1. “That you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect” (Rom. 12:2).
Understanding the will of God involves proving. To prove is to search for the good, well pleasing, and perfect will of God in everything. In order to prove the will of God, we need to stand in a position of consecration, to not follow the age of the world, to be renewed in our mind according to the Word of God, the Bible, and to understand the sense in our spirit and the condition of our environment. Searching out God’s will in everything involves discerning the motive, goal, and nature of things. Therefore, we must stand on God’s side in the reality of our consecration, be absolutely outside this age, and see God’s view according to a mind that has been renewed and taught by God. We must always use the clear teachings, principles, and examples of the Bible to measure and prove the will of God and to see whether or not our ways are one with the will of God. We must use the sense in our spirit to test and judge what is according to the will of God. We also should consider whether or not the environment confirms what we have realized. If we are willing to prove the will of God in this manner, it will not be difficult for us to understand the will of God.
1. “If anyone resolves to do His will, he will know” (John 7:17).
If anyone resolves—has a heart—to do God’s will, he will know God’s will. If we want to understand the will of God, we must not only have a heart to understand but also a heart to do His will. God is not willing to reveal His will to those who do not have the heart to understand, nor does He want to reveal His will to those who have the heart to understand but not a heart to do it. Only those who have the heart to both understand and do the will of God can gain a revelation of God’s will from Him. Therefore, we must resolve to do God’s will if we want to understand the will of God.
1. “Abraham walked with them to send them away. And Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (Gen. 18:16-17).
A heart to understand and prove the will of God and even the resolve to do the will of God are not enough; we must spend time before God. We must walk with God. God once visited Abraham with two angels. God told him about many things, but He did not tell him about His decision to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and to save Lot. It was only when Abraham went with God and the angels to bring them on their way that God finally told Abraham of His will. He said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (v. 17). If Abraham had not gone with God to bring Him on His way, God’s will would have remained hidden from him. Abraham’s going with God to bring Him on His way caused God to open to Abraham to let him know what was hidden in His heart. This is similar to when a person goes to a friend’s house and converses with him for quite a while but is unwilling to tell him the true reason until it is time to say good-bye. The friend accompanies him to the gate and, not wanting to leave him, goes with him for a while to bring him on his way. Then the visitor usually tells his friend what is really on his heart. We usually tell what is on our heart only to friends with whom we have a close, affectionate friendship. This is the situation of Genesis 18; Abraham was a friend of God, and they had a close, affectionate friendship. Consequently, God opened to Abraham and spoke what was on His heart to him. This shows that we must walk with God and have a close, affectionate friendship with God to know and understand His will.
1. “Sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to His word” (Luke 10:39).
If we want to understand the Lord’s word, there must be a close, affectionate friendship between us and God. We must also learn to listen to the Lord’s word. Mary not only sat at the Lord’s feet but also listened to His word. The Lord’s will is often expressed through His word. Thus, if we want to know how to understand the Lord’s will, we must let Him speak and we must listen to His speaking. When Abraham was fellowshipping with God, he let God finish speaking (Gen. 18:33). He listened to God until God finished speaking, so he clearly and thoroughly understood the will of God. Often we do not allow the Lord to speak, and we do not listen to Him in our fellowship with Him. Even when we let the Lord speak and we listen to Him, we often do not allow Him to finish speaking and we do not listen until He has finished. Therefore, it is difficult to clearly know the will of God. Mary sat at the Lord’s feet, but she was not like us. She allowed the Lord to speak, and she listened to Him. She also allowed the Lord to finish speaking, and she listened until He was finished. Therefore, she understood the Lord’s prophetic revelation of His death and poured pure ointment on Him ahead of time, which He praised. The other disciples could not understand the Lord’s will concerning His death, because they did not listen to the Lord in this way. Listening to the Lord’s word is absolutely necessary to understanding the will of God.