(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to
each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted.)
We face options everyday in the decisions we make. Some decisions test our character, and we can look back with satisfaction when we choose well.
The psalms come in a variety of types for a variety of uses, mostly in worship.1 There are...
* XXXV. The Foremost Concession
...which settles for...
By giving man freedom to choose (albeit limited), God makes possible, even probable, that some of man's choices will be at odds with the divine plan. Hence, there may be a distinction between God's perfect (or prescriptive) will (the command of God) and His permissive will (the concession of God), between what He approves (prefers) and what He allows (permits).3
Believers should, of course, seek to fulfill God's will at all times and in all things.4 In practice, however, the ideal is difficult to achieve, and God may make allowances for the struggle by accepting something less than perfection. The Bible contains several examples.5
It was a rocky relationship. Jeffrey was not really interested in settling down. The baby came, but the old girlfriend never left. When Jeffrey strayed, he and Jackie had a big fight. Jackie thought the way to keep him was the same way she got him. She got pregnant again. This, of course, did not solve the problem, nor was his extra-marital affair their only point of disagreement. Jeffrey was not careful with money, often placing his personal desires over the needs of his young family. Still, Jackie was determined to do what was necessary to stay together, but the pattern she set was not the solution. Five children later, Jackie realized she had made a mistake ever getting involved with Jeffrey. By then, however, it was too late. God had granted her desire but sent leanness to her soul.
How can you avoid settling for less than God's perfect will? ...Perhaps the most important way is to focus your desires accordingly, not letting what you want override what God wants for you, especially when you pray. What kinds of petitions should you make, and what kind of answers should you expect? Are there good requests you can be confident will have good results? . . . What attracts God's attention and invites His positive response is wholehearted devotion to Him alone. You can demonstrate that devotion by following the...
Amidst all the examples in scripture, there are specific statements about the prayers God answers. He answers the petition of the righteous, who meet three criteria. (We touched on these earlier, in The Foremost Communication.)
When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they were not satisfied with God's provision of manna. They wanted something different, they wanted meat, and they prayed accordingly. He granted their request, but it was The Foremost Concession, which settles for God's permissive will rather than His perfect will. When that is the choice before you, you must not settle for less when you can strive for the best.
Having considered The Foremost Concession, we will look next at The Foremost Convulsion, which displays the pageantry of God, in Matt 24:29-30.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
The college faculty members were in their annual planning meeting when, suddenly, an angel appeared. Addressing the Dean, the angel said, "I will grant you one of three requests. You may ask for infinite wisdom, infinite wealth, or infinite health." The Dean thought for a minute, then replied, "Wisdom." "So be it," the angel responded and disappeared. In the silence that followed, the Dean sat thoughtfully, saying nothing and staring off into the distance. Finally, one of the other faculty members exclaimed, "Do you have anything to say? What words of wisdom can you offer us?" The Dean replied... "I should have taken the money."Some decisions test our character, and we can look back with satisfaction when we choose well...or not. In certain cases, what we should do is clear, because God's will is clear. In other cases, what we should do is not clear, not because God's will is unclear but because we want something different and assume He will not mind. Still, what God permits to us may not be what He prefers for us, and it may actually represent The Foremost Concession.
The psalms come in a variety of types for a variety of uses, mostly in worship.1 There are...
- Psalms for when life is good.
- Psalms for when life is great.
- Psalms for when life is tough.
* XXXV. The Foremost Concession
...which settles for...
- The permission of God (Ps 106:15)
Ps 106:15 So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease upon them.
Ps 106:15 (KJV) And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.The author of this psalm is requesting God's favor, realizing, though, that he does not deserve it, especially given his ancestors' unappreciative behavior in the past.
- When the Israelites were leaving Egypt, rather than being grateful for their freedom and trusting God for His (future) protection, they rebelled.
Ps 106:7b ...they rebelled by...the Red Sea. 8a Yet he saved them.... 11 The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them survived.
- When the Israelites were in the wilderness, rather than being grateful for their food (manna) and trusting God for His (future) provision, they complained.
The psalmist is recalling the event Moses records in Num 11, where the Israelites kept wailing, "Give us meat to eat!" (v. 13b). Eventually, God granted their request.Ps 106:14a In the desert they gave in to their craving.... 15 So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease upon them.
Num 11:31a Now a wind went out from the LORD and drove quail in from the sea.... 32a All that day and night and all the next day the people went out and gathered quail. 33 But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague.The psalmist's point for his readers, including you, is that...
1. Your request may present itself to be desirable.but...
2. Your request may prove itself to be disastrous.This passage may be the source of the saying, "Be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it." It also illustrates what appears several times in scripture...
