Guidance - part 3

So, what if I make a foolish or sinful decision? Have I stepped outside God's will and plan?

To answer this we need to understand that God has two 'wills': first there's his moral will. That is, the things he decides are good or bad, right or wrong. Then, second, there's his eternal plan - what he has decided will happen.

Now, we can - and do - make morally wrong decisions. We break God's moral will, and we're responsible when we do that. But that does not mean that we step outside God's plan for our lives.

The easiest way to show how this works is to look at Genesis 12-50. People there constantly make morally wrong decisions to try to speed up the fulfilment of God's promises and plan. It's all summed up by Joseph at the end of the book. He's speaking to his brothers, but he sums up the actions of many others in the book. The brothers know they have wronged God and Joseph, and beg for mercy from Joseph. He says, 'Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don't be afraid.'

I guess many of us do get afraid when we know we've made morally dubious decisions - we fear that God can no longer use us, or that he will reject us. But, while we are morally responsible for our actions, we cannot thwart the purpose and plan of God. He uses our sin to achieve his good ends. Does that excuse sin? Certainly not! Rather, it magnifies the greatness and power of God that even our rebellion cannot thwart him!

If this little post is insufficient to satisfy your curiosity, you should have come to the Tuesday evening Bible studies, we've often talked about it there!! To catch up, you could read, or listen to, John Piper on Romans 8:28-32. He shouts a bit, but he's always worth listening to.