Glory to the Father (3)

In my previous post, I wrote that answering our prayers enables Jesus to bring glory to His Father. A wonderful thought and the desire of His heart.

I furthermore reasoned that it would be wonderful for all the sons and daughters of God (us) to bring glory to our heavenly Father. How? By doing His will on earth as it is in heaven.

Now Jesus knew this to be true as well. He told His disciples (John 15:8):

👉When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

We are asked to produce MUCH fruit, not just a little. What does it mean to produce fruit? In my humble opinion, it means that godly character is visible in our lives, in the things we do or say (read Galatians 5:22-25). People will see God through us, just as they saw the Father through Jesus when He walked the earth.

We can do many things, good works even, but only if inspired by Jesus will it count for eternity. He said: Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me (John 15:4).

He even goes on (verse 5) to say that apart from Him we can do nothing! Let me put it this way, trying to be fruitful outside of Him, is useless and a waste of time. It does not bring glory to the Father. But being true disciples does!

Glory to the Father (2)

'Jesus wants to bring glory to the Father', I wrote in my previous post. How do we know this? Let's take a look at His words as written down in John 14:12-14,

I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.

You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

If we ask for anything in the name of Jesus, He will do it. Why? 👉Because that way He can bring glory to the Father. Think about that, answering our prayers enables Jesus to bring glory to His Father.

Some translations say that the Father can be glorified in the Son. I find that a fascinating thought. It must be Jesus' joy to answer our prayers, doing what the Father wants Him to do! Again, you might wonder why. The Bible says it is God's desire that His will is being done on earth, as it is being done in heaven. No difference, just the same.

Oh my goodness, Jesus did the will of the Father, for sure. But what if we would do the will of the Father here on earth? We, as His sons and daughters, would also bring glory to our heavenly Father. What a joy that will be, for all of us 😁

His will is His Word (the Bible). Let me give you His will, the size of a refrigerator magnet:

Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

The Will of God

The instruction is general, the responsibility is personal

A few weeks ago we traveled to North Eastern Germany where we were invited to give a series of workshops at a conference. My husband and me enjoy teaching as a team and during that weekend we spoke on the will of God, the plan of God, the voice of God and the power of God in our lives. I thought it would be fun to share some of the nuggets on this weblog, in a nut shell of course :) So, let's start with the will of God for our lives.

The will of God is a general instruction for all believers. There is really no such thing as the will of God for our individual life; that would be called the plan of God. Often, we confuse the will of God with the plan of God. The will of God = the Word of God = the Law of God. His will is His system, or His testament for the believers. Jesus states in Matthew 12:50, Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven, is my brother and sister and mother. His will is something we do, not something God will do for us. We proclaim it in our prayers: Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10). God desires His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven! He tells us to proclaim that. It is our role/assignment to execute His will (His testament) here on earth. The instruction is therefore general, but the responsibility is personal. 

It takes a change of mind to execute His will, instead of waiting for it to happen. Romans 12:2 says, Do not conform any longer 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.

So, what is God's will for you and me, for us all? Scripture teaches us a few basics:

• Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).Well, that would give us enough work for the rest of our lives, right?
• It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality... (1 Thessalonians 4:3). No theology needed to explain that one, right?
• For my Father's will is that everyone who look to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life...(John 6:40). Here we see God's will through Jesus, transferred to us.

Is everything that happens on earth God's will? NO! Even in a few scriptures as mentioned above, we see what God's will is on earth, but often we see the opposite happening. This is however not a reason for despair, but a call to action. There is work to do for the believers.

Let's stop asking for His will, but start doing His will!