Hearing His Voice

I remember when I was fresh in my faith and heard other Christians say, "God spoke to me..." I would wonder how they knew God was speaking and because I didn't have the same experience, I would wonder why God didn't talk to me. However, as I grew in my relationship with Jesus, I learned that he speaks to all of us, and, most importantly, I learned the sound of his voice.

The kingdom of God operates by the Spirit of God, which is the Holy Spirit. As sons of God, we are to be led by the Spirit. We are to walk in the Spirit and by faith as opposed to walking carnally (according to human wisdom, knowledge & ability) and according to what we see. God said he would put his laws in our minds, write them on our hearts, be our God, and no one would teach us to know the Lord. Not being taught to know the Lord means he would speak to us directly, straight to our hearts.

Under the new covenant, God has sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in us so we can be led and empowered by a personal relationship with him. Jesus said if we belong to him, we will know his voice and follow Him. The knowing comes from within. Just like a child knows the voice of his parents, without being taught, we know the voice of the Lord simply because we are his sons. It is the same voice that led us to accept salvation in Christ.

Jesus said no one could come to him unless the Father drew him. When you heard the gospel for the first time and "felt something" urging you to accept it, you probably thought it was your reasoning, but according to the scripture, that was God's voice (his Spirit), and his voice hasn't changed. He continues to speak to us in the same way; the only difference is now that we are born again, we have the Holy Spirit and the word working together, separating the Lord's voice from our own.

The enemy does not want us to read the word because it is Spirit and alive. His word is sharper than any sword or knife, with the ability to divide the Spirit (where God speaks) from the soul (where we speak). His word makes the distinction between the two; there is nothing that we do. The best way to distinguish his voice from our own is by feeding on his word. Forcing oneself to read is the same as force-feeding, which is why being led is the best way.

The sound of the Lord's voice is typically calm and small. It's an inner knowing; the more we practice acknowledging and obeying his voice, the more comfortable we become in hearing it. However, the first step to recognizing his voice is to agree with the scripture in that we hear his voice. Once we agree with the word, we will be keener to listen to him. Obeying his voice is important because he can't lead us if we refuse to go. However, it is essential to know that as the Good Shepherd, he leads us to life and all that is good and never leads us into sin.

Jesus said in John 10:27, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." if you struggle with desiring to read the scripture, ask him for the desire. Then the next time you have a thought to read the bible, know that it wasn't your thought but instead his voice guiding you. Amen?

Scripture References: Galatians 5:16 -18, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Romans 1:17, Romans 8, Galatians 2:20, Hebrews 8:10-12, John 14:26, John 7:37-39, John 16:13-15, John 10:27, John 6:44, John 6:65, Hebrews 4:12, Philippians 2:13, 1 Kings 19:11-13