WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.960 Good morning. I suspect, like last week, this 00:00:04.960 --> 00:00:09.339 week's sermon will be a little longer. So apologies 00:00:09.339 --> 00:00:12.500 if you haven't had your cup of coffee. If the 00:00:12.500 --> 00:00:15.820 person next to you starts shutting their eyes, 00:00:16.039 --> 00:00:18.300 just assume they're praying. Assume the best 00:00:18.300 --> 00:00:21.059 in them. And if they start snoring, then you 00:00:21.059 --> 00:00:24.850 can give them a gentle elbow. But let's pray, 00:00:24.890 --> 00:00:27.350 let's ask God to help us as we look at his word 00:00:27.350 --> 00:00:30.050 now. And I hope you'll see a little longer sermon 00:00:30.050 --> 00:00:34.590 today is worth it too. Father, thank you so much 00:00:34.590 --> 00:00:37.289 that we can gather as your people. And we ask 00:00:37.289 --> 00:00:41.609 that you would comfort us, challenge us, change 00:00:41.609 --> 00:00:45.609 us, convict us, help us today as we look at your 00:00:45.609 --> 00:00:49.310 word to be made more into the likeness of the 00:00:49.310 --> 00:00:53.329 Lord Jesus. And we ask this in his name. Amen. 00:00:54.909 --> 00:00:58.750 I want to tell you about two people and my challenge 00:00:58.750 --> 00:01:01.590 for you is for you to try and work out what these 00:01:01.590 --> 00:01:07.230 two people have in common. The first is Jack. 00:01:08.290 --> 00:01:11.430 Jack lives in Cairns over in Brinsmead somewhere. 00:01:12.209 --> 00:01:15.469 He grew up going to a Catholic church and a Catholic 00:01:15.469 --> 00:01:21.069 school and he hated being there. He did not enjoy 00:01:21.069 --> 00:01:24.349 it. And so Jack now is done with Christianity 00:01:24.349 --> 00:01:28.489 or anything remotely like Christianity. Too many 00:01:28.489 --> 00:01:31.590 rules, too many restrictions. Christianity, that 00:01:31.590 --> 00:01:35.909 to me sounds like a straight jacket. And since 00:01:35.909 --> 00:01:40.390 he's done that, his life feels freer. Jack thinks 00:01:40.390 --> 00:01:43.489 I get to do what I want now. I can sleep with 00:01:43.489 --> 00:01:46.620 who I want. I don't have to deal with any of 00:01:46.620 --> 00:01:50.500 that Catholic guilt. That's hardcore stuff. Sometimes 00:01:50.500 --> 00:01:52.719 he feels like something's missing in his life, 00:01:52.719 --> 00:01:55.760 but he ignores it and he tries to get back to 00:01:55.760 --> 00:01:58.340 having fun. That's what he thinks life's all 00:01:58.340 --> 00:02:01.680 about, is just enjoy it, live in the moment. 00:02:03.359 --> 00:02:06.200 The second person is Jill. What do these two 00:02:06.200 --> 00:02:10.240 have in common? Jill is a Christian. She comes 00:02:10.240 --> 00:02:13.539 to Northern Hope regularly. She believes heaven 00:02:13.539 --> 00:02:17.340 and hell are real. believes that Jesus' death 00:02:17.340 --> 00:02:21.699 saved her from her sins, but living with him 00:02:21.699 --> 00:02:25.580 as her Lord often feels like she's sucking on 00:02:25.580 --> 00:02:29.379 lemons. There's all these commands in the Bible 00:02:29.379 --> 00:02:32.280 about anger, generosity, sexuality, truth -telling, 00:02:32.560 --> 00:02:36.099 a whole range of things, and trying to keep them 00:02:36.099 --> 00:02:38.400 all feels like she's carrying a bag of bricks 00:02:38.400 --> 00:02:44.210 around. A few of her friends follow Jesus. Most 00:02:44.210 --> 00:02:48.469 of her friends live however they want. And sometimes 00:02:48.469 --> 00:02:53.009 when she sees that, she resents God. She feels 00:02:53.009 --> 00:02:55.750 ripped off. They're getting to live the good 00:02:55.750 --> 00:02:59.270 life and here's me, I'm doing what you want, 00:02:59.409 --> 00:03:04.250 Lord. I wonder if you can relate with either 00:03:04.250 --> 00:03:08.409 Jack or Jill. But did you see what they have 00:03:08.409 --> 00:03:14.000 in common? Both of them have serious misgivings 00:03:14.000 --> 00:03:18.460 about God's will. I reckon both of them would 00:03:18.460 --> 00:03:21.080 struggle to believe the third petition in the 00:03:21.080 --> 00:03:23.840 Lord's Prayer. Your will be done on earth as 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:27.759 it is in heaven. They'd be going, really, is 00:03:27.759 --> 00:03:30.139 God's will actually that good? Is God's will 00:03:30.139 --> 00:03:33.860 actually heavenly? How can God's will be better 00:03:33.860 --> 00:03:37.979 than what I want? And you know what, I don't 00:03:37.979 --> 00:03:41.900 think it's just Jack and Jill. I think we all 00:03:41.900 --> 00:03:46.020 struggle with that, don't we? Sometimes we can 00:03:46.020 --> 00:03:48.280 read the Bible and we can wonder, are God's commands 00:03:48.280 --> 00:03:53.780 just OTT over the top? Are they from a bygone 00:03:53.780 --> 00:03:56.620 era and just irrelevant now? Why are we really 00:03:56.620 --> 00:04:00.560 following them today? I think the big one we 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:04.580 ask is, how could God's will be better than my 00:04:04.580 --> 00:04:09.219 will? What I want's awesome. How could what he 00:04:09.219 --> 00:04:11.800 wants for me be better than what I want for me? 00:04:13.819 --> 00:04:16.839 Well, today, let's take a look at God's will 00:04:16.839 --> 00:04:21.019 and see if it's all it's cracked up to be. Here's 00:04:21.019 --> 00:04:22.939 the big thing I hope you'll take away from today. 