GOD STILL SPEAKS TODAY
John 10:27
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: It’s Important to Speak & Listen
1. A wife was suing her husband for divorce and accused him of not speaking to her in five years. "What have you got to say for yourself?" asked the horrified judge. The husband replied meekly, "Well, er, I didn't like to interrupt".
2. Hallmark Father's Day card: "Dad, thanks to your lectures I never change horses in the middle of a job worth doing, I know the squeaky wheel gets the worm, and I never count my chickens until I've walked a mile in their shoes … And you thought I wasn't listening."
B. TEXT
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow Me” John 10:27.
C. THESIS
1. We live in a day of chaos, confusion, complexity, and conflict. We read the daily newspapers and watch television news reports, but a lot of what we hear isn't really the truth.
2. In many cases, is the agenda or the opinion of those who own the news outlets/ world.
3. Everywhere there are voices speaking, telling us what to believe, how to live our lives, and how to even think. Which voice are we listening to?
4. One of the reasons we are going into a 21 day fast is so that we can tune out all the other voices and concentrate on hearing the one voice we really need to hear – God's voice!
5. If ever we needed to hear the truth, we need to hear it now. The good news is, God is still speaking today.
6. So tonight we’re going to look at a brief History of God speaking, characteristics of His Voice, and lastly, How to Hear God’s Voice.
7. The title of this message is “God Still Speaks Today.”
I. THE VOICE OF GOD IN HISTORY
History is filled with instances of God speaking to individuals. In fact, the Bible is a record of God revealing himself to people down through history.
A. EXAMPLES OF GOD SPEAKING
1. Adam and Eve heard the voice of the Lord walking in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:8).They walked along with the voice, i.e., they kept His pace and direction.
2. One day the farmer, Noah, began to hear God speaking to him about a flood-judgment because of sin but God told them how He would spare Noah’s family if he obeyed God's voice and built an ark.
3. Abraham heard God’s voice telling him to separate from his idolatrous family and travel to a distant land which God promised to Abraham and his descendants as their inheritance.
4. Moses was in the backside of the desert after fleeing from Egypt.
a. He saw a burning bush and as he approached, he heard a voice speaking out of the midst of the bush calling, "Moses!” God said some pretty insightful things to Moses:
“I have seen.”
“I have heard”
“I am concerned”
“I am come down.”
“I will send you.”
These give us great consolation as to God’s awareness of us.
b. Moses built the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant. “When Moses entered the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant law. In this way the Lord spoke to him” Num. 7:89. The Lord always speaks to us on the basis of atonement!
5. Years later, a boy was sleeping in the Tabernacle. He began to hear the voice of the Lord calling to him, "Samuel, Samuel!" He obeyed the Lord and brought in the time of the kings of Israel.
6. Later a prophet by the name of Elijah traveled to Mount Horeb, because he was desperate to hear from the Lord. Many distractions occurred, including fires and earthquakes, but he didn't let the effects of God's power distract him from hearing the actual voice of the Lord. Finally he heard the still small voice of the Lord asking, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" 1 Kings 19:9. Elijah had let fear of Jezebel get him off track from God’s mission, but God put him back on it.
7. “I will look to see what He will say to me” Habakkuk 2:1.
B. THE CLEAREST VOICE OF GOD
1. The book of Hebrews tells us of God's ultimate speaking to us: through his Son Jesus Christ; “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe” Heb. 1:1-2.
2. When Jesus spoke, being God incarnate, His words were God's clearest and most authoritative voice speaking to us.
3. After he returned to heaven, however, God sent the Holy Spirit to continue to speak to us. He spoke to the apostles all through the Book of Acts.
4. But God isn't done yet, nor has His nature changed: He is still speaking today!
II. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VOICE OF GOD
A. MATCHES SCRIPTURE
When God speaks to you He reminds you of His promises (2 Cor. 1:20). God's voice always matches Scripture. God never says anything contrary to it.
B. IS RECONCILING
God's voice is always reconciling. He does not judge willingly. He longs for us to come to repentance. So He is attempting to woo us back to him or get us to see the things that hinder our relationship with Him.
C. IT BRINGS CLARITY & PEACE
God's voice is clear, peaceful and calm. Satan, our enemy, always spreads confusion, is in a hurry, accuses and causes doubt.
D. IS CONSISTENT
God's voice reflects His character, purposes and plan. God has a definite plan – the reconciliation of the world – and is always working to bring that about.
E. IS AUTHORITATIVE
God's voice has authority to accomplish what he says. His Word accomplishes that for which it was sent. It is life-giving.
F. IT CENTERS ON JESUS
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow Me” John 10:27.
III. HOW TO HEAR GOD’S VOICE
HUMOR
1. A woman is said to have gone to John Osteen and said, "A brother has spoken to me and said the Lord is sending me to Africa."
2. John Osteen replied, "If you do go you'd better take that brother with you otherwise you won't know when to come back, will you?"
A. HE SPEAKS THROUGH MORE THAN ONE AVENUE
“If you believe there is only one way to hear from God, such as His [audible] voice, you could get so puffed up thinking you’re so “spiritual” that you could be deceived by a wrong voice. God speaks to you in more than one avenue because it’s safer. A great way to know you have heard from God on a personal (non-doctrinal) issue is when you receive multiple confirmations. [Kelly Singing]
B. OTHER WAYS GOD SPEAKS TO US
There are at least seven ways God can communicate His will to us.
1. VOICE, DREAM, ETC. First, He may speak to you by His audible voice, His still small voice, a prophetic utterance, a dream or vision, or by imparting His peace.
2. THE WORD of GOD – the Bible – is the primary way
God speaks to Christians. It tells us God’s will on many subjects, and on subjects not specifically mentioned, it lays down principles we can use to derive/ deduce God’s will. Additionally, the more you know about God and His ways by reading the Bible, the easier it is to extrapolate His will to other areas. It’s like knowing your dad; you know without asking him what he would do in most situations.
3. The ADVICE of Spiritual Leaders & friends. This is spoken of often in the Book of Proverbs.
4. CIRCUMSTANCES. Often the providential hand orders our lives in such a way that when we come to a juncture or have a need, the answer arrives at the same time. Circumstances, however, must be prayed about because they can be misleading.
5. WELFARE OF OTHERS. Who/ What will this decision effect and how. None of us live to ourselves; we form a network. If one person makes a bad choice, they may affect hundreds of other people adversely.
6. EXAMPLE OF OTHERS. Will what I do lead others into the will of God, closer to God, or will I set a bad example for others?
7. IS THIS ACTION REDEMPTIVE? Is it going to be for yourself or others? The main object of God’s work is the church. We must get along with the members of the Body, and all that we do should positively impact the Body of Christ. Don’t break fellowship with the church.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: CHECKING OUR DIRECTION
1. In the old days of ocean sailing, a small boy was traveling on shipboard with his father. About once a day the boy saw the captain stand on deck with sextant in hand, and, as they used to say, "shoot the stars."
2. The boy said to his father, "Daddy, what is the captain doing?" His father replied, "The captain is taking our bearings, seeing where we are, finding out if we are going in the right direction."
3. When we come to church, we are checking in with God; we are seeing where we are; we are finding out
about our directions in relation to His will concerning our journey of life.
B. THE CALL
1. God says, "Be still, and know that I am God." Ps. 46:10.
2. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” Rev. 3:20.
3. God says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” Jer. 29:13.
4. If we want to hear from God, we need to purpose to hear from Him, that is, to draw near to God.
5. As we approach 2014, let’s purpose that we will hear the voice of God. Let’s get in the altars for a few minutes and seek God.
