John 10:2-4 (ESV) - But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
- Jesus did NOT say, “My prophets hear my voice, my pastors, only spiritual people, only the spiritually elite, the priest and the guru. He said MY SHEEP hear my voice.
In other words, “My Sheep DO hear my voice.”
*The problem is not with God’s voice. The trouble is with our ears. *
What clouds our ability to hear what God is saying to us:
- Doubt
- Feeling that we’re not worthy to hear.
- Skeptical or Cynical attitudes.
We must allow the Word of God “cleanse the pallet” of our ears, and let faith inform us of our ability to hear the voice of the good shepherd.
Job 33: 13-18 (NIV) – Why do you complain that God answers none of man’s words? For God does speak – now one way, now another – though man may not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night; when deep sleep falls on men as they slumber in their beds; he may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings; to turn a man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, to preserve his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword.
We do hear him – we are just not aware that we hear him.
THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR ALLY
*John 16:13-14 (NLT) *
“When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not be presenting his own ideas; he will be telling you what he has heard (from the Shepherd)…He will bring me glory by revealing to you whatever he receives from me.
The age of the Spirit is not meant to be a famine or trickle of hearing. We’re to experience a downpour of God’s voice on everyone: every age, gender, and social standing.
THE WAYS GOD SPEAKS:
1) Invitation
John 6:44 (ESV) – No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.
2) *Scripture *
Hebrews 4:12 (ESV) - For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
** Theologian Jeromey Martini: **
“Like the enchanted armor of the Knight that gives him the power to defeat the dragon, the Bible is a book of Power and Mystery. It is a collection of words, but of words that have been breathed on from Beyond and carry with them the weight and authority of that Breath. These are words with power to penetrate and interrupt lives and to alter people for all Eternity…These words are read and they are spoken so that the reader and the hearer are confronted with the very voice of God.
3) Teachers and Preachers
4) *Worship *
God often uses times of worship, in his presence, to take information from your head and transform it and establish it as conviction and revelation in your heart.
5) *Conviction of Right and Wrong *
John 16:8 – And when he comes (The Holy Spirit), he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
Just as much as God convicts us of what needs correction, he will speak to us about what pleases Him about us. God loves to encourage us!
6) Prompting (Burden for others.)
7) *Life Events or Circumstances *
a. Interpreting an event through the voice of God
b. Coincidences
c. Seeing the same thing multiple times
*Position Yourself in a Posture to Hear: *
1 Samuel 3:10 (NIV) - The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
Questions for Discussion:
1) Do you have a hard time believing God speaks to you frequently? Why or why not?
2) How do you interpret the sentence, “The problem is not with God’s voice, but with our ears?”
3) What are the ways you hear God’s voice most often?
4) What are some of the ways God speaks (listed above) that you feel you need to pay more attention to?
5) What are some ways you feel God is leading you to “listen” in expectation and faith as stated in 1 Samuel 3:10?