How to Discern the Will of God

We know marriage is sanctioned by God to reflect the gospel, but we have to discern who that specific spouse should be. We know we should work hard and not be lazy, but we don’t always know which job God wants us to take or which degree we should pursue. We’re responsible for discoving that stuff. We must do the work of making sound choices.

Many Christians spend inordinate amounts of time and energy trying to find out God’s concealed will while ignoring so much of his revealed will. Doesn’t it make sense that he would want us to give first priority and attention to the stuff he has revealed in the pages of Scripture? Why should he tell us where we should go to college or whom we’re supposed to marry if we’re not at all interested in making disciples or living holy lives? The believers in Acts 1:12-26 demonstrated a confidence in and allegiance to the Scriptures that ultimately made finding even his concealed will relatively simple. And it will work that way for us as well. Consider these principles.

The church submitted their lives, circumstances, and direction to God’s Word. Peter gathers the small band of 120 believers and begins by telling them, “It was necessary that the Scripture be fulfilled” (v. 16). The Scriptures are totally trustworthy. The church operated on the resolve that the Scriptures would absolutely prove true.

Then Peter references Scripture as that which “the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David foretold about Judas” (v. 16). This statement highlights the inspiration of Scripture. God spoke it through a human author (cf. 2 Tim 3:16-17; 2 Pet 1:20-21).

You, like the first believers, can and should trust the Scriptures for directing your life! The Bible is objective while our senses of discernment and judgment can be subjective. That’s why the Scriptures must be our guide.

Luke adds a parenthesis for the reader concerning the fate of Judas (vv. 18-19)—the horrific nature of Judas’s death. Matthew reports the type of death (Matt 27:5): suicide. Combining the data leads to the conclusion that he hanged himself and the rope broke, allowing his body to fall onto rocks that disemboweled him. The disciples were likely confused and shocked about the fate of Judas in the unfolding plan of God, so Peter cites Psalms 69:25 and 109:8 to help them make sense of it. These psalms have in view wicked and treasonous men who are enemies of God’s king. Peter took the psalmist’s judgment and applied it to Judas, who was wicked and treasonous toward God’s ultimate King. Longman and Garland comment,

We need not insist that the early Christians believed that the primary reference of these two psalms was to Judas, as if no one could have understood them prior to the betrayal. What they seem to be saying, however, is that just as the psalmist’s portrayals of “The Servant of the Lord and the Righteous Sufferer” can on the basis of the Semitic concept of corporate solidarity be applied to God’s Messiah, Jesus, the Servant and Righteous Sufferer, so the retribution spoken of as coming upon false companions and wicked men in general is especially applicable to Judas, who above all other men was false. So Peter quotes Psalm 69:25 in a Christian context and applies it to Judas’s defection. In itself, of course, this verse gives no justification for replacing Judas—in fact, it even opposes it. Therefore Peter goes on to cite Psalm 109:8 on the Jewish exegetical principle of analogous subject in order to defend the legitimacy of replacing a member of the apostolic band. (Luke–Acts, 728)

For Peter and the other disciples, God’s Word, responsibly applied, provided the proper interpretation and perspective on confusing and shocking events.

Like the disciples, we too at times will struggle to comprehend the plan and sovereignty of God in our world and in our lives. We will ponder the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous. And we will wrestle with the setbacks of life and with affirming the sovereignty of God. Yet, like Peter, we should look to the Scriptures to make sense of our world and our lives. In the Scriptures we will continually rediscover perspective, truth, instruction, and the beauty of our Savior.

Jesus previously had appointed twelve apostles, corresponding to the leaders of the tribes of Israel. For Peter, the apostolic number of twelve had to be restored because the true Israel needed to be complete. Israel was now entering a new era in redemptive history. Longman and Garland are helpful again here:

The twelvefold witness was required if early Jewish Christianity was to represent itself to the Jewish nation as the culmination of Israel’s hope and the true people of Israel’s Messiah. The “remnant theology” of Late Judaism made it mandatory that any group that presented itself as “the righteous remnant” of the nation, and had the responsibility of calling the nation to repentance and permeating it for God’s glory, must represent itself as the true Israel, not only in its proclamation, but also in its symbolism. (Luke–Acts, 728)

God wants us to give first priority and attention to what he has revealed. He had made clear through his words that there were to be twelve apostles (Matt 19:28; Luke 22:30; Rev 21:10,12,14), and the apostles made choices and took action with that directive in mind. God has clarified many things for us in his Word. In the Bible he has instructed us to live holy lives, to participate in and contribute to the life of the church, and to love and serve our spouses and our families. These are clear instructions, and we should do what the Bible says.

God’s concealed will should be discerned on the basis of his revealed will. God’s words and our place in his unfolding mission should shape our decisions regarding what local churches we join, what homes we purchase, whom we marry, and the kinds of risks we take. Sometimes we may even discover that the question we are seeking to answer isn’t even the right question! So consider these steps in discerning God’s concealed will.

Peter supplied qualifications from God’s Word for the replacement apostle (Acts 1:21-22). The eleven apostles then did their homework on potential candidates and put forward only two who met these qualifications: Joseph and Matthias (v. 23). Likewise, in discerning God’s will on specifics, we should be doing our homework, gathering information in order to narrow our options.

The apostles prayed to the Lord regarding his choice of either Joseph or Matthias. Likewise, after we’ve done our homework, we should pray to the Lord for wisdom about which choice is best. While God has given us minds and the power of reason, his ways and methods are inscrutable. In other words, we should be reminded that the Lord doesn’t see things the way we always see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Sam 16:7). Seek him in prayer.

After determining qualifications and praying, “they cast lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias” (v. 26). The practice of casting lots was common within Israel. For instance, God instructed the Israelites to divide land based on casting lots (Num 26:55; 33:54; 34:13; 36:2). This might seem odd at first, but the book of Proverbs says, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Prov 16:33). On this occasion the lot fell to Matthias, and the disciples understood this to be Matthias’s appointment by Christ himself. This, however, is the last scriptural case of casting lots to make a decision. Shortly after the appointment of Matthias, the Holy Spirit came to indwell God’s people. He is the Counselor who helps us make wise decisions.

When we as Christians understand our role in the unfolding drama of redemption, when we have a grasp on God’s revealed will, when we’ve gathered the necessary information in order to narrow our options, when have prayed to the Lord, we should then simply trust God, make a decision, and go with it.

The Father knows if we truly desire to please him with a decision, and if things don’t work out, that doesn’t change his love for us! The cross has already demonstrated his loyal love (Rom 5:8). And he has given us the Holy Spirit to assure his sons and daughters of his love (Rom 8:9-17). Rest in this good news when faced with a stressful decision. Sometimes my kids try to please me with some honorable deed. In so doing they occasionally make an unwise decision, but that doesn’t cancel out my love for them. I’m pleased by their desire to honor me.

If you’re a perfectionist, you will struggle with making decisions. But don’t let anxiety rule you. Learn to trust in the Father’s love and learn to trust the Father’s sovereignty. Do your homework, pray, seek guidance in Christian community, let the mission of God guide your decisions, and then act. Do it for the glory of your Father, through Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit.