek advice from a variety of people.
4. Beware of mistaking active hormones for the witness of the Spirit.

1. Do you decide that you didn't hear God correctly and that God really wanted you to marry someone else?
2. Or do you take a sheep dip approach and say, "Well, we have a bad marriage, but God wanted us together because he wants to teach us something.  God must want this bad marriage for reasons we don't yet know."

F. Practical approach to the will of God.

1. God's will involves commitment to biblical principles that guide decision making.
2. God is far more concerned about who I am becoming than about where I live.
3. God calls us to be faithful.
4. God is not a divine Puppet Master, pulling all the strings (view can make God a monster).

H. Concluding exhortation on doing the will of God:  Remember the word Look.

1. Look deeply into Scripture.  Study it, wrestle with it, seek to figure out the best ways live in light of its teachings.
2. Look to God in Prayer.  You are a creature, not the center of the universe.  Seek wisdom from God.  Avoid self-centered attitude of viewing prayer as a way of getting what you want.  Devote yourself to improving the world, to giving more to others than you receive from them.
3. Look to the needs of others.  Know that the right thing is not always the easiest or most pleasant or what you want for yourself.  Live your life in the service of others, as Jesus taught.  It will be difficult but satisfying.
4. Look to others for advice.  Your perceptions are limited.  Expand them by dialoguing with others whom you respect and trust.  Don't just talk with those whom you believe will endorse what you want.  Ask those who will honestly challenge you if they believe that you are going the wrong direction.
5. Look within.  Listen for the inner witness of the Spirit.  Sometimes God communicates in a quiet way that comes when we sit quietly before Him and reflect.  At times such communication will open up new, threatening and sometimes exciting possibilities for service.

Of course God could make far better decisions than we can; but God gives us the freedom--indeed the mandate--to develop our abilities to make responsible choices.