The Lord has recently brought me back to a topic that He began teaching me many years ago, and is continuing to teach me today. The topic is learning to hear His voice. This is especially important as applied to the principle of asking God questions when we pray, and then waiting and listening for His response.
Some believers express caution about this principle of listening to God. Some groups within the body of Christ teach that God does not speak to believers directly in this time in history – that He only speaks through His written word, the Bible. We all certainly know of examples of people abusing this principle and claiming to hear God tell them to do outlandish things. But that is no reason to “throw the baby out with the bath water” and not apply this principle to our lives.
My response to these concerns is that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever,” (Hebrews 13:8 NASB). I believe that this verse applies to the entire triune Godhead, and that therefore God still speaks to us today – and the method of “waiting and listening” is one of the best ways I know to hear His voice.
Doesn’t it thrill our hearts to have our children ask us a question and sincerely wait for our response? I can only imagine how much more it thrills God’s heart for us to ask Him a question and sincerely wait before Him for His response.
Many believers today admire the ability of the great men of faith in the Old Testament to be able to hear God speak directly to them in an audible voice. The exciting thing is that believers today have something even better than hearing God’s audible voice – we have the ability to hear God’s quiet whisper (1 Kings 19:12 NIV) within us! This voice is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit! Both the scriptures and my personal experience have confirmed this to me:
John 16:13 NIV [Jesus said,] “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 [from the Father], and He will tell you what is yet to come.”
John 8:47a ESV Whoever is of God hears the words of God.
Let me share with you some additional scriptures that teach on this principle of hearing God speak to us. I pray that this overview will be helpful and encouraging.
If you are like me, there are many situations in life where you want to hear from God. “O God, what should I think, do or say in this moment?” or “What does this Bible verse mean?” and so forth. I am not necessarily referring to an audible voice (although I would certainly welcome that 😊), but a clear message from God in my spirit, by whatever means He chooses: the Bible, prayer, preaching, time in worship, a wise word from a trusted friend, a thought that He puts in my mind, etc.
I have been searching the Bible to find guidance on this topic, and to confirm my understanding that God does indeed speak to us via all of the means I just mentioned. What I have discovered is that hearing from God involves waiting and listening, regardless of the means that God chooses to use to speak to us.
Psalm 37:7a ESV Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
· Application: Being still and waiting patiently before the Lord is so important. We can’t hear Him if we are distracted by the busyness, temptations, and demands of the world.
Luke 10:38-42 NASB Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. (39) She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word. (40) But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." (41) But the Lord answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; (42) but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
· Application: This is an example of listening to Jesus. Notice how He describes this as a “necessary” activity. It is also another example of how easily we can be “worried and bothered” (i.e., distracted) by our busyness, our responsibilities, and the demands of the world.
To summarize, so far we have been talking about learning to hear God’s voice. Through the scriptures we have read so far, we have seen that God sent the Holy Spirit to believers to be our internal voice of God. We have learned that hearing from God also involves waiting and listening. And we looked at two passages that give us some help in waiting and listening (by encouraging us to not be distracted from listening by our busyness and responsibilities, and the demands of the world).
But, you might be thinking, “This notion of waiting and listening is still somewhat of an abstract concept to me. I need some additional practical tips on how to wait and listen.” Good news – those additional tips are coming in the next episode! 😊
Today, I encourage you to “Reflect on This.”