Hearing God’s Voice
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer Jr.
OPENING:- I want to start this message out by telling two brief stories. The first is:- There once was a man that whispered, “God, speak to me.” And a meadowlark sang. But the man did not hear.
So the man yelled, “God, speak to me!” and Thunder rolled across the sky. But the man did not listen.
The man looked around and said, “God, let me see you.” and star shone brightly. But he noticed it not.
The man then shouted, “God, show me a miracle.” and a life was born. But the man was unaware.
So, the man cried out in despair, “Touch me, God, and let me know that you are here!” Whereupon God reached down and touched the man. But the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.
The second story is: - A man was having difficulty communicating with his wife and concluded that she was becoming hard of hearing. So, he decided to conduct a test without her knowing about it.
One evening he sat in a chair on the far side of the room. Her back was to him and she could not see him. Very quietly he whispered, "Can you hear me?" There was no response.
Moving a little closer, he asked again, "Can you hear me now?" Still no reply. Quietly he edged closer and whispered the same words, but still no answer.
Finally, he moved right in behind her chair and said, "Can you hear me now?" To his surprise and chagrin, she responded with irritation in her voice, "For the fourth time, yes!"
The Premise of these 2 stories is:- 1.) When God speaks make sure you do not miss out on a blessing because it is not packaged the way you expect. 2.) The hearing problem is not with God not speaking but with us not listening!
WATCH THIS:- The phrase He that hath an ear let him hear appears 14 times in the Bible this is interesting because the number 14 is considered to be a symbol of salvation and deliverance. The 14th day of the 1st Hebrew month called Nisan is the Passover. That is the day celebrated because of the deliverance of the firstborn from death of the Children of Israel because they were covered by the blood of the lamb on the doorpost and mantel and the death angel passed over them. “Hear” in Greek is akouo = to perceive, to understand, perceive the sense of what is said.
Prayer:-
SCRIPTURE:- 1 Samuel 3:1-10 “And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth”.
Communication is important and vital to any relationship. I can say I love my wife all I want but if we never communicate then all the love I say I have is all for not because the relationship will fall if there is no communication. The same is true with God, we can say we love him all we want to but if we never communicate with him there is no real relationship. The Bible says it like this in Matthew 15:8 “This people draweth near unto me with their mouth, and honoreth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me”.
Communication is two way it involves speaking and listening. According to Webster’s Dictionary online communication is the imparting and receiving of information.
When it comes to hearing God’s voice there are a few questions that first need to be understood.
1. How do you know it is God? We see cases on TV all the time of people claiming they hear from God or hear voices that tell them to commit all kinds of heinous crimes. The Bible informs us that there are many voices that are trying to get our attention. 1 Corinthians 14:10 says “There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification”.
There are different voices in the world: -
THE VOICE OF MAN: The voice of man is easy to recognize. It is the audible voice of another human being and it is the main way we communicate with each other. Sometimes the voice of man may give wise advice, but anytime the voice of man conflicts with the voice of God, you must obey God. We see this on a daily basis right now through this pandemic, there is wisdom in the voice of the medical professionals that tell us to stay home, practice social distancing, wear protective mask, then there is that voice that says we don’t need to heed to such directives, open up the country, it’s all a hoax anyway. Acts 5:29 says “Then Peter and the other apostles answered, and said, We ought to obey God rather than men”.
THE VOICE OF SATAN: The voice of Satan was first heard by man when he spoke to Eve in the Garden of Eden Genesis 3:l,4,5 it is also heard when he spoke to God about Job in Job 1 & 2 and when he tempted Jesus in Matthew 4. Satan’s voice always lies, deceives, and attempts to lead man into sin away from God. Satan’s voice is always contrary to the Will and Word of God.
The Demons / Evil spirits voice: Acts 8:7 says “For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them...” Luke 4:33-34 says “And in the synagogue there was a man, who had a spirit of an unclean demon, and cried out with a loud voice, Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art: the Holy One of God”. These voice like Satan’s voice always go contrary to the Will and Word of God.
