How much do we really know about our will or willpower? Do you have the will to read this article about your will? You can either ‘will’ to read this or, you can ‘will’ not to read this and that is a power that few things in the universe possess. Actually, our will or willpower just might be the most powerful force that exists in God’s creative order.
The word “will” is listed 2881 times in the Bible. 2492 times in the Old Testament and 489 times in the New Testament. With the word ‘will’ mentioned so often, there may be something that we need to know concerning its obvious importance. Let’s start by recognizing that there are six distinct created beings with a unique intelligence that possess ‘will’ or willpower. Willpower is important in that it completely defines and determines destiny for those who have a rational mind. We are who we are by will and our eternal destinies will be determined by our willpower.
Many reading this understand that the soul is composed of three distinct characteristics (mind/reason, emotion and will). Likewise, God created humanity as a three dimensional person (spirit, soul, and body). But let’s focus on the soul of a person for now and drill down to the part of our soul known as our will. As human beings we need to understand what willpower is; where it generates its power from, causes it to function and what it can do for us and against us.
Can the will or willpower be controlled? Is it essential and vitally important that we learn to control and master our willpower? More importantly, do we know enough about the will or willpower to understand if we’re controlling it or if it’s controlling us? Willpower can control us if we fail to understand it and that’s where ignorance and rebellion find its place in the soul of a person. It’s God’s desire that we know how to self-identify the tremendous forces and abilities of willpower and to identity where it comes from whether divine, human or demonic. In other words, our destinations are willfully driven by either divine power, human power or demonic power.
God, the creator of all things in the universe is the originator of willpower. Likewise, we have willpower as created in God’s image. Jesus Christ as God’s only begotten Son possessed tremendous willpower. If we look at the life of Christ in the scriptures, He functioned in willpower especially when facing His destiny on the cross. If Christ, the hope of glory is in us – then His awesome willpower can function in our lives. Likewise, the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, also exhibits tremendous willpower. When we pray and ask for the Holy Spirit’s intervention – willpower can flow through our lives which enables us to be more than conquerers and overcomers regardless of the obstacles that may stand before us.
Angels which are heavenly beings also possess a will or willpower. Angels are not created by God to be robotic. They worship God by option rather than compulsion. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be genuine worship at all. Angels don’t have to obey God and we understand this in that a third of the angels rebelled against God and were cast out of heaven. They will to obey and choose to worship God. Angels are not slaves in the sense that we understand slavery and have freedom of opinion (freewill) and can make decisions. In the Book of Revelation, every time that God speaks, they exert willpower and a intelligent decision to worship and to carry out God’s will.
Demons and Satan himself have a will or willpower and use this powerful force to combat God along with God’s best and purposes for us as His people. Their primary agenda and will is to fight God and every benefit that the cross afforded humanity. It is not possible to live and experience the abundant life without recognizing that there are forces of will working both externally and internally within us. These forces have strong impacts on the everyday choices we make, the roads we travel and the destinations we have chosen.
Humanity (homosapiens) was created by God and is the apex creation in regard to nature and all other living creatures because of the intelligent ability to will. Humanity was invested by God with sovereign willpower over all other creation. Think about that for moment. Although a horse is much larger and stronger than a man – a bit in its mouth asserts the will of man over the horse. Man is unique in that animals do not possess this powerful ability. Even God who created us doesn’t place a bit in our mouth because of the universal importance of freewill. Thus, animals do not possess the eternal attributes, force and power of the will or willpower. It was God’s will and prerogative to give mankind willpower thus, becoming a force of volition, judgment, understanding and decision. We don’t have to go forward if we don’t want to. We can go backward. We don’t have to go to the right if we don’t want to. We can go to the left. We don’t have to obey God if we don’t want to. We don’t have to go to heaven if we don’t want to. Why? Because God gave us one of the most powerful forces in the universe – our will.
When God created us and entrusted us with a will, He also purposed to never violate it. If He did, it would lose its force, potential and power. Many have wondered why God would allow horrible things to happen and people such as Hitler and other antichrist figures to come into power. Again, the violation of humanity’s will or willpower would remove it’s power and in particular our ability and freedom to make conscious decisions. The good news is that Satan cannot violate it as well and the old saying that the “devil made me do it” is a fallacy because God has provided us ‘decision power’ within the gift of willpower. In every case of demonic oppression and influence, the people who have been delivered will admit that they did not have to obey Satan or demons. They did what they pleased at that time and what they willed to do. They exerted willpower, a road traveled (darkness) and a destination (demonic oppression). God judges us in regard to eternity in what we will or choose to do by willpower. You and I are a free-will person and we willfully do as we please. Nothing made us act or choose a particular road to travel. We willfully chose it for ourselves.
A good clinical example of the incredible force of willpower is in hypnotism. A person can easily resolve or will their mind in the brain to reject hypnotism. A person can easily will that a person or hypnotist not take over their mind because the mind is in subjection to the will. That’s a powerful statement but true. Again, the mind is in subjection or obeys our will. The power of the will in a person can lead the mind into decision-making whether healthy or unhealthy. Whether light or dark and whether into prosperity or poverty. The will of a person is so strong that unhealthy willpower must be completely broken down before the other aspects of the soul (our mind or reason and emotions) can properly work in conjunction with our spirit and body.
