How Can I Know God’s Will?

Sermon Summary:

This message explores how we can discern God’s will for our lives. The Urim and Thummim mentioned on the seal of Yale University were stones carried by the high priest of Israel to help determine God’s guidance. Though shrouded in some mystery, they show that God desires to lead His people. Today, we have an even greater advantage in knowing God’s will – through His Word, the example of Jesus, the Holy Spirit’s presence, and the witness of the church. The key is surrendering our will to God’s perfect plan. As we offer ourselves as living sacrifices, we can test and approve what God’s good, pleasing and perfect will is.

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Sermon Points:

• Urim and Thummim – These “stones” were sometimes used by God to guide Israel in national decisions. They had no intrinsic powers.
• God desires for His people to seek His leadership and live fully into His will.
• God’s Will: God’s Word, God’s Wisdom, and our willingness.

Download a copy of the “Together in God’s Glory” Devotional Book – HERE

Key Takeaways:

• God desires for His people to seek His leadership and live fully in His will.
• The Urim and Thummim were used by the high priest to discern God’s will for Israel as a nation, not for individual guidance.
• Christians today have an advantage in seeking God’s will through the Bible, the example of Jesus, the presence of the Holy Spirit, and the witness of the church.
• Discovering God’s will requires a combination of God’s Word, God’s wisdom, and our willingness to surrender to His plan.
• God’s wisdom, revealed through His Spirit, will never lead us to do anything contrary to the Bible.
• God’s will is to be proven in life through our surrender and obedience.

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Scripture References:

• Exodus 28:15-30 – The description of the Urim and Thummim in the high priest’s breastpiece.
• Romans 12:1-2 – Offering ourselves as living sacrifices and being transformed to discern God’s will.

Stories:

• Dr. Wiles mentions various historical seals and mottos of universities to illustrate the importance of seeking truth and God’s guidance.
• He also briefly mentions the story of the disciples casting lots to choose a replacement for Judas in Acts.

Transcript

Well, you know, our high school graduates are about to begin a new phase of their life. And for many of them, they have been trying to decide what to do academically, choosing a college perhaps. I don’t know if others of you in this room remember what that was like when you were at that point and you were trying to decide, what do I do next? And perhaps you were looking at colleges, and I’m not sure how much research you did when you were thinking about the college you might attend. So, a lot of folks are looking into colleges and universities right now. So, let me just remind you of what some of these schools do stand for. For example, what if you were contemplating on going to Harvard? Let me show you Harvard’s original seal. This is the statement that was adopted by Harvard University in 1689. This is the statement that was adopted by Harvard University in 1643. So, I don’t know if you can see it or not, but in the center, there are three open books with the Latin word veritas, which means truth. But then also, you’ll notice inside, you’ll see this phrase, Christo et Ecclesia. In other words, Harvard University was founded in 1643 for Christ and the church.

Interesting.