THE VOICE OF SELF: The voice of self is talking to oneself. This voice needs to be taken with extreme caution because it is influenced by all that is in the world. 1 John 2:16-17 says “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust of it; but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever”. Jeremiah 10:23 says “O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps”.
THE VOICE OF GOD: Jesus said my sheep know my voice and another they will not follow John 10:3-5. This is a key statement and that is to know His voice you must be His sheep and He must be our shepherd.
The voice of God will always lead you in His Will and Word. John 16:13 says “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come”.
Psalms 85:8 says “I will hear what God, the Lord, will speak; for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints; but let them not turn again to folly”.
So how do we know it is God speaking? 1 John 4:1-5 “Beloved, believe not every spirit (VOICE), but try the spirits whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone into the world…” You don’t buy a car without first test driving it. You don’t buy a pair of shoes before trying them on. It’s the same with the voice of God try the spirit by the spirit and as long as it’s not going against the Will and Word of God then you can know for sure it’s God.
2. How do react to God’s voice. In verse 3-5 Samuel heard a voice call his name. He didn’t know it was God yet but his reaction was something we should do when answering the voice of God. Samuel ran, he was quick to respond. When we hear God’s voice our reaction should be quick and not delayed.
We must be receptive of God’s voice. Revelation 3:20 says “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me”. Hebrews 3:7, l5 says “While it is said, Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation...”
We must have faith to hear God’s voice. Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”.
Hebrews 4:2 “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it”.
Romans 10:17 says “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word (rhema) of God”.
We must have Discernment to hear God’s voice. Discernment is the ability to judge well; however, spiritual discernment is every decision is to be made in accordance with God’s will. John 12:28-29 “Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him”. There was a lack of discernment.
1 Kings 19:11-13 says “And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou hear, Elijah”. Notice Elijah had discernment to understand although the voice of God didn’t come in what he expected he knew and reacted accordingly when he discerned it.
3. How do you answer God’s voice. Verse 10 says “And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel, Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth”. Samuel answered God’s voice with humbleness and willingness.
Moses answered God this way. Exodus 3:4 say “And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I”.
Abraham answered God this way. Genesis 22:11 says “And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said Abraham; and he said Here am I”.
Jacob said Here am I in Genesis 31:11.
Isaiah said Here am I in Isaiah 6:8.
Ananias said Here am I in Acts 9:10.
In our text Samuel was a young boy when God spoke to him and he wasn’t aware of the voice of God or how to respond until Eli told him what to do. Well here are a few keys to hearing the voice of God.
Habakkkuk 2:1-2 says “I will stand upon my watch, and set myself upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And the Lord said, write the vision and make it plain, upon tablets, …”.
1. Habakkuk said he would stand upon his watch – he was still. To hear God’s voice we must stop and be still, we can’t be busy with all manner of stuff but must be still expecting to hear from God. We must separate ourselves from distractions that will cause us to miss what God is saying.
2. Habakkuk said he will watch to see what he will say. We must focus on God. David said it like this in Psalm 121:1-2 “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills. From whence cometh my help? My help cometh from the Lord, who made heaven and earth”. His focus is directed toward God.
3. Write it down. It is a good idea to keep a notepad and pen next to your bed because when we are sleep is the best time for God to speak to us because we are quite, we are still, and we are not so distracted.
CLOSING:- Some people don’t listen at all. Some people don’t realize that God is speaking because they don’t understand the delivery method. Some people think God isn’t speaking because they can’t hear for whatever reasons either they are to busy, to distracted with their own life or just think like the man did with his wife that the problem is with God. However, when we submit to the Will of God then we will hear the Voice of God. When we focus on God, settle down and stop letting life distraction block us then we will hear from God.
God has never stopped speaking to us, The Bible is how He speaks to us mostly today. However; He will speak directly to your heart and if we are ready to listen and open up the door of our hearts He will come in and sup (talk) with us.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
