Exhibit A

       “I feel led.…” “God told me that.…” “God wants me to....” “It’s God’s will that I.…” 

       Have you ever heard those kinds of statements from other Christians?  Have you ever wondered, “How do they know?”  Do they have something I don’t have -- a kind of sixth sense.  Do they have or a deeper spiritual maturity that makes them better able to “tune in” and hear the voice of God.  What do these people have that I don’t have?  Or is their Christian lingo just a way of blowing smoke?

       We are looking at the vital topic of how we can know and do the will of God.  This morning I want to use the Apostle Paul as our Exhibit A.   Not only is there a lot of information.  But Paul writes, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” 

        Paul is confident that he knows the will of God.  This confidence breathes through his letters. But how does Paul know what God wants him to do? 

        I think you may be surprised by the answer to that question.  Some of you may also be frustrated by the answer.  You may feel I’m questioning your experience with God.  You even might feel that I’m quenching the Spirit.

       But as we look at the facts, I think you will see biblical decision-making is a new light.  You may also experience a deep sense of relief and freedom in decision making.  You may better understand what God really wants for your life. 

       Paul writes, “Follow me as I follow Christ.  So how did Paul actually follow?

       To get the answer, we need to go to several places. 

       The first is Romans 15:18-29, our passage for this morning.  Here ere Paul speaks of the way he plans his missionary work -- the principles he uses in decision-making.  He writes that he decided not to build on anyone else’s foundation but to enter new territory.  Beginning with this logical assumption, he mapped out where he would go.  Paul was anything but haphazard.  If you look at a map, you discover that Paul planted churches at strategic crossroads and at the head of river valleys where the gospel would spread to entire regions.

       Now it is interesting that Paul doesn’t talk in this passage about mystical, supernatural guidance in planning his work.  He did receive this on a few occasions.  But it was not usual.  Paul normally makes his decisions by using his God-enlightened wisdom in light of which areas most need his ministry.

       Paul also does not base his decision to visit the Romans on a supernatural sign.  He has just run out of room for evangelizing in the East.  So Paul boldly declares that it is God’s will for him to visit his Roman friends once he has fulfilled his present responsibilities.  A logical decision on the basis of circumstances leads Paul to his conclusion about God’s will. 

        In the same way, Paul’s selection of leaders for the early church is based primarily on rational considerations.  We learn that in the letters to Timothy and Titus.  Paul received a dramatic call to ministry.  But there is no evidence that he required the same experience of others. When he gives instructions on choosing church leaders, there is absolutely no mention of the need for a supernatural call.  Paul never instructs the churches to subjectively “hear from God,” or be “led by the Spirit” in making their choices.  Instead, Paul gives a list of objective criterion -- specific qualifications to guide the decision. Judgment is to be based on ability and the quality of faith. 

       Both in planning his work and in identifying leaders, Paul made us of his God-given rational faculties.  For Paul, the primary way to know the will of God is through choosing the logical path based on certain foundational principles.  The most important is “What will bring honor to God and advance His kingdom?”  If we are to follow Paul as Paul follows Christ, the same should be true for us. 

       But hold on?  Doesn’t the Spirit ever lead us apart from our minds?  Sure He does. 

       In fact, the next place I want to go is Acts 16.  There Luke tells us how God supernaturally guides Paul along a specific path.

        Paul and Silas are traveling through what is now Turkey . Somehow or another, they are forbidden by the Holy Spirit to enter the Roman province of Asia .  They say, “Okay. We’ll head north to Bithynia along the southern shore of the Black Sea .  The Holy Spirit says, “Don’t go there.”  So they end up in Troas on the west coast near ancient Troy .  It’s the end of the line. But then Paul has a vision of a man from Macedonia who says, “Come to Macedonia and help us.”  As a result, Paul and his companions carry the gospel into Europe . 

    So we see that Paul is very open to supernatural intervention.  If God leaves a note in Paul’s mailbox, as He does in Acts 16, Paul follows it. 

       Except when he doesn’t.  This is where it gets confusing.  Sometimes Paul doesn’t follow what looks like God’s clear intervention.   

       This leads us to Acts 21.  In Acts 21, Paul is on his way to Jerusalem .  He comes to Tyre in modern Lebanon .  There some disciples, who, Luke says, are guided by the Holy Spirit, tell Paul not to go to Jerusalem . 

       What does Paul do with what looks to me like clear, note in the mailbox guidance?   He keeps heading toward Jerusalem .