00:04:23.860 --> 00:04:25.740 I hope this will stick with you, not just today, 00:04:25.819 --> 00:04:29.560 but for the rest of your life. God's will being 00:04:29.560 --> 00:04:34.180 done is heaven. God's will being done is heaven, 00:04:34.500 --> 00:04:38.029 so pray that it'd be done on earth. God's will 00:04:38.029 --> 00:04:41.269 being done is heaven, so pray it'd be done on 00:04:41.269 --> 00:04:43.029 earth. And there's three aspects in our passage 00:04:43.029 --> 00:04:45.069 we're going to look at as to what that means. 00:04:45.750 --> 00:04:48.889 Firstly, God's will is heavenly. God's will is 00:04:48.889 --> 00:04:52.230 heavenly. Secondly, pray we'd trust God's will. 00:04:53.129 --> 00:04:57.410 And thirdly, pray we'd do God's will. There are 00:04:57.410 --> 00:04:59.589 three things. God's will is heavenly, pray we'd 00:04:59.589 --> 00:05:02.750 trust God's will. And thirdly, pray we'd do God's 00:05:02.750 --> 00:05:05.509 will. So let's start with the first one. Is God's 00:05:05.509 --> 00:05:08.430 will truly heavenly, because that's what our 00:05:08.430 --> 00:05:10.970 passage is saying. God's will is heavenly. But 00:05:10.970 --> 00:05:12.329 you've got to ask the question, well, what is 00:05:12.329 --> 00:05:15.170 heavenly? What is heaven? How do you picture 00:05:15.170 --> 00:05:20.350 it? As a kid, I pictured heaven as fluffy clouds 00:05:20.350 --> 00:05:23.589 with chocolate fondue fountains and unlimited 00:05:23.589 --> 00:05:28.329 sport and a golf swing like Tiger Woods. My kids, 00:05:28.490 --> 00:05:31.829 they once described heaven as a place with superpowers. 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:34.379 So they're thinking Marvel DC, you know, I've 00:05:34.379 --> 00:05:37.920 got super speed and I can fly everywhere. Belinda 00:05:37.920 --> 00:05:40.839 Carlisle in the 80s, she sang that song Heaven 00:05:40.839 --> 00:05:43.399 is a Place on Earth and really for her it was 00:05:43.399 --> 00:05:47.779 all about sharing life with a lover. What's heaven? 00:05:48.779 --> 00:05:52.819 Well Jesus' view of heaven is different. He says, 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:57.040 your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 00:05:58.160 --> 00:06:02.310 God being king, God being in charge, everyone 00:06:02.310 --> 00:06:07.569 gladly following what he wants, Jesus says, that's 00:06:07.569 --> 00:06:11.870 heaven. Now for some people that sounds like 00:06:11.870 --> 00:06:15.509 a dystopian dictatorship hell. And if it were 00:06:15.509 --> 00:06:19.769 run by any mere human, it would be. But heaven 00:06:19.769 --> 00:06:25.629 is run by God. It's where everyone is like Jesus. 00:06:26.699 --> 00:06:30.139 It's the paradise that humans long for and try 00:06:30.139 --> 00:06:32.459 to create, but we always seem to somehow ruin 00:06:32.459 --> 00:06:37.600 or sabotage it. I've got here a cap that comes 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:40.139 from a hotel that we've stayed at a few times 00:06:40.139 --> 00:06:43.920 on the Gold Coast called Paradise Resort. And 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:47.420 the slogan for Paradise Resort is, heaven for 00:06:47.420 --> 00:06:52.339 kids, paradise for parents. It's pretty good. 00:06:52.490 --> 00:06:55.029 It's awesome. They've got water slides, pools, 00:06:55.170 --> 00:06:59.750 laser tags, various food outlets, bars, playstations 00:06:59.750 --> 00:07:02.790 in some of the rooms, a gift shop, ice skating. 00:07:03.110 --> 00:07:05.930 You're near the theme parks. And the best part 00:07:05.930 --> 00:07:09.569 for the parents, there's a kids' club. Just drop 00:07:09.569 --> 00:07:15.689 them off. On paper, it should be paradise. It 00:07:15.689 --> 00:07:19.970 has everything. But when we've gone there and 00:07:19.970 --> 00:07:26.189 stayed, It's good, but it's not paradise. You 00:07:26.189 --> 00:07:30.029 look around and you see kids whining, I wanted 00:07:30.029 --> 00:07:33.569 the burger, not the chicken nuggets. You see 00:07:33.569 --> 00:07:37.250 families fighting. Wives and husbands fighting, 00:07:37.449 --> 00:07:40.050 kids fighting with their parents. All sorts of 00:07:40.050 --> 00:07:43.970 things, just fighting and selfishness and all 00:07:43.970 --> 00:07:48.430 sorts of ugliness. It's meant to be paradise. 00:07:48.589 --> 00:07:54.430 Why is this paradise tarnished? Because people 00:07:54.430 --> 00:08:00.029 are not acting like Jesus. Imagine if everyone 00:08:00.029 --> 00:08:04.949 there thought and acted like Jesus. Loving God 00:08:04.949 --> 00:08:07.750 with everything, loving each other as themselves. 