How do we understand what the will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:17)?

It will follow therefore that the knowledge of God's mind in any difficulties will never be wanting if; like John, we are living in the habitual enjoyment of the Lord's presence and love, if we know what it is, amid all the confusion and darkness of this evil day, and with the power of Satan present in the midst of the Lord's people, to repose upon that unwearied heart - a heart that remains ever the same, spite of the evil and declension within and around. Absorbed in His love we shall hear His faintest whisper, and His path will be plain before our face. On the other hand, if we are unspiritual or worldly, acting from our own desires or predilections, discernment of the Lord's way, what He is doing, will be impossible. It is quite true that in His tender mercy He may drive us, even when in such a state, by circumstances, control us with the bit and bridle, but that is a far different thing from discerning what "He Himself doeth." In the former case we shall be walking in communion with Himself; in the latter sorrows and chastenings, if not stumblings and falls, may be His chosen instrumentalities to instruct us in the way we should go.

It will follow therefore that the knowledge of God's mind in any difficulties will never be wanting if; like John, we are living in the habitual enjoyment of the Lord's presence and love, if we know what it is, amid all the confusion and darkness of this evil day, and with the power of Satan present in the midst of the Lord's people, to repose upon that unwearied heart - a heart that remains ever the same, spite of the evil and declension within and around. Absorbed in His love we shall hear His faintest whisper, and His path will be plain before our face. On the other hand, if we are unspiritual or worldly, acting from our own desires or predilections, discernment of the Lord's way, what He is doing, will be impossible. It is quite true that in His tender mercy He may drive us, even when in such a state, by circumstances, control us with the bit and bridle, but that is a far different thing from discerning what "He Himself doeth." In the former case we shall be walking in communion with Himself; in the latter sorrows and chastenings, if not stumblings and falls, may be His chosen instrumentalities to instruct us in the way we should go.

Note how simply the true wisdom is stated in Ephesians 5, as we see it in Proverbs, "Be not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." Simple obedience and, by singleness of eye, intelligence of what the Lord's will is, is in practice divine wisdom; as to the way of having it, compare Romans 12:1-2.

The believer's walk then is to be with sober care and consideration, not as that of ungodly fools (v.15). God's love and God's light have been powerful incentives for our walk, now we are also to use God-given wisdom in walking circumspectly. Being wise is a true characteristic of a believer. "Redeeming the time" (v.16) is fully and rightly using the opportunities that each occasion may offer. Such care and concern is of great importance because the days are evil. For though a believer is not a fool, yet he may be unwise and not use his time to advantage. Let him not be this way, but understand what the will of the Lord is for him (v.17). To understand is not simply to know, but to rightly perceive what he knows. The will of the Lord is always spiritually profitable.

Verse 18 puts in sharp contrast the intoxication with things physically pleasurable and the pure, precious joy of being filled with the Holy Spirit. There are many things with which one may become intoxicated -- the love of money, prominence, self-importance (even in a religious way), sports, excitement, etc. These things will tend to take away the sobriety of ruling our own spirits (Prov.25:28). But one who is filled with the Holy Spirit has his own spirit in subjection (1 Cor.14:32). Every true believer is always indwelt by the Spirit, but to be filled with the Spirit is to allow Him full place in every department of our lives. Let no one ever dare to claim this to be true of him, but rather let it be true. In the measure in which Christ is really our Object, such will be the measure of the filling of the Spirit at any time.

