Introduction
This series examines what the Bible teaches about Godly decision making.
In part 1 we learned that it is important for believers to know what they believe.
We studied Christian servanthood, and its implications for Godly decision making in part 2.
The third part of the series examined how God and the Christian are one, while lesson 4 taught about how prayer is essential for Godly decision making.
In this final lesson in the series, we are going to look at the role that Christian separation plays when it comes to making Godly decisions.
Remember That You Are to Be Set Apart
When you are faced with difficult decisions in trying times it helps to remember that you are to be set apart. (1 Thess. 4:7) But what does it mean to be set apart?
It means understanding that you are not a citizen of this world, but of heaven. (Phil. 3:20)“The things that last and the decisions that really matter are those that are made in light of eternity.”
Therefore, you must look at things happening around you and frame your decisions around an eternal perspective that is heaven focused instead of earth bound.
The things that last and the decisions that really matter are those that are made in light of eternity.
This is true for each and every believer. We must seek God’s kingdom first and everything else will take care of itself. (Matt. 6:33)
Being set apart also coincides with being God’s servant and being one with him, both of which we learned about in our previous lessons in this series.
Remember, God is the one who we owe our true allegiance too, he is our eternal king both now and in the life to come. (1 Tim. 1:17)
Thus, our decisions are to align with what God likes, and with what he dislikes. (Jn. 14:23)
Put another way, our actions are to be different from those that come naturally to us and that are so commonly displayed in the world.“Our decisions are to align with what God likes, and with what he dislikes.”
This is of course contrary to what mankind naturally wants; which are those things that are in opposition to God. (Ps. 51:5, Ps. 58:3, Rom. 3:10-11)
What then does God deem good and what does he consider wrong?
According to Paul, things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report; virtuous, and that give praise to God are to be our focus and are the things that we are to frame our decisions around. (Phil 4:8)
Moreover, we are to abhor evil and cling to what is good and to never think of ourselves too highly. (Rom. 12:9, Rom. 12:3)
Christians are to avoid adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and more. (Gal. 5:19-21)“Its not just doing the right things that matters; keeping our hearts and minds pure also matters.”
Each of these actions are internally motivated by our hearts. Jesus said in fact that the things that defile a man come from the heart. (Matt. 15:18)
Therefore, its not just doing the right things that matters; keeping our hearts and minds pure also matters.
It is no coincidence then that we are commanded to present our bodies before God as a living sacrifice that is holy and acceptable unto him. (Rom. 12:1)
Doing such is our reasonable service because God made us and we serve him. (Ps. 100:3, Rom. 12:1, Jer. 1:5, Rev. 4:11)
Remember, if you are a believer you are God’s temple; God dwells in you through the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 3:16, 2 Cor. 1:22)
As such, we are not to make decisions that result in us sinning against God by defiling ourselves. (Prov. 6:16-19, Mk. 7:23)“Christian separation ought to also inform the decisions we make regarding the company we keep.”
Therefore, being set apart has particular relevance to decisions pertaining to matters of health.
Christian separation ought to also inform the decisions we make regarding the company we keep, in particular we are not to fellowship with the darkness of the world. (Jn. 17:15, Eph. 5:11)
This does not mean that we are to go out of the world and live as hermits, but it does mean that we need to carefully consider who we associate with and to what degree.
Conclusion
In this series we examined what the Bible teaches about Godly decision making.
We learned that it is important for believers to know what they believe, and that Christian servanthood has great implications for Godly decision making.
We learned about how our oneness with Christ and prayer to him have paramount roles in making Godly decisions.
And today we saw how Christian separation is important to making Godly decisions.
In the end, believers are born of God, and are commanded to come out from among the world and be separate. (Jn. 1:12-13, 2 Cor. 6:17)
Therefore, may we make decisions with that in mind. May we love what God loves, dislike what he dislikes, present our bodies to him as his temple, be mindful of who we associate with and always keep our eyes focused on our eternal home.
Soli Deo gloria!
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