Experiencing God V: ‘God
Speaks - Part 1’
Sermon Review
29 April 2001
1 Cor 2:10-12
Today and next Sunday, as we continue working our way through Experiencing God, we will be looking at how God speaks to Christians by the Holy Spirit through the Scriptures, Prayer, the Church, and Circumstances. One book that I have found exceptionally helpful alongside the Experiencing God workbook is Dallas Willard’s ‘Hearing God’
Comedienne Lily Tomlin once said, ‘Why is it that when we speak to God we are said to be praying, but when God speaks to us we are said to be schizophrenic?’
The truth is that God has always intended to have relationship with human beings. God’s visits to Adam & Eve, Enoch’s walks with God, face to face talks between Moses & Jehovah all had unique historical roles, but the matter of communication and relationship is not intended to be unique to them eg. John 10:27; 8:47
In fact, if you take time to think about it, you will notice that in the Scriptures there are frequent mentions of supernatural or miraculous activity which are just settings for, or confirmations of communications from God eg. the miracles in the exodus, Elijah on the Mountain top, the raising of Lazarus, Paul on the road to Damascus. Simply put, the miraculous in the Exodus would have been incomprehensible without the verbal input by Moses, and the same can be said of Elijah’s situation, and the raising of Lazarus. The real message was not in the miraculous, but what was said. God has not changed. He needed to communicate particular things to particular people at specific times for specific reasons. He still needs to speak specifically and individually today, so therefore we need to listen as his intention is not to communicate ambiguously, but unambiguously and clearly.
Why Doesn’t God Use Compulsion Instead of Communication?
This would be much safer with no chance of misunderstanding or ambiguity. So why does God run the risk of communicating with us? There are two main ways of guiding. One is mechanical eg. space probes, model aeroplanes, remote controlled cars etc. The other is personal guidance. This is the type that you give to people when you want to bring about a desired end, yet still allow them to use their mind and choice and will to the fullest extent. The desired end is that the outcome be the work of both the one being guided and the one doing the guiding. We must always remember that God is not trying to manufacture individuals who will obey, clap, sing, go to church when asked, and respond like some robot. Our individuality, our free agency is respected, that is why he communicates and does not compel eg. God wishes all to come to repentance and not perish, but not all do; he tries to guide as we guide our children. God uses mechanical guidance in the created order eg. cause and effect. With human beings he does not; he communicates instead. The Biblical records show little of God forcing people to do what he wanted. What it does show is Him communicating and allowing people to experience the consequences of their actions, attitudes, and choices – both good and bad eg. do this and this will happen, do that and that will happen – you choose. God wishes to communicate, not compel. That is why his intention is to communicate clearly and help people to think through things and respond without coercion. This is captured perfectly in God’s comments to David, "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you…" Ps.32:8,9. God primary intention is to provide clear understandable and conscious communication so that we remain free agents with minds, emotions and wills of our own that we freely submit to the directions and wishes of God because he loves us, knows what is best, and can be trusted.
What Does God Communicate?
- His Character, His Purposes & His Ways:
Blackaby and King make clear that for people to experience God they need to believe God is who He says He is, that he can do what he says he will do, so they will adjust their lives accordingly, and in so doing, experience Him as they obey him. This means that God communicates revelations about himself that are relevant to you and what He wants to achieve in and through your life. For example, in order for God to accomplish through Abram what he intended, God revealed to him that he was the God Almighty Gen.17:1. To Moses he revealed that he was holy Lev.19:1-2. To Israel he revealed that he was reliable and unchanging as well as forgiving (Mal.3:6-7). To the Jews Jesus revealed that he was the Living bread that came from heaven. Abraham needed to know that God was almighty so he could believe that God could give him a son in his old age. Moses had to convince the people that God was holy so they would respond by being holy themselves, as they were being given the law which was going to provide a knowledge of sin to the whole world. Through Malachi, Israel need to know of God’s forgiving nature so that people would know that they could return to God and be forgiven, for as a nation they were still reeling from exile in Babylon through disobedience, and they were going to face 400 years of silence from God. And Jesus needed to reveal to the Jews that he was the source of eternal life so they could believe and respond to him and receive that life.
As well as relevant revelations about himself, God also reveals his purposes so you will know what He plans to do and can join in doing it. We have spoken of this at some length before. If we don’t know what he is going to do, we can find ourselves planning and doing quite inappropriate things for God.
Finally, God also reveals his way of doing things so that we can use Kingdom principles to accomplish Kingdom purposes. We often think that our way of accomplishing God’s work is the best, and even get results some time. However, doing God’s work God’s way is always best. Sending home the 5,000 was the disciples way of handling the crowd – with Jesus it was sit down and lets feed them. When we do God’s work God’s way, God-sized things happen.
- How God Does Communicate?
