Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - July 1/62

Contributor - Rev. A. Opmeer

Title - The Lord Willing

Topic - Trust

Not so many years ago it was the habit of Christian people to add the words 'the Lord willing" whenever they made statements concerning the future. So a man would say, "I'll be sixty-five next week, the Lord willing." In private correspondence, and on official announcements, the letters 'D.V.' would often appear to convey the same idea: D.V., Deo Volente, God willing.

The use of this phrase goes clear back to the early days of the Christian Church. 'If the gods will', was a common expression in the pagan world of the Roman empire. The apostle James, having heard these words many times, and realizing that his people could learn something from the pagan neighbours here, wrote in one of his letters, "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain'; whereas you do not know about tomorrow! What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that' " (James 4:13-15). This was a stern rebuke to Christian people for the arrogant way in which they proposed their plans for the future. "Who do you think you are," James asked, "to talk about tomorrow as if tomorrow belongs to you? Even the pagans know better!"

Today, the habit of saying or writing, 'The Lord willing', has pretty well disappeared. And perhaps it is just as well that way, because in most cases it had become no more than a meaningless repetition of an ancient formula. However, this raises a disturbing question: has the Christian conviction, expressed in the words, 'The Lord willing', disappeared also? For the formula may have become obsolete, but the truth behind it is still of vital importance to real Christian living. We talk so much about 'giving' the Lord the first place in our life; and that is good, as long as we know what we are saying, for it involves a complete self-denial. But sometimes it might be better for us to realize that we cannot 'give' the Lord the first place, because he has that place already! He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. All life belongs to him, from birth to death. We do not control our future; our moments and our days are in the Lord's hand. Yes, "He's got the whole world in his hands."

Now, if we truly believe this, it will shape our life. Let us look for a moment at the picture of a man who forgot to include the Lord in his plans. For this picture we turn to the parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:16-21). After years of successful farming, this man said to himself, "Ye have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry." But that night he died, and others enjoyed his wealth. The point of this story is not that it is wrong to plan for the future, nor does it criticize the accumulation of riches. The lesson of this parable is that this man was not "rich toward God". He planned his security in terms of goods on earth, rather than treasures

in heaven. He-forgot that riches, houses, barns, even life itself, were his only 'the Lord willing'. When God took these away, there was nothing left. No doubt he was a smart man and a fine farmer, but he is known to us as the ,rich fool'. Here is a warning: let us plan our life WITH GOD, lest we be taken by surprise and suffer great loss. When we order our life 'the Lord willing', we shall keep it rich toward God. It will also save us from self-reliance. "Tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain", leaves no room for God. It is the old sin of the Tower of Babel: man does not need God any more. But, "man proposes, God disposes"; when the Lord of heaven and earth speaks, man's plans become all confused. Better let God be God, for his ways are higher than our ways, and his thoughts than our thoughts. Let us not live unto ourselves, but let us live 'the Lord willing'. For his will is good, and his purposes we can trust.

When we really take the Lord into all our planning, we shall be the kind of people who are acceptable to bath God and man. Can you imagine a man saying to himself, "The Lord willing, I shall go out tonight and rob a bank!" Would anyone who is truly aware of his dependence upon God, plan to hurt his neighbour, knowing that this is squarely against the will of the very God who must give him life and health to carry out his plans? Would you dare to add, 'the Lord willing', to a proposal to go to the beach on Sunday morning, while you know that it is the Lord's will that you shall be in church? Yes, the spirit of the ancient formula is a safeguard for Christian living in any age. Blessed is the man who lives 'the Lord willing'. He will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

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