Will You Let God Choose for You? (Part 1)

My final bit of advice for those who want God’s best is to let God choose for you.

I have been deeply impressed by a statement made by John the Baptist:

“John answered and said, ‘A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.’” (John 3:27 NKJV)

John’s disciples were reporting to him that the one whom he declared to be the Messiah was getting more disciples than he was, and they were expecting that somehow John would get upset about this. But he said, in effect, “So what? A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.” Many preachers, churches, and religious groups often get upset if somebody else gets more church members, wins more converts, or has a larger ministry. But I think we need to cultivate that attitude of John, that a man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.

At one time in my ministry, I realized I needed to learn that lesson very carefully. As I meditated on it, I said, “Lord, are you sure that’s right? I see a lot of people getting things, and I don’t see any evidence that they were given from heaven.”

The Holy Spirit said to me, “There’s a difference between grabbing and receiving.” That opened my eyes! I saw so many people, Christians included, busy grabbing, out for all they could get. Many times they were ruthless and unethical in their dealings with fellow Christians and with their fellow human beings. They were just out for what they could get. And God said to me, “That’s only grabbing. Whatever you get by grabbing, you will not have forever.”

The only thing you will ultimately keep is what has been given to you from heaven. So, why go through all that labor and toil to grab and to get something that you will not be allowed to keep? Why not rest, turn your face toward God, and say, “God, show me what it is your good plea-sure to give me”?

Jesus said to His disciples, “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32 NKJV). Brothers and sisters, if we have the kingdom, why do we have to grab? We do not get the kingdom because we grab for it; we get the kingdom because it is God’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom. We must learn to rest for a little while from grabbing and be willing to see what God wants to give. Many times when we grab and have that grabbing attitude, we are not in a condition to be able to receive what God is freely offering to us.

I spend much of the year in Israel, and there is a phrase that I hear so often: “I’ve got a right to this; it’s mine!” That is a natural way to think, but it is not the way to think in the kingdom of God. In the kingdom of God, we say, “God, my Father, what is it your good pleasure to give me?” That is the only thing that matters. That is the only thing that is permanent.