How about Baylor? Have you seen Baylor? It’s a seal. Baylor’s seal, you’ll see the star in the middle. It says, Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, for the church and for Texas. I served on the Board of Regents for nine years at Baylor, and the regents have just adopted an addition to this seal, Pro Mundo, for the whole world. So, for the church, you know how Texans are. You got to say, for Texas, right? Y’all know how y’all are. Right? Right. Right. Right. The reason why they had to add this is because not everybody’s from Texas, and they don’t think Texas is the whole world. So, that’s why they added the Pro Mundo. How about Auburn? Did any of y’all even think about Auburn? Okay. Auburn seal, research, instruction, extension. Auburn’s a land-grant university in Alabama. What about the school that’s been on the news so much recently? Columbia University. Have y’all ever seen Columbia’s original seal? And the motto of Columbia University? We need to leave it up there for a minute, and let me show you. You’ll notice a lady sitting on a throne, kind of in the center. She represents the alma mater. An alma mater is the mother who nourishes us, is what that phrase means. And she is this somewhat majestic maternal figure. If you can see right above her head, the top of the seal, some Hebrew letters. You know what those letters are? Y-H-W-H. Yahweh, the very name of God in Hebrew, is placed at the top of the seal of Columbia. And then you’ll notice she’s holding in her right hand a book. And that book, it says Logia Zonta, which means the words of life. It’s a reference to God’s commands to Moses on Mount Sinai. And you’ll also notice, just to her left, you’ll see another Hebrew phrase, Ori El, which means God’s light. And then at the bottom, you’ll see a scripture reference, 1 Peter 2, 1 and 2. That text says, like newborn babes crave the pure spiritual milk of the word of God regarding the salvation of your souls. And if you’ll notice that this mother, if you will, she’s seated on this throne, and she has these children around her, and she is educating or nourishing these children of God. And she’s providing pure spiritual milk for the salvation of their souls underneath the heading of Yahweh. And you’ll see in Latin, in Lumine Tuol Vitibimus Lumen, which means in your light we see light. That’s the Latin quotation of Psalm 36, 9. Columbia University. Interesting, isn’t it? How about Yale? Let’s do one more. Look at Yale’s seal. You’ll see around the outside. The outside of Yale’s seal in Latin, Sigli Coiala Nov Port Nov Angli. That is the seal of the College of Yale. Nov Port is a shortened Latin for New Haven. And Nov Angli is New England. So the Newport, New England, if you will. But do you see in the middle? Lux et Veritas. Light and truth. But right in the very middle, can you see those two Hebrew words? This is on the seal of Yale University. You know? Those two Hebrew words are Urim and Thummim.

What? What is that? And how did it find its way on the seal of Yale University? In Hebrew, Urim, Thummim. I would say Urim and Thummim. What in the world is that? Well, I decided to address that this morning. So, you know our theme for this year is together at First Baptist Arlington. And we have been exploring different facets of what it means to be together as the people of God during each one of our liturgical seasons. We’re in the spring right now, so our theme is together for God’s glory. And we’re using the book of Exodus to guide us as we’re learning about the glory of God. So, when I think about the question that I’ve been asked the most in all of my years as a pastor. Can y’all guess what it is? Number one, hands down question that I’ve been asked. How can I know God’s will for my life? Or how do you find God’s will? So, this morning I want us to talk about that. How can I know God’s will? And I want us to look at Exodus 28. I told Cindy earlier this week that I was, I knew the kids were graduating from high school. I’m proud of them. And so, I felt led to preach a sermon on the Urim and Thummim. And she went, hmm. She said, I’ve never heard a sermon on the Urim and Thummim. Well, leave today and you’ll have at least heard one sermon on the Urim and Thummim. Okay? Book of Exodus. Interesting material in Exodus. And I want you to look at this text. It’s a little cumbersome. It’s not usually a text we would single out on a Sunday morning. Because it is so meticulous as God is laying out the instructions for the robe that the priest is going to wear. The high priest. The ephod that the priest is going to wear. And the breast piece that the priest is going to wear. And this is one of those texts that we usually just read fast, usually. You know, when you’re doing that yearly Bible reading, y’all know what I’m talking about. And you start off, you’re in Genesis and you’re rocking and rolling. You know, you get to Exodus and it gets a little cumbersome because of these kind of passages. And then around February, you hit Leviticus and you’re done. Y’all know what I’m talking about, right? You just, you kind of skip to Matthew. That’s usually what happens. But here’s what I would tell you. These first five books of the Bible, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. They’re worth spending your time in because they reveal so much about who God is. This text. This text is one of those texts that you can read past it really quickly. And I would understand why. But I would encourage you to pause and consider some things this morning with me.

