What does the term "will of God" mean?

[tonychanyt]

There is only one faculty of volition—the will—for us and for God. Nevertheless, the outputs of the volition can be categorized in different ways:

Type 0 outputs of the will of God (or, more conveniently, type 0 directives):

These are "desires" and "wishes". Type 0 may not be fulfilled in the space-time realm. God desires that Israel would have only Him as King. God desires that no man would divorce his wife. In 1 Timothy 2:4a

[God] desires all people to be saved.

Jesus said in Luke 12:

49, "I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!"

Luke 13:

34, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!"

2 Peter 3:

9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Type 1:

This consists of his providence, fate, God's sovereign hand over His creation, the so-called "permissive will", etc. In other words, it is everything that has transpired.

Type 2:

These are doctrinal codes, righteous precepts, morals, and the Ten Commandments.

Type 3:

These are God's most specific will in a given instance in the vertical-horizontal reality. In Jonah 3:4, God's type 3 directive was that Nineveh be destroyed in 40 days, as Jonah proclaimed. Only six verses later, God again directed Nineveh to be spared of the destruction proclaimed earlier.

The types are not mutually exclusive; e.g., a directive can be type 1 and type 3. When sin and death disappear, all directives will collapse to type 4 = type 0 = type 1 = type 2 = type 3.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

There is only one faculty of volition—the will—for us and for God. Nevertheless, the outputs of the volition can be categorized in different ways:

Type 0 outputs of the will of God (or more conveniently, type 0 directives): These are "desires" and "wishes". Type 0 may not be fulfilled in the space-time realm. God desires that Israel would have only Him as King. God desires that no man would divorce his wife. In 1 Timothy 2:4a, we read "[God] desires all people to be saved." Jesus said in Luke 12:49, "I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!" and in Luke 13:34, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!"

Type 1: This consists of his providence, fate, God's sovereign hand over His creation, the so-called "permissive will", etc. In other words, it is everything that has transpired.

Type 2: These are doctrinal codes, righteous precepts, morals, the ten commandments.

Type 3: These are God's rhema words and God's most specific will in a given instance in the vertical-horizontal reality. In Jonah 3:4, it was the type 3 directive of God that Nineveh was to be destroyed in 40 days as proclaimed by Jonah. Only 6 verses later, it was again the type 3 directive that Nineveh was to be spared of the destruction proclaimed earlier.

The types are not mutually exclusive; e.g., a directive can be both type 1 and type 3. In fact, when sin and death disappear, all directives will collapse to type 4 = type 0 = type 1 = type 2 = type 3.

There are at least two places in the New Testament that clearly state what the will of God is. "This is the will of God, that you believe on Him whom He has sent." In other words it is the will of God that we believe on Christ. The other one is "This is the will of God, even your sanctification". What this means is that it is God's will that we live a life set apart from the world and for the Lord." The best definition of a sanctified life is found in the fruit of the Spirit as quoted in Galatians 5.

 

[tonychanyt]

There are at least two places in the New Testament that clearly state what the will of God is. "This is the will of God, that you believe on Him whom He has sent."

Type 0

In other words it is the will of God that we believe on Christ. The other one is "This is the will of God, even your sanctification". What this means is that it is God's will that we live a life set apart from the world and for the Lord."

Type 2

 

[Mark Quayle]

There is only one faculty of volition—the will—for us and for God. Nevertheless, the outputs of the volition can be categorized in different ways:

Type 0 outputs of the will of God (or more conveniently, type 0 directives): These are "desires" and "wishes". Type 0 may not be fulfilled in the space-time realm. God desires that Israel would have only Him as King. God desires that no man would divorce his wife. In 1 Timothy 2:4a, we read "[God] desires all people to be saved." Jesus said in Luke 12:49, "I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!" and in Luke 13:34, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!"

Type 1: This consists of his providence, fate, God's sovereign hand over His creation, the so-called "permissive will", etc. In other words, it is everything that has transpired.

Type 2: These are doctrinal codes, righteous precepts, morals, the ten commandments, etc. They are general rules.

Type 3: These are God's rhema words and God's most specific will in a given instance in the vertical-horizontal reality. In Jonah 3:4, it was the type 3 directive of God that Nineveh was to be destroyed in 40 days as proclaimed by Jonah. Only 6 verses later, it was again the type 3 directive that Nineveh was to be spared of the destruction proclaimed earlier.

The types are not mutually exclusive; e.g., a directive can be both type 1 and type 3. In fact, when sin and death disappear, all directives will collapse to type 4 = type 0 = type 1 = type 2 = type 3.

Interesting to me how often we have to categorize things so we can understand what WE mean!

CS Lewis, from Til We Have Faces, a quote from the protagonist: "I saw well why the gods do not speak to us openly, nor let us answer. Till that word can be dug out of us, why should they hear the babble that we think we mean? How can they meet us face to face till we have faces?”

 

[Peacemaker1]

Hey, is it time for simplicity in Christ again.

Well here then, Gods will is that all men are saved, and if a person had the love of God in them, could they desire differently ?

Love is the opposite to hatred, is it not about time the forums of this doomed world begin to speak what love is, even though it would be only talk and no deed, but at least to show it can be understood at least ?

I know it says the teachers for these days are without understanding, and are implacable, so their firm opinion is never altered, but let me show it changed anyway.

Romans 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:


When Jesus Christ died for sinners, for the ungrateful, for murderers, for all men, it proves that Gods will is to save all men, because He gave HIs own life for them and forgave them for hating Him.

There is one type of everything now, it is one Lord Jesus Christ and there is life through love, or continued death through hatred, forgiveness and forgiving, or remaining in your sins.