2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
How do we get to execute the will of God? Clearly Paul is telling us, each of us, that we have been given the spirit of power, the spirit of love and the spirit of a sound mind. What is the need for power if power is not to be exercised?
Please do not tell me you are not gifted. The Word says you are gifted. God has given each of us all that is required to execute His will. So what is keeping us from executing His will?
Matthew 17:16,19, 20a, 21 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
I believe that the disciples failure was shown to instruct us about executing the will of God. The boy was to be healed according to God’s will because Jesus cured him. The bible contains examples of men who were not disciples of Jesus that God used to exact His will. The sovereign will of God needs not disciples, faith, prayer, nor fasting to be executed. So this failure just might be a teaching opportunity to us in that God has given us the spirit of power, the spirit of love and the spirit of a sound mind.
Verse Matthew 17:21 is instructional as Jesus identifies conditions. “This kind” indicates a need to differentiate conditions. Power and love do not care about conditions but a sound mind is required to distinguish under what conditions the will of God can be executed. It also indicates a need for preparation. Prayer and fasting would have to be performed before the disciples came across the need.
What do we need to do to be prepared to execute God’s will?
One thing that I see in this Scripture is a break in relationship with Jesus. “Then came the disciples to Jesus”…… they were not where He was. God is going to do His work regardless, but if He is going to involve me, I need to be close to Jesus. “Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord, to Thy precious wounded side”…. this hymn speaks volumes! I want to stay close enough to Jesus to observe all that HE does and be available if He wants to involve me.
Thank you, dear brother, for opening this awesome topic and thank you Lord Jesus for Your faithfulness…all the glory belongs to You!
This was the first sending out of disciples. Jesus gave them authority to speak and they failed in this one example. Now some are apostles, which means sent out. If He sends, He equips. I do see a privately, meaning they spoke to Him in private, so that no others could hear. Given that He was still with them and the Holy Spirit had not yet been given, it sets the stage for one example, yet Jesus sent them out to do His will.
Your response is well taken. Thanks, dear brother.