Doing the Father's Will: Becoming God's Family

The question, “God, what is your will?” rises out of real life, not just Bible study. Father God has a will for every person, just like a good earthly dad has hopes and dreams for his kids. Father God wants his kids close, safe, loved, and with him forever. His will is not some mystery that nobody can find. His word lays it out.

Mark 3 shows Jesus healing, casting out demons, and drawing crowds so thick that nobody could even eat bread. The scribes see the power of God right in front of them, but they call it evil and say it comes from Satan. Jesus answers that a divided kingdom cannot stand, and he warns them about blaspheming the Holy Spirit. Their problem is not lack of information. Their problem is that they do not want the truth, because accepting God’s will means accountability.

Jesus then points to his real family and says, “Whoever does the will of God is my brother and my sister and mother.” That question becomes the big one: what is God’s will? God’s will begins with salvation. Second Peter says God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. First Timothy says God desires all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. John 3 says Father God gave his only Son so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

God’s family is not made by background, personality, or church attendance. Romans 8 says God adopts believers as his own children, and his Spirit joins with their spirit so they can call him Abba Father. Ephesians says Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners, but members of God’s family. God’s creation becomes God’s children through faith in Jesus.

God’s will also means not taking on the characteristics of this world. Romans 12 says the believer’s reasonable service is to present the body as a living sacrifice, not conformed to the world but transformed by the renewing of the mind. The old life, the old sins, the old behavior, the hate, lust, rivalry, jealousy, and anger, that stuff belongs in the past. Second Corinthians says anyone in Christ is a new creation. God does not erase the good gifts, personality, and talents he gave. He amplifies what is good and deletes what destroys.

First Thessalonians says God’s will is sanctification, separation from evil and a pursuit of holiness. God’s will also says to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in everything. Joy is not the same as happy. Happy comes and goes, but the joy of the Lord stays even through sickness, tragedy, and hard days. The Lord’s Prayer brings the whole thing home: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” God’s will is best, because living by self-will just does not work.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God’s will starts with repentance God’s will is not first a career path, a relationship answer, or a secret sign. God’s will begins with turning from a world that destroys and running to Christ for life. Repentance means saying, “I’m in, Jesus,” and letting eternity with God become more important than hanging on to old sin. [77:20]
• 2. Adoption makes family, not religion God’s family is not built by ethnicity, background, or looking churchy on the outside. Romans 8 says the Spirit confirms adoption, and that makes “Abba Father” more than a phrase. The deepest identity of the believer is not stranger, foreigner, or spiritual orphan, but child brought home by the Father. [82:38]
• 3. Holiness means changed characteristics God’s will does not flatten a person into a religious robot. God takes the gifts, personality, and good things he already gave, then starts removing what wounds the soul and hurts other people. Holiness looks like taking on the Father’s characteristics, so love, patience, faithfulness, and self-control become family resemblance. [86:08]
• 4. Joy outlasts happy feelings God’s will does not promise a life free of cancer, grief, hard work, or unanswered questions. First Thessalonians calls believers to rejoice, pray, and give thanks because joy is deeper than happy. Happy is fleeting, but joy is the peace God gives when he is still holding the hand of his child through the fire. [96:49]
• 5. Prayer seeks God’s will first Prayer can turn selfish fast when conflict makes somebody ask God to fix the other person. The better prayer asks God to bring both people into his will and his ways. That kind of prayer surrenders control, stops using God as a weapon, and asks the Father to reveal himself clearly.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [61:00] - Asking God the Right Questions
• [62:52] - Father’s Day and Father Figures
• [64:41] - Father God Has a Will
• [67:27] - Jesus Defines His True Family
• [71:07] - Own Will or God’s Will
• [73:36] - The Greatest Commandment
• [76:32] - God Wants None to Perish
• [80:38] - Adopted Into God’s Family
• [85:13] - Rejecting the World’s Characteristics
• [87:57] - Living Sacrifices and Renewed Minds
• [92:16] - New Creations in Christ
• [93:30] - Sanctification and Holiness
• [96:38] - Rejoice, Pray, Give Thanks
• [101:51] - Thy Will Be Done
• [104:58] - Praying God’s Will for Others

1. Mark 3:35 — “For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” [01:10:54]
2. 2 Peter 3:9 — “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” [01:17:20]
3. 1 Timothy 2:4 — “who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” [01:20:12]
4. Romans 12:1-2 — “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” [01:28:07]
5. 1 Thessalonians 4:3 — “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;” [01:33:55]
6. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 — “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” [01:36:48]

1. In Mark 3, what did Jesus say makes someone part of his true family, and how did that change the way people usually thought about family? [01:10:54]
2. In 2 Peter 3:9 and 1 Timothy 2:4, what two things does God clearly want for people?
3. According to Romans 12:1-2, what are believers told to do with their bodies and their minds, and what are they told not to copy from the world? [01:29:26]
4. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, what three repeated practices are named as God’s will for believers? [01:36:48]

1. Jesus says that whoever does the will of God is part of his family. What does that show about the kind of relationship God wants with people, not just the kind of religion he wants? [01:21:26]
2. The scribes saw Jesus’ power but still called it evil. How can a person have plenty of information about God and still resist the truth because they want their own way? [01:11:49]
3. Romans 12 says the mind must be renewed in order to discern God’s will. Why does self-will or worldly thinking make it harder to recognize what God wants? [01:39:51]
4. First Thessalonians says God’s will is sanctification. How should “being set apart” be understood in daily life without turning it into acting fake or becoming a religious robot? [01:32:40]

1. When the question “God, what is your will?” comes up, is the first concern usually guidance for a decision, or surrender to Christ? What might repentance look like right now in one real area of life? [01:17:37]
2. God’s family is formed by faith and adoption, not by background or outward appearance. Where is there a need to live more like a son or daughter who can truly say, “Abba, Father,” instead of living like a spiritual orphan? [01:22:38]
3. Believers are called not to take on the characteristics of this world. What old behaviors, attitudes, or patterns still feel too familiar right now—anger, jealousy, lust, rivalry, bitterness, pride, or something else? [01:35:20]
4. God does not erase the good gifts and personality he gave; he cleans out what destroys. What is one good thing God may want to strengthen in a person’s life, and what is one harmful thing that needs to go? [01:33:05]
5. Joy is deeper than happy feelings. In a hard season, what would it look like to rejoice, keep praying, and give thanks without pretending everything feels fine? [01:37:18]
6. “Thy will be done” is a better prayer than trying to control outcomes. In a current decision or burden, what would it look like to stop pushing personal will and start asking for God’s will first? [01:42:12]
7. In conflict, it is easy to ask God to fix the other person. How could prayer change this week if the request became, “Lord, bring both of us into your will and your ways”? [01:45:26]