So, if you’ll look at it with me. Exodus 28. God is giving Moses instructions on how to prepare the priestly garments for the high priest. Okay? Look at verse 15. God says this. Fashion a breast piece for making decisions. The work of skilled hands. Make it like the ephod. Of gold and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and a finely twisted linen. It is to be square, a span long and a span wide and folded double. Then mount four rows of precious stones on it. The first row shall be carnelian, crystallite and beryl. The second row shall be turquoise, lapis, lazuli and emerald. The third row shall be jacinth, agate and amethyst. The fourth row shall be topaz, onyx and jasper. Mount them in gold filigree settings. There will be twelve stones. One for each of the names of the sons. The sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes. For the breast piece, make braided chains of pure gold, like a rope. Make two gold rings for it and fasten them to the two corners of the breast piece. Fasten the two gold chains to the rings at the corners of the breast piece. And the other ends of the chains to the two settings, attaching them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front. Make two gold rings and attach them to the other two corners of the breast piece on the inside edge next to the ephod. Make two more gold rings and attach them to the bottom of the shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod, close to the seam, just above the waistband of the ephod. Are y’all still with me? just checking. Verse 28. The rings of the breast piece are to be tied to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband so the breast piece will not swing out from the ephod. Whenever Aaron enters the holy place, he’ll bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breast piece of decision. As a continuing memorial before the Lord. Also, put the Urim and the Thummim in the breast piece, so they may be over Aaron’s heart whenever he enters the presence of the Lord. Thus, Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the Lord.

So, if you want to know how to find the will of God, there you go. Don’t need to say anything else. Consult Exodus 28. Well, let’s talk a little bit about it, just real quickly this morning. The Urim and the Thummim. These stones, we believe, were sometimes used by God to guide Israel in national decisions. Now, just to be clear, they had no intrinsic powers. They didn’t levitate. The Bible, the Old Testament specifically condemns divination, so that’s not what it was. But here’s what’s happening. God is telling Israel, you all live in tents. Now, I’m going to describe my tent. You’re going to build me one. And when you build my tent, you’re going to build it just like this. And he gives specific instructions. Then he says, the priests who will work in my tent, in the tabernacle, are going to be dressed like this. And you’ll notice, if you go back and read the text, that God takes some of the same materials that are used in the construction of the tabernacle, of God’s tent, and you’re to use them in the actual robes of the priests. So, in other words, the priest is going to represent, the tabernacle represents the presence of God for Israel. The priest will actually represent God’s presence by his very vesture, by vestments rather, just by what he wears. And so, what’s going on is God is helping Israel to understand some things about him. Israel’s brand new, really, emerging as a nation in the book of Exodus. And God is going to call them to a theocratic form of government. So, that means they won’t have a king. They won’t have a royal family. God will be their king. So, they were accustomed to kings in their day. And royal families dressing differently than everybody else. So, instead of that happening, God says, okay, here’s who’s going to dress differently. My priests. And certainly the high priest. And he will represent me to you. And so, he says, I’m going to give you specific instructions on how to dress the priest.

So, if we were to go back earlier in chapter 28, he would describe the ephod. The ephod was this draping, if you will. And it was sleeveless. And it just fell over the shoulders of the high priest. Went down past his knees. And he was given specific instructions about how to craft the ephod. In fact, if you’ll go back and read, God says, I want you to take 12 stones. Take stones, put them on the shoulders of the ephod. And inscribe the names of the tribes of Israel on them. So, there’ll be 12 names. So, every time the priest enters the tabernacle, later the temple, he will bear the names of Israel on his shoulders. So, the imagery is the priest is going to bear the burden of Israel on his shoulders. Does that make sense? Then God says, now, once you have the ephod ready, then I want you to fashion a breast piece that’s going to go right over the breast, the center part of the ephod and attach it to the ephod. And here’s what I want you to do. I want you to take 12 stones and I want you to inscribe each one of them with one of the names of the tribes of Israel. And so, the priest, when he comes into my presence, not only will he bear the burdens of Israel on his shoulders, he will have the needs of Israel right next to his heart. And he’ll come into my presence understanding that he’s to have the needs of these people on his heart. Then he says, then I want you to fashion a pocket inside that breast piece and I want you to place the Urim and the Thummim there. And this breast piece will be called the breast piece of decision. And I will use this to give Israel guidance. So, the Urim and the Thummim, what were they, how did they use them, and what does all this mean? Well, here’s the challenge. The Bible never tells us.

