Many sincerely want to know God’s will for them but, they are still confused about what that is. How then can we know God’s will for us?

We are nearing the conclusion of our examination of the Life of Christ and others from the perspective of Living in a Crucible. 

Symbolically, a crucible is the fiery trials we experience as we grow and develop.

Crucibles are painful, they are uncomfortable, and they hurt, but they are beneficial in developing our character.

From the Sabbath School Adult Bible Study Guide 2022 Quarter 3: Sabbath.School

See also Hope Sabbath School and 3ABN Sabbath School

Inviting the Holy Spirit’s Presence 

Holy Father, we have a mind to know your will but we are still not sure what your will is for us. Help us to know and do your will. In Jesus Name Amen.

Many people wish to know God’s will for their lives. Have you ever said to yourself: If only I knew God’s will for me! I would do it. Yet, you are still confused about God’s plan for you.

You may find the reason for your confusion in Romans 12:1, 2

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2 NIV)

In these verses what is Paul saying?

Paul talks about how we can know God’s plan. He is saying that if you want to know God’s will, you must first give Him everything! (Split)

In other words, He is saying,

“You will know what God wants you to do” (Romans 12:2, NLV)

You will be able to

“test what God’s will is” for you (Rom. 12:2, NIV)

when the following things happen in your life:

• You obtain a true understanding of “God’s mercy” for you (Romans 12:1, NIV).
• You offer yourself as a living sacrifice to God (Rom. 12:1).
• Your mind is renewed, that is your way of thinking completely changes (Rom. 12:2).

When, your thinking changes, then you will be able to better understand God’s plan for your life.

But, wait a minute, before our thinking changes, we must first die to our past in the same way Jesus suffered and died for us.

We must die to self. We must die to our pasts. We must put away our old ways of living and doing things.

How do you put away what’s in your past?

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the areas in your life that need to die.

Ask what things you need to give up?

The thing is, when self is not completely dead, God allows difficult experiences, tests, suffering, crucibles to bring it to our attention.

Crucibles also helps us better understand why Jesus gave Himself for us.

In her book. Quest for Love, Elisabeth Elliot writes, “The surrender of our heart’s deepest longing is perhaps as close as we come to an understanding of the cross. . . . Our own experience of crucifixion, though immeasurably less than our Savior’s, nonetheless furnishes us with a chance to begin to know Him in the fellowship of His sufferings. In every form of our own suffering, He calls us to that fellowship.”—Quest for Love (Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 1996), p. 182.

Christ is our example.

For our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich. He taught that all should come together in love and unity, to work as He worked, to sacrifice as He sacrificed, to love as the children of God.

We are to [P]ractice the self-denial of Christ. Dress plainly but neatly. Spend as little as possible upon yourselves.

Keep in your homes a self-denial box into which you can put the money saved by little acts of denying self.

Day by day gain a clearer understanding of the word of God, by reading it for yourself, and improve every opportunity to share the knowledge you have gained.

Do not grow tired in doing good, for God is constantly giving you the great blessing of His Gift to the world. Co-operate with the Lord Jesus, and He will teach you the priceless lessons of His love.—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 9, p. 131.

Now, Reread Romans 12:1, 2. This time Think about the things you need to give up to become a living sacrifice to God.

Think about how Jesus suffered for you on the cross.

Knowing and understanding Jesus’ sufferings helps us better appreciate what he did, it improves our relationship with Him, and we are able to identify with his sufferings more fully.

Knowing God’s will for you requires that you listen. Have you ever heard a soft gentle voice speaking to you and you ignored it. What was the results?

Don’t tell me. You will find out why you got those results in Day 4: Willingness to Listen