A REFORMED WILL Living Wholeheartedly in the Power of the Spirit

In our ongoing journey of becoming wholehearted followers of Christ, we have been exploring what it truly means to live with a heart fully devoted to God. Today, the focus turns to the will—the core engine of our inner being. While our minds and affections are crucial, it is our will that ultimately expresses what we know and love about God through our choices and actions. Many of us know the struggle: we desire to do what is right, we even set our minds on it, but in the moment, we often choose the opposite. This tension is not new; Paul addresses it directly in Colossians 3, urging us to actively engage our will in obedience, rather than living passively or merely following external religious forms.

God has created us with the capacity to choose, to act according to what we know and love. The commands in Scripture—such as “put to death what is earthly in you” and “put on compassionate hearts”—assume that we have this volitional ability. Yet, our will is not meant to operate in isolation. It is shaped by what our mind believes and what our heart prizes. If our thinking is saturated with God’s truth and our affections are aligned with His desires, our will is empowered to choose what is right.

However, the Christian life is not a matter of sheer willpower. We are not left to ourselves. Christ’s obedience, His death and resurrection, and the indwelling Holy Spirit redeem and empower our will. The transformation Paul describes is ongoing; we are called to put off the old self and put on the new, not as a means to earn God’s favor, but as a response to the grace already given to us in Christ. Our will, like a conductor, draws out the music of our lives—sometimes chaotic, sometimes harmonious. But in Christ, we have a new conductor, one whose will was perfectly submitted to the Father, and who now empowers us to walk in newness of life.

True wholeness is found when our mind, affections, and will are unified and aligned with God’s Word. This is not about external conformity or emotional highs, but about a deep, ongoing surrender of our will to God’s, trusting that His ways are good and wise. As we practice this, we become a living symphony of worship, expressing the reality of our union with Christ in every choice we make.

Key Takeaways

• 1. The Will Expresses What We Truly Prize Our actions are the outward expression of what our mind believes and our heart loves. Even when we know what is right, our will reveals whether we truly prize God above all else. This is why transformation must reach the level of our desires and beliefs, not just our behavior. [24:10]
• 2. True Obedience Flows from Union with Christ We are not called to obey in our own strength, but to live out what Christ has already accomplished for us. His perfect obedience and the Spirit’s indwelling presence enable us to choose what is right, even when our old patterns persist. This union is the foundation for real change. [41:24]
• 3. Ongoing Transformation Requires Active Engagement The Christian life is not passive; it is a moment-by-moment, volitional pursuit of God. We must continually put to death what is earthly and put on what is godly, not to earn acceptance, but to live out the reality of grace. This requires vigilance, repentance, and a willingness to be shaped by God’s Word and Spirit. [04:16]
• 4. Wholeness Is Alignment of Mind, Affection, and Will True spiritual wholeness is not found in mere knowledge or emotional experience, but in the alignment of our thinking, desires, and choices with God’s revealed will. When these are unified, our lives become a symphony of worship, reflecting the beauty and order of Christ’s own obedience. [22:02]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:31] - Raised with Christ: The Foundation
• [01:09] - The Inner and Outer Man
• [01:50] - The Tension of the Will
• [03:36] - The Christian Life Is Not Passive
• [04:43] - Understanding Volition
• [06:43] - Temptations: Passivity and Externalism
• [07:44] - The Role of God’s Word
• [09:27] - Freedom of the Will
• [10:53] - Submitting Our Will to God
• [12:05] - The Commands: Put Off and Put On
• [15:19] - Imperatives Built on Indicatives
• [20:06] - “Look Alive!”: Living Out New Life
• [22:02] - True Wholeness: Unified Heart
• [27:33] - The Will as Conductor
• [33:17] - The Root of Our Choices
• [37:21] - No Condemnation in Christ
• [39:13] - Living Wholeheartedly by the Spirit
• [41:24] - Jesus: The Perfect Conductor
• [42:33] - Grace, Discipline, and Union with Christ

Bible Reading

Colossians 3:5–17 (ESV) — 5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.
7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them.
8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.
11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.
12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Observation Questions

1. What are the two main commands Paul gives in Colossians 3:5 and 3:12, and what do they mean in practical terms? ([12:05])
2. According to the sermon, what does it mean to “put to death” what is earthly in us? ([12:05])
3. How does Paul describe the relationship between the “old self” and the “new self” in this passage? ([13:15])
4. In the sermon, what illustration is used to describe the role of the will in our lives? ([27:33])

Interpretation Questions

1. Why does Paul connect the commands to “put off” and “put on” with our identity as people who have been “raised with Christ”? What difference does this make in how we approach obedience? ([15:19])
2. The sermon says, “Our will is not meant to operate in isolation. It is shaped by what our mind believes and what our heart prizes.” How does this help explain why we sometimes do the opposite of what we know is right? ([06:01])
3. The pastor said, “True wholeness is a unified heart where our mind, our desires, and our will, our choices, are aligned with God according to his word.” What does this kind of wholeness look like in everyday life? ([22:02])
4. According to the sermon, how does union with Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit empower our will to choose what is right, even when old patterns persist? ([41:24])

Application Questions

1. The sermon described the struggle of wanting to do what is right but choosing the opposite in the moment. Can you share a recent example from your own life where you experienced this tension? What was going on in your mind and heart at the time? ([01:50])
2. Paul commands us to “put to death” certain attitudes and behaviors. What is one specific “earthly” thing in your life that you sense God is calling you to put to death right now? What would it look like to actively engage your will in this area? ([12:05])
3. The pastor said, “Our actions are the outward expression of what our mind believes and our heart loves.” Is there an area where your actions are out of sync with what you say you believe or value? What might this reveal about your true priorities? ([24:10])
4. The sermon emphasized that true obedience flows from union with Christ, not just willpower. When you face temptation or old habits, how can you practically rely on Christ and the Spirit instead of just trying harder? ([41:24])
5. The idea of “putting on” compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, and patience is an active choice. Which of these qualities do you find most challenging to put on? What is one step you could take this week to practice it? ([14:42])
6. The pastor used the illustration of the will as a conductor, sometimes creating chaos, sometimes harmony. If your life is a symphony, what kind of music is your will conducting right now? What would it look like for Jesus to be the conductor in a specific area of your life? ([27:33])
7. The sermon warned against living passively or just following external religious forms. Are there ways you tend to “go through the motions” in your faith? What would it look like to move from passive to active, wholehearted engagement with God? ([06:43])