Not My Will, But Thine Be Done God expects us to live by this same principle today.

Luke 22:41-42 "And He was parted from them about a stone's throw; and He kneeled down and prayed, saying 'Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Thine, be done"

Introduction Jesus knew what was ahead for Him, but He still prayed: "Thy Will be done.“ This was the resolve Jesus displayed to all mankind. Such resolve that we are asked to imitate 1 Corinthians 11:1 He knew of the pain and the shame that awaited Him, and He knew that it would end with His death. But He was willing to go through with it because of the importance of what He could do for mankind:

Hebrews 2:9-10 "But we behold Him Who hath been made a little lower than the angels, even Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that by the grace of God He should taste of death for every man. For it became Him, for Whom are all things, and through Whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Author of their salvation perfect through suffering“.

The Attitude That Causes Sin: "Not Thy Will, but mine, be done" is the cause of all sin. Adam and Eve had the clear instructions from God about the "Tree of the knowledge of good and evil" (Gen. 2). He told them, "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Genesis 2:16,17). But when Satan tempted Eve, she ate. And she gave to Adam, and he ate (Gen. 3). They did not sin because they didn't know better. Their attitude was, "Not Thy Will, but mine, be done." Basically, that is the attitude of every sinner.

The Attitude That Causes Sin: 1 Samuel 15 King Saul had clear instructions about his war with the Amalekites. God promised him the victory, but told him, "Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed". But he spared King Agag and the best of the animals, and "explained" to the prophet Samuel, "Yea, I have obeyed the voice of Jehovah, and have gone the way which Jehovah sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto Jehovah thy God in Gilgal"

The Attitude That Causes Sin: 1 Samuel 15: Samuel answered him with a statement we need to take to our heart: "Hath Jehovah as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of Jehovah? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than he fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and iniquity. Because thou hast rejected the Word of Jehovah, He hath also rejected thee from being king" You see, Saul had his instructions, but his attitude was, "Not Thy Will, but mine, be done."

The Pattern Of The Life Of Jesus: The reason Jesus left heaven and came to this earth is clearly revealed: "For I am come down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me" (John 6:38). This theme is repeated over and over in the Bible, "Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the Will of Him that sent Me, and to accomplish His work" (John 4:34). That was the way He lived. That is why He came to earth. As we read in Heb. 5:8,9, "Though He was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which He suffered; and having been made perfect, He became unto all them that obey Him the Author of eternal salvation.'

The Pattern Of The Life Of Jesus: The apostle Paul wrote of Jesus, and of our response to Him: "Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:5-8). He lived by the principle He prayed: "Not My Will, but Thine, be done." And He expects us to live by that same principle.

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: Jesus set the example for us: "For hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that ye should follow His steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth; Who when He was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered, threatened not; but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously" (1 Peter 2:21-23).

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: Paul wrote: "For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that One died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, that they that live should no longer live unto themselves, but unto Him Who for their sakes died and rose again." (2 Corinthians 5:14,15).

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: We all must learn to follow His Will, not ours. As the prophet wrote long ago, "O Jehovah, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps" (Jeremiah 10:23). When we are debased enough to say to God: "I will live my own life, I will chart my own path,“; we are heading for a terrible fall.

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: As Jesus put it: "If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it. for what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?“ (Matthew 16: 24-26).

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: Too many have the idea that God gave us limits and prohibitions to inhibit us. But long ago Moses wrote: "And Jehovah commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear Jehovah our God, for our good always" (Deuteronomy 6:24). Notice that last phrase: "For our good always." God wants what is best for us, and -- because He is our Creator -- He knows what is best for us.

The Pattern Of Our Life For Jesus: Thus, only when we listen to Him and mold our lives according to His Will, can we achieve the happiness and fulfillment which He wants us to have. The apostle Paul put it well when he wrote: "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20).

God's Will At Work In Our Lives: No one can live better than he knows how, so we must first learn the Will of God. As the Lord said: "No man can come to Me, except the Father that sent Me draws him: and I will raise him up in the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught of God. Every one that hath heard from the Father, and hath learned, cometh unto Me" (John 6:44,45). The apostle Paul wrote on this subject, also: "Look therefore carefully how ye walk, not as unwise, but as wise; redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not foolish, but understand what the Will of the Lord is" (Ephesians 5:15-17).

God's Will At Work In Our Lives: Having learned the Will of God, we must also be willing to submit to it. Jesus plainly said: "Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the Will of My Father Who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by Thy name, and by Thy name cast out demons, and by Thy name do many mighty works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity" (Matthew 7:21-23). Just calling Jesus, "Lord" is not enough. We must also do what He says.

God's Will At Work In Our Lives: We should always carry in our hearts the attitude expressed by Samuel, who said: "Speak, Lord, Thy servant heareth" (1 Samuel 3:10). Let us never forget that God has work for us to do. Let us not forget that when faced with a decision this attitude would be very helpful to help us make the right choice.

Conclusion Yes, Jesus prayed: "Not My will, but thine be done." Can you and will you pray that same prayer today, and then determine that you will follow Him by learning what He wants of you, and then doing it? That is what He wants you to do. We don't ask that you join our church. We don't have any church of our own for you to join. But we believe that you should be in that church which Jesus built, and purchased with His own precious blood. (Acts 20:28) and of which He is the Savior (Ephesians 5:23).