Sermon26-32 Ep5 "Understand What the Will of the Lord Is" Guide

Ephesians 5:15-18 theme verse Ephesians 5:17

The praise and honor and glory be to our heavenly Father who seeks true worshipers who worship Him with the Spirit and truth.

In this twenty seventh Sunday of the year 2026, I pray that His grace of the application of all the benefits which Jesus earned for our salvation and the glorious ministry of the proclamation of His kingdom by the power of the Holy Spirit may be full in our life. Last week, on the fifth Sunday of ordinary season after Pentecost, through Mt. 6, we meditated on the Lord’s prayer which our Lord taught us to pray, yet on this sixth Sunday of Ordinary season after Pentecost, through Eph 5, we would like to think about what the will of God for us is and how we can know it together.

1)    The Epistle of the Ephesians, from which we read today's text, was written by Paul while he was under house arrest in Rome around AD 60-61 to the leaders of the Ephesian church to help them solve various problems they faced.

First, after seeing the new believers in Ephesus, who had become Christians being saved by God from a background of animism, goddess worship, magical practices, and other various religions, were unable to resist the temptation to hold on to idols and magic because of their fear to the power of evil spirits that they had previously believed in so that Paul wanted to convince them that the power of God, who is exalted above every name, could defeat all the power of darkness.

Secondly, since Christians participated with Christ already in his death and resurrection, he exhorted them to get rid of their immoral lifestyle which they had before becoming Christians, such as drunkenness, sexual immorality, lying, stealing, bitterness, and other vices, to live a new life of love, light, and wisdom as imitators of God.

And lastly, recognizing the increase of the tension between the Jews and the Gentiles due to the influx of the Gentiles into the church, he wanted to exhort them that since Christians joined in new humanity created by the blood shed on the cross by Christ, we were reconciled to each other as we did to God to be united as one.

2)    And just as Paul's letters can generally be divided into two parts, I mean, a theological part and a practical part.

So, first, in the theological part of chapters 1-3, Paul says that Christians have been redeemed from the tyranny of the spirit of darkness and become new humanity created in Christ through which  we can be reconciled with God and have peace with each other and then are being built together as the dwelling place of God in the Holy Spirit while they were called to proclaim the gospel to the rulers and authorities. And then, Paul prays that God will strengthen their inner self with the power, that they will be rooted in love, and that they will be filled with all that is God.

And then in the practical part of chapters 4-6, he says that thereby the Gentiles and the Jews have to be now united with each other, practicing the truth in love, growing up to Christ in all things as imitators of God, and putting on the new self, walking in love and light, and obeying to the Lord’s will by walking in wisdom to know it. And he exhorted them to be filled with the Holy Spirit, to submit to each other, while between husband and wife, love and obedience to each other, between children and parents, Children have to obey while parents upbring them righteously and also between masters and servants, the servant have to obey while the masters respect them.

3)    Among them, today’s text instructs the Ephesians to cast off the "old self" and put on the "new self" (4:17–24), and as imitators of God, to walk in love and light (4:25–5:14). And then in order to know how to walk, by walking in wisdom, he exhorts them to understand and know and obey to the will of the Lord, being filled with the Holy Spirit.

To elaborate it further, because of the first sin in Eden, we all were once spiritually dead, living in sin as children of disobedience, following the ways of the world, under the control of the spirit of darkness. However, through God’s grace, having been saved and having cast off the old self and put on the new self created in righteousness and true holiness through regeneration, we are now called to live as imitators of God so that since God is love, we have to walk in love as His children and also since God is light, we have to walk in the light, casting off the darkness of sin and living consecrated, to shile God’s light to the world as holy saints so that by looking carefully how we walk, we have to discern the will of the Lord walking in wisdom and being filled with the Holy Spirit to obey to it to please God.

4)    Therefore, we would like to learn few lessons through today’s text together. First, I think we need to understand what the Lord’s will, I mean, the will of God is in today’s text.

Kevin DeYoung, In his book “Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will”, said there are three will of God in the Bible. I mean,

a) God’s will of decree,

b) God’s will of desire, and

c) God’s will of direction.

Here God’s will of decree referes what God has ordained so that everything that comes to pass is according to God’s sovereign decree. And all that He decrees will ultimately come to pass. God’s will of decree cannot be thwarted. It is immutable and fixed as God is sovereign over all things—nature and nations, animals and angels, spirits and Satan, wonderful people and wicked people, even disease and death. To steal a line from Augustine, “The will of God is the necessity of all things.”

Second, there is God’s will of desire. This refers to what He has commanded, I mean, the way He wants us to live. In short, it means living according to the Ten Commandments, or, more broadly, living in accordance with God’s law. So, we bear responsibility for our lives based on whether or not we obey this will  of God and walk in God’s way.

And finally, there is God’s will of direction. This relates to the questions we frequently ask in our daily lives such as "What does God want me to do in my life?" "What career should I pursue?" "Where should I live?" etc.. As such we seek to know God’s specific, individual plans and guidance regarding the who, what, where, when, and how of our lives; this is what is known as God’s will of direction.

Therefore, the will of God spoken in today’s text can be understood as both God’s will of desire and God’s will of direction.

5)    Regarding this will of God, Paul instructs us in today’s test that “look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil,” and “understand what the will of the Lord is.”

