[ZNPaaneah]

A friend of mine has stage 4 cancer, they can't operate, so I have prayed for him to be healed. So the question is this: "is it God's will to heal him"? That question, to me, is the "mystery of God's will".

Ephesians says we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. Surely this includes the promises that God will hear our prayer. Just like we see with Joseph at the end of the book of Genesis.

So let's look at this a little closer. Our covenant is a contract, a contract is not simply "I will bless you". It has been put into writing, the contract involves blessings to both parties, it is not simply one sided, and then it must be signed legally.

So in Ephesians it says "In Him we obtain an inheritance" or it could also be translated "In Him we are made a heritage". This is the two sided nature of the covenant. Ruth is a very good example. She was a moabitess, but her faith was that "your people will be my people and your God will be my God". Therefore, in her heart she wasn't a moabitess, but rather the widow of an Israelite. God answers her prayer, she does obtain an inheritance, but in so doing she also is made a heritage. That is the mystery of God's will.

Sardonyx is an excellent illustration of this. Sardonyx is the 4th stone in the New Jerusalem and stands next to Emerald which is considered by many to be the most precious of precious stones. Sardonyx is opaque, and looks like a sandwich with a white filling between two dark brown to black layers. You might find it interesting if you picked it up on the beach, but how can this stone stand next to an emerald? The Lord can make it stand. A craftsman comes in and carves through the top layer, creating a border like a frame. Then in the white layer they carve a scene, say a king on his throne with his court around him. Then beneath this white layer, there might be some sinister characters hiding in the shadows. The result is a masterpiece. To change this funny looking stone into a priceless masterpiece is a blessing. Ruth obtains an inheritance, is made a great nation, is blessed, her name is made great, etc. Why? Because in so doing God also obtains a priceless work of art as His heritage. That is the mystery of God's will. Ruth was twice cursed being both a moabitess and a widow, but now she can stand between Joseph and King David.

Finally, the covenant has to be sealed. The seal is done so that there is no doubt who signed the covenant. For example, with Gideon God had to winnow down his army from 30,000 men to 300 men so that no one would claim that Israel had defeated the Midianites by their own hand. Once again, this is the mystery of God's will. He can heal my friend, but in a way that no one can vaunt themselves against God saying it was by their hand.