       A few verses later, Paul and his companions come to Caesarea on the coast of Israel .  This time a. prophet named Agabus takes Paul’s belt and uses it to tie Paul’s hands and feet.  He says, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘so shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns the belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.”  As a result, Luke tells us that he and his friends beg Paul not to go to Jerusalem .  Paul says, “What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart?  For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”  Luke says, “So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased trying to stop him.  Luke write, “We said, ‘The will of the Lord be done.’”

       Now wait a minute.  How can Luke say that?  Hadn’t God just shown His will?  What were those disciples in Tyre saying?   What was the belt thing?  If I’d had been Paul I would have said, “The Lord doesn’t want me to go to Jerusalem .   Maybe He wants me to head for Hawaii .”

       But Paul doesn’t see it that way.  He doesn’t feel free to ignore the warnings given by the Spirit.  But he does feel free to interpret it.  I confess I’m reading between the lines here but I believe it’s on target.  The disciples in Tyre get the message from the Spirit that Paul faces trouble in Jerusalem .  In their love for Paul they translate that warning into “Paul, don’t go”  -- just as Jesus’ disciples tried to keep Jesus from going to Jerusalem .  But Paul doesn’t see the message as “don’t go!.”  He sees it as God telling him, “Go with your eyes open – just like Jesus did.”  This is only confirmed by Agabus and the belt.  Agabus doesn’t say “Don’t go.”  Agabus simply says, “Know the cost.”  Now Luke and his companions beg Paul not to go – they love him.  But they also see that if Paul goes, somehow that will lead to God’s will being done.

       For Paul, discerning God’s will is normally a matter of making sound, logical judgments in light of what course appears most glorifying to God.  In the case of the decision to go to Jerusalem , Paul knows that he can do God’s work there and that is enough.  And we can conclude that this process of rational reflection should also be our normal approach in discerning God’s will.  God gave us minds for a reason, not just to decorate the insides of our heads.

       That’s good to know in a very practical sense.  It gives us confidence that we can be in the right track even if we haven’t received a vision.  Remember from last week’s sermon that we are led by a good shepherd who wants us to know His will and promises to guide us.

       For example, last December I was talking with my friend Tony Amatangelo who is pastor of Lifespring Community Church in town.  I mentioned that our Session was having a budget meeting that evening in which we would look at the possibility of using some of our reserves for a year in order to ramp-up our ministry in anticipation of completing the new building. 

       Tony asked “Do you believe it is the will of God?”

       I responded, “I haven’t received a sign in the clouds or anything like that, if that is what you mean.”

       Tony said, “That’s not what I mean.  We don’t get that many of those.  I’m just asking “Do you believe it is the will of God?”

       That’s where the message of this sermon kicked in.  I thought to myself, “Well, it seems rational.  But it isn’t just rational.  It requires faith.  It is a step of faith, but it’s not stupid.  It is an honest attempt at good stewardship. And way, way more churches have died from playing it safe than from taking a chance.”

        So I could say with confidence, “Yes, I believe it is the will of God.”

        But what about people who pepper their language with statements like “I feel led.…” “I think God is telling me.…” “God wants me to....” “I feel God is calling me.…”  

        Is that valid?  Partially – but not all by itself. 

       Don’t make a decision based on just one source of input such as circumstances or a subjective impressions in prayer.  Test what you feel is God’s leading against God’s Word and against the wisdom God gave you.

You may have a sense that God is leading you in a particular direction.  But you need to be careful how much weight you put on a feeling that is not supported by other factors. 

       Several weeks ago, for example, I shared about how I received a call to full-time Christian ministry when I was about 18 – and ran away from that for the next five years.  That call came out of the blue.  It came as a very distinct impression of God’s leading.  But that impression wasn’t enough by itself.  It needed to be confirmed by the demonstration of gifts to do for what I believed God was calling me to do.  Ultimately, it had to be confirmed by the church body as a whole.  I didn’t have the freedom to just ordain myself. 

        I’m not downplaying the guidance of the Spirit.  God can certainly lead any way He chooses. But if we take our lead from Scripture, we see that there’s not a single instance in the Scripture that feelings, hunches or nudges – all by themselves -- are to be followed as revealing the will of God.  Even the “still small voice” that came to Elijah after God didn’t reveal Himself in the earthquake, the wind or the fire was a still small voice,  It was not a still small feeling, thought, or nudge.  People sometimes say, “You just need to be aware and listen to God.  But there is not even one example in Scripture where God isn’t heard because the people aren’t paying attention.  God has a way of getting our attention when He wants it.

