What Does God Want?

One of the things that I hear frequently from people who come to our church, or from others who I come into contact with throughout the week, is that they don’t know what God wants from them.

It seems like a pretty straightforward question and I really don’t understand why people don’t know the answer. The Bible spells it out pretty plainly. In fact, the Bible answers that question in three different places through three different people. Take a look at these verses:

Micah 6:8

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Luke 10:27

“And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’”

James 1:27

“Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

Do you see the common thread in these verses? They don’t share the same precise words, but the sentiment behind them is exactly identical. God wants us to grow closer to Him and He wants us to care for the needy. He wants justice, mercy and love mixed with a pursuit of a relationship with Him. That is what God wants from us.

Let’s spend the next few days looking more closely at those verses. We will see how they all express the same thought: we are called to personal holiness and we have a responsibility to our fellow man. We’ll see that God makes it absolutely clear as to what He expects from you and me.

Mark 10:17

“...a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”