If Only I Knew...

This inspiration is a bit of a follow up to the 2025 Christmas post titled The Unholy Family.

The Question We All Ask

How many times have you heard someone say: "If only I knew what God wants for me... How can I know what God’s will is? What are his plans for my life? Is it even possible to know God’s will? If only I just knew, life would be easier."

You don’t need to be around people very long, maybe young people especially, and you’ll hear a version of this question. You likely have asked the question yourself. I know I have.

And that’s ok. It’s perfectly normal for believers or even unbelievers to ask questions about God’s will. We all do.

Do We Really Want the Answer?

But the bigger question we need to ask is this: Are we sure we are asking and seeking honestly? Do we really want the answer? Or is it a rhetorical question that feels best unanswered as we pat ourselves on the back for at least having talked about it?

"Hey, I’m having a spiritual, transparent, open conversation with my friends about God’s will. Doesn't that earn me some brownie points? God should be pleased, right?"

God Has Already Spoken

What if I were to tell you that we can know the answer? That God clearly does tell us his will? Would you be ready to accept an answer? Would I?

Or does knowing and accepting God’s answer feel scary? Does being a seeker feel safer than being a finder? Like, if I do not know exactly what God wants and I suspend myself in this place of ‘not knowing’ then surely I’ll not be responsible, right?

Whether we are honest seekers is revealed by this question: Am I willing to commit to putting God's wants ahead of my own wants even before I know what it is that God wants? Note: "What God wants" is a concise, non-theological, down-to-earth way of saying "God’s will".

Ok, so maybe I’ve kept you in suspense long enough. Below is what God' s Word directly tells us about God’s Will.

"For this is the will of God, even your sanctification" (read 1Thessalonians 4:1-8 for full context) Sanctification is a big word that means "to be made holy." God’s will is that we allow him to make us holy.

Holiness is God’s Will for Us

God knows we are naturally unholy. He’s not shocked. He is not surprised. He is not taken aback at all by our unholiness. The angel Gabriel announced to Joseph, fiancé of Mary, before Jesus was even born, that Jesus was being sent specifically to save humanity—His unholy family. - Matthew 1:21

So this is pretty basic Christian theology, right? Nothing surprising here. Jesus died to take away our sins... to wash away our sins. He died as a perfect sacrifice for our sins so that our sins can be forgiven by his own sinless blood that he voluntarily gave for us.

And, yes, Jesus' blood and faith in his blood does forgive past sins. He does sanctify us and make us holy. Jesus does justify us and make us ‘just-as-if-we-had-not-sinned.’

And, yes, this sanctification of past life is also the will of God.

The Harder Faith

But notice, forgiveness of past sins is not at all what is in focus in these verses. (1 Thessalonians 4:3-4) These verses are referring directly to God's will that we, by his power, keep ourselves from current and future sins.

As wonderful as forgiveness is, God's full will is not limited to us only being washed and forgiven from our past unholiness.

Rather, His will for us as believers in his power is much greater than that. His full will, His deepest desire, His heart longing is for us to allow him to be our friend, our lover, our companion. He wants to walk with us, to support us, to empower us to victory over our unholiness.

So we can know. We are not stumbling around in the dark. We are not left wondering. We do know what God’s will is for us. His Word tells us. "This is the will of God, even your sanctification."

God’s will is that 1st we’d believe in Jesus' blood to be forgiven from our past unholiness. But then His will is for us to also believe in Jesus' power to actually live in present holy victory–in spite of our unholy bent. God wants us to experience the holy thrill and satisfaction of partnering with him to beat the wicked one at his own game! Yes!

This second step of belief takes more faith than the first.

We say we want to know God’s will. And now we know.

"This is the will of God, even your sanctification."

The question is no longer whether God has spoken or if he has the power to help us to be holy.

The question is whether we believe in God’s goodness enough to truly want the good holiness that he wills for us.

Blessings until next time!

Your Mennonite Christian farmer friend,

Edwin Shank

"Intensely striving to be... A follower of Jesus indeed... In whom there is no guile"

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