The Will of God
What is the will of God? This question has been asked by Christians ever since the early days of Christianity’s formation. To understand what the will of God is we must first understand and define the different configurations within God's will. Within the Will of God there are three subcategories. They are as follows; God’s Intentional Will, God’s Permissive Will, and God’s Ultimate Will.
God’s Intentional Will can be best described as the desires of God’s heart for us. This would be His ideal plan for us. That is the flowing out of His goodness such as none would be lost as found in Matthew 18:14. However, God’s Intentional Will for His desire that all to be saved does not mean that allow will be saved.
The fact that some will be lost and not saved can be seen in God’s Permissive Will. This is what God will accept given our choices and decisions that we make within the limitations of our free will. Our choices we make either good or bad in circumstances are allowed by God in His Permissive Will. God allows by His Sovereignty that some will be lost and not all will be saved, 1 Cor 1:18.
Even though God allows us to make choices for the good or the bad within the limitations of our free will, our choices do not stop God’s Sovereignty or His Ultimate Will. By this means this is how God achieves His end all goal of His will. As stated in Romans 8:28 God works all things together for the good of those He has called, who love Him. This means that in the end God ultimately will accomplish His Will despite man’s sinful nature and our bound free will.
When we understand the three different will’s of God we can understand how those different will’s affect us and play out for God’s eminent plan to glorify Him. The question of, What is the Will of God?, becomes less complicated.
God’s Intentional Will can be best described as the desires of God’s heart for us. This would be His ideal plan for us. That is the flowing out of His goodness such as none would be lost as found in Matthew 18:14. However, God’s Intentional Will for His desire that all to be saved does not mean that allow will be saved.
The fact that some will be lost and not saved can be seen in God’s Permissive Will. This is what God will accept given our choices and decisions that we make within the limitations of our free will. Our choices we make either good or bad in circumstances are allowed by God in His Permissive Will. God allows by His Sovereignty that some will be lost and not all will be saved, 1 Cor 1:18.
Even though God allows us to make choices for the good or the bad within the limitations of our free will, our choices do not stop God’s Sovereignty or His Ultimate Will. By this means this is how God achieves His end all goal of His will. As stated in Romans 8:28 God works all things together for the good of those He has called, who love Him. This means that in the end God ultimately will accomplish His Will despite man’s sinful nature and our bound free will.
When we understand the three different will’s of God we can understand how those different will’s affect us and play out for God’s eminent plan to glorify Him. The question of, What is the Will of God?, becomes less complicated.
