And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
At Caesarea, after Agabus bound his own hands and feet with Paul's girdle and foretold that the Jews at Jerusalem would bind its owner and deliver him to the Gentiles, Luke and the local believers pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. Paul would not swerve from the path of duty but was ready to follow Christ to prison and to death at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus, and their weeping only broke his heart. When he could not be persuaded to avoid the coming danger, they saw they caused him pain without changing his purpose, so they stopped urging him and accepted the Lord's will even as he proceeded toward danger.
The verse means always leaving everything in God's hands and accepting what He in providence decides is best, because He knows what is best and sees the end from the beginning and sees what cannot possibly be seen. It calls for peace and rest in Jesus with trust that He will verify His Word, refusing to let the mind be confused by erroneous reasoning or influenced by idle tales, while doing what He directs and doing one's part. If a greatly desired thing is not obtained it is to be accepted as a closed way with the satisfaction of having done one's best and with assurance that for some reason the Lord did not bring it to pass, rather than as a great misfortune or a reason for discouragement. This rests on God as a wise, compassionate heavenly Father who loves His children and will not indulge them to their injury, who at times withholds what is greatly desired though it seems good to possess, and who does not always permit His children to have their own way because He loves them.
The verse expresses agreement with the Lord's direction of a worker's field of labor, affirming submission to the Lord's will over one who puts trust in God and goes where He directs, with approval that he does not enter the field alone but with someone with him. It calls for submission to the Lord's will when plans to finish work and return home to America and family must be set aside to remain longer in a distant field until the work is placed on a solid basis, accepting continued presence and separation from loved ones because the Lord requires it to advance His cause and bring souls to the knowledge of the truth. It means yielding even a practical decision such as a boat to God's will and accepting it without objection if it is the Lord's plan. Such submission does not remove deep disappointment and longing for children to unite in the work and for retirement and rest, but it calls for ceasing complaint and leaving all to God. It means surrendering to God's will about whether loved ones should leave their duty to give personal help, holding together close affection and great desire for their help with refusal to draw them away from their duty, and leaving whether they can help to what the Saviour wills. It applies when a desired visit cannot take place, calling for accepting the outcome without complaint and without urging others contrary to their own best judgment or at risk of loss or inconvenience to themselves, and it expresses acceptance of God's will for the future when uncertain about seeing someone again and traveling to a distant place, yielding personal desire to visit and talk to God's control over whether the return ever happens.
At Caesarea, after Agabus bound his own hands and feet with Paul's girdle and foretold that the Jews at Jerusalem would bind its owner and deliver him to the Gentiles, Luke and the local believers pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. Paul would not swerve from the path of duty but was ready to follow Christ to prison and to death at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus, and their weeping only broke his heart. When he could not be persuaded to avoid the coming danger, they saw they caused him pain without changing his purpose, so they stopped urging him and accepted the Lord's will even as he proceeded toward danger.
The verse means always leaving everything in God's hands and accepting what He in providence decides is best, because He knows what is best and sees the end from the beginning and sees what cannot possibly be seen. It calls for peace and rest in Jesus with trust that He will verify His Word, refusing to let the mind be confused by erroneous reasoning or influenced by idle tales, while doing what He directs and doing one's part. If a greatly desired thing is not obtained it is to be accepted as a closed way with the satisfaction of having done one's best and with assurance that for some reason the Lord did not bring it to pass, rather than as a great misfortune or a reason for discouragement. This rests on God as a wise, compassionate heavenly Father who loves His children and will not indulge them to their injury, who at times withholds what is greatly desired though it seems good to possess, and who does not always permit His children to have their own way because He loves them.
The verse expresses agreement with the Lord's direction of a worker's field of labor, affirming submission to the Lord's will over one who puts trust in God and goes where He directs, with approval that he does not enter the field alone but with someone with him. It calls for submission to the Lord's will when plans to finish work and return home to America and family must be set aside to remain longer in a distant field until the work is placed on a solid basis, accepting continued presence and separation from loved ones because the Lord requires it to advance His cause and bring souls to the knowledge of the truth. It means yielding even a practical decision such as a boat to God's will and accepting it without objection if it is the Lord's plan. Such submission does not remove deep disappointment and longing for children to unite in the work and for retirement and rest, but it calls for ceasing complaint and leaving all to God. It means surrendering to God's will about whether loved ones should leave their duty to give personal help, holding together close affection and great desire for their help with refusal to draw them away from their duty, and leaving whether they can help to what the Saviour wills. It applies when a desired visit cannot take place, calling for accepting the outcome without complaint and without urging others contrary to their own best judgment or at risk of loss or inconvenience to themselves, and it expresses acceptance of God's will for the future when uncertain about seeing someone again and traveling to a distant place, yielding personal desire to visit and talk to God's control over whether the return ever happens.