The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. (John 10:2-4, 27)
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?
- Perhaps you can identify with those who may say, ‘I’m not sure I’m really getting any inner direction from God’ or… ‘Ideas come, but how do I know they’re from God?’
- Are they just my conscious or subconscious? Maybe voices from the past are being projected onto a present setting?
- How do I know that the enemy, who is also spirit, isn’t influencing me?
- Are there solid principles to discern God’s guidance?
Before answering that question, I believe it can be helpful to address another, which may naturally arise:
Why isn’t God’s guidance more clear? If he really desires to speak to us, why isn’t it always obvious… direct… immediately clear?
Here’s where it’s help to remember…
GOD DOESN’T WANT ROBOTS, BUT RELATIONSHIP.
God doesn’t want to program us, he wants to parent us
- He wants to deepen not just our intelligence but our intimacy, moving from information to formation, from knowing to growing, from head to heart, from accepting to understanding…
3 Qualities that come from the process of discovering and discerning God’s voice…
- Memory
o Passive learning that demands little of our involvement is usually forgotten; never truly formative
o Actively involved, pondering, seeking, searching… then when we get an answer, when the light goes on… and the revelation isn’t easy to forget.
- Motivation
o You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13)
o How much do you really want to grasp God’s heart?
- Maturity
o But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil (Hebrews 5:14)
So it is that God is parenting us; helping us to develop as spiritual adults; to become familiar with the sound of his voice and the counsel of his heart… far from being left out, we are learning; far from doubting his voice, we are to discern.
Towards that end I want briefly offer
7 PRINCIPLES OF DISCOVERING AND DISCERNING GOD’S VOICE.
- Drawing from a study of God’s word and the experience of myself and others, I offer these not as a checklist but as guides to getting familiar… to getting tuned into the right frequency
1. GOD’S VOICE WILL HONOR CHRIST
When the counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. (John 15:26; 16:14)
Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognized the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. (1 John 4:1-3)
The implication here is in regards to prophetic counsel more than practical; that is to say, I believe God’s natural wisdom can be spoken to us by those who don’t know Him… parents, authors, and such; but spiritual insight which claims a spiritual source, must be spiritually tested. If it is from the Holy Spirit, Christ will be acknowledged as Lord; if not , He will stand as threat to the source of all powers. Needless to say there are many offering “spiritual” guidance today. While many may simply be charlatans, I don’t doubt spiritual powers at work. We need only ask from what source? Who is Lord?
2. GOD’S VOICE WILL BE CONSISTANT WITH HIS WORD
- If you go to pray and your inner heart speaks of condemnation… or feels worthless… it’s not from God
- God does not change; “Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.”
- His counsel will not contradict itself
- Rather, God’s spirit will speak to us in a way that will apply the counsel of His word to our personal and specific situations.
- Being consistent with his word, does not simply mean applying a quotation from Scripture
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)
- And so it follows that consistent with one of these fruits
7. GOD’S VOICE WILL BRING CALM TO OUR SPIRITS.
For God is not a God of disorder, but of peace. (1 Corinthians 14:33)
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:26-27)
- Holy Spirit provides God’s comfort amid chaos, an inner knowledge that sure despite our outer circumstances.
You will go out with joy and be lead forth in peace. (Isaiah 55:12)
The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. (Isaiah 32:17)
- Such will be ourselves when we are lead by God.
- Old fisherman was asked to explain how the wind works. He responded, “I don’t know about the wind… I can’t control it… but I know how to hoist and direct a sail, and use a rudder.”
- So Jesus said the spirit will blow like the wind… there will be plenty of good adventure if we keep our sails up and rudders in the water.
