Ephesians: God’s Will

How Can I Know God’s Will?

¹⁵ Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. ¹⁸ Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,

Ephesians 5:15-18 (NIV)

In this part of the letter, Paul continues to write to the churches about the importance of how they live their lives. They were fairly new followers of Jesus and were immersed in a culture that was uncaring at best, and hostile at times. Earlier in the letter Paul has focused on the change in their relationships to one another and the importance of unity. He has reminded them that they are radically different people than they had been, and that they need to grow into this new role quickly. They were light in a dark world. In this passage they would have understood the need to be careful and wise in every encounter. There simply wasn’t a way to ease into this new life. The world they lived in wouldn’t allow it.

The church in the Western world has enjoyed a cordial relationship with the culture at large for much of the last few centuries. People were tolerant and even supportive of the Christian worldview. Church was seen to be a good thing for society. It didn’t seem necessary to be careful or to make the most of our opportunities. Society was progressing and we had time to get things right. The last handful of years have moved us back toward the kind of environment Paul’s original audience experienced. The world is hostile to the Christian worldview, and quick to criticize the slightest slip.

The message in this passage is that we need to know what we’re supposed to be doing, what God wants us to do. We call this knowing the will of God. That we can actually know what God wants us to do, and that we can then do it is a well-established principle in the Bible. Romans 12:2 calls for a renewal of our minds to enable us to know God’s will. Paul prays in Colossians 1:9 that his hearers would be filled with the knowledge of his will. The writer in Hebrews 13:21 prays that his readers will be equipped “with every good thing to do his will”

This principle is most relevant to those of us in today’s church who are drifting through life, not actively doing evil, but just going through the motions of being a church member. We don’t worry too much about God’s will because we can just imitate the people around us and stay out of trouble. We would do well to hear Paul’s warning, “the days are evil” and we can’t afford to be foolishly filling our lives with nonsense. We need to make the most of every opportunity to do the work God has for us. Time’s a-wastin’ y’all!