Sermon Central
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Discerning God's Voice Series
Contributed by Brad Bailey on Nov 28, 2017 (message contributor)
Summary: Your very presence here today is an indication that you have heard, or are hearing his voice. But developing that companionship often remains a challenge; learning to listen to God is not always as simple as we’d like?
o We do well to remember Christ being tempted in the wilderness… the devil quotes Scripture (i.e. jump… doesn’t it say angels will catch you?)
o Jesus knew the counsel of his Father and the inappropriate use of words…
- So we too can discern as we learn God’s word
Evil men and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:13-17)
3. GOD’S VOICE WILL OFTEN CONFLICT WITH HUMAN WISDOM
- Doesn’t mean that everything God says will conflict with all common wisdom or thought, but it will often transcend it.
- More than any other point, this stands out in my experience of hearing God. It’s rarely what I would expect. There’s something more profound and pointed that God wants to impart than what I was seeking.
- In following God, do not necessarily look for paths. Instead, look for God, often leading where there is no path… and leave a trail.
4. GOD’S VOICE WILL CHALLENGE OUR FAITH
- Romans 10:17—Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God
- Faith is trust in God, and God is always in the process of deepening that trust.
- This is where I think we’re most often confused in our approach to hearing God.
- Often our tendency is to ask God questions of decision/direction… marriage, job, and the like… but God will speak more to the issue of dedication… how much can I love this person? How much can I give?
- GOD’S MORE INTERESTED IN OUR DEVELOPMENT THAN OUR DIRECTION
- A good father doesn’t choose… he challenges.
5. GOD’S VOICE WILL FIND CONFIRMATION WITH OTHERS
- Proverbs 13:20—“he who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.”
- THIS IS TRUE WITH DISCERNING GOD’S LEADING AS WELL.
- Between a leader’s imposing their sense of God’s leading on others, as some cults have, and the other extreme of individualism, where people simply live their own ideas of God’s leading, there lies a healthy sense of confirmation.
- So many broken marriages wished they’d listened to the wisdom of friends.
- In significant decisions… seek the spiritually wise… not the “socially obligated”… nor the purely practical.
6. GOD’S VOICE WILL CAUSE FRUIT
Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. (Matthew 7:15-16)
- Doesn’t refer to whether such prophets gather people… or whether our leading brings outward success
- It’s about the quality of those lead by another, or the qualities which come from your own sense of God’s voice…
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