27 Before anything can be done, if we have not this certainty, before we enter upon any particular service, we should seek to get it, judging our own hearts as to what may be hindering. Suppose I set about doing a thing, and meet with difficulties, I shall begin to be uncertain as to whether it is God's mind or not; and hence, there will be feebleness and discouragement. But on the other hand, if acting in the intelligence of God's mind in communion, I shall be "more than a conqueror," whatever may meet me by the way; Rom. 8:37. And note here: not only does the power of faith, in the path of faith, remove mountains; but the Lord deals morally, and will not let me find out His way, unless there be in me the spirit of obedience. What would it avail - unless indeed God should provide for His own dishonour? "If any man will do [wills to do] his will," says our Lord, "he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself," John 7:17. This is precisely the obedience of faith. The heart must be in the condition of obedience, as Christ's was, "Lo, I come," etc. The apostle speaks to the Colossians of being "filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding," Col. 1:9. Here it is quickness of understanding in the fear of the Lord, the condition of a man's own soul, though his spirit of mind will be necessarily shewn in outward acts, when that will is set before him; as Paul goes on to say, "that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful unto every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God."

Before anything can be done, if we have not this certainty, before we enter upon any particular service, we should seek to get it, judging our own hearts as to what may be hindering. Suppose I set about doing a thing, and meet with difficulties, I shall begin to be uncertain as to whether it is God's mind or not, and hence there will be feebleness and discouragement. But, on the other hand, if acting in the intelligence of God's mind in communion, I shall be "more than conqueror," whatever may meet me by the way. (Rom. 8:37.) And note here, not only does the power of faith, in the path of faith, remove mountains; but the Lord deals morally, and will not let me find out His way, unless there be in me the spirit of obedience. What would it avail? unless indeed God should provide for His own dishonour! "If any man will do [wills to do] his will," says our Lord, "he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." (John 7:17.) This is precisely the obedience of faith. The heart must be in the condition of obedience, as Christ's was, "Lo, I come," etc. The apostle speaks to the Colossians of being "filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding." (Col. 1:9.) Here it is quickness of understanding in the fear of the Lord, the condition of a man's own soul, though his spirit of mind will be necessarily shown in outward acts, when that will is set before him; as Paul goes on to say, "that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God."

There is no place where the selfishness of our nature oftener betrays itself than in the way we look at scripture. We do not ourselves always know how our thoughts of the word of God tell the tale of our state in the sight of God. I do not speak merely of such extreme cases as that of the avowed unbeliever — though he too shows what his condition is — as being not merely bad but unable to appreciate what is good, not only not obedient in heart but rejecting and rebelling against the only light whereby God Himself brings a man out of darkness to the knowledge of Himself. It is plain, therefore, that, rejecting the word, he as good as says to God that he desires not the knowledge of His ways. But then the children of God themselves let us see what their state of mind is, not only by their want of relish for the word, or their want of appetite for every means that will give their souls an increasing enjoyment of the Lord, but, further, by the way in which they take it up, by their understanding or rather misunderstanding of it. For this is the secret of true intelligence: people do not understand the word by brighter minds than others, but by a more obedient heart. It is the single-eyed desire to do the will of God which insures intelligence of His word. And the Spirit of God it is that produces both the one and the other. Assuredly it is the will that darkens the understanding; and, where the Spirit of God gives a soul to please the Lord, there the obstruction in the way of His word disappears. When by grace we want to do His will, the light of God is assuredly not withheld: it is the will when not judged which produces darkness for us.

Every army is indebted to its intelligence corps. The knowledge of the size of the enemy army and it's ability to wage war is invaluable. Without such knowledge the outcome of a battle or campaign could be doubtful. The men of Issachar in David's army had understanding of the times. They knew what they had to do to make David the undisputed king of Israel. Saul's sun was setting while David's was in the ascendancy. Saul's army was crumbling. David's army was marshalling for victory. Their intelligence governed their motives and actions. We cannot place too high a value on correct understanding. There is no excuse for a Christian's ignorance in relation to the interests of Christ. Paul continually exhorted believers in Christ to be intelligent and not ignorant (Rom. 1:13; Rom. 11:25; 1 Cor. 10:1; 1 Cor. 12:1; 2 Cor. 1:8; 1 Thess. 4:13). Paul prayed that the believers at Colosse might have "spiritual understanding" (Col. 1:9). Obviously this kind of understanding is much more to be desired by a Christian than any other kind of understanding. Solomon was commended by God when he asked for an understanding heart to rule God's people, Israel (1 Kings 3:5-13). What would we ask for if God promised to give it to us? Take time to answer. It isn't as easy as it may appear to be. The Scriptures are an immense source of spiritual understanding. If we want the intelligence that is found in the Scriptures of Truth we need first of all to read them. That seems to be obvious. Secondly, we need the Lord to show us what the Scriptures mean (Luke 24:27, 45; 2 Tim. 2:7). Thirdly, prayer for help in understanding what we read is invaluable for spiritual progress. An important feature of understanding is found in Ephesians 5:17, "understanding what the will of the Lord is". Once we know that for our lives and obey it we are well on the way to upholding the interests of our Lord Jesus Christ.