Here, the phrase “look carefully how you walk” (or “see circumspectly”) corresponds to the Greek word “akribōs (ἀκριβῶς)”, which implies looking around attentively or proceeding with caution and precision and its opposite is walking carelessly, without proper guidance or prior deliberation.

And furthermore, the Greek word “syniēmi (συνίημι)”, translated here as “understand,” carries the meaning of not merely grasping a concept intellectually but truly perceiving and realizing the truth.

Therefore, through this passage, we can know that in all matters, we have to carefully reflect upon and discern what the will of God and act accordinly to please God.

6)    However, the problem is, as Paul implies in today’s text to “walk in wisdom,” that it is not easy to understand God’s will.

I mean, as Psalm 19:7 says “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple,” God has enabled us to know God’s will through the words of the Bible.

Yet, since the Bible provides all the answers to all human situations, there are sometimes words that seem to contradict each other.

For example, in 2 Corinthians 6:14 it says, “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers,” which some interpret that we should not associate with unbelievers, while 1 Corinthians 7:12-14 says, if one of the couple believes and the other does not, then the believers should not abandon the un-believing spouse if he or she prefers to live with the believing spouse so that the unbelieving spouse can be sanctified by the believing spouse and their children can be cleansed which others interpret that believers can live with unbelieving spouses.

Therefore, as such against all the possible human situation, we should have wisdom in how to apply certain Bible words to them.

So, in the New Testament era, the Holy Spirit came and dwells in the hearts of believers, not only reminding us of and teaching us the words appropriate to the situation, as John 14:26 says, “the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance everything I have said to you.”

And also, for those of us who are weak flesh, God gives us the desire and the will to live according to God's good pleasing will, just as Philippians 2:13 says “It is God who works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure.”

And then as Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths,” if we come to the Lord with a heart of faith and obedience, He will guide us according to His will.

Nevertheless, if we feel that we lack wisdom, then wisdom will be given to us when we ask it as James 1:5 says, “If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”

7)    In addition, even today’s text says, “Be filled with the Holy Spirit,” with contrast of “getting drunk.” The difference between these two is that:

First, the two differ in the nature and direction of dominance. In other words, alcohol 'controls' people, lowering their self-control and making them follow the desires of the flesh that are hidden, while the Holy Spirit enables people to know the will of the Lord to obey it with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Second, there is a contrast between spiritual identity and outcome. I mean, as Paul said, drunkards cannot inherit the kingdom of God, while the Holy Spirit leads us to salvation.

And finally, there is a difference in the actual change. I mean, while drunkenness leads us to sinful behavior, the Holy Spirit grows us and leads us to maturity as we obey to His guidance with joy and encouragement.

8)    In that sense, the phrase “being filled with the Holy Spirit” ultimately refers to the obeying to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Yet, we should not understand that this fullness of the Holy Spirit is not, that as we receive more of the Holy Spirit, so the Holy Spirit gradually fills us more until we are filled to 100%.

In fact, it means a state in which we completely obey the guidance of the Holy Spirit when we do something as “being filled with the Holy Spirit” can be understood as “walking in step with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.”

For example, if we say that today we lived 50% full of the Holy Spirit, this does not mean that we compromised only 50% of the will of the Holy Spirit when doing certain things during the day.

Rather, 50% of everything we decided and did today was in full obedience to the will of the Holy Spirit, while the remaining 50% was compromised with our will or living according to our own will fully. Because if I compromise some of my will with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it is actually 0% obedience to the Spirit from the perspective of the Holy Spirit. As whether 10% or 90% of dirty water is mixed with clean water, the mixed is already unclean.

Therefore, “being filled with the Holy Spirit” should be understood as synonymous with obeying completely to the guidance of the Holy Spirit at every moment.

9)    That’s why Galatians 5:25 says, "If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit," as this implies that living by the Spirit is akin to an army marching in formation—moving in perfect step with the Holy Spirit. As such by utilizing the wisdom God grants us in every moment, we can discern His will through the guidance of Scripture and the indwelling Holy Spirit; through obedience, we can then please God and fulfill His purposes. Therefore, I hope that throughout this year, we may all read and memorize God's Word and remain sensitive to the leading of the indwelling Holy Spirit. May we walk in God-given wisdom, discerning and obeying His will to please Him, and ultimately become people who fulfill God's will here on earth.

Key Questions as Small Group Activity

Q1 Through today’s text, we became to know that we have to walk in love and light according to His pleasing will so that we have to walk in wisdom to know the will of God for us. So after reflecting our life and checking whether we are living in His will after discerning it with the wisdom God gives us, I hope we could share our thought and experience with our team members together to learn from each other.

Q2 And also, we became to know that God not only gives us the wisdom to understand the will of God but also leads us through the Holy Spirit. So after reflecting our life and checking whether we truly live in obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit, I hope we can share our thought and experience with our team members together to learn from each other.

Love you. Thank you. God bless you.

Prayer Note

Dear ( God’s attribute which you found Today ) God!

Thanks for ( something you received through the sermon or  even during the week )

Praise, gratitude and glory be to You, Lord!

Today, I realized my sin (pains) that ( the sin God reminded through the sermon ),

please forgive (or heal) me and help me not to repeat ( the sins you recognized   ).

I learned that ( something you learned through the sermon                                    )

Please help me to live in that (  learned way of life                                                )

I pray in ( Jesus’ attribute you find ) Jesus’ name. Amen.