Will of Man

The Will of Man

How many would agree that God is an awesome God. That God is a powerful God? Can God do anything? Is there anything greater than God?

There is one thing that is more powerful than God. Now hear me out on this. It is going to mess with your mind, but hear me out. There is one thing that is greater than God. God actually chooses to limit his power. He chooses to allow one thing to be greater than Him. Do you know what it is?

IT IS THE WILL OF MAN

Rebellious Will
God has chosen to not violate the will of man. He has allowed the will of man to be more powerful than Him. Here me out on this.

The all powerful God gives man a free will. He gives man the ability to go against the will of God. Listen to this. God chooses to limit His power. He lets mankind rebel against Him. Now there will be a day when He says enough is enough. And there will be a day whenever knee will bow can confess Him as Lord. And there are certainly many times where God intervenes in a situation, but overall He does not violate the will of man.

Let me give you an example.

Imagine a person is addicted to drugs and they ask for prayer to be set free. Five Christians get around the person and start praying for him. They anoint the man, lay hands on him, cast out devils, they ask for angels to minister to the person, and they pray for a wall of protection around the man. God answers all their prayers. The man gets up and knows God delivered him. He walks down the street and someone offers him dope. Instead of saying no to it, he says yes. Does God stop him from taking the dope? No, He does not. He will not make the man stay clean from dope. A holy, powerful God will not violate the will of man. So man’s will is more powerful than God.

So, each of us in our stubbornness can resist the will of God. We can reject God’s deliverance and even the wonderful blessings He has for us. Isn’t this mind boggling? It is really mind boggling when you the kind of ministry I do. We have seen God do mighty things for people and then see them reject His will.

Submissive Will
Now, I want you to think of something else. This will really blow you away. If man’s will is so strong, that it can limit the power of God, how about when man’s will is according to God’s will? Listen to this. If man’s will is so strong, that it can limit the power of God, how powerful is the will of man when it is according to God’s will? It is limitless. That is why Luke 1:37 says For nothing will be impossible with God. Or Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

CHOICE
So each of us have a choice. We can limit God by our free will or we can experience all God has for us by submitting our will to Him. It is a matter of choice. God gives us the choice.

So many times I hear people give excuses why they are in bondage. They say I prayed that God did not help me. Or I tried Christianity and it did not work. I went to church but it did not help. I pray but God does not answer my prayers. The problem is not with God or Christianity. The problem is the person has never turned their will over to God. They have rejected the convicting power of the Holy Spirit. They have willfully chosen to submit their lives the will of the devil instead of God. Nobody makes you put a needle to your arm. Nobody makes you read pornography. Nobody makes you steal. Nobody makes you lie and cheat. Nobody makes you practice fornication or homosexuality. It is all a matter of choice.

Even demon possessed people have a choice. Did you hear that? Even demon possessed people have a choice.

Matthew 8:28 
“And when He had come to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs; they were so exceedingly violent that no one could pass by that road.”

As demon possessed as these men were, they meet up with Jesus and the demons were cast out. 

The demons could not stop the men from being set free. Those two men could have chosen to stay away from Jesus and you can be sure that the demons did not want the men to be with Jesus. But the men must have wanted to be set free and they obeyed the Holy Spirit instead of the demons. The demons could not stop them from being set free because they chose to be set free.

Another time there was a demoniac boy who would try to burn himself or drown himself because of the demons. Yet nothing stopped him from being in the presence of Jesus and being set free.

Again it is a matter of the will and choose. Will we reject the will of God or walk in the will of God.

Jesus as our example

Matthew 26:39-42 (NASB)
 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as Thou wilt." [40] And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? [41] "Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." [42] He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, "My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Thy will be done."

John 4:31-34 (NASB)
In the meanwhile the disciples were requesting Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat." [32] But He said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." [33] The disciples therefore were saying to one another, "No one brought Him anything to eat, did he?" [34] Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work.

Jesus’ very sustenance was to dill the will of God. What about you. Do you live to do the will of God or to do your will.

Doing the will of God

Mark 3:32-35
And a multitude was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You." [33] And answering them, He said, "Who are My mother and My brothers?" [34] And looking about on those who were sitting around Him, He said, "Behold, My mother and My brothers! [35] "For whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother."

If you are willfully disobeying God’s will in your life, don’t go around saying you are a Christian. Smoking dope and sharing Jesus with others is not the will of God.

2 Cor. 7:9-10 (NASB)
I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, in order that you might not suffer loss in anything through us. [10] For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation; but the sorrow of the world produces death.

Story about Floyd
Floyd was somebody who was heavily involved in satanism, drugs, stealing, violence, etc. He was a very evil man. As we ministered to Floyd his heart softened and he accepted Jesus and was baptized. He started going to the School of Leaders at church. He had many flaws, but he was starting to work on them. But he started being around people who had many issues and he was struggling with kicking methadone. As we tried to help him he would not be honest with us. He started having sorrow about doing wrong things, but not a sorrow that leads to repentance. He just could not be honest. He kept complaining God was not helping him. He said, "I am even handing out Bibles to all the homosexuals and God does not help me." What he did not mention is he was selling his body to them to get money. He continuously would try to fix things the old way instead of doing things God's way and then he would have regrets that he was doing wrong, but never really had repentance. I believe he really accepted the Lord and God was changing him. His salvation is in God's hands.

Matthew 7:20-23 (NASB)
"So then, you will know them by their fruits. [21] "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. [22] "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' [23] "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'

Choice
Joshua 24:14-15 (NASB)
"Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. [15] "And if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Listen to what Hebrews says about Moses

Hebrews 11:24-26 (NASB)
By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; [25] choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin; [26] considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.

How many times have you chosen to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin rather than follow the will of God? It is time for this to stop. It needs to stop today! It is time to walk like a true Christian instead of a backslidden follower of Christ. Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve.

Promise of God
Philip. 2:13
  for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

God is working in us to give us the ability to obey Him. Stop resisting His help.