The True Nature and Will of God
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“What would Jesus do?” – that was the Christian slogan in the late 1990’s here in the United States… unfortunately, most of us have very little knowledge about the true nature of God, or why Jesus did what He did while on this earth.
At the Lord’s Supper just before being arrested, Jesus said, “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him. Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” (John 14:7-8) Phillip misunderstood what Jesus was saying, and so do so many Christians today. They want to know the will and nature of God, yet can’t seem to come up with anything reliable.
Or maybe you’re one of those who the church has taught that God’s nature was something precarious, if not downright scary. So many today are preaching that God’s will is sometimes good, and sometimes bad, or that God in His wisdom causes harm that is actually good… this is not biblical, and leads to a fear of the “good and perfect” will of God that would cause tsunamis and tornados, that would propagate divorce and heartache, that would cause financial ruin, birth-defects and disabilities, and all kinds of “good” in our lives. Please, don’t buy into the lie for another minute.
If you are questioning your circumstances, or the will and the true nature of God, look no further than the life of Christ. Remember the inquiry Phillip had for Jesus in John 14:8? The very next verse Jesus answers, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'”? (v. 9) Jesus tells us that He and the Father are one, but many Christians read through the stories of healing and deliverance in the ministry and life of Christ as though it were simply Jesus doing the work… not as a repeated display of the nature and willingness of the Father and the Holy Spirit to do good – the same kind of good that Jesus did. In fact, in the next verse of John 14 Jesus goes further, saying, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works.” (v.10)
From what we have read in the scriptures above, we can be assured that, the Father initiated the works of Christ (v.10)… and the nature of the Father and that of Christ are one and the same. See in verses 9 and 10 how that God (that is, the Father) was not only in Jesus, but He was the author of the works of Christ. If you want to know the true nature of the Father, and what He wants for you, look to Jesus in scripture.
In Acts 10:38 we are told, “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” The Bible tells us here that “God anointed Him [Jesus] with the Holy Spirit and power…” – The Father and the Holy Spirit were providing the power and the initiative for Jesus to do good and heal the sick; we are also told that He could do these things because, “God was with Him.”
Jesus healed the oppressed, cast our devils, cured illnesses, cleansed leapers, spoke the infallible word of God, and all the while was showing us the true nature and will of God – to do good works in the earth – to heal the sick, to break the chains of captivity, and liberate the devil’s prisoners... This is the true nature of God.
So, you have this question, “If God is always good, and always desires good for us, why do so many bad things happen?”
Yes, this is an important question. Without answering this you could never understand God’s true nature. Please be patient as I attempt to explain a few things with scripture.
- The Bible tells us of man’s fall in the garden of Eden… because of this, God’s original intentions for a paradise for man, were delayed.
- God gave the earth to mankind (Psalm 115:16), and we have dominion and great control here.
- What is the alternative? Should God immediately punish everyone who cannot live up to His perfect standard? If so, we would all be struck by lightning and thrown into hell by end of day… instead God has saved judgment for one final day (Hebrews 9:27), and wants everyone to put their faith in Christ’s having died for their sins before that day, and escape the wrath to come (1 Thessalonians 1:10).
- You then say, “Why doesn’t God just make us all do good things, and keep anyone from sinning in the first place? Would you really want this? There would be no relationships of any kind, since we would be no more than puppets on strings controlled by God. Love forced is no love at all; and God gives us the choice to experience (and then return to Him) His love, or do our own thing. Remember, God has set before us blessings and curses, life and death… it is up to us to choose life. (Deuteronomy 30:19)
Some will also ask, “Doesn’t God send trials and temptations to test our faith?” The Bible answers this so strongly in James 1:13-14; “Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.”
We keep on confusing God for the devil. God is not tempting, He always assures that there is a way of escape from temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13) Remember that Christ was tempted by the devil in the wilderness (Luke 4:2). Hebrews 2:18 teaches us, “For since He Himself [Jesus] was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.” This does not say that He temps, but rather comes to help those who are tempted.
God is not tempting people, God is not making people sick or diseased, and does not have an angry disposition at humanity… You never see Jesus laying hands to impart sickness to someone in scripture, but instead, He healed everyone who came to Him (Matt 4:24, 8:16, 12:15; Mark 3:10). You never see Jesus “blessing” someone’s baby with birth defects in scripture, but healing them (John 9).
Lastly, many times we quote Romans 8:28, and how God works all things together for those who love God. Remember that He makes all things work for good, but does not author all things. He will take what happens and use it for good, but He does not author (or initiate) everything that happens on this earth. I encourage you to read all of Romans 8, and you will see what we must do in order for this promise to work in our lives to the fullest.
Don’t submit to the lies about the true nature of God… look at scripture and the life of Christ, and start to realize the God who is always good.
Do you still have unanswered questions? Please email me, I would love to try and help. Also, stay tuned for the next teaching about the nature of God (and our relationship with Him) that will be available soon. God bless!
For More on the True Nature of God
For more on this subject, please consider the following:
