By Jeffery M. Leonard, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biblical Studies, Samford University
God’s Will and the Bible
Psalm 19:7–14
Human beings have an insatiable desire to know what we might call “secret knowledge.” We want to know what the future (or even the present) holds for us and thus what our next steps ought to be.
Taken to extremes this desire can drive people to consult horoscopes or psychics or to dabble in tarot cards or Ouija boards or séances. Other simpler and perhaps more innocent examples of this same desire exist, however.
We might wonder who ought to start off with the ball in a football game so we flip a coin. A young lady might wonder whether that strapping young man likes her so she pulls petals off a flower saying, “He loves me; he loves me not.”
Whether by drawing straws, picking a number or playing Rock, Paper, Scissors we have developed innumerable ways of trying to find the hidden secret to determining what we ought to do next.
More often than we might like to admit individuals have made decisions by relying on the Bible … not by consulting the actual teaching of Scripture but by a method we might call “pick a verse.” The question is posed, “Should I ask Suzy to marry me or not?” Then the hopeful young man opens his Bible to a random page and points at a random verse to see what guidance Scripture has for him. Should he land on Proverbs 18:22 he may run to buy the ring; if he finds Proverbs 7:27 instead he might just run and keep on running.
I trust we would all find this to be a terrible way of making a life decision. But if this is a bad strategy what exactly would a good one look like?
Even if we are not attracted to crystal balls and psychic hotlines almost all of us would admit to wondering what God’s will is for our lives.
God’s word can be fully trusted to reveal God’s will. (7–10)
Normally when we ask what God’s will is for our lives we have in mind dilemmas related to the college we should attend, the person we should marry, the job we should take or the house we should buy. Truth be told neither God nor the Bible tends to be very forthcoming on these sorts of decisions.
We aren’t likely to get a visit from Michael the archangel with instructions on whether to buy the three-bedroom ranch or the four-bedroom Tudor. Here God expects us to follow the path laid out by the book of Proverbs and simply proceed with wisdom.
As He did with Paul and the man from Macedonia (Acts 16), God, being God, can intervene to stop us if our “wise” choice turns out not to be the right choice.
When the Bible does discuss our relationship to the will of God it almost always does so in terms of our following the path of instructions He has already given us in His word.
The second half of Psalm 19 beautifully illustrates this idea as it extols the virtues of God’s law.
The psalmist declares it to be perfect and sure, right and pure, reviving the soul and rejoicing the heart and, most importantly for our discussion, able to make wise the simple.
Obedience to God’s word leads to right living. (11–14)
As Deuteronomy 30:11–17 affirms God’s will for us is not hidden or inaccessible; it is readily available for us in His commandments. The task that remains to us is to follow and obey those commandments.
Again in Psalm 19 the psalmist celebrates the fact that keeping God’s law both steers him away from errors and helps him find great reward. This dynamic is equally evident in our lives today.
As we live in accordance with God’s word we take steps to avoid those potholes and pitfalls along the path of life and we make the sort of wise choices that evoke God’s blessing.
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