The Differences between God's Perfect Will and His Permissive Will2
By giving man freedom to choose (albeit limited), God makes possible, even probable, that some of man's choices will be at odds with the divine plan. Hence, there may be a distinction between God's perfect (or prescriptive) will (the command of God) and His permissive will (the concession of God), between what He approves (prefers) and what He allows (permits).3
Believers should, of course, seek to fulfill God's will at all times and in all things.4 In practice, however, the ideal is difficult to achieve, and God may make allowances for the struggle by accepting something less than perfection. The Bible contains several examples.5
- The difference about family:
- God's perfect will was monogamy (Gen 2:24), but His permissive will allowed polygamy (Deut 21:15).
- The difference about monarchy:
- God's perfect will was David as king (2 Sam 7:16), but His permissive will allowed Saul as king (1 Sam 8:19).
- The difference about eternity:
In Num 11, it was...
- God's perfect will was man's salvation (1 Tim 2:4), but His permissive will allowed man's condemnation (Rom 2:5).
- The difference about diet:
Settling for what God permits rather than striving for what God prefers often results in trouble, be it a loss of divine favor and the failure to reach one's potential:
- God's perfect will (in the wilderness) was only manna (Exod 16:35), but His permissive will allowed quail (Num 11:4,31).
- Abraham's settling for God's permissive will in his family (by taking Hagar) led to generations of conflict.
- Israel's settling for God's permissive will in its monarchy (by crowning Saul) led to years of civil war.
- People's settling for God's permissive will in their diet led to disease.
The very heart and spirit of a man, when bent only or supremely on the satisfaction of its earthly desires and appetites, is always dried up and withered. It becomes a lean, shrunk, miserable thing, always craving more food, yet drawing thence no nourishment.... (Perowne 1989:261)There is often a cost to settling for what God permits rather than striving for what God prefers. Jackie, a young woman, was very interested in Jeffrey, a young man. He was not, however, as enamored of her as she was of him. Moreover, there was competition. She knew about another young woman who was also interested in him. Jackie, however, was persistent. She wanted Jeffrey and decided she would secure his affection...by getting pregnant. They got married, against her mother's counsel, whose own union had ended in divorce. Jackie thought she and Jeffrey would be different. They would live happily ever after.
It was a rocky relationship. Jeffrey was not really interested in settling down. The baby came, but the old girlfriend never left. When Jeffrey strayed, he and Jackie had a big fight. Jackie thought the way to keep him was the same way she got him. She got pregnant again. This, of course, did not solve the problem, nor was his extra-marital affair their only point of disagreement. Jeffrey was not careful with money, often placing his personal desires over the needs of his young family. Still, Jackie was determined to do what was necessary to stay together, but the pattern she set was not the solution. Five children later, Jackie realized she had made a mistake ever getting involved with Jeffrey. By then, however, it was too late. God had granted her desire but sent leanness to her soul.
How can you avoid settling for less than God's perfect will? ...Perhaps the most important way is to focus your desires accordingly, not letting what you want override what God wants for you, especially when you pray. What kinds of petitions should you make, and what kind of answers should you expect? Are there good requests you can be confident will have good results? . . . What attracts God's attention and invites His positive response is wholehearted devotion to Him alone. You can demonstrate that devotion by following the...
Protocols for Proper Prayer
Amidst all the examples in scripture, there are specific statements about the prayers God answers. He answers the petition of the righteous, who meet three criteria. (We touched on these earlier, in The Foremost Communication.)
- The first criterion is: Pray in the right direction (i.e., to God the Father).7
- For the singular devotion of the disciple, who appeals "to [his] Father in heaven," the true God will "reward" him. Jesus said...
Matt 6:6 ...pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.... 9 This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven..."
Pray in the right direction.
- The second criterion is: Pray in the right condition (i.e., with unwavering obedience)8
- For the submissive lifestyle of the pious, who "does His will," God will "listen" to him. John writes...
John 9:31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will.
Pray in the right condition.
- The third criterion is: Pray with the right motivation (i.e., for divine satisfaction not personal gratification).9
- For the godly desire of the selfless, who wants only what accords with "His will," God will grant his request. Again, John writes...
1 John 5:14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
Whom you ask, how you ask, and what you ask matter. You must direct your prayers to the only one worthy of your devotion, you must be in the proper spiritual condition with no interference from sin, and you must frame your requests to accord with God's agenda. These protocols will ensure that your petitions receive an audience with God as well as an answer from God.Pray with the right motivation.
When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they were not satisfied with God's provision of manna. They wanted something different, they wanted meat, and they prayed accordingly. He granted their request, but it was The Foremost Concession, which settles for God's permissive will rather than His perfect will. When that is the choice before you, you must not settle for less when you can strive for the best.
Having considered The Foremost Concession, we will look next at The Foremost Convulsion, which displays the pageantry of God, in Matt 24:29-30.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted)
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Jim Skaggs