This essay was written from a Christian perspective. Within the essay are many Biblical references. If you are a believer in Jesus, you may be interested to read further as I share the many ways God speaks to us. In the audio version I share my testimonies of the various times over the years God has spoken to me. If you are of a different faith or belief system, I'd encourage you to read further as this essay will reveal a little more of who I am and my faith in Jesus Christ.
The full 34 minutes audio version of the sermon I presented at my church is available here, or at the link at the end of this essay.
When considering this month's essay I thought I’d reproduce extracts from the sermon in this edition of FromMyDeskAtHome.
While I am no theologian or well-spoken evangelist on the subject, and despite many books written and preached from pulpits on hearing the voice of God, I am hoping to show that God still speaks today, as He did during Bible times. Hebrews 13:8 says that “God is the same yesterday, today and forever.”
My reference Bible text is from John 10:27 where Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” Preceding this verse, in John 10:14, Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me.”
Did you know a flock of sheep, belonging to a shepherd know the distinct voice of the shepherd. Jesus was using a metaphor, when speaking to the Pharisees and those who did not believe, that those who believed in Jesus will not follow a stranger, but will run away from them because the sheep does not recognise the stranger’s voice.
Jesus in John 10 verse 7-10 says, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”
In today’s world, there is much noise clambering for our attention and possible action. This noise may come from social media, advertising, TV, radio, music, newsprint, books, articles, friends, work colleagues, family and even preachers.
If these sources are speaking to us and bombarding us with messages, can we discern if they are speaking to us with messages of life or messages of death, messages from God or from the flesh or even from the devil?
Photo Credit: Maria Ngo
Every single believer in Jesus Christ knows the voice of God, however debatable whether they recognise it and attribute it to God.
1 John 4:1 says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”
When we give our hearts to Jesus, (in theological terms this means acknowledging our sinful state and accepting that Jesus Christ died for our salvation, and who rose again), we accept Him as Lord of our life. These include His way of living, His way of loving people, and we allow Him through Scriptures and the Holy Spirit to lead us in our daily lives.
Having done so, we begin a life journey and relationship with God. Relationship building however does not just happen on Sundays, as Jesus wants a relationship with His flock all the time.
How then do we begin such a relationship?
Typically, one starts as an acquaintance with someone, then one becomes their friend, then becoming (one of) their best friends. And it’s the same way with God.
As soon as we give our heart to Jesus, we enter that acquaintance category. This is where we say, “Okay I believe in you, Jesus. I give my life to you. I know a little bit about you, but I’m willing and ready to learn more.”
This is when we reach ‘being the friend of Jesus’ level. At this level we’re spending more time with Him, we’re getting to know His heart, we’re building a connection with Jesus.
Then finally we hit that true intimacy with Jesus, that ‘best friend’ level. At this level we understand His emotions, we know what He is feeling in situations, and we know how He would respond to the situations around us. For example, we know what break’s the heart of God e.g., disrespect, enmity, unrighteousness etc., and what it is to live a life of holiness.
That best friend or intimate level is what we were created for. It’s how we bring heaven to earth in all that we do.
So, how do we get to that point of being an intimate friend of the Lord?
Spending time with Jesus is one way to get to that intimate level. Spending time in reading Scriptures i.e. His Word captured in the Bible. Spending time in worship of Him, including spending time in prayer. Another way of being intimate with God is spending time in silence with Him. Isaiah 30:15 says, “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
Then we should expect God to speak, and then we are to be obedient and listen to Him, as half of communication is about listening.
Under the Old Covenant, only the prophets could generally hear from God and be His mouthpiece. Also, we read in the Old Testament that God spoke audibly many times and though He still can, things are a little different today.
Today we are not limited to being where God’s prophet is and hear the prophet proclaiming a message from God.
In the New Covenant, we have the Holy Spirit inside of us when we give our heart to Jesus, and He’s constantly wanting to be in communication with us. The Holy Spirit is not restricted by geography or by time zones. The Holy Spirit is omnipresent, meaning present everywhere at once.