00:08:09.529 --> 00:08:12.870 Just as Jesus did during his life, a life where 00:08:12.870 --> 00:08:18.470 he embodied God's will. then it would actually 00:08:18.470 --> 00:08:23.129 be Paradise Resort, wouldn't it? Brendan, what 00:08:23.129 --> 00:08:25.050 happens if the water slide goes out, you know, 00:08:25.050 --> 00:08:27.829 it's out of order? Or the kids club gets shut, 00:08:27.850 --> 00:08:32.429 you know? No, it'd still be heavenly because 00:08:32.429 --> 00:08:38.350 everyone would be acting like Jesus. I think 00:08:38.350 --> 00:08:40.950 most people would agree, if you ask them, a world 00:08:40.950 --> 00:08:44.389 of Jesus carbon copies would be heaven for the 00:08:44.389 --> 00:08:48.740 most part. But if you press them, I think you'd 00:08:48.740 --> 00:08:51.860 find that on things like sexuality, alcohol or 00:08:51.860 --> 00:08:54.740 money many folk would still have some strong 00:08:54.740 --> 00:08:58.299 reservations. I think there's a sense in a lot 00:08:58.299 --> 00:09:01.179 of people see Jesus as this religious prude. 00:09:02.120 --> 00:09:04.460 But you've got to remember even on these things 00:09:04.460 --> 00:09:08.580 Jesus lived God's will and it was awesome. Jesus 00:09:08.580 --> 00:09:11.200 went and drank with the tax collectors and sinners. 00:09:11.220 --> 00:09:13.200 He didn't get drunk, but he did enjoy a drink. 00:09:14.859 --> 00:09:17.480 He honoured sex is a good gift between married 00:09:17.480 --> 00:09:22.519 people. It's a created thing that God made. And 00:09:22.519 --> 00:09:24.379 money, it's a good gift from God. Yes, we've 00:09:24.379 --> 00:09:26.000 got to steward it well. Yes, we've got to guard 00:09:26.000 --> 00:09:28.659 our hearts. It can easily become an idol, but 00:09:28.659 --> 00:09:31.360 it is a good gift from God to be enjoyed as well. 00:09:32.580 --> 00:09:37.440 That's Jesus' approach. It makes you wonder, 00:09:37.620 --> 00:09:44.049 is God's way possibly better than ours? A while 00:09:44.049 --> 00:09:48.769 ago, Laura made delicious noodle stir fry for 00:09:48.769 --> 00:09:53.590 our family. And it tasted better than any Chinese 00:09:53.590 --> 00:09:58.429 takeaway I've had. And it was nutritious. Win 00:09:58.429 --> 00:10:02.470 -win. But one of our boys at dinnertime chose 00:10:02.470 --> 00:10:05.470 to have a staring competition with his food. 00:10:07.710 --> 00:10:10.850 He'd look at it but not eat it. And we told him, 00:10:10.909 --> 00:10:14.740 eat your dinner. It's so good, you'll like it." 00:10:14.740 --> 00:10:18.120 And he said, Dad, it looks disgusting. I don't 00:10:18.120 --> 00:10:21.340 want it. And he was very happy to go hungry. 00:10:22.919 --> 00:10:25.879 But after some warnings and encouragement, he 00:10:25.879 --> 00:10:29.720 eventually ate some. Do you know what he said? 00:10:30.639 --> 00:10:37.340 This is yummy. He thought he knew better than 00:10:37.340 --> 00:10:42.620 us. But he discovered that we actually knew what's 00:10:42.620 --> 00:10:44.419 best. He's probably forgotten that by now, but 00:10:44.419 --> 00:10:48.960 he discovered at the time we knew best. And I'm 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:51.159 sad to admit, I am often like that with God. 00:10:53.039 --> 00:10:55.860 Even though he created me and everything and 00:10:55.860 --> 00:10:58.500 knows how it all works best, even though his 00:10:58.500 --> 00:11:00.820 infinite knowledge, knowing everything, every 00:11:00.820 --> 00:11:03.519 outcome, the essence of all goodness, even though 00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:06.159 I followed his will at times and seen firsthand 00:11:06.159 --> 00:11:09.679 that it's better than mine, Even though God's 00:11:09.679 --> 00:11:13.580 like that, so often I still think I know better 00:11:13.580 --> 00:11:17.159 than him. That I'm better off with what I want 00:11:17.159 --> 00:11:23.860 instead of with what he wants. You know, whether 00:11:23.860 --> 00:11:28.419 I do God's will or not, it all boils down to 00:11:28.419 --> 00:11:36.639 one thing. Trust. Do I believe that God can be 00:11:36.639 --> 00:11:44.269 trusted? that he really does know best. The guy 00:11:44.269 --> 00:11:47.309 dismissing Christianity because it's sexual ethics 00:11:47.309 --> 00:11:50.909 and other things are too restrictive, that's 00:11:50.909 --> 00:11:55.009 not a behaviour issue. It's a belief issue, isn't 00:11:55.009 --> 00:11:59.070 it? The Christian who keeps watching porn, telling 00:11:59.070 --> 00:12:02.090 lies, is greedy and stingy, uses their words 00:12:02.090 --> 00:12:06.169 like daggers, they don't have a behaviour issue. 00:12:06.830 --> 00:12:09.669 If they're going to change, they need to focus 00:12:09.669 --> 00:12:13.750 on what they believe about God. And the Christian 00:12:13.750 --> 00:12:15.929 who begrudgingly keeps God's commands, they've 00:12:15.929 --> 00:12:19.269 got the same problem. They lack joy because they 00:12:19.269 --> 00:12:21.870 believe that God is either ignorant or holding 00:12:21.870 --> 00:12:27.309 out on them. But is that really the truth about 00:12:27.309 --> 00:12:31.450 God? That sounds to me like the voice of the 00:12:31.450 --> 00:12:35.490 evil one. Because the God we encounter in the 00:12:35.490 --> 00:12:39.960 Bible, is more good and loving than you and I 00:12:39.960 --> 00:12:44.879 could ever know or imagine. He's trustworthy, 00:12:45.080 --> 00:12:48.279 loyal, caring, good, wise, faithful and generous. 