Understanding God’s Will

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:9-10)
Prophet Amos asked the children of Israel whether two people can walk together without both of them agreeing on the direction for their walk (Amos 3:3). An important requirement for our walk with God is to understand Him; His direction, His purpose and His plan for us. Apostle Paul in the letter he wrote to the Colossian church, which he had not yet visited, also underscored this point when he mentioned how they have been praying for the Colossian church to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will that they may walk worthy of Him and fully please Him (Col. 1:9-10). For us to please God and walk with Him, we have to understand His will.

 God is Holy and expects us to be holy. Without holiness, the Scripture says, we cannot see God (Hebrews 12:14). Knowing that holiness will be difficult for us to attain He gave us His Son Jesus to die for us that whoever believes in Him will receive salvation (John 3:16). A starting point for this belief is knowledge of God and He that He sent, Jesus Christ. A challenge could have been how we know God, His will and purpose since He is a Spirit? God, through the Holy Spirit, inspired people, who put forth His will and requirement of us in the Holy Scriptures. The 6^th to 8th Articles of Religion, which we are considering today, state clearly that all the knowledge we require of God is completely defined in the books of the Scriptures (Old and New Testament).

 The first sentence of Article 6 encapsulates the essential fact that the ‘Holy Scripture contains all things necessary for salvation. ’Many are trying today to find truth outside the Scriptures, make various analyses of it and in the process point out what they see as contradictions. They remain contradictions to the extent their knowledge can carry them. But the earlier we started facing the reality of our knowledge being limited and began to look up the word of God for truth the better for humanity. The scriptures contain all things necessary for salvation. This does not mean that everything in the scriptures is necessary for our salvation, but rather that we find in the scriptures everything we need to know God’s salvation. This Article goes on to say, “whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man that it should be believed as an article of the faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation.”

 Article 7 stresses that the Old Testament and the New Testament do not contradict each other; God cannot contradict Himself. Both Testaments teach clearly that the only way of salvation is through the shedding of a substitute’s blood, that there is no forgiveness unless the sin is punished in another, that God’s promises of blessing through Abraham’s seed, his giving of the Law and sacrificial system through Moses, and his establishing of a kingship in the line of David, are all eternal truths, pointing to the one way of salvation through God’s Messiah’ (Excerpts from Church Society of England publication)Article 8 provides a good reason for the creeds: they offer a fully scriptural summary of our faith. This claim is in keeping with the view of the previous articles, in which the primacy of the scriptures is asserted. The creeds serve as a lense through which the scriptures are projected and it is not too hard to cite scriptural warrant for each clause in them. Excerpts from Christian Century USA
Have a fruitful week steadied on the sound foundation of our faith.

 Your brother, Vicar & Archdeacon