"While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, desiring to speak with him. Then one said unto him, Behold, your mother and your brothers stand outside, desiring to speak with you. But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brothers? And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brothers! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother."Matthew 12:46-50 ; "Then came to him his mother and his brothers, and could not reach him for the crowd. And it was told him by some who said, Your mother and your brothers stand outside, desiring to see you. And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brothers are these who hear the word of God, and do it."Luke 8:19-21

As I continue this series of devotionals on "understanding the will of God", I'd like to talk about a story which is told in all the synoptic gospels, except that Luke's account gives a significant nuance. (Many skeptical Bible "critics" point out differences in the gospels to argue that they can't be reliable -- yet it's actually the differences which support the validity of these accounts because they reveal that the events recorded were simply experienced and told from slightly different viewpoints, a very common circumstance when people are telling a story.) The gospels of Matthew and Mark give an account of the Lord's mother and brothers arriving to see Him, and wanting to speak with Him, though they were hindered because there were so many people around Him. Jesus takes this opportunity to define a broad new "family" principle when He says, "... whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." But Luke's account adds something, "those who hear the word of God and do it!" The word of God is going out across the whole world, and many are hearing it. Those who are acting on what it says are defined as the true family of Jesus! Brothers & Sisters, here, then, is another simple approach to living in the will of God. Read His Word -- and don't be a hearer only -- but be a doer, one who acts according to what he hears or reads. If you do, you reveal that you are a close relative of the Son of God, and that's a relationship better than any other in the world! BE A HEARER AND A DOER!

"Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."1 Thes 5:14-18

The apostle Paul's epistle to the Thessalonians contains clear and powerful exhortations concerning the will of God for believers. These exhortations express the specific will of God in relationships with others, with ourselves, and with the Lord. Packed into these short verses are patterns of life and behavior which receive His blessing in all these relationships. "Warn them that are unruly"; people who are idle, undisciplined, pleasure seeking, need to know the danger they are in. "Comfort the feeble-minded"; comfort people who are disheartened; come alongside them with brotherly affection and encouraging words, and pray for them. "Support the weak"; our natural tendency is to despise and neglect weaker people, to stay away from them since they have nothing to offer us, and can damage our reputation. Jesus says no, find them, and lift them up however you can. "Be patient toward all men"; realizing how patient God is with you, and that "patient" is the first thing that love is, [1 Cor. 13:4]. It means waiting in love and hope, with prayer, for people to see what they need to see, do what they need to do, change how they need to change. "See that none render evil for evil;" do not allow evil men in this world to corrupt your own behavior and character. This is a constant temptation throughout life because evil people are everywhere, including the church. "Follow that which is good"; being and doing good of every kind is our lifelong mandate as believers; there are millions of ways to obey it. This is God's will for us toward all men – even those who don't deserve it! "Rejoice evermore"; Jesus has rescued your eternity from unspeakable misery and pain to everlasting joy and pleasure. The constant reality of your life is under-girded by an ecstatic future forever. You can afford to be quite happy about it. "Pray without ceasing"; 'impossible', you say. Given the fact that your relationship with the Lord is wide open to communication with Him 24/7, why not continually include Him in your words and thoughts? "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you"; gratitude is a life saver, apart from being the most appropriate response to having been created, redeemed, and blessed by our loving Lord. Thankfulness in all things turns you into the beautiful soul your were intended to be. Gratitude in the midst of suffering is a special perfume for the Lord. Brothers & Sisters, the will of God is not so hard to figure out when we read these simple statements. Just obeying these exhortations is enough to do for a lifetime. Wherever the Lord calls you, He calls you to this lifestyle. God's Holy Spirit inspired these words, and He alone gives the power to carry them out. Our part is to believe and act, He will fill us as we do. WALKING OUT THE WILL OF GOD!

"While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light. These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them. But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: "Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"John 12:36-38

The apostle John quotes Isaiah 53:1, saying to whom has the z’roah [arm] of the Lord been revealed? It’s a question that God answers throughout the rest of Isaiah 53, describing in detail the life of Jesus and the ultimate price He would pay for the sins of the world. The word translated, "revealed" (in Hebrew: "galah") actually has a more negative connotation. One of its meanings is "to be stripped naked in a disgraceful way". It also means "to be treated like a captive", and "to be carried away into exile", or, "to be shamelessly uncovered". So the Lord is not simply revealed, but stripped, humiliated, and deeply degraded in order to save us. The cost He paid was terrible. It's never easy for us to remember this or to think much about it, since it's hard enough to imagine an innocent human being suffering so much; but then to realize that I had some part in it... Yet, we should remember; because the reality of the Lord's cross belongs to us in every way, and we may yet be called to endure our own share of suffering with Him and for Him. Remembering His sufferings will prepare us for whatever may lie ahead. Brothers & Sisters, remember the Lord's sufferings. It will keep you spiritually honest, and prepare you for your own small share in them -- His memory will also draw out your love and gratitude, and keep your heart tender toward Him and everyone else. REMEMBER HIS SUFFERINGS!