00:12:48.340 --> 00:12:51.600 He's a good father. His commands are generous, 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:57.740 freeing and life -giving. But you might ask, 00:12:57.980 --> 00:13:01.399 well, Brendan, how do I know God and His will 00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:04.200 truly are that good? I mean, you're just saying 00:13:04.200 --> 00:13:08.039 it. How do I know? And I'd want to say because 00:13:08.039 --> 00:13:13.860 of Jesus. His teaching unpacks the true riches 00:13:13.860 --> 00:13:18.019 of God's commands. Just read the Sermon on the 00:13:18.019 --> 00:13:22.620 Mount, it's beautiful. His life embodied the 00:13:22.620 --> 00:13:25.679 joyful beauty of living God's way. And not only 00:13:25.679 --> 00:13:28.519 that, it exposed the frauds, it exposed the religious 00:13:28.519 --> 00:13:31.299 leaders of his day as that's not living God's 00:13:31.299 --> 00:13:35.070 way and it's horrible, it's twisted. Actually, 00:13:35.090 --> 00:13:37.809 his life, Jesus' life was so attractive and profound 00:13:37.809 --> 00:13:41.049 that it spread like wildfire, people going, I 00:13:41.049 --> 00:13:44.690 want that. His teaching and living transformed 00:13:44.690 --> 00:13:47.529 person after person after person right down to 00:13:47.529 --> 00:13:51.509 us today. The rich, the poor, the moral, the 00:13:51.509 --> 00:13:53.830 immoral, the religious, the non -religious, people 00:13:53.830 --> 00:13:56.190 all over the world, all over history changed 00:13:56.190 --> 00:14:04.789 by Jesus. God's will is good. But the clearest 00:14:04.789 --> 00:14:07.149 place where we see that God's will can be trusted 00:14:07.149 --> 00:14:15.269 is the cross. There you see a God so loving that 00:14:15.269 --> 00:14:18.690 He'll do what's best for us even when it costs 00:14:18.690 --> 00:14:23.009 Him. There you see a God so powerful and wise 00:14:23.009 --> 00:14:26.250 He planned that His obedient Son's defeat would 00:14:26.250 --> 00:14:30.350 be the greatest triumph in the universe. That 00:14:30.350 --> 00:14:32.830 through him heaven would be opened to anyone 00:14:32.830 --> 00:14:38.590 who trusts in Jesus You see a God who's so good 00:14:38.590 --> 00:14:41.230 that he vindicates all who trust him just as 00:14:41.230 --> 00:14:48.309 he did his son Jesus prayed not my will but yours 00:14:48.309 --> 00:14:52.850 be done Because he believed God's will is glorious 00:14:52.850 --> 00:14:56.330 good and beautiful he believed it was heavenly 00:14:58.960 --> 00:15:05.919 God's will being done is literally heaven. Do 00:15:05.919 --> 00:15:09.960 you believe that? If you don't, go back to your 00:15:09.960 --> 00:15:14.740 Bible and see it again. But what else should 00:15:14.740 --> 00:15:17.159 we do then? Well, if you want to experience more 00:15:17.159 --> 00:15:20.740 of heaven on earth, then there's two things we 00:15:20.740 --> 00:15:24.200 need to pray into. Firstly, we need to pray that 00:15:24.200 --> 00:15:28.000 we trust God's will. pray that we trust God's 00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:31.100 will. And this is important because the Bible 00:15:31.100 --> 00:15:34.460 speaks of God's will in one of two ways. When 00:15:34.460 --> 00:15:36.480 we're praying your will be done, there's two 00:15:36.480 --> 00:15:40.379 aspects to it. Firstly, we're praying that we 00:15:40.379 --> 00:15:43.519 trust God's decreed will, His will of decree. 00:15:44.120 --> 00:15:46.960 And secondly, we're praying that we trust God's 00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:51.080 will of command, His commanded will. The Bible 00:15:51.080 --> 00:15:55.190 speaks of His decreed will like this. But on 00:15:55.190 --> 00:15:57.309 taking leave of them, this is Paul, he said, 00:15:57.429 --> 00:16:00.490 I will return to you if God wills. And he set 00:16:00.490 --> 00:16:06.929 sail from Ephesus. God's decreed will is his 00:16:06.929 --> 00:16:12.549 sovereign arranging of all events. Now, sometimes 00:16:12.549 --> 00:16:15.710 God's decreed will, his sovereign will, is painful 00:16:15.710 --> 00:16:20.480 and unpleasant. It was painful for Paul to leave 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:23.039 brothers and sisters and not know if he was going 00:16:23.039 --> 00:16:27.100 to see them again. But it's still heavenly because 00:16:27.100 --> 00:16:29.879 he believed that whatever God willed, he'd be 00:16:29.879 --> 00:16:36.240 using it to make us more like Jesus. Years ago, 00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:39.000 Laura and I ran a holiday kids club called Winterfest 00:16:39.000 --> 00:16:42.879 in Perth and it was so much fun. We had about 00:16:42.879 --> 00:16:45.379 200 kids, I think it was, and 100 volunteers. 00:16:45.720 --> 00:16:49.909 It was awesome. And we did a wilderness theme. 00:16:50.049 --> 00:16:52.529 That's what those photos are there. And one of 00:16:52.529 --> 00:16:55.450 the things we did was a wood whittling class. 00:16:55.549 --> 00:16:57.789 We got this guy to come in and teach the kids 00:16:57.789 --> 00:17:00.570 how to whittle sticks with like little peelers 00:17:00.570 --> 00:17:05.349 and sticks. It was so fun. The kids had a blast. 