Prayer: To be FILLED with the KNOWLEDGE of HIS WILL
Oh, my God, my Abba Father, how my heart cries out to be “filled with the knowledge of Your will.” I echo the Apostle Paul’s earnest prayer that resonates deeply within my spirit:
Colossians 1:9-10
For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be FILLED with the KNOWLEDGE of HIS WILL in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.
Lord, how often I’ve wished You’d just hand me a daily “To-Do” list, neatly itemized with Your will for my life…
But then, You whisper to me:
“My child, would that really be better?”
Lord, You got me thinking… If I did have such a list, where would my need for You go? I could rush ahead, checking off boxes, perhaps even feeling a sense of self-accomplishment. “Walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Cor 5:7) would no longer apply. Faith, trust— not necessary, because I’d have all the instructions, and in the delusion of self-sufficiency, I’d convince myself I could do it all on my own.
The Old Covenant was a “To-Do” list system, and it didn’t work to bring true intimacy then, and it certainly won’t work now (see notes at the end of this article).
Oh Father, being filled with the knowledge of Your will isn’t about obtaining a spiritual “To-Do” list. Paul used the word “knowledge” twice. He did not use the Greek word “gnosis,” which refers to general knowledge of facts. Instead, he used “epignosis” – a more exact, relationship knowledge. This isn’t just knowing about You, but knowing You through a personal, intimate relationship and interaction. It is a prayer to be flooded from “head to toe,” filling my every thought and heart’s passion through a living connection with You.
Being satisfied with mere “gnosis” would be similar to a college student who studies computers for many years yet has never seen or handled one. Upon seeing a computer for the first time, his reaction would probably mirror Job’s:
Job 42:5
I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You.
Your New Covenant mediated by Jesus Christ has nothing to do with “To-Do” lists, and Your Word reveals to me that the “Promise of the Father,” and the Baptism and subsequent indwelling of the Holy Spirit Himself (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4-5, and Acts 2:33-39) is the key component of the New Covenant (Eze 36:26-27, Jer 31:31-34, Heb 8:10, and Heb 10:16).
Oh Spirit of God dwelling within me, You are the One whispering that “word behind” me, not just an audible voice, but a divine inscription on my heart, transforming me from within. As the Word relates it so beautifully:
Isaiah 30:20-21
…but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
Holy Spirit, You are my moment-by-moment Guide, directing me into God’s will from the inside out, just as Jesus promised in John 14:16-26, John 15:26, and John 16:13-14.
Dear Holy Spirit, the New Covenant is all about You! And then You turn right around and make it all about Jesus – revealing Jesus to me and drawing me deeper into love with Him just like Jesus promised: “He [that’s You, Holy Spirit!] will honor and glorify Me, because He will take of (receive, draw upon) what is Mine and will reveal (declare, disclose, transmit) it to you” (John 16:14, Amplified Bible).
Sweet Spirit of God, You are the “Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the Knowledge [epignosis] of Jesus” (Eph 1:17). Thank You for adjusting my heart and my ears away from this world’s static, so I might be fine-tuned into what You are speaking and where You are directing. You are at work within me “both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Phil 2:13).
Heavenly Father, I understand now. So, I am NOT asking for the knowledge of Your will before I choose to obey. Instead, I lay myself upon the altar as a “living sacrifice” (Rom 12:1-2). In the darkness of the unknown, I choose to commit myself in obedience to Your will BEFORE You reveal what Your will is. I choose to “walk by faith, not by sight” BECAUSE I know Who You are and I love and trust You!
Mary G. Brainard [1836-1905] lovingly captured this idea in her poem, “He Knows” –
So on I go, not knowing,
I would not if I might;
I’d rather walk in the dark with God
Than go alone in the light;
I’d rather walk in faith with Him
Than go alone by sight.
Heavenly Father, thank you for calling me into an “epignosis” relationship, where I experience You moment by moment through faith and trust. Lord, it’s such an incredible journey! In childlikeness, I compare it to…
…a Lifelong Scavenger Hunt — discovering one clue that leads to the next, and the next! The journey itself is filled with just as much joy and discovery as the destination.
Lord, being filled with the knowledge [epignosis] of Your will isn’t about my hands being filled with instructions. It’s about my heart being filled with the knowledge of You! That’s how You designed it. That’s how I can “walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
So I take Your hand, Father!
I set my eyes upon You, Jesus!
Holy Spirit, submerge and flood every part of my being with the “epignosis” knowledge of my Father’s will in ALL wisdom and spiritual understanding!
Oh Hallelujah! Thank You, Lord, for this incredible journey!
This is Paul’s prayer for the Colossians, and it’s my prayer too!
In Jesus’ Name, Amen!
Originally published on November 21, 2022, while teaching on knowing the Will of God.
Additional Thoughts about the Old and New Covenants
God originally wanted the people to hear and obey His voice, but when He spoke the Ten Commandments out loud for everyone to hear, the people changed their minds. They told Moses:
Deuteronomy 5:27
You go near and hear all that the Lord our God may say, and tell us all that the Lord our God says to you, and we will hear and do it.
Sad day that was! But God gave them their wish – 613 written laws. Did they obey like they said they would? Nope!
That “To-Do” list system did not work under the Old Covenant in Old Testament times, and it will not work for us (Rom 8:3).
However, through His shed Blood, Jesus became the Mediator of a “better covenant” built upon “better promises” (Heb 7:22; Heb 8:6; Heb 12:24; Heb 13:20) – not upon man’s promise to obey, but upon God’s promise to work in us “both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil 2:13).
Man was not created to eat from the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Man was designed in God’s own image and likeness to eat of the “Tree of Life” – to experience God’s Life through moment-by-moment fellowship and hand-in-hand walking with God so that he might grow in the “epignosis” – relationship-knowledge – of God Himself and His purpose for man. This is why, in eternity, we see the Tree of Life in the Heavenly New Jerusalem (Rev 22:1-2).
[More to come…possibly.]
