In the last episode of this podcast, I began to share with you about learning to hear the voice of God. I began sharing my discovery that hearing from God involves waiting and listening. As believers, we have the ability to hear God speak to our spirits, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
John 16:13 NIV [Jesus said,] “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears [from the Father], and He will tell you what is yet to come.
John 8:47a ESV Whoever is of God hears the words of God.
In the last episode, we also read from Luke 10:38-42, where Jesus describes sitting at His feet and listening as a “necessary” activity.
Let’s continue our search of the Scriptures for passages related to hearing the voice of God.
Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 ESV Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
· Application: This seems to me to be a clear statement about how and why we should pray. The purpose of prayer is to hear from God. We should not only include in our prayer time our words of praise and petition, but we should also include time to be silent before God and listen to Him speak to us.
Proverbs 2:1-5 ESV My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
· Application: This is an encouragement to hear God speak to you through diligent searching for, and embracing, His commandments in the Bible.
John 8:47 ESV Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.
· Application: Sometimes the reason we have trouble hearing God is that we are disobeying God in some area of our life, so that in that area we are “not of God.” Another possibility is not necessarily active disobedience. It could be that we are not open or do not want to hear God speaking to us in a particular area.
Revelation 3:20 NASB Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
· Application: This verse is sometimes used to refer to salvation, and that is certainly one application. But the main message of this passage is to the lukewarm, complacent church of Laodicea. It is an appeal to believers in Laodicea (and by extension, to us) to not be distracted by the pleasures of the world, but instead to tune in and hear the voice of Jesus and respond by inviting Him into any area of our lives that He wants to occupy. When we do that, we enjoy dining, or fellowshipping, with Him.
John 10:27 NASB "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
· Application: Note that Jesus did NOT say that the people who hear His voice are trained, professional Christians, or expert followers of Bible Law. He did not say that people earn (through righteous living) the right to hear His voice. Instead, Jesus simply said, “My sheep hear My voice.” Just as sheep follow their shepherd, believers who follow their Savior will hear His voice. Following Jesus is the ONLY requirement to hear His voice.
To summarize, we have learned today that the purpose of prayer is to hear from God, and we should always include time to be silent and listen to God. So prayer and searching the Scriptures are practical ways of hearing God’s voice, especially while we are waiting for God to act or speak. We learned to be alert for signs of any disobedience or lack of openness in our lives, which would be hindrances to hearing God’s voice. We learned to not be distracted by the pleasures of the world but instead be tuned in and listening for the voice of Jesus and to invite him into all areas of our lives. And we learned that we don’t earn the right to hear His voice (through things like Bible training, following the Law, or righteous living). Simply following Jesus is the ONLY requirement to hear His voice.
You might be thinking, “It would also be an encouragement to me to pursue waiting and listening, if I could keep in mind some of the benefits I will receive by doing so.” And what are those benefits? Well, the answer, of course, is in the next episode. 😊
Today, I encourage you to “Reflect on This.”