00:17:06.190 --> 00:17:10.109 I had a blast. In my head, I had dreams of becoming 00:17:10.109 --> 00:17:13.710 a great wood whittling artist. It lasted about 00:17:13.710 --> 00:17:17.670 a week. But I must admit I have great admiration 00:17:17.670 --> 00:17:20.950 for those who can whittle. In Perth there was 00:17:20.950 --> 00:17:23.289 this little shop at the Hillary's Boat Harbour 00:17:23.289 --> 00:17:26.170 that they had all these wooden things people 00:17:26.170 --> 00:17:28.630 had carved and I just thought it was amazing, 00:17:28.930 --> 00:17:33.170 you know, little spoons, little figures. Do you 00:17:33.170 --> 00:17:38.430 know God's actually into whittling as well? He 00:17:38.430 --> 00:17:41.410 whittles every Christian with the events of their 00:17:41.410 --> 00:17:45.940 life. Whittle, whittle, whittle. I had this happen 00:17:45.940 --> 00:17:50.799 to make you more like Jesus. Here's how Paul 00:17:50.799 --> 00:17:54.859 puts it in Romans 8. In the same way the Spirit 00:17:54.859 --> 00:17:57.279 helps us in our weakness, we do not know what 00:17:57.279 --> 00:17:59.880 we ought to pray for. You know, have you ever 00:17:59.880 --> 00:18:01.740 been in that situation where you just don't know 00:18:01.740 --> 00:18:05.440 what to pray? But praise God, we have his spirit. 00:18:05.539 --> 00:18:08.579 But the spirit himself intercedes for us through 00:18:08.579 --> 00:18:11.619 wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts 00:18:11.619 --> 00:18:13.539 knows the mind of the spirit because the spirit 00:18:13.539 --> 00:18:16.400 intercedes for God's people in accordance with 00:18:16.400 --> 00:18:19.740 the will of God. And what is that will of God? 00:18:19.779 --> 00:18:23.200 Well, that's what the next bit is. And we know 00:18:23.200 --> 00:18:26.880 that in all things, God works for the good of 00:18:26.880 --> 00:18:31.019 those who love him, who've been called according 00:18:31.019 --> 00:18:35.759 to his purpose. What's God's good purpose? What's 00:18:35.759 --> 00:18:38.819 the good things? Well, for those God foreknew, 00:18:38.839 --> 00:18:41.759 he also predestined to be conformed to the image 00:18:41.759 --> 00:18:45.460 of his son, that he might be the firstborn among 00:18:45.460 --> 00:18:48.720 many brothers and sisters. God's good purpose 00:18:48.720 --> 00:18:52.380 is that he whittles people to becoming more like 00:18:52.380 --> 00:18:58.779 Jesus, conformed to the image of his son. Praying 00:18:58.779 --> 00:19:02.980 your will be done involves us surrendering to 00:19:02.980 --> 00:19:08.259 God's sovereign ordering of events. It's trusting 00:19:08.259 --> 00:19:11.980 Him in what's happening. It's believing there's 00:19:11.980 --> 00:19:14.859 a purpose behind whatever is happening that you 00:19:14.859 --> 00:19:19.559 will be made more Christ -like. What's it look 00:19:19.559 --> 00:19:21.880 like? I mean, you know, we can pray and not know 00:19:21.880 --> 00:19:25.200 what to pray, but maybe you can pray. Maybe you 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:27.650 can pray something like this, Father. I don't 00:19:27.650 --> 00:19:29.549 know why you gave me cancer. I don't know why 00:19:29.549 --> 00:19:31.609 my spouse left. I don't know why I lost my job. 00:19:32.089 --> 00:19:37.789 Whatever the thing you're going through is, please 00:19:37.789 --> 00:19:43.450 use it to make me like Jesus. Help me not to 00:19:43.450 --> 00:19:48.170 lose heart. Help me to trust you in this. Help 00:19:48.170 --> 00:19:56.630 me to grow through this. Amen. Is there that 00:19:56.630 --> 00:20:01.309 surrender in your prayer life? You know, I was 00:20:01.309 --> 00:20:04.390 reflecting on this. So often my prayers are asking 00:20:04.390 --> 00:20:08.490 God to change my circumstances. And that's right 00:20:08.490 --> 00:20:10.630 and proper and something we should all keep doing. 00:20:12.089 --> 00:20:15.829 But it needs to be paired with praying that my 00:20:15.829 --> 00:20:20.609 circumstances would change me. Do you need to 00:20:20.609 --> 00:20:28.630 pray more often like that? I know I do. But that's 00:20:28.630 --> 00:20:33.450 not all your will be done means. We pray that 00:20:33.450 --> 00:20:36.210 we trust God's will, but then we pray that we 00:20:36.210 --> 00:20:39.930 do God's will. Remember God's will, there's two 00:20:39.930 --> 00:20:42.470 aspects to it. His will of decree, His will of 00:20:42.470 --> 00:20:44.650 command, and His will of command is about seeking 00:20:44.650 --> 00:20:48.769 to do what is pleasing to Him. This is how we 00:20:48.769 --> 00:20:51.309 should respond to God's will of command. When 00:20:51.309 --> 00:20:56.059 we pray that we and other Christians will do 00:20:56.059 --> 00:21:00.839 what God wants. That's praying in line with God's 00:21:00.839 --> 00:21:03.599 will of command, with his laws, his rules, his 00:21:03.599 --> 00:21:08.599 commandments. We're asking for heaven on earth 00:21:08.599 --> 00:21:11.000 to come. That's what we're doing when we pray 00:21:11.000 --> 00:21:14.680 these things. And think about what God's will 00:21:14.680 --> 00:21:19.220 is in the New Testament. God's will