First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Hebrews 10:8-10
Were you a strong-willed child? Perhaps you raised one. Or maybe one of your grandchildren could be called strong-willed. If you do any teaching, I’m betting my last dollar that you have some. And if you’re a leader, I know without any shadow of a doubt that some of your followers are strong-willed.
So, I’ve got to ask the question, what is someone’s will? Yes, it’s doing just what they want. When they want. Where they want. To whoever they want. But there’s something more. There’s got to be more to it. And I think there is. Think about our will this way. Our will has two parts.
First – It’s what we think will satisfy us.
Second – Then we go after it.
Our will starts with what we think will fill the emptiness inside, so we get it and pour it in. It’s what we desire so much that we’ll do anything to get it. It’s when we wish for something so bad that we’ll move heaven and earth to get it.
Someone’s will is never just hanging out there. There’s nothing passive about our will, it’s always active. There’s nothing lazy about our will either. It always, always, always motivates and energizes us into action. Our will is lighting a firecracker, it’s going to go off.
Our will is never like one of those puffy clouds that just float by. If anything, our will is a big, dark thunderhead clouds[1]. You know the ones I’m talking about, they shoot up into the sky like a dark tower, producing rain, lightning, and hail.
There’s always, always, always a result of our will. It’s pointing somewhere. There’s a target that it makes us shoot at. And we won’t be satisfied until we hit it. Till the results that we so desperately want are put in the win column.
Which brings up the shocking idea that God has a will. There, I said it. Yes, God does indeed have a will. Part of his will is for the universe and everything in it. He has a will for the weather and even the wind.
But what can make us uncomfortable is that God himself has a will for you and me. As an individual human being, living here on the planet Earth, God has a will. He has a plan. He has a target for our lives.
Some people talk about God’s will. But most of the conversation about his will is something way out there. Far away. Something fluffy and soft. Something not to get all that worked up about. Yes, God has his will, but it has very little to do with me. But God’s plan isn’t just something out there. Not on you life.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11
We stand up and shout hallelujah when we hear this! We thank God for his personal plans for us. He himself came up with the plans. His plans aren’t to beat us up and smack us around. His plans are for our good. His plans give us strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. We have a future that’s going to go beyond anything we can imagine. But it doesn’t end there. We have to read on to understand where this leads.
Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12,13
This may sound strange, but then again, it’s me. Did you ever think of God as having a strong will? That his plan for us is real and solid. Not something that we can take it or leave it. He’s gone to a lot of trouble to die for our sins[2]. To write our names in his book of life[3]. To have good works for us to do[4]
And the first part of that great and good will God has for us is to call on him. That’s where it starts. But it never ends there. When we call and pray, we have the absolute guarantee of God that he will listen. But more than just hearing us, he’ll bring us to the place where we can find him. God is strong-willed. You better believe it His strong will is for us to call on him. Pray to him. Find him. It took Jesus going to the cross and staying there until all our sins were paid for. Now that’s our strong-willed Son of God who will stop at nothing till we call on him.
Noodling Questions
How would you define a strong-willed person? Give examples.
Do you look at God’s will as a blessing? A curse? Something else? Explain.
Why is the will of God something strong? Something we can base our lives on?
[1] Cumulonimbus cloud
[2] 1 Corinthians 15:3
[3] Philippians 4:3, Revelation 20:12
[4] Ephesians 2:10
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