        God does give specialized intentional guidance to some of the men and women we read about in the Bible.  But a close examination of the biblical record shows that it is very rare.  God’s specialized directives in Acts, for example, are limited to only 14 from the time of Pentecost.  The majority of messages from God (five) were visions.  Three were from an angel, Four times the Spirit spoke.  One seems to have been a prophecy.  One was the voice of Jesus Himself,   That’s only fourteen times in about thirty years – and that’s when the church was being launched. 

       We can’t rely on hearing a voice from the cosmic control tower.   The early disciples knew that.  For example, only one of Paul’s three missionary journeys (the first) was specifically directed by a voice from God.  The others just made good sense – and that is also from God. 

       Personalized guidance in the Bible is always an intrusion – a surprise. It is not being sought after.  It is also very, very clear when it happens.  When Paul is blinded on Damascus road the Lord makes His purpose and call very, very clear.  So Paul doesn’t have to say: “Rueben, I’m not sure, but I think God may be trying to tell me something.”  He knows exactly what he is being told.

       Why is it so clear?  When God sends it, God expects it to be obeyed, and you can’t obey a command that’s not clear.  As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 14:8: “If the bugle produces an indistinct sound, who will prepare himself for battle?” 

        Get to know your Bible.  The main place God speaks to us is through the Scripture.  Paul writes that the Word of God is the sword of the Spirit. 

       In the Bible we don’t only learn God’s will for all Christians. The Holy Spirit also leads us individually as He impresses certain Scriptures on our minds and applies them to specific situations in our lives. He shows us what  He wants us to give attention to at a particular time.

        You can’t replace Scripture with your own uncorroborated gut feelings – feelings that are apart from the rational application of God’s word and godly wisdom.  That gives your feelings a kid of authority the Scripture doesn’t teach.  It can even be a cop out to ignore what God has already revealed of His will. 

       For example, some church members justify not using their gifts by saying: “I don’t feel led.” They actually feel lead – but it’s the lead in their pants that leads to laziness for the kingdom.          

       I believe that much of the paralysis people get into regarding God’s will for their lives is a smoke screen to conceal the actual hang-up of disobedience.  Author Tom Sine calls this “the doctrine of passive availability.”  They say they know that all they have belongs to God and they will use it anyway He wishes, just as soon as He knocks them over the head with exactly what that is.  But until He does they will sit tight on what they have.  But God has already shown us most of His will in His word.

        The Bible also does not teach we get clear guidance only through a sense of inner peace that is not confirmed by a careful reading of the Word.  Sometimes people have a wonderful sense of peace about doing something wrong. 

       Has anyone here ever had a sense of peace about a premarital sexual relationship?  I’m not asking for a show of hands – but think about it.  Do you know anyone who has justified an unbiblical divorce with the statement “I have a peace about it.”   A sense of peace can be totally self-generated.  Remember, for example, that the Mormons have a peace about the book of Mormon.

         So where does that leave us?

         In accordance with how Paul did it, it leaves us, with almost always discerning the purpose of God by the use of the  minds God gave us and in light of the wisdom from God that James writes we are free to pray for – wisdom --  not a blueprint, not an inner nudge, but wisdom to use our minds right.

         But how do I know that I’m thinking right? What  if it’s just my desire? My human reasoning is flawed and my flesh gets in the way.  How do I know I’m thinking right?

       We’ll according to 1 Corinthians 2:16, as Christians we have the mind of Christ – not just some Christians but all Christians.  That means we have an increased ability to make sound decisions because we have a new dimension of spiritual discernment due to the new birth. It’s not flawless.  But we are certainly capable of making godly decisions in most normal matters.  Paul points this out in 1 Corinthians 6:3-6 where he talks about believers suing other believers. 

        God has a will for how we live our lives.  But God doesn’t decide our next steps for us and then challenge us to try to figure out what He has already decided.  Instead, God dignifies us with the responsibility of making significant choices ourselves.  Like any good father, God teaches us how to make good decisions ourselves.

       But wouldn’t it be easier if God would just tell us what to do?

       Sure.  But God wants us to grow up as Christians.  As Paul writes in Ephesians 4:13-15, we are to grow until “we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God...to maturity.”  That’s God’s goal for us.

       Dr. Carolyn Simon. Professor of philosophy at Hope College , put it very well during an interview:  “God’s intentions for us are not blueprints. And so we can live our own lives well in various ways within the range of possibilities that God’s intentions mark out for us. This is not only freeing, it is ennobling.”