Will vs. Shall Not

There are words in the dictionary that have opposite meanings, such as: will vs. shall not, will not, and unwillingness, to name a few.  They are antonyms of the word, will.  There are no ifs, ands, or buts that each represents their opposing positions as they posture at opposite ends on the spectrum of word meanings.

There is no way that these antonyms can ever unite and become synonyms with similar definitions.  There is nothing remotely resembling any kind of likeness.  The word, will, is quite specific as to its significant meaning, likewise the words, shall not also mean what they say.  Will and shall not are totally opposite from each other.

A person’s understanding of the words is usually clear and concise as to their precise meaning unless an intellectual obscurity is present in the psychological conception some way…right, meaning wrong and wrong, meaning right.  In this rare perception of word meanings, some people, because of intellectual misconceptions, govern how they perceive things vs. their true meaning.

In that you and I are cognizant of the word ‘will’ and we trust its meaning in the dictionary, we acknowledge that antonyms like, shall not, will not, and unwillingness, are totally opposite.  Why then should we question the Bible as to its validity and infallibility when God uses the word ‘will’ or ‘shall not’ in scriptures?

Do scriptures lie?  I believe the answer is emphatically, “No!”  Does God mean what He says, or does He beat around the bush and play word games?  I believe we both know the answer and agree.  God does not mince words when He says something, nor does He vacillate or waver between different actions or scenarios.

God’s magnificence and splendor represents all that is good, wholesome, and honest.  Satan is the one who takes words out of context and tries to create doubt in our minds as to their meaning and truthfulness.

Stay with me; I have a thought that will convey a correlation with the preceding narrative.

(Genesis 2;15-17), “Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.” (vs 16) “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;’ ” (vs 17) “ ‘but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you ‘shall not’ eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’ ”    

Look what happened to Adam and Eve in the garden when Eve gave ear to the serpent as he tempted her to disobey God by saying the following:

(Genesis 3:4-5), “Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You shall not surely die.’ ” (vs 5) “ ’For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ ”

Eve surrendered to temptation and ate the forbidden fruit that God forbade and then pulled Adam into her web of deception and disobedience.  Did God really mean ‘shall not’ eat of the tree of good and evil or did He misspeak and perhaps mean ‘should not’, while exaggerating what might happen to them?

The consequence for their sin of uncontrolled desire gives the answer.  God expelled them out of the garden.  It was because of the sin of selfish desire and not obeying the warning from God that initiated sorrow for humanity. 

This sin-nature is now visited upon all humans, whereas we need the Savior, Jesus Christ to set us free from the bondage of sin that we inherited.

There is an eye-opening awareness that we need to pay close attention to in the Bible when the word ‘will’ is spoken by Jesus four times in the following three scriptures.

(John 14:12-14), “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he ‘will’ do also; and greater works than these he ‘will’ do, because I go to My Father.” (vs 13) “And whatever you ask in My name, that I ‘will’ do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (vs 14) “If you ask anything in My name, I ‘will’ do it.”    

In that God meant what He said in the Garden of Eden and followed through as He banished Adam and Eve from the garden, don’t you think He means what He says in the Bible when using the word ‘will’ in these scriptures?

I am positive He is not using the word to merely sound good in the moment, having little or no substance.  The Lord always means what He says!  We can take that to the bank, as they say.  So why is it that Christians hesitate and find it difficult to put into action what they know to be true in God’s infallible Bible? 

Believers need to take the bull by the horns, figuratively speaking, and step out in the faith God blessed them with when becoming born-again as they believed Jesus rose from the dead after being crucified for our sins and that He is the Son of God.

God imparts the same Holy Ghost to newborn Christians that empowered the 120 Believers on the Day of Pentecost when we experience the ‘new birth’, having our sins forgiven.  The same Spirit dwells within all children of God today.

Miracles should, without question, be expected when we pray in the name of Jesus without doubting the results.  We can kick disbelief to the curb of Satan’s word manipulations and lies.  Faith enhances when we absorb the word of God, the Bible.

(Romans 10:17), “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

(Hebrews 11:6), "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."

God wants us to be His vocal cords, sharing His promises with others and having expectancy in our heart that He ‘will’ do what He said He ‘will’ do as we become His outstretched hands. 

As we present our bodies living sacrifices to God, which is our reasonable service, we become vessels that He will flow through to people that need the Savior and those crying out for miraculous interventions.

All Christians should continue their quest for the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus to become God’s outstretched arms of compassion, with Holy Ghost power to present the agape love of Jesus to those needing hope.  This happens when born-again Believers step out in faith.

(Hebrews 11:1), “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

As children of God, we ‘will’ become conquerors through Christ who is within us, while maintaining the unwillingness to compromise our faith when facing doubt and fear.  With God’s help, we will maintain His strength and not give into Satan’s lie that the Lord may not answer our prayers.  This is the fear that is generated from the pit of hell.

God still answers prayer!  His wonders to perform according to His perfect will.

www.wordsfrompapa.blogspot.com

Written by,

Papa Boyd