“The will of the Lord be done!”
[Acts 21:1-14]
We may think it is very difficult to seek God's will, but the biblical perspective is very different. To those who willingly obey Him, God reveals His will. Through this truth, we can draw a final conclusion. God does not reveal His will to those who merely consider it, saying, "Well, I could do it or not. Can't you show me a different plan, Lord?" In other words, it means that He will never show it when you come out with an attitude like, "What else can I do, or maybe not? Can't you show me a different plan, Lord?" If you want to know God's will, you must first decide whether you will obey that will or not (Internet).
In today's passage, Acts 21:14, the Bible says, "And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, ‘The will of the Lord be done!’" Today, under the title "The will of the Lord be done!" I want to meditate on three things about the Lord's will and seek the grace that God gives.
First, what is the Lord's will?
In today's passage, the Lord's will for Paul was to go to Jerusalem and preach the gospel. That was Paul's purpose, and it was also God's purpose. So, in Acts 20:22-23, Paul says, "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me." How did Paul know that going to Jerusalem and preaching the gospel was the Lord's will? He knew it because he received the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Even though the Holy Spirit testified to him that in every city, prison and hardships awaited him (v. 23), he still wanted to go to Jerusalem because he was confident that it was the Lord's will. Even though there might be bonds and hardships, he wanted to fulfill the Lord's will. However, unlike the Apostle Paul, how can we know the Lord's will? The key is to discern the Lord's will through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. If you want to know God's will, you must first decide whether you will obey that will or not (Internet).
However, for some reason, it seems that we encounter much difficulty in discerning the Lord's will, unlike the Apostle Paul. Many times, we find ourselves in confusion, not knowing what God's will is and pondering what to do. Especially when it is challenging to discern whether what we are thinking is the Lord's will or just our own, we face difficulty. So, how does the Bible teach us to discern the Lord's will? Look at Romans 12:2: "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will." In this passage, the Bible provides some guidance on how to discern the Lord's will:
- To discern the Lord's will, we must not conform to the pattern of this generation.
What kind of generation is this? Jesus, in Luke 11:29, said, "This is an evil generation." This era is extremely corrupt, much like the time of Noah in the Old Testament—a time marked by pervasive wickedness (Gen. 6:5-6). Living in such a corrupt age, as believers in Jesus, we should not emulate the evil patterns of this generation. Instead, we should discern the Lord's will and live a life that accomplishes His purpose.
- To discern the Lord's will, we must be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
How can we renew our minds? First and foremost, we need to pray to God. We should pray as David did in Psalms 51:10 - "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." When we pray in this manner, God will create a pure heart within us. Additionally, to renew our minds, we should heed the words in Romans 12:3 - "For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you." When we think wisely in accordance with the faith God has given us, our corrupted minds will be transformed. In the pursuit of such ongoing transformation, we will be able to discern God's good, pleasing, and perfect will.
Second, what are the difficulties in fulfilling the Lord's will?
Certainly, there will be various challenges, and one of them is the human compassion of loving people (Park). Look at Acts 21:4 - "Finding the disciples there, we stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit, they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem." This passage indicates that the disciples in Tyre, a region near there, were aware, through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, that there would be trouble, including hardship and imprisonment, for Paul if he continued his journey to Jerusalem. During the seven days Paul spent with them, these disciples consistently discouraged him from going to Jerusalem (Yoo). Refusing such pleas would not have been easy for the apostle Paul. While being led by the conviction of the Lord's will and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Paul was heading to Jerusalem. Yet, amid this journey, disciples from the region of Tyre, prompted "by the Spirit," advised Paul not to go to Jerusalem. How do we interpret the statement that they "urged him not to go" (v. 4)? It means that they knew, through the Holy Spirit, that there would be danger for Paul if he went to Jerusalem, not that the Holy Spirit directly communicated to them to tell Paul not to go (Park). Their dissuasion stemmed from their human compassion. Today's passage, in Acts 21:13, expresses how this human compassion affected Paul's heart: "Then Paul answered, 'Why are you weeping and breaking my heart?'" Paul, while staying at the house of Philip, one of the seven deacons and an evangelist, in Caesarea, received a visit from Agabus, a prophet who had previously predicted a famine (11:28). Agabus prophesied that if Paul went to Jerusalem, he would face trouble (vv. 10-11). Upon hearing this prophecy, Paul's companions, along with the saints in Caesarea, implored him not to go up to Jerusalem, weeping and fervently pleading with him (v. 12). At this point, Paul sighed and said, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart?" (v. 13). Here, the expression "breaking my heart" means 'breaking my spirit' or 'making my heart weak.' In other words, it implies 'weakening the heart' (Park). Consider this: even though the apostle Paul, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, was aware of the prophecy that trouble awaited him in Jerusalem, his beloved brothers and sisters, motivated by human compassion, continuously and lovingly urged him not to go to Jerusalem. What would have happened to Paul's spirit if he kept hearing these pleas from those around him? The heart can easily become fragile in such situations.