includes 00:21:19.220 --> 00:21:25.150 holiness, contentment, Submission to those in 00:21:25.150 --> 00:21:28.190 authority. I know some of those things to some 00:21:28.190 --> 00:21:30.230 of you might not sound so great, but they are 00:21:30.230 --> 00:21:34.369 wonderful. And it always comes in response to 00:21:34.369 --> 00:21:37.009 God's mercy. It's seeking to please Him because 00:21:37.009 --> 00:21:42.910 He so loved us. But to please Him, we have to 00:21:42.910 --> 00:21:45.869 know what's pleasing to Him in different situations 00:21:45.869 --> 00:21:49.130 and different contexts. Here's how Paul puts 00:21:49.130 --> 00:21:53.380 it in Romans 12. Do not conform to the pattern 00:21:53.380 --> 00:21:56.859 of this world, but be transformed by the renewing 00:21:56.859 --> 00:22:01.119 of your mind. Then you'll be able to test and 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:04.119 approve what God's will is, His good, pleasing 00:22:04.119 --> 00:22:07.559 and perfect will. Don't be a cookie cutter. Don't 00:22:07.559 --> 00:22:10.700 be just like the rest of the world. Have your 00:22:10.700 --> 00:22:14.720 mind changed. As you encounter God's mercy and 00:22:14.720 --> 00:22:19.160 His will in the Bible, may it change your thinking. 00:22:20.259 --> 00:22:22.720 As you try and live it out, may it change your 00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:25.160 thinking so that you go, I know what is pleasing 00:22:25.160 --> 00:22:31.539 to God now. Years ago, I played AFL. Not well, 00:22:31.619 --> 00:22:34.579 but I played. I played for a team in Sydney called 00:22:34.579 --> 00:22:38.480 the Forest Lions. We weren't very good. We had 00:22:38.480 --> 00:22:41.700 one good year where we lost the grand final by 00:22:41.700 --> 00:22:46.500 a goal. It still haunts me to this day. But while 00:22:46.500 --> 00:22:48.359 I was playing footy, the coaches, they teach 00:22:48.359 --> 00:22:49.980 you lots of things. They teach you stretching. 00:22:50.059 --> 00:22:52.319 They teach you skills, kicking, handballing. 00:22:52.440 --> 00:22:55.779 They teach you about positioning. But there's 00:22:55.779 --> 00:22:59.299 a big one that's so, so important. They teach 00:22:59.299 --> 00:23:01.839 you about decision making in different scenarios. 00:23:03.460 --> 00:23:06.359 Oh, you're injured. What do you do? Do you play 00:23:06.359 --> 00:23:07.880 through it? No, you come off and let someone 00:23:07.880 --> 00:23:10.539 else who's got a full tank run on the ground. 00:23:11.480 --> 00:23:13.160 Oh, you've got the ball in the back line. Okay, 00:23:13.240 --> 00:23:15.470 take it out. toward the boundary, because we 00:23:15.470 --> 00:23:17.029 don't want to give it to them in the easiest 00:23:17.029 --> 00:23:20.329 place where they can take a shot. If you're attacking, 00:23:20.450 --> 00:23:22.410 we'll put it in the middle, because then you 00:23:22.410 --> 00:23:27.789 can have a good spot to shoot from. Teaching 00:23:27.789 --> 00:23:32.630 to think is such a big part of footy. And they 00:23:32.630 --> 00:23:34.970 were trying to teach us how to think the coach's 00:23:34.970 --> 00:23:38.869 thoughts after him. As the coach thinks it, we're 00:23:38.869 --> 00:23:42.339 meant to think in line with that. And that's 00:23:42.339 --> 00:23:47.240 what Christians do as well. As we prayerfully 00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:50.000 study the scriptures and seek to put them into 00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:54.599 practice, we work out what God's will is. We 00:23:54.599 --> 00:23:58.859 think God's thoughts after him and we discover 00:23:58.859 --> 00:24:03.640 what pleases him. We become more like Jesus and 00:24:03.640 --> 00:24:06.900 we form communities that become a little entree, 00:24:07.240 --> 00:24:12.039 a little taster of what heaven is like. That's 00:24:12.039 --> 00:24:14.779 why it's so important that we be a church that's 00:24:14.779 --> 00:24:18.279 deep in God's Word, both in our preaching and 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:20.279 in growth groups and one -to -ones and a whole 00:24:20.279 --> 00:24:26.380 range of things. But it's not just that we'd 00:24:26.380 --> 00:24:31.980 know and do God's will, it's that we'd joyfully 00:24:31.980 --> 00:24:36.380 do it from the heart. Sometimes Laura says to 00:24:36.380 --> 00:24:39.930 me, can you take the bins out? There are three 00:24:39.930 --> 00:24:44.789 responses I can give. I can please myself and 00:24:44.789 --> 00:24:48.490 say, no, I'm not going to do it. I can please 00:24:48.490 --> 00:24:51.970 her begrudgingly. All right, I'll take the bins 00:24:51.970 --> 00:24:57.230 out. Or I can please her gladly. Yes, my love, 00:24:57.369 --> 00:25:02.230 it'd be my pleasure to take the bins out. I reckon 00:25:02.230 --> 00:25:03.930 Christians have the same struggle when we're 00:25:03.930 --> 00:25:08.460 pleasing God, don't we? Let me give you an example 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:11.980 of what it might look like. Sometimes we take 00:25:11.980 --> 00:25:14.980 our kids to the lagoon for a swim and a play, 00:25:15.440 --> 00:25:18.240 and I tell you what, that is a hard place for 00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:21.440 a testosterone -fuelled male to do God's will. 00:25:23.799 --> 00:25:26.640 There are often many stunning women in bikinis 00:25:26.640 --> 00:25:36.119 everywhere. What should I do? Not go to the lagoon? 