The Bible never tells us exactly what they were. Was it just two more stones? Well, we’re not sure. And how was the priest supposed to use them? We don’t know for sure. But here’s what we know. When you read your Old Testament, you’ll find Urim. And Thummim, showing up several times. So, these people knew what to do. You and I are not quite sure. But they knew what to do. So, for example, in Leviticus chapter 8, verse 8, Moses is getting ready to consecrate the priesthood and he places these vestments on Aaron and makes sure that he has the Urim and the Thummim inside the breast piece. And then later in Numbers chapter 27, verse 21, Joshua is taking Moses. And the Lord tells Joshua,

In other words, Aaron no longer has them. Moses is not going to lead these people into the promised land. Joshua will. And now Eleazar is going to have this breast piece with these special stones. Deuteronomy 33, verse 8. Moses charges the whole tribe of Levi. You’re going to be the priests. You have the Urim and the Thummim. God’s given it to you. In 1 Samuel chapter 14, Saul is trying to figure out what to do with Jonathan. And he seeks the counsel of the Urim, asking God to show him what to do. In 1 Samuel 28, verse 6, Saul was looking for the wisdom of God for the nation of Israel. And the Bible says that the Lord did not answer Saul either by dreams, by the Urim, or by the prophets. And then if you’ll fast forward, once Israel is defeated by the Babylonians, they’re exiled to Babylon. They come back. A remnant comes back to Israel to rebuild Jerusalem, rebuild the temple, the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah says in Nehemiah 7, we are waiting on a priest with the Urim and the Thummim. And so, here’s what we know. They were incredibly important to the Jews, but we have no idea how they were used. So, for example, the question that typically seemed to be answered could be answered with a yes or a no. So, some rabbis have taught, some scholars have said that the Urim and the Thummim were different colors. They were colored stones, and the priest could reach inside the breast piece, if you will, and ask God the question, and whichever stone he drew out in his hand would give the answer. Some theologians and rabbis and scholars say no.

What would happen was, whenever the decision was needing to be made, the priest would take his hand inside the breast piece, and he would cast the stones like you cast lots. And then he would read the stones based upon the instructions that they had passed down from one generation to the next. Now, y’all know that casting lots was… It was somewhat normal for the Jews. Y’all remember, even in the New Testament, when the disciples were trying to figure out who to replace Judas with, y’all remember in the book of Acts, they cast lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And then here’s what you’ll see depicted in art. You’ll see, sometimes the Urim and the Thummim are presented artistically, typically like this. You’ll see a priest standing in the presence of God, and he’ll have the breast piece on, and there’ll be a light emanating from the breast piece, the idea that God would either illuminate the Urim or the Thummim, depending upon his answer for the children of Israel. But here’s what I would tell you. All of those were options. We have no idea how they did it. It’s been lost in antiquity. So, here’s what we do know. We do know that these instruments were not used by individual Jews. So, in other words, you couldn’t go see the high priest and say, I’m trying to decide whether I need to buy this piece of property or this piece of property. Would you cast the Urim and the Thummim for me so I could find my answer? That’s not how it worked. This was not for individual guidance. It was only to be used for national guidance. In other words, only when all the people of Israel, under their leadership, were seeking God’s direction about a particular situation. Does that make sense? Only used for national guidance. Only could be used by the high priest. He was the only one that could discern the hand of God in all this. So, typically, when the Jews were seeking God’s will as a nation, and they were asking the high priest for guidance, here are the steps. First, you had to be, you had to check your obedience to the written covenant. So, you started with what was written down already, and the question was, are you obeying what God’s already given you? And God would either bless them or chastise them. And then secondly, if it wasn’t something they could find in the written covenant, they listened to the prophets.