"And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee."Exodus 15:23-26

Murmuring or complaining is one of those sins that are overlooked. Sometimes we get so focused on the "big sins" such as murder and adultery that we overlook this sin -- but the Lord doesn't give this sin a free pass -- quite the opposite. It's a hidden killer! This sin unleashed a plague that killed thousands of Israelites! [Numbers 16] In this passage, we read how the Israelites, who were desperately thirsty, looked only at the fact that the water they had come to was bitter and undrinkable. How quickly they forgot their God who had led them out of Egypt with signs and wonders. They had just witnessed His dividing of the Red Sea and destruction of those who had enslaved them. And yet, so quickly they returned to looking only with their natural eyes at the problem in front of them, completely forgetting the miracle working power of their God! And so they murmured against Moses. But honestly, weren't they really murmuring against God? Once again, Moses interceded for them, revealing the faithfulness of His God to answer every impossible dilemma and provide for every need; and again, setting them the example: they simply needed to go the Lord! So often, just like the Israelites, we focus on our desperate situation with our physical eyes, and not with eyes of faith, and then fall into the trap of complaining. And if you're like me, once I start, it can be really hard to stop...until the Lord stops me, right in my tracks, and He reminds me –- aren't you really complaining against me? I have to remember to see that I actually hinder the Lord's answers to my problems by unbelief...which leads to the sin of murmuring! Brothers & Sisters, let's not allow this sin to gain a foothold -- because it can easily become a stronghold! The same wonder-working God that led the children of Israel out of Egypt, is still at work today -- but are we hindering Him? If we are grumbling and complaining, the answer is, "YES"! And in so doing, until we stop, we are missing out on His answers and blessings which are waiting in the wings to meet our faith in Him! BEWARE OF THE SILENT KILLER!

"Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis."Colossians 4:12-13

Epraphras is not a name you hear much of. He was a member of the church in Colosse, and obviously a dear saint in the Lord. We know that he suffered imprisonment with Paul at one time. But the thing that really impresses me about this saint is what Paul wrote about him– he always wrestled in prayer! The intercessory work of the saint through prayer is the work behind the scenes, the silent ministry that the world knows little of, yet more powerful than any weapon on earth unleashing power from above that makes demons tremble! This was a man with whom Paul must have been accustomed to praying, and clearly the apostle knew of his zeal from personal experience. But notice what Epaphras prayed for – that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God! That's my prayer for each one of my readers! Brothers & Sisters, in this day and age, when you can feel the winds of spiritual warfare swirling all around – when faith will be tested to the extreme – my prayer is that you will stand perfect and complete in the will of God! With so much work to be done, and so many of us under severe attack, never neglect the power of prayer – for this silent ministry counts so much more than you may realize, not only here on earth-- but also, where it really counts...in heaven! SILENT, YET POWERFUL!

"Wherefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling."Php 2:12

One of the paradoxes of our walk is that God’s gifts often require work on our part. After He delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians, the Lord led them to the Promised land and told them He was going to "give" it to them. It wasn't long before they realized, however, that they were going to have to fight battles and overcome fortified cities in order to inhabit the land. God did promise that they would not have to fight the battles on their own, but even with this divine advantage the Israelites themselves would be required to destroy their enemies – they would still need to fight. They might have preferred that God just give them the land, without having to do anything; to just walk into already built cities and houses without any conflict or opposition. But this was not God’s plan. He desired and expected their full cooperation, expecting them to take serious responsibility for the destiny He had prepared for them, and to grow in faith, thereby. Our situation is similar. Though the gift of our salvation is free, the Lord requires us to work it out...with fear and trembling! [Phil. 2:12] We are not automatically or supernaturally filled with knowledge of the Bible, or faith to move mountains, or the power to pray without ceasing. Instead, we discover that we have to fight the fight of faith, taking serious responsibility for the destiny He has prepared for us. Brothers & Sisters, are you discouraged because the walk of a believer is more difficult than you imagined and the challenges greater than you expected? Don’t be! God is calling you to the simple responsibility of working out your faith and participating in your own destiny. You can be grateful that He doesn't treat you like a helpless infant who has no part in shaping his/her life, but as a growing adult who can rejoice in his/her participation with a loving and powerful Creator. WORK IT OUT!

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."Ephesians 6:10-12

It ought to be obvious to all of us believers that we are in a spiritual war that is taking place all over the earth -- and that we are called to fight in this battle. In the world's armies, soldiers are not sent into battle before receiving many months of serious training. They need to get physically in shape first and then to learn how to handle different wartime situations and tactics of the enemy. For us, the moment we are saved, the Lord begins our training for the ongoing spiritual battle in this world. It begins with learning to trust Him for protection as young believers, and progresses through many phases even to the place where we may enter strenuous wrestling with principalities and powers, as the apostle Paul describes in these verses. Are you struggling in your walk with God? If so, realize that He is training you. Born into war, you are both protected and also necessarily engaged in the battle. Thank God for His protection and His preparation. We need both as we mature and become more involved and useful soldiers for Him against the diverse strategies and tactics of the enemy. The Lord's weapons are spiritual; they include a knowledge of the scriptures, the anointing of the Holy Spirit which increases with a devoted prayer life, the courage which comes only with deep trust, and His divine wisdom which reveals His strategy for our present situation. Realizing that we are in a battle, we ought to reflect on and discover where our weaknesses are. We may already be aware of some of them, but the Lord will show us if we ask Him for more insight. Our part is to cooperate with His development and sharpening of our spiritual weapons. If we cooperate with Him He will always lead us in triumph. Our present trial is the battleground for our next victory. Brothers & Sisters, so, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. With His armor, you will stand, and with His weapons, you will win. PREPARE FOR BATTLE!