00:25:36.140 --> 00:25:40.200 Well, that is a good option. Doesn't always work 00:25:40.200 --> 00:25:42.700 though. Sometimes you're just in situations where 00:25:42.700 --> 00:25:47.920 you're stuck there. I could go and just give 00:25:47.920 --> 00:25:51.720 in to my lusts, but that wouldn't be very pleasing 00:25:51.720 --> 00:25:58.859 to God. Or loving to my wife. I could not look 00:25:58.859 --> 00:26:04.619 begrudgingly. There's connoisseur. She's so beautiful. 00:26:04.619 --> 00:26:07.519 I mean she's just come off the boat from Brazil 00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:12.180 and No, no, don't look don't look it's not no 00:26:12.180 --> 00:26:17.339 don't look naughty Yeah, that just leads to resentment 00:26:17.339 --> 00:26:24.240 doesn't it You know what I can do I can pray 00:26:24.240 --> 00:26:30.259 Good Heavenly Father all these women here are 00:26:30.259 --> 00:26:35.809 beautiful Thank you for making beautiful women 00:26:35.809 --> 00:26:37.990 like that. That's because you're a good God. 00:26:37.990 --> 00:26:45.029 You make beautiful things. But I trust you. You 00:26:45.029 --> 00:26:48.730 say these aren't for me. And you made my beautiful 00:26:48.730 --> 00:26:55.349 wife. Help me to do your will. To joyfully not 00:26:55.349 --> 00:26:59.369 look at them. To trust you when you say that's 00:26:59.369 --> 00:27:04.970 not for me. Can you see how different that is? 00:27:05.970 --> 00:27:08.990 It's so much better, because then it's a delight 00:27:08.990 --> 00:27:14.950 to do God's will. It's not drudgery. Are there 00:27:14.950 --> 00:27:18.789 scenarios in your life where you need to pray 00:27:18.789 --> 00:27:25.609 like that? Father, help me to see how good your 00:27:25.609 --> 00:27:32.390 will is. Well, let's draw some threads together. 00:27:33.040 --> 00:27:36.980 We started by asking, how can God's will be better 00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:41.819 than my will? I hope today you've seen that it 00:27:41.819 --> 00:27:48.920 is. That His will is heavenly. And when we see 00:27:48.920 --> 00:27:52.759 that and believe it, we become people who pray 00:27:52.759 --> 00:27:56.099 that it would be done and seek to do it. Here's 00:27:56.099 --> 00:28:00.380 our big thing that we saw today. God's will being 00:28:00.380 --> 00:28:05.750 done is heaven. Literally, that's heaven. God's 00:28:05.750 --> 00:28:08.369 will being done is heaven. So pray it be done 00:28:08.369 --> 00:28:12.670 on earth. And the three aspects that we saw today, 00:28:12.990 --> 00:28:17.109 God's will is heavenly. Pray that we trust God's 00:28:17.109 --> 00:28:20.650 will. When life events throw things at you, pray 00:28:20.650 --> 00:28:22.349 that you trust that God's working it out. He 00:28:22.349 --> 00:28:24.589 hasn't fallen asleep at the wheel. He's still 00:28:24.589 --> 00:28:29.269 driving the bus. He's doing a great job. But 00:28:29.269 --> 00:28:31.769 also get to know God's will. Get to know what 00:28:31.769 --> 00:28:35.400 He wants you to do. pray that you'd do God's 00:28:35.400 --> 00:28:39.480 will. Now, what's all this mean for us? Well, 00:28:39.759 --> 00:28:41.839 if you're here today and you're not yet a Christian, 00:28:42.079 --> 00:28:44.259 if you're like Jack from the very beginning, 00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:49.279 I want to challenge you. Is it possible that 00:28:49.279 --> 00:28:55.319 Christianity is not what you thought? The Christianity 00:28:55.319 --> 00:28:58.420 of Bible is so different to what most people 00:28:58.420 --> 00:29:02.380 in the public think. You don't do God's will. 00:29:02.670 --> 00:29:07.109 to enter heaven. It's not a thing you earn. It's 00:29:07.109 --> 00:29:09.390 not some ladder that you climb up to get into 00:29:09.390 --> 00:29:14.369 God's good books. No, Jesus has already done 00:29:14.369 --> 00:29:17.990 it all for you. Jesus perfectly did God's will 00:29:17.990 --> 00:29:23.529 his whole life to save you. Christians do God's 00:29:23.529 --> 00:29:28.109 will as worship. As a response to God's love, 00:29:28.650 --> 00:29:31.529 and it's such a good will, it's surprisingly 00:29:31.529 --> 00:29:36.869 liberating. If you're sceptical of God's will 00:29:36.869 --> 00:29:39.150 being good, do this next. This is what I'd encourage 00:29:39.150 --> 00:29:42.549 you to do. Ask God to show you the beauty of 00:29:42.549 --> 00:29:44.769 His will. Sit down just for five minutes, pray 00:29:44.769 --> 00:29:47.049 to Him. God, I don't even know if you're there, 00:29:47.089 --> 00:29:49.829 but please, if you are, show me how beautiful 00:29:49.829 --> 00:29:53.839 your will is. And then I'd encourage you, go 00:29:53.839 --> 00:29:58.180 look at Jesus in the Gospels. See the beauty 00:29:58.180 --> 00:30:00.759 that exists in what he teaches and in what he 00:30:00.759 --> 00:30:04.619 does. And finally, if you're really hardcore, 00:30:04.839 --> 00:30:08.059 really genuine and curious, hang out with some 00:30:08.059 --> 00:30:12.180 real Christians who love doing what God wants. 