As stated at the beginning of this article, freewill may be the greatest gift provided to us by God. It provides us not only the will to believe and exercise faith, but also the power to embrace what is good and just and to willfully or forcefully reject what is dark and unrighteous regardless of how tempting and alluring to our flesh it may be. Being the priceless gift that it is, maybe, just maybe, we should seek to understand it better and learn to control or master it for our benefit?
Although the will of a person is tangible and expressed, it cannot be weighed on scales. Although the will determines our destinations, it cannot be measured. Although the will is internally and naturally personal, it is not a part of our natural physical senses or body such as what can be seen, felt and heard. However, the will does govern what we choose to see, touch and hear.
As stated earlier, our total person is made up of the spirit-man which is our redeemed self and has the ability to commune with God as well as unsavory spiritual entities. The second part of our person is the soul which is comprised of our mind or ability to reason, emotions, and will. And the third part of person is our physical bodies. But it’s the will or our willpower that I’m proposing we drill down deeper and to better understand where we’re at in life, what got is there and where it can lead us. Again, this is one of the most powerful forces in God’s created universe and when we choose to operate in our daily lives outside of our spirit-man nature, we are completely and soley reliant upon the Adamic or fallen nature of our minds, emotion and will. Thus, the ‘will’ are the actions that we take in life along with the wanted benefits or, the unwanted consequences they possess and lead to.
The will or willpower can be activated by three elements: Spiritual or divine power, human power which are the influences of the world around us, and demonic power. Thus, our will can be motivated or influenced by God, other people around us, as well as demonic forces. The will or willpower requires an environment of created intelligence because without intelligence – there is no will. Again, this is why humanity has preeminence over all other creatures upon the Earth and can assert its will over them if desired. On the same hand, the will is also realized by intelligence whether exercised by God, humans, angels or demons. There must be a uniquely created intelligence for the will to exist and to manifest influence. In other words, the will and created intelligence by God must function together for life as we know it to exist. A combination of quarks, atoms and molecules no matter how they are compounded on their own in you believe in evolution or manipulated by mankind can create willpower. No combination of molecular compounds can create just one fleeting moment of love or hate. A lump of matter regardless of the complexity of materials must have the creative breath of God to reflect consciousness and intelligence.
So how can the will of a person be motivated? I believe that there’s something deep within all of our souls that God has placed there – the ability and the need to ‘Wish’ for something or somebody. Wishing for something is different than hoping for something in my opinion. I believe that genuine hope is divine in nature and is our state of being between exercising faith and the product or end result of what faith had produced. Our will reaches out to affect a desired change by wishing. In other words, we wish for a difference within the will of our mind and soul. You may wish to go to Japan, but it’s the will that will propel our mind to purpose the trip and bring it to a reality. The mind part of the soul desires to be in Japan. The emotion part of the soul is happy at the realization of being in Japan. And the body part of the soul provides the arms, legs and senses to see the destination through. Our complete being is now will-powering an action birthed from a wish.
Wishing and willing are hand and glove as is choosing and willing. For instance, we can choose to be a farmer. Or, we can choose to be a teacher. Or, we can choose to go to medical school to become a doctor. But what happens when you wish to be a doctor but don’t have the physical, emotional and intellectual abilities or the required university test scores to become a doctor? Can our wills become frustrated? Yes, and this is why it’s so important that our wishes are in alignment with God’s will for our lives. God knows and understands the perfect calling for our lives and the perfect people to connect with in our lives when our wishes align with God’s will – our wish becomes enlightened and then our will or willpower propels it into action and ultimately into realization. Our willingness is also connected to our will. We can be unwilling to do something just as much as we can be willing. God’s will for our lives may be revealed to us through a variety of means and people. But we can also exercise an unwillingness to obey God’s plan and Word.
John 5:30 states, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.”
Becoming Christ-like or walking in Christ-likeness is simply our willingness to understand and live our lives according to God’s will which is His Word. But this requires a will or a willingness on our part to read it and to seek God through prayer in how it applies to our personal lives and destiny. Jesus at twelve years of age had to explain to his earthly parents (Mary and Joseph) “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” It’s imperative that our children are taught that they’re never too young to understand the positive and negative sides of willpower and to walk in the will of God according to His Word. I’m sure you’ve heard the saying or cliche that there isn’t a ‘junior Holy Spirit.’ There also isn’t a ‘junior will of God.’
All of us, young and old alike possess the most priceless and powerful gift in our freewill and willpower. When we understand how to control it rather than it controlling us and when we align our will with God’s will – Our full potential and purpose of being becomes a reality. The abundant life is experienced by those who have the willpower to rebuke evil and the willingness to live according to God’s will and Word. Your destination is in your mind. Will that destination be eternal light beaming with life? Or, an eternal and lifeless dark grave? Only you have the will to choose.
dannykorakas 
Well said!