The Reality of Doing the Father’s Will
Greetings and good morning, brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series
where we seek to explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years,
the heavenly Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them
with you. This morning we seek to understand the meaning of the reality of doing the Father’’s will.
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
The Reality of Doing the Father’’s Will
"A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also
love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
John, Chapter 13, Verses 34 and 35
Brothers and sisters, in today’’s broadcast, we examine the reality of doing the Father’’s will. We
know that the Father’’s will is done at a level that is above the conscious mind. Since the effects of
doing the Father’’s will are apparent in the conscious mind and the outer life, we shall like to
examine the aspects of those factors that go into doing the Father’’s will, the apparent manifestations
of doing the Father’’s will in the inner life as well as in the outer life. But first let us set the stage by
framing the issues with some essential questions. Does the Father’’s will really exist and if so what
is it? How is the Father’’s will found? How is the Father’’s will recognized? And how is doing that
will appreciated and finally realized?
True religionists claim that not only is the Father’’s will a bonafide reality, but they have discovered
this will and have responded to it by acting on that will. They claim to know and do the Father’’s
will by and through their faith. How are we to evaluate whether something that is known by faith is
real or not? We shall have to resort to a material analogy to grasp a non-material reality: baseball.
In baseball a characteristic of the game is to pitch and hit a ball. Sometimes the batter misses a pitch,
the object being to hit the ball and set the game in motion. We recognize the reality of this
interchange. But the law governing pitching and batting is for every action, there is an equal and
opposite reaction. When the ball collides with the bat there is an equal and opposite reaction. The
bat pushed back when the ball hits it. We cannot actually see the exchange of force, but we can see
the results. Now when the batter misses the ball, this represent an error and nothing happens. The
force of the ball is absorbed in the catcher’’s glove
.
Moving from this material analogy, we reflect on spiritual reality. A human being is a material
creature. He has will and uses it to maintain and sustain himself. This will has the power to choose.
It can choose a decision that will result in action. He can choose which material impulses, desires,
and thoughts he will express to the outer world, in effect transforming a subjective reality into an
objective reality, a reality that other material beings can see and experience. This moves the purely
subjective inner experience to the objective outer experience.
We cannot say where this will is located or what it even looks like, but we know it’’s real because
of the effects that it has both in our subjective and objective lives. Human will becomes active in
response to our desires. When we desire to do something, we eventually act on that desire. Free will
is able to choose morally and spiritually. The will of man is the way of man, the sum and substance
of that which the mortal chooses to be and do. Will is the deliberate choice of a self-conscious being
which leads to decision-conduct based on intelligent reflection. And we all know this is true for the
material and the moral, but we shall now move to the ability of this will to choose spiritual decisions.
Having established the reality of the human will, we now move to establish the reality of the divine
will, of God’’s will, the Father’’s will.
God is will. God’’s will is the purpose of God, the way of God. How do we establish the reality of
this will in our minds and souls? We know that our will is associated with those desires, urges, and
thoughts that are selfish and self serving, but when the will of God enters our minds, a new set of
values manifests themselves. These are the urges, desires, and thoughts that are associated with the
unselfish service of others, even the loving service of others. Collectively these urges, desires, and
thoughts reflect the character traits of the Father. These qualities then are the manifestation of the
Father’’s will and the proof of the reality of the Father’’s will. "The will of God is the way of God,
partnership with the choice of God in the face of any potential alternative. To do the will of God,
therefore, is the progressive experience of becoming more and more like God, and God is the source
and destiny of all that is good and beautiful and true." Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
Therefore to do the Father’’s will is to decide to follow Jesus, to become like him. And we all know
who and what Jesus is like.
Like the human will, we cannot say exactly where the divine will is located, except to say it is
located in our minds and souls. Having free will, we can choose the divine values that are reflective
of Jesus’’ character. We can choose to love one another as Jesus loves us, or we can choose to ignore
these divine values. The instant we choose them, that instant we give objective validity to them,
establishing their reality. The very fact that we can choose something gives reality to the object that
is chosen, for if it were not an object, it could not be chosen. Choosing these divine values mean
choosing the Father’’s will, as opposed to choosing selfish values in any situation.
So when we seek to find the Father’’s will, we are seeking a bonafide reality, not some imaginary
one. If this were not so, the character response of choosing these divine values would remain
unchanged as it does in those who do not choose the Father’’s will. Seeking to find the Father’’s will
is no more or less than submitting to divine manifestations in the mind and soul. The Father’’s will
is not any harder to find than our own wills. When we seek it, immediately the divine impulses flood
our minds and souls. The desire to find the Father’’s will is simultaneous with finding it. This is so
because the Father’’s will knows no time or space. The Father is always present.
Now that we are aware of the divine will, all that remains is for us to choose that will. Doing so is
the same as choosing any other kind of desire. The difference is that we have now a divine
desire——the choice of a loving and unselfish response rather than a selfish one. While on the
inside, the divine traits integrate themselves into the character of the human. Now like the ball and
the bat and the equal and opposite reaction to force, when man chooses the Father’’s will, there is
a corresponding reaction in the Father. He imparts to us his character traits, thus increasingly making
us like him.
Finally there remains only the final step in this process: the process of realization. The Father’’s will
is realized in our minds and souls by the desire to love others unselfishly. And we know when we
are making a purely selfish decision or making an unselfish one. We further realize that we are in
fact choosing the Father’’s will by consistently choosing it, by consistently loving one another as we
are loved by Jesus. This consistent choosing of the divine will ushers in an augmented consciousness
of this same will, and by the superb tranquility of the spirit that bathes our souls. When we embrace
the Father’’s will, we enter that state where we actually experience this truth: Jesus said, "Peace I
leave with you. My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.”” Let not your
heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." This is the peace that passes all understanding. And all of
this consists in the reality of doing the Father’’s will.
This concludes today's message on understanding the meaning of the reality of doing the Father’’s
will. We hope you find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your
day.
Until next time, this is Dr. James Perry.
Inspirational Messages
By Dr. James Perry
Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done!
The Reality of Doing the Father’s Will