What weakens our hearts in fulfilling the Lord's will? Who or what makes your heart frail in pursuing the fulfillment of the Lord's will? Personally, I believe it is our beloved family members. In other words, if there is a path that you and I want to walk, bearing the burden and fulfilling the mission, similar to Paul, knowing that there are hardships and adversities on that path, and our loving family members, aware of the difficulties and tribulations on that path, tearfully plead with us not to take that path, what would be the condition of our hearts? When Jesus taught his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised on the third day (Mt. 16:21), Peter took Jesus aside and said, "Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you" (v. 22). What did Jesus say to Peter at that time? Look at Matthew 16:23: "But he turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.'" Peter, driven by human compassion, did not wish for the death of Jesus on the cross. When he said, "This shall never happen to you," he meant that the crucifixion of Jesus would never happen to him. However, Jesus referred to Peter's thoughts as human thinking. In other words, Satan, through human compassion, tends to make people think about human desires rather than the will of God, diverting them from fulfilling God's will to fulfilling human desires. In pursuing the fulfillment of the Lord's will, no matter what difficulties arise, we should not think about human desires but focus on the things of God. We especially need to be cautious about human compassion.
Third and last, what is necessary in fulfilling the Lord's will?
It is the readiness to die. Look at verse 13: "Then Paul answered, 'What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.'" Even amid the tearful pleas of his companions and the disciples in Caesarea, expressing their concern and urging him not to go up to Jerusalem, Paul, although his heart was saddened, demonstrated a firm determination to fulfill his mission with the resolve, "I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." This resolute determination is something we have already seen in Acts 20:24 - "But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God." Moving according to his calling, Paul did not consider his own life precious in fulfilling the Lord's will. Therefore, he had no reason to be concerned about the fate awaiting him in Jerusalem. Just as the apostles in Jerusalem rejoiced when they were persecuted and reviled for the name of Jesus (5:41), Paul was no less prepared, with a resolved willingness to do whatever it takes for the name of the Lord, even if it meant death (Park).
I revisited a book called "Through Gates of Splendor." This book was written by Elisabeth Elliot, the wife of Jim Elliot, one of the five North American missionaries who were martyred while trying to bring the gospel to the Auca tribe in Ecuador. In the final part of the book, it introduces the diary of Barbara Youderian, the wife of one of the five martyrs, Roger Youderian: “Tonight the Major told us that he had found your bodies by the river. One of you had been wearing a T-shirt and jeans. The only one who dressed that way was Roger. ... Two days ago, God gave me Psalms 48:14. 'For this God is our God forever and ever. He will be our guide even to death.' Upon hearing the news of Roger's death, my heart was filled with praise. He was a fitting candidate to go to his homeland. Lord, help me fulfill both the role of a mother and a father well. Make known Your discipline and instruction (Eph. 6:4) to me.... Tonight, Bess asked me while praying for her daddy in heaven if she could write him a letter and if Daddy could come down from heaven to take the letter. I said, 'That cannot be. Daddy is with Jesus.' But Bess said, 'But Jesus can help Daddy come down. God will hold Daddy's hand so he won't slip.'" How would the mother have felt when she heard such words from her children? When Barbara Youderian heard her children say such things, her heart was deeply moved. She wanted to break free from human compassion, which she considered a tool of Satan that eats away at life. She was convinced that this was the perfect will of God. Many people might say, 'What on earth led Roger, who was in charge of the Huaruro ministry, to get involved in this?' The reason is that Roger had been faithful to the will of the One who sent him. The Lord filled our hearts with His perfect peace, closing us off from sorrow and frenzy" (Elliot).
Wishing to be done only according to the Lord's will,
James Kim
(Praying to rely solely on the Lord even in difficult times)