Do You Listen From God?

From the very first page of the Scriptures, we learn that our God is a God who speaks. God’s speech sets him apart from false idol gods who have a mouth but cannot speak.

Psalms 115:3-7

Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats.

The responsibility of God’s people is to listen to their speaking God. Listening to God is a mark of righteous character and covenant faithfulness.

The Bible starts with a speaking God. Everyday something happened when God spoke. The shapeless, hopeless, dark earth became live, beautiful and fruitful even the Holy God could say, it was good! When someone responds to God in faith and in obedience supernatural things would happen! Truly a transformation takes place!

A. SOME PRINCIPLES OF HEARING FROM GOD

Listening involves both hearing and doing God’s word.

When my friend says, “You don’t listen!” he usually means, “You don’t pay attention!” When I say to my son, “You don’t listen!” I usually mean, “You don’t obey!” God wants us to carefully pay attention so that we can fully obey. Listening is synonymous with obedience in Jeremiah: “I spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, ‘I will not listen.’ This has been your way from your youth, that you have not obeyed my voice” (Jer. 22:21).

Listening to God’s true voice is essential in a world where many false voices are speaking.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord” (Jer. 23:16).

Every day, we are flooded with media that contains false messages, often delivered in the name of the Lord. Those who are not in tune to God’s voice are more likely to be tossed to and fro by deceptive doctrines.

It is impossible to listen to God when our hearts are unclean.

“Behold, their ears are uncircumcised, they cannot listen; behold, the word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn; they take no pleasure in it” (Jer. 6:10).

An uncircumcised heart cannot listen. Circumcision is used as a symbol for a clean heart: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD; remove the foreskin of your hearts” (Jer. 4:4). We listen to what we love. We may need to work harder to listen (disciplined or dutiful obedience), but we need our hearts to be changed and our wills to be melted so that listening to God’s Word comes more naturally and more easily (delightful obedience).

Isaiah 42:19

“Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one in covenant with me, blind like the servant of the LORD?”

If we do not listen to God, God will not listen to us.

Jeremiah impugns God’s people for failing to listen, then records God’s message to them: “Therefore, thus says the Lord, Behold, I am bringing disaster upon them that they cannot escape. Though they cry to me, I will not listen to them” (Jer. 11:11).

God even tells Jeremiah, “do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer on their behalf, for I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their trouble” (Jer. 11:14).

Isaiah 1:15

“When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you;

even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!”

Refusing to listen to God is the worst kind of stubbornness.

God says, “every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me” (Jer. 16:12).

“Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck, that they might not hear and receive instruction” (Jer. 17:23). God grieves, “They have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them persistently, they have not listened to receive instruction” (Jer. 32:33).

Ephesians 4:18-19

“They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed”

God is surprisingly patient with those who do not listen.

“You have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the Lord persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets” (Jer. 25:3-4).