Wade E. Taylor:
Understanding the Will of God
- Stand in the Presence
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.Romans 8:28
This does not say that all things are good, but that even terrible things (all things – without qualification) can work together to produce "good." This good (God) is not these "things" in themselves, but rather, that the "image" of our Lord Jesus Christ is being wrought into our being, and these "all things" have become a tool to accomplish this.
Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:13
We are to grow into the "measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." We begin our spiritual journey as a "spiritual baby" at the time of our salvation, and then grow toward spiritual maturity. On the Cross, Jesus said, "It is finished." He lived a perfect life and fully accomplished the will of His Father. Thus, Jesus came to full spiritual maturity
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We also are to grow into this level of maturity in which our life "measures" up to His life. At the Judgment Seat of Christ, our life will be measured against His life. To prepare us for this, the Lord works within the daily circumstances of our life experience. Our part is to submit ourselves unconditionally to allow Him to do this, and then cooperate with Him in whatever He may do.
God has made us what we are, creating us in Christ Jesus for the good deeds which are prepared beforehand by God as our sphere of action. Ephesians 2:10 Moffatt Bible
The will of the Lord for us then is not "where" we are to be, or "what" we are to do, but rather, that we will live and function in the place where there is a set of circumstances that will best enable the Lord to accomplish His purpose within us (our being conformed to His image through our yielding to the outworking of His will and purpose for us).
If we rightly understand this, then it can be said that it is possible for us to be "in" the will of God, while seemingly, being "out" of the will of God. This can only happen if our heart is unconditionally set toward the Lord.
Then the Lord is released to use these "all things," whatever they may be, to bring us into spiritual maturity, and also, to prepare us to be brought into the place where He can accomplish a higher purpose through us. But, first we have to be "made ready."
Made Ready
This principle can be seen in the life of Moses.
Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian... Exodus 3:1
Moses knew that he was called to deliver his people, Israel, but in an attempt to fulfill this calling, He failed and fled.
And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds. And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not... Then fled Moses at this saying... Acts 7:22-25, 29
As a result of being rejected, Moses is "ministering" in the wrong place to the wrong people – Jethro's sheep. Today, there are those who are in a similar situation, feeling that although they have missed the best, they are doing the best they are able to do; or there are some who have listened to the enemy telling them that they missed, and have given up.
No matter how "out of place" we may feel, if we will desire "something more" and push forward, the Lord will bring us into the level of spiritual maturity so He can use us in the outworking of His purposes. Thus, these are "in the will of God" while being "out of the will of God."
Moses clearly fits in this second group. He was not feeling sorry for himself, nor was he sitting and doing nothing. The original vision was still alive within him, and he was doing the best he could with all that was available to him.
Moses was called to the "sheep" of Israel, but instead, he was faithfully leading the "sheep" of the priest of Midian toward the mountain of God. This moved the heart of the Lord, who made an arrangement (a burning bush) wherein He could meet with Moses. Thus, all this was "working together" for good.
Seemingly, being "out" of the will of God, Moses was "in" the will of God, as he was being brought to the end of his own ability, which prepared him for his meeting the Lord at a "burning bush."
Willing To "Turn Aside"
The Lord revealed Himself to Moses in a flame of fire. Thus the bush burned, but was not consumed. It can be said that it is yet burning and available to us – if our attitude is as Moses' was, and we become willing to turn aside into the Lord's manifested presence.
It would have been easier for Moses to remain in the wilderness with these sheep than to go back and face his past failure. There was no one in the wilderness to whom he could complain so they would feel sorry for him, nor to criticize what he was doing. Jethro's "sheep" were obviously much more cooperative and appreciative than the "flock" of Israel had been.
However, the intention of the Lord is always to prepare us, not only for us to succeed where we had failed, but also for us to go "further." Therefore, the Lord told Moses that he was to go back and face Pharaoh, to bring deliverance to the very people from whom he had fled.
Because the Lord did not expect Moses to accomplish this in his own strength, as he had before attempted, he was instructed by the Lord to "take off his shoes."
Moses had walked as far as he could go in his own strength and ability. Now, he would walk in the strength (shoes) of the Lord.
This "intervention" did not take place until Moses had come to the full end of his ability, and was willing to turn aside, as an acknowledgement of his need.
And Moses said, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt." Exodus 3:3
According to most modern teaching, the burning bush is seen as being in front of us. They say that all we need is more faith, or some new methodology. Rather, the burning bush was off to the side of Moses' progression toward the mountain of God and required a simple action on his part.
He had to "notice," and then "turn" from what he was doing, and submit himself to the Lord.
The fact that this "bush" burned, but was not consumed, means that it had been there for a long time, unnoticed by Moses as he pushed toward the mountain of God. Finally, Moses became aware that his ability or methodology was not getting him to the goal he desired, and noticed this bush, as it burned.
This concept of "turning aside" is very close to the heart of the Lord, who greatly desires that we both notice and respond to His presence.
My Beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, He standeth behind our wall, He looketh forth at the windows, shewing Himself through the lattice. Song of Solomon 2:9
"He standeth behind our wall."
The Lord waits in the shadows, to see if we will notice Him, that He might come into our circumstances to bring us into the higher level of His purposes for us. This ability to perceive, and the discipline to respond to His presence, does not come quickly, or easily.
It requires a "coming to the end" of our ways, and spending quality time in His presence in order to further develop our sensitivity to the spiritual realm, and to the manifested presence of our Lord.
If need be, the Lord has a "Jethro" and some special "sheep" who will help accomplish this in our lives, if we will acknowledge that we have come to the end of our abilities and ways, and cry out to the Lord that we need "something more" beyond that which we presently possess.
Blessed Are the Poor In Spirit
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Matthew 5:3
This means that we have become absolutely destitute concerning any ability that we may have and, in desperation, have become willing to turn aside. Only then can we partake of the provision of the Kingdom.
"Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4
When we seemingly become stranded in the wilderness, where none of our "giftings" are able to function, we will mourn. We cannot help it, but the Lord understands and will comfort us. This "comfort" will result from the impartation that we receive from the "burning bush" of His presence, by which we receive the enabling grace of His ability, in exchange for the loss of our abilities.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Matthew 5:5
Only now can we face and overcome the "Pharaohs" in our lives – all those things that actively hinder us from fulfilling the call of God.
If we will turn aside and stand in the presence of this "bush" that yet burns, and receive the impartation that is available to us, this world will yet be turned to the Lord.
Wade Taylor
Wade Taylor Ministries / Parousia Ministries
Wade Taylor Ministries / Parousia Ministries
Wade Taylor graduated to Heaven on February 29, 2012. He served others as a teacher and spiritual father for over 50 years. He was respected and loved by many for his quality of spirit and walk with his Lord. He was an anointed author, bringing forth deep truths of the Spirit with a clarity and simplicity that drew the reader up into a closer walk with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Nancy Taylor Warner, daughter of Wade Taylor, spent most of her childhood in a Bible school environment due to the calling on her father's life. In 1981, the Lord called her to support his message and she since has functioned in a variety of positions. Today, in response to her dad's wishes and the encouragement of its board of directors, she now oversees Wade Taylor Ministries.
Nancy travels at times to speak and pray for others. She particularly enjoys teaching on intimacy with God and other truths that relate to our spiritual growth. She brings an expectation for the visitation at hand, and prays for the life and ministry of Christ to be imparted by the Holy Spirit each time she ministers.
Nancy's special gift of relating to and loving people stems from her own love for Jesus and His Kingdom. Her spiritual life messages flow into the hearts and spirits of those to whom she ministers.
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