00:30:13.920 --> 00:30:15.279 Just watch them. They're not going to get it 00:30:15.279 --> 00:30:17.480 right all the time. You know, don't be too harsh. 00:30:18.380 --> 00:30:21.160 But watch them, see if they have a little slice 00:30:21.160 --> 00:30:25.299 of heaven in the way they live. Watch the joy, 00:30:25.380 --> 00:30:28.359 the love, the goodness that exists in the way 00:30:28.359 --> 00:30:31.799 they live and then ask yourself, am I better 00:30:31.799 --> 00:30:38.480 off as I am? Am I better off doing life my own 00:30:38.480 --> 00:30:44.759 way or God's way? But if you're a Christian, 00:30:44.779 --> 00:30:49.019 if you're like Jill from the start, Well, I hope 00:30:49.019 --> 00:30:51.619 you've seen today all of us should pray your 00:30:51.619 --> 00:30:57.099 will be done But if I say you should do you know 00:30:57.099 --> 00:31:00.740 what happens when people tell me should It's 00:31:00.740 --> 00:31:03.680 another thing to do. I don't want to do it then 00:31:03.680 --> 00:31:08.519 or I just resent having to do What stops that 00:31:08.519 --> 00:31:11.980 if I say, you know pray your will be done what 00:31:11.980 --> 00:31:17.299 will make it a joy for you in a delight See Jesus 00:31:17.299 --> 00:31:21.099 in Gethsemane. Do you remember the Garden of 00:31:21.099 --> 00:31:26.119 Gethsemane? Jesus heading to the cross. He's 00:31:26.119 --> 00:31:29.019 sweating drops of blood. It's intense. He knows 00:31:29.019 --> 00:31:32.900 how awful it is to go to the cross. And yet he 00:31:32.900 --> 00:31:39.819 could pray, not my will, but yours be done. When 00:31:39.819 --> 00:31:41.880 you look at that, here's two things you meant 00:31:41.880 --> 00:31:47.880 to see. There's no pressure or fear now for us. 00:31:49.819 --> 00:31:55.480 Jesus did God's will for us. For all the times 00:31:55.480 --> 00:31:58.460 we failed to do God's will, it has been taken 00:31:58.460 --> 00:32:02.619 care of. Jesus died in our place. He took that 00:32:02.619 --> 00:32:07.519 punishment. He obeyed his father and was able 00:32:07.519 --> 00:32:11.559 to rescue us from our sins. It's a bit like this. 00:32:12.089 --> 00:32:16.509 You know when there's a big bush fire? It's destructive, 00:32:16.549 --> 00:32:23.450 isn't it? Jesus is like a back burn. That's how 00:32:23.450 --> 00:32:25.230 you protect your home from a forest fire, isn't 00:32:25.230 --> 00:32:28.569 it? You back burn and you burn it off already 00:32:28.569 --> 00:32:31.710 and so you're fine, you're safe. If you go stand 00:32:31.710 --> 00:32:34.369 in a burnt -off area, the fire can't touch you, 00:32:34.490 --> 00:32:37.769 can it? Well, that's what's happened to every 00:32:37.769 --> 00:32:41.549 Christian. Jesus is like a backburn. The cross 00:32:41.549 --> 00:32:44.930 is like a backburn. God's punishment for not 00:32:44.930 --> 00:32:47.430 doing his will has been poured out onto Jesus 00:32:47.430 --> 00:32:52.089 so that you can stand in safety. You are secure. 00:32:52.190 --> 00:32:55.009 You are safe in him. You are fully forgiven. 00:32:55.309 --> 00:32:58.230 There is no punishment left that God can dish 00:32:58.230 --> 00:33:04.150 out to you if you trust Jesus. But then also, 00:33:04.289 --> 00:33:06.730 look at Gethsemane and see the beauty of doing 00:33:06.730 --> 00:33:11.819 God's will. See that God wants better things 00:33:11.819 --> 00:33:16.579 than what I want. That his will was good, pleasing 00:33:16.579 --> 00:33:20.579 and perfect. I mean Gethsemane proves it. Because 00:33:20.579 --> 00:33:23.640 his will led to the salvation of many and the 00:33:23.640 --> 00:33:29.859 glorification of his son. See the joy in doing 00:33:29.859 --> 00:33:35.160 God's will. And that mindset makes praying your 00:33:35.160 --> 00:33:42.529 will be done. Not drudgery, but delight. If we 00:33:42.529 --> 00:33:46.650 want to see heaven on earth, even just a shadow 00:33:46.650 --> 00:33:51.329 of heaven on earth, we need to take a gospel 00:33:51.329 --> 00:33:54.430 -centred approach. We need to, from our love 00:33:54.430 --> 00:34:01.349 of Jesus, pray your will be done. Are you praying 00:34:01.349 --> 00:34:08.079 your will be done with joy? Let's pray now. Heavenly 00:34:08.079 --> 00:34:11.760 Father, we want to thank you so much that your 00:34:11.760 --> 00:34:14.260 will is good, pleasing and perfect, that your 00:34:14.260 --> 00:34:17.780 will is heavenly. We ask that you would help 00:34:17.780 --> 00:34:21.320 us to be a church that prays your will be done 00:34:21.320 --> 00:34:27.139 and delights in doing your will. And we pray 00:34:27.139 --> 00:34:31.420 that you would help us to do that from a gospel 00:34:31.420 --> 00:34:35.400 -centred place, that we do it in response to 00:34:35.400 --> 00:34:40.719 your mercy. Your grace in forgiving us for all 00:34:40.719 --> 00:34:45.239 the times we fail to do Your will. Help us with 00:34:45.239 --> 00:34:50.800 these things, Father. Your will be done. We ask 00:34:50.800 --> 00:34:53.159 this in Jesus' Name. Amen.