The prophets came and spoke the oracles of God. So, they would try to hear a word from the prophets, and then they would offer up prayer in faith and meet with the high priest, and then the high priest on their behalf would intercede before God and try to determine the decision that God was giving him and all of Israel based upon the Urim and the Thummim. Does that make sense? Okay. Now, with all of that said, it’s shrouded in mystery. We’re not really sure about it all. So, here’s what I would take from it this morning for me and you in 2024. Okay. Here’s what I would say. God, based upon what I, how I read this text and what this says to me is that God desires for his people to seek his leadership and live fully into his will. That’s what we know. That’s evidence of that. God gave them a means, in other words, of making decisions. That says something about God. God wants all of us as his people, all of us, to have a desire to seek his leadership and live into his will. And he’s made it possible for us. In fact, the book of Exodus, if you think about the book of Exodus, it really is a journey of God’s revelation. Exodus is about God revealing himself to us. Think about it. He tells us his name in the book of Exodus. He gives us his presence in the book of Exodus. His glory is on display in the book of Exodus. In other words, his character, his essence. He gives us the law, or at least he begins it in the book of Exodus. He expresses his covenantal relationship with the people of God. He issues his ethical demands. He gives them guidance. God’s revealing his character through his will, his expectations, his covenant, all in the book of Exodus. That’s why this book is so important to us. And what we learn about God is that God’s a God of love. God’s a God of relationship. God is a God who desires fellowship. He calls us to a life of stewardship. He wants us to serve his kingdom, his plan, his will. It’s a beautiful partnership. And ultimately, it will find its fullest expression not in the book of Exodus, but in the person of Jesus. Okay? So with all that said, let’s do this real quickly. What about God’s will? We see one of the ways he demonstrated his will in the Old Testament. What about today? Here’s what I’d say about God’s will for your life. This combination, living in dynamic relationship. God’s word, God’s wisdom, and our willingness. Those are the three important elements to me in determining God’s will for your life. God’s word. Here’s the good thing, y’all. Believe it or not, you have an incredible advantage over Aaron and every high priest in the history of Israel. They had the Urim and the Thummim. Think about that. Think about what you have. You have an incredible advantage because here’s what the Bible teaches. Do you know that in the church, we are all priests?

You know, I’m a Baptist. And I realize being a Baptist right now is a little dicey for some people. But that’s because some Baptists don’t know what a Baptist is anymore. And I’m a Baptist. And I would tell y’all, it takes one to know one is what I would say. And so, I’m a Baptist. And there are things about Baptists that I believe. One of the things that Baptists have historically believed is the priesthood of all believers. That means that every one of us has a relationship with God and we access it through the only high priest and that’s Jesus himself. And we’re all obligated. We’re all obligated to have a relationship with God. Every one of us, every one of us should bear the burdens of the people of God on our shoulders. Every one of us should bear the burdens and the desires of the people of God on our hearts. Every one of us should learn how to discern the will of God for ourselves. It’s our responsibility and we do it in community. But here’s the beautiful thing. We have an incredible advantage over these priests in the Old Testament because think about what we have. First of all, we have the Word of God. We have God’s revelation of himself through the Scripture. The Bible’s not just a really good book. It is. It’s not just a book full of wisdom. It is. The Bible’s actually the Word of God. God has spoken to us. And think about that. Not only do we have that, we have the Word of God and that’s the Lord Jesus himself. So God spoke his Word, yes. And then finally he spoke through his Word, the Lord Jesus. And you’ve got the example of Jesus. You’ve got the teachings of Jesus.

