To see if you have grasped this idea, mark the following statements true or false
F 1. Human interpretations of my experiences are an effective way to know and follow God.
2. I should always evaluate my experiences based on the truths I find in the Word of God.
T 3. I may get a distorted understanding of God if I do not check my experiences against the truths of Scripture.
4. I can trust God to work in my life in similar ways that I see Him working throughout the Scriptures.
Read the following Scriptures about God's (Jesus') call for people to follow Him. Write the names of those who were called to follow without being given much detail about what the future would hold for them.
18As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
19"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." 20At once they left their nets and followed him.
- Simon Peter & Andrew
21Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
- James & John
9As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
- Matthew
9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest
2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6"Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!"
"Yes, Lord," he answered.
11The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
13"Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your people in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."
15But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."
17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.
- Saul (The Apostle Paul)
17In his defense Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working." …
19Jesus gave them this answer: "Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.
- Who is always working? God the Father and Jesus, too.
- How much can the Son do by Himself? Nothing.
- What does the Son do? Only what he sees the Father doing, and He does whatever the Father is doing.
- Why does the Father show the Son what He is doing? Because the Father loves the Son.
Jesus' Example:
- The Father has been working right up to now
- Now God has Me working.
- I do nothing on My own initiative.
- I watch to see what the Father is doing.
- I do what I see the Father is already doing.
- You see, the Father loves Me.
- He shows Me everything that He, Himself, is doing.
- God is always at work around you.
- God pursues a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal.
- God invites you to become involved with Him in His work.
- God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.
- God's invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action.
- You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing.
- You come to know God by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you.
God is always at work around me.
What was the most meaningful statement or Scripture you read today?
What is God's will for my life? is not the right question. I think the right question is what is God's will? … The focus needs to be on God, not my life.
Reword the statement or Scripture into a prayer of response to God.
Dear Lord, help me to ask the right question. Help my focus to be on You and Your will rather than on me. I know that in doing this I will find my life's truest and deepest meaning!
What does God want you to do in response to today's study?
Pray the above prayer regularly; focus on what God is doing rather than on what I am working on and where I want to work.
Summary Statements
- I will look to see what God says and how He works in the Scriptures. I will make my decisions and evaluate my experiences based on biblical principles.
- The Bible is my guide for faith and practice.
- The right question is, What is God's will?
- Watch to see where God is working and join Him.
- God is always at work around me.
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