In Hebrews 1:1 we are told that in the past God spoke through the prophets in different ways and at different times, and then finally in and through his son Jesus Christ. Indeed God has spoken in many and various ways in the Biblical past eg. angels, visions, dreams, the use of the Urim and Thummin, symbolic actions, miraculous signs, audible voice, a gentle whisper, and of course in the person of Jesus Christ, through whom we find God’s views, opinions, and perspective’s on a variety of things. However, today, God speaks primarily through the Holy Spirit. He is called the Spirit of Truth who has come to reveal truth John.14:26, 16:13,14. He resides in the believer, knows both the heart of the person and the heart of God, and helps by communicating to us understandings about God, his nature, his purposes, and his ways inside of us 1Cor.2:9-12. The still small voice that Elijah heard is a perfect example of one of the key ways the Holy Spirit speaks to the Christian. The main tools the Holy Spirit uses are the Scriptures, Prayer, the church, including other Christians. Mostly, some or all of these are used together, providing corroboration and confirmation, but it is helpful exploring them separately.
Scriptures: the Holy Spirit’s Primary Tool:
The Bible gives direct instructions about many questions in our lives. It does not take a long inquiry into God’s will in order to know whether we should worship an idol, take something that is not ours, engage in sex outside of marriage, or mistreat our parents. However, the specific circumstances of our lives are not dealt with. You and I will be faced with many different issues and decisions which the Bible provides little or no detail about eg. a particular song to use in worship, or a particular text to preach from, or specifically whom to marry etc. etc. So God speaks in a general sense through the Scriptures. That is to say that there is general guidance concerning sexual activity, parenting, marriage, prayer etc. But there is also individual guidance through the Scriptures as well for they are not just a static or fixed record. Keep in mind that the Scriptures were inspired by the Holy Spirit, and they are described as the ‘sword of the Spirit’ which is ‘living and active, piercing to the division or soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart’ Heb. 4:12; Eph.6.17.
The Holy Spirit primarily provides wisdom and insight and guidance into how the Scriptures apply to us in our individual circumstances. Note that this does not bake the Bible magical, as some like to use it eg. Bible roulette! We need to read it, study it, and come to a good understanding of how it is put together and fits together, so we don’t run into the trap of making it say what we want. We also need to read it with an intention of putting into practice what we learn. God is not strong on giving information for information’s sake; rather information for application, for that is what saves us and what causes us to experience God eg. Jas.1:21 cf. also Matt.7:21. The Holy Spirit does not bend the rules or distort the historical record to guide us.
Helpful Method:
Methods are always a problem, as you are an individual and I am sure that the Holy Spirit can use the Bible to communicate to us in an infinite variety of ways. However one of the most obvious and time proven methods is to come to the Scriptures and ask God to speak to you. Then read and reflect about what you are reading. Ask yourself if any of it is relevant to your life, and in what ways. Don’t sit there waiting for a double whammy. Use your mind, after all the Holy Spirit lives within and merges, sometimes almost seamlessly with our thinking process and reflective operations. As you use your mind and are open to God, not defensive and resisting, you will often find that a certain verse or idea draws you to itself. Prayerfully explore possible connections with your life. If God is using this specifically to talk to you, understanding and relevance will come. Sometimes things will feel as though they jump straight at you. Other times impressions will gradually crystallise into something concrete. Or at other times later in the normal course of the day, Scriptures or Scriptural lines from a song will suddenly spring into your head either reiterating what you had read, or extending the idea, or providing comprehension. Reflect on these kinds of input and consider their relevance and appropriateness in relation to your circumstances or your prayers. Don’t strain or work yourself up into a state. Read, reflect and pray and God will speak to you. The hardest part is learning how to identify when God is speaking to you. It is important to note that as sheep have to learn to recognise their master’s voice, so too experience helps us to identify God’s communications to us.
- Helpful Cues For Recognising When It Is God Speaking - Quality, Spirit or Tone, and Content.
On quality, E.Stanley Jones says this: - ‘Perhaps the rough distinction is this: the voice of the subconscious argues with you, tries to convince you; but the inner voice of God does not argue, does not try to convince you. It just speaks, and is is self-authenticating. It has the feel of God within it’. Eg. Matt.7:29 when Jesus spoke his words had a weight of authority which opened up the understanding of his hearers and created faith in them. Unlike their scribes he taught with a note of authority.
With respect to Spirit or Tone, James 3:17 provides an insight. ‘The wisdom from above is first pure, peace loving, considerate, open-minded; it is straightforward and sincere, rich in compassion and in deeds of kindness are its fruit’. The voice of God is peaceful, confident, sweetly reasonable, and wills for the good.
With respect to content, this is a matter of the information that the voice conveys to us. If any content or claims made do not conform to God’s nature or truths in the Bible, they do not come from God.
Don’t give up, nor work yourself up into a sweat. God wants to speak to all of us. It is a personal relationship he wants with us. He will communicate his thoughts and intentions to you. Be patient and learn how you best hear what he is saying.
Conclusion:
God intends to clearly and consciously communicate to His children. He does not desire to be misunderstood. His wish is to reveal his character, nature, purposes and ways through the Holy Spirit, primarily through the Scriptures, but in other ways. The Scriptures are the ‘sword of the Spirit’ and he uses it effectively, if we learn how to listen. As you read and pray through the Scriptures, you can help this process by recording what you think God is saying to you, and looking for further corroboration through prayer, what others are saying, especially through the church and other Christians, and of course through your circumstances. We will look more closely at these things next week. For now, expect God to speak to you through the Scriptures. Learn to identify his voice and adjust your life to his direction, and you will experience God in and through your life in new and special ways.
Blessings