God's guidance?

 

 

  1. God who closes and opens

 

The Holy Spirit closes a door that we want to go

but opens a door that He wants us to go

(Acts 16:6-10).

 

  1. God who leads us around

 

God does not lead us by the short way.

But He leads us around by the long way through a desert

(Exodus 13:17-18).

God's purpose is not only to reveal His glory to us

(Exodus 14-15) but also to humble us and to teach us that "the man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord"(Deuteronomy 8:2-3).

 

  1. God who goes ahead of us and makes us to stop

 

God who goes ahead of us makes us to stop before the Lord Jesus (Matthew 2:9).

Like Martha, when we are busy doing something for the Lord, God lead us to the Lord's feet, like Mary, so that we may listen to His voice (Luke 10:39-40).

 

  1. God who leads us to the desert

in order for us to be tempted by the devil.

 

God never tempts us (James 1:13).

But God tests us (Ex. Genesis 22).

God allows us to be tempted by the devil in the desert

(God's permissive will, Matthew 4:1).

This doesn't mean that God is tempting us through the devil,

for we are tempted by our own evil desire and are dragged away and enticed

(James 1:14).

It means that in God's sovereignty God allows us to be tempted by the devil like Job whom God allowed Satan to strike his children, his possessions and him (Job 1:13, 2:6).

God's purpose is to teach us that when Satan tempts us we can overcome by the every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10; Deuteronomy 8:3).