March 16, 2019
Life is a series of decisions. One after another, beginning in childhood, we are called upon to make choices. Some of these are minor and not harmful (“What shirt will I wear today?”), but others are life-altering (“Who will I marry?”). Our life is determined by these decisions. Even seemingly small decisions can determine the trajectory of our lives.
There is a truth for us that is repeated continually in the Bible. One of the means that God uses to help guide us in life is the counsel of godly men and women.
MAKING DECISIONS
... is hard. You can either "lean on your own understanding" solely or, "in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths" (Prov 3:5-6). In other words, you can try to make that decision yourself or bring God into the equation.
THREE LIGHTS
God does not play games with us. He wants us to know His will more than we want to know it and has everything to gain by helping us make wise, God-honoring decisions.
Therefore, He has given us three wonderful lights to guide us: The Word of God before us, the Spirit of God within us, and the people of God (the church) around us. Every decision should be tested on these anvils:
When each of these are aligned, we can have good confidence that we have found the will of God. If, however, one of these is not in sync, there is always cause for hesitation. George Mueller operated by this principle saying, “Continued uncertainty as to a matter is always cause for continued waiting.” God wants us to operate in faith, which is a confidence that we are being led by Him and following His direction. These three lights are designed to bring us to such spiritual confidence.
EVERY STRUCTURE
... that God has designed has this plurality of leadership. The home is designed to be led by a husband and wife in spiritual union and counsel with each other, for instance. We are everywhere counseled in Scripture to make decisions by the aid of wise counselors.
The church is to be led by a plurality of Elders. Such a plurality is to be men who meet the 22 character qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. I have operated with such a group for the last 20 years at The Summit Church. It is impossible to describe the beauty and protection of this group. According to Biblical direction, we operate as an Elder team in total unanimity. We have never made a decision in 20 years that we were not in complete agreement with and could say, “It seemed good to us, having become of one mind,” and "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us" (Acts 15:25,27).
Don't make any important decision in a vacuum! This is not weakness, it is humble strength and godly wisdom to utilize the tools God has put in place to lead you. Your decisions matter to you and all those around you and God has designed a wonderful, accessible way to lead you in this life.
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