At the risk of being thought tedious, it seems desirable to say a little more about the will of God, and its bearing upon our lives. Some Christians who appear to be honest and sincere, nevertheless ask in bewildered tones how the will of God may be known, for they find it so difficult to ascertain it. None of us need expect God to speak to us in the same way as He spoke to Elijah. Such words as, "Hide thyself by the brook Cherith"; "Get thee to Zarephath"; and "show thyself to Ahab" could not possibly be misunderstood. God speaks to us now in the written Word. We are privileged to hold in our hands the complete revelation of God; moreover we have dwelling within us the Holy Spirit, who delights to guide willing minds into all truth. So full and complete are the Scriptures that there is something there to suit every circumstance in which any saint may be found at any time. But we must be at home in the book of God, or obviously we shall be at a serious disadvantage in the hour of need. The blessed Lord Jesus, when tempted by the Devil, knew exactly where to put His finger upon the three passages in the book of Deuteronomy that suited His purpose. But in seeking guidance from God through the Scriptures we need not look for such injunctions as "Thou shalt not go to London on Monday." or "Thou shalt not smoke," or "Thou shalt not join a Co-operative Society." God does not deal with us as though we were infants but rather as intelligent persons, standing before Him in the dignity of sonship, and endued with the Holy Spirit. In many matters there are indeed plain commandments, and the Lord Jesus says, "He that has My commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves Me" (John 14:21); but much more frequently we learn the mind of God from the great principles of truth which we have pondered, and stored up in our affections. Every department of Scripture truth — typical, historical, prophetical — contains important principles which are of immense value to the soul that desires to be altogether for God's pleasure in an evil world. Hence our Lord's words in John 14:23. "If a man love Me, he will keep My word". This goes far beyond keeping His commandments. A simple illustration may help here: — a child who truly loves his parents, and delights in their company, will know instinctively what will please them without being told in specific terms. In like manner, if we are walking humbly with God, with flesh judged, and with one simple desire, to know His will and to do it, the whole path will be clear. When our Lord declared His intention of going into Judea when Lazarus died, the disciples expressed their surprise, because they knew that there was conspiracy there against Him; but He replied, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbles not, because he sees the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbles, because there is no light in him" (John 11:9-10). Having but one desire before Him — to do the Father's will, he did nothing for two days after He heard of the sickness of His friend; but having learned the Father's will, He went forward unhesitatingly. Practically, He was walking in broad day-light, and thus every step was clear. So will it be with us if we "walk as He walked" (1 John 2:6).

It may be asked, How can I ascertain the will of God? First of all there must in such a case be the willing mind. This the Lord Himself declared — "If any one wills to do his will he shall know of the teaching whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself" (John 6:17). Coming to the scriptures with the prayer, already quoted, of the psalmist, "Teach me to do thy will, O God (Ps. 143:10), the docile spirit is instructed, so that he may stand perfect and fully assured in all that will (Col. 4:12). The apostle Paul desired on behalf of the saints at Colosse that they might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding (Col. 1:9). There is first the hearing and then the doing. In the Lord's words, "My mother and my brethren are those which hear the word of God, and do it" (Luke 8:21).