You’ve got the fact that Jesus died on the cross for your sin in your place and made it possible for you to have a relationship with God. And be redeemed from your sin, forgiven for your sin, and rescued from an eternal judgment, separated from him forever. And then not only that, you’re talking about something that would have been foreign to Moses. Not only that, y’all, we have the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. We have the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been given to us as God’s people. We have the witness of the church. 2,000 years of church history. We’ve got a believing community all around us of fellow believers who are walking on this very path. We’re walking on this very same path. And so we have an incredible advantage. And I will just tell you this, God is going to speak to you through his Word. That’s why you and I need to be constantly reading the Scripture. You know, sometimes we only read the Scripture when we need something. Now, come on, y’all. Reading the Bible is how you nourish your soul. You know, you can go a little while without eating and drinking, can’t you? You can probably go longer than you think you could. But sooner or later, guess what? You have to eat and drink. Because if you don’t, you die. Well, guess what happens to your soul? You need that daily nourishment, reading the Scripture, listening to the voice of God. Because here’s what God does as we’re in his Word regularly. God shapes us and changes us and informs us and guides us. And he does something to us. He transforms us through the power of his Word. So we need to be reading the Scripture. And then we have the witness of the Holy Spirit. We have the example of Jesus. And we have the testimony of the church. But you know what I’ve discovered in most, many, many times. When I’m talking to people about the will of God, there are often times where the problem is not in the Word of God, the witness of God, the witness of God’s people. Many times the problem is our inability or unwillingness to surrender to the will of God. That’s where the problem is. Where we receive something from the Lord and it’s just really hard to have our will bent toward his will. When actually that’s what’s supposed to happen. And so when you and I are searching for the will of God, we begin with that sin. We begin with that sense of surrender and submission. We have the right attitude and the right sense about who we are when we come into the Lord’s presence asking for his wisdom. In other words, one of my friends puts it like this. Whenever I’m truly seeking the will of God, he says, I always put my yes on the altar before I know the answer. In other words, I say to the Lord, I don’t know just yet, but here’s my answer. Yes. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I put a maybe on that altar. I’ll put, you know, I’m going to give it some thought. I’m going to give it some consideration and see whether or not you really know what’s best for me. Because you see, I know what’s best for me, right? I, Dennis Wiles, I’m the resident expert on what’s best for Dennis Wiles, right? Because I know everything.

True? No. There’s so much I don’t know. There are so many times when I thought what was best for me was not even close to being what was best for me. I have my will bent and shaped, and it takes time. It’s a journey. It’s a dynamic walk with the Lord, and it requires discipline and faith and grace and courage and submission. But my sense is God’s wisdom, which is revealed through his word, through his people, through his spirit. If you take that, look at God’s word, and here’s what I would tell you. God’s wisdom, the communication of his wisdom through his spirit is never going to lead you to do anything. Do anything contrary to the Bible, because the Bible is the authoritative word of God. And so, the Holy Spirit inspired the scripture. The last thing he’s going to lead you to do is to do something contrary to the scripture. And so, we know he’s going to lead us in concert with that. So, his wisdom, and then my willingness to surrender. Put all that together, and I believe you can discover the will of God. He wants to reveal it to you. In fact, here’s what Paul says about it. This is our focal passage for the week as a church. Romans 12, verse 1.

In other words, after all that God’s done for us, offer your bodies as a living sacrifice. There’s the imagery of the tabernacle. Holy and pleasing to God. This is your true and proper worship. Don’t 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. God’s will is to be proven in life. And so, I would say to you graduates, one of the things that’s about to happen to you, you’re going to make a lot of decisions. You’re going to make a lot of decisions in front of you, a lot of them, little bitty ones and huge ones, and they all add up to a lifetime. And there are many of us in this room who sat where you sat years ago, and we look back over our life, and our life is the culmination of those small decisions and those large decisions. I would just encourage you and all of us, enter into all those decisions with a submissive spirit and seek the will of God and then prove the will of God. Through your surrender, and you’ll find your way on the Jesus way in this old world. And that’s what we’re praying for, for you. Well, let’s pray together.

Father, today we want to thank you for your leadership in our lives. We want to thank you, Lord, that you care enough about us to even offer your leadership and wisdom. That you care enough about us to demonstrate your will. That you care enough about us to have a plan and opportunities for us to find our way on that, in that plan. And we want to thank you for that. And we pray for your wisdom and your direction, Lord, as we seek your will. And may you find our yes already on the altar. And we pray that in the name of Jesus. Amen. Let’s stand together. We’re going to have an invitation. And if you need to respond publicly today,