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In the Bible there are two Greek words for the word “word”. The first is logos, which is the inspired Word of God. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The second Greek word we see in Scripture is rhema. The rhema word of God. This is more of a whisper, or an utterance from the Holy Spirit on what we are suppose to do and how Scripture relates to the here and now. It’s God speaking in the moment. So sometimes we may receive a rhema word from God that directs us to a certain passage of Scripture that applies to our current situation.
So, the way that God speaks is different for everyone, but a lot of the times it’s a still small whisper, it’s a gut feeling, and we just know when the Holy Spirit is giving us counsel. He is after all our Counsellor and Comforter. He gives us discernment, prophecy, and wisdom. For some people it’s a thought that just rushes in and it’s nowhere close to what we may have been thinking about. Sometimes it’s a dream. Sometimes it’s a picture that we see either with our eyes open or our eyes closed. Sometimes it’s a sense of peace or joy that fills our body in a moment of chaos, and sometimes it's wisdom given to us by the Holy Spirit in a given situation. In John 14:16, Jesus says, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
It is important to recognise that God speaks to us through Scripture and through the prompting, that tugging on our hearts, that inner voice or whisper of the Holy Spirit.
There are other vehicles by which God speaks to us and we need to be discerning when hearing God’s voice.
God can speak to us through gifted teachers whose source is the Bible. We read in Romans 12:6-8 that God has given each believer different gifts, and one of the gifts is teaching.
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That is why, we need to be present in mind and spirit when we are hearing a lesson or a sermon, because it might just be the moment that God wants to speak to us.
God can also speak to us through life’s challenges that we might be facing. The Psalmist David heard the Lord speak when he was in difficulties. He writes in Psalms 119:67-68 “Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I keep and honour Your word [with loving obedience]. You are good and do good; Teach me Your statutes.”
God can also speak to us through His creation. Again, David writes in Psalms 19:1-4, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
God doesn’t just speak through the order and design we find in creation but also through the beauty that surrounds us. From something as mundane as a bunch of daffodils popping up through the ground in Spring, to the spectacular views of distant galaxies doesn’t just tell us that a Creator exists, but that this Creator is an artist without peer. The feelings of awe that comes over us as we watch the waves pound against the rocks at the beach or hold a newborn baby for the first time are evidence of God speaking to us through His masterpiece. From God's creation we who are created in His own image, draw inspiration when we paint, write, compose, design and build.
Photo Credit: Dee Lottering
God can use whatever and whoever to speak to us. God even used a donkey to speak to the prophet Balaam in the Old Testament as recorded in the Book of Numbers 22:28, "Then the Lord opened the donkey's mouth, and it said to Balaam, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?"
It is very important to note that when God speaks it is never in disagreement or in conflict with the Bible.
When God speaks it is about giving life not about taking life, it is always about doing good not doing evil, it’s about holiness, faithfulness, righteousness, wisdom, and truth.
Jesus defined a Christian when he said, as mentioned in the beginning from John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”
With this understanding, Jesus’ ministry becomes the model for hearing God today. The Holy Spirit speaks firstly to remind us of the truths Jesus established on earth which are in Scripture and then, to address areas that were “yet to come”. John 16:13 says, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come”.
This ultimately leads us to the position where sin and selfishness are put to death, and resurrection life flows. That means we’re more likely to hear the Holy Spirit speak about forgiveness and restoration, than about our worldly desires which are not God pleasing.
Re-establishing the link between Jesus and the Holy Spirit means that our God-conversations will be aligned to God’s agenda and not our own, an orientation that will minimise our disillusionment and fallout from His plan and purpose for our lives.
The Bible says in Isaiah 30:21 “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it.”” There is only one true source of wisdom and truth, and the apostle Peter recognised that when he asked in John 6:68-69, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."
A question one may ask, “Can anything keep us from hearing God?”
Yes. Wrong attitudes, resentment, or unconfessed sins can create distance in our relationship with God. When this happens, confession and repentance will bring us back into a close relationship where we can hear from God again. John 8:47 says, “Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”
At the end of the day, it all boils down to God wanting to be in relationship and communion with us, His children, the sheep of His flock, the way that He originally intended it to be.
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Blessings,
Steven
Click here to listen to my audio sermon.
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