How Does God Reveal His Will For Us?

Jesus Rises from the Dead

"On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this,suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'" Then they remembered his words. When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense." Luke 24: 1-11 NCV

How Does God Reveal His Will For Us?

READ Luke 24:1-53

SITUATION The disciples failed to understand what Jesus was saying when he told them that he would rise again.

OBSERVATION God uses other believers to reveal his will to us.

INSPIRATION To pray, "Thy will be done" is to seek the heart of God. The word "will" means "strong desire." The study is where we learn what God desires. What is his heart? His passion? He wants you to know?

Shall God hide from us what he is going to do? Apparently not, for he has gone to great lengths to reveal his will to us. Could he have done more than send his Son to lead us? Could he have done more than give his word to teach us? Could he have done more than orchestrate events to awaken us? Could he have done more than send his Holy Spirit to counsel us?

God is not the God of confusion, and wherever he sees sincere seekers with confused hearts, you can bet your sweet December that he will do whatever it takes to help them see his will. That's what he was doing on the road to Emmaus.

Everybody else was on line, and they were on foot. They saw the death of Jesus as the death of the movement, and they packed their bags and headed home. And that is where they were going when Jesus appeared to them. How sweet is the appearance of Jesus on the road? Let a lamb take the wrong turn and miss the pasture and our Shepherd, unwilling to let him wander too far, comes to guide him home. How does he do this? How does he reveal his will to us? You might be surprised at the simplicity of the process.

The first mistake of the duo was to disregard the words of their fellow disciples. God reveals his will through a community of believers. On the first Easter, he spoke through women who spoke to others. "Today some women among us amazed us. Early this morning they went to the tomb, but they did not find his body there. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels who said Jesus was alive!" (Luke 24:22-23).

His plan hasn't changed. Jesus still speaks to believers through believers. "The whole body depends on Christ, and all the parts of the body are joined and held together. Each part does its own work to make the whole body grown and be strong with love." (Ephesians 4:15). (From The Great House of God by Max Lucado)

APPLICATION Who in your life has helped make God's will know to you? Take time in the next couple of weeks to send them a thank-you note for their involvement in your life. Ask God how he can use you to help build the body of Christ.

EXPLORATION Body of Believers -- Acts 14:21; Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Hebrews 12:1.

The Devotional Bible - Experiencing the Heart of Jesus, Max Lucado General Editor, New Century Version, Thomas Nelson Publishers.