“DO YOU KNOW THAT THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER THING ANYONE CAN KNOW AND EXPERIENCE IS NOT OF THIS WORLD? YES, IT IS SOMETHING ALL OF US CRAVES, AND SEEK SOME TIME IN OUR LIVES.”

 I’m Dennis Finnan, host and speaker on the World, the Word & You! Broadcast and in a moment I want to talk with you about how one can know and hear the voice of God. Stay tuned…

… As I read the Scriptures for my life’s work of preaching God’s Word, I am often amazed at how our great Creator God has gone to great lengths to communicate with His highest creation that is you and me. Yes, throughout the Bible one can read of God speaking to man about many things. God speaks in the still small voice of conscience, He speaks in guidance, and He also speaks at times in discipline and judgment. But most of all the “Voice of God,” can be heard in calling us to Himself in various ways.

I want to examine and talk about what we can learn from the Bible about the Voice of God and prepare our own hearts to actually hear God speak to us. Is that a fairy tale dream? The answer is no, for God wants to speak to everyone of us, and He wants to do this regularly, but the problem He faces is most of us are either not listening or fail to recognize His voice when He speaks. So after our second moment of music, I return to share with you how you can hear God’s voice speaking to you…

…  In researching the Scriptures, I’ve discovered God is not silent when it comes to communicating with us. In fact, God has so determined to have us hear His voice that He has recorded it for all mankind of all ages to hear. No, God did not make an audio or video recording to be passed out. Rather He has recorded His voice in what is called the Bible, the written Word of God. Now for many, the Bible is nothing more than an ancient novel or fairytale to enjoy reading for a good series of stories. But God never intended that, for He makes it plain enough to know it is not a book written by the mind of man, but penned on behalf of God Himself for all of us to hear the VOICE OF GOD! Listen to God’s Word telling us this,

2 Tim 3:16 (NIV)  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,

Heb 4:12 (NIV)  For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

It is without doubt that the Bible claims itself to be the very word and voice of God. Of course, not all things written in it are God actually speaking, for it contains other voices too. For instance, within the Bible we hear the voice of angels speaking; and more, the voice of Satan speaks too. However, when anyone other than God speaks, we are told that, in no uncertain words, so that none will be confused. Yet we are confused and often misquote or judge one voice for another. Let’s look at God speaking in His Word in the various ways He has communicated with us.

1. GOD FIRST SPOKE IN CREATION 

Now the first time, I’ve discovered God spoke was in the creation of all things. Nine times we are told in the first chapter of Genesis that God literally spoke the worlds and our universe into existence. Listen to God’s Word on the matter,

“ Gen 1 (NIV)  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth... 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light... 6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water… 8 God called the expanse “sky… 9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so... 11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation… And it was so… 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky… And it was so… 20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky… 24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds… 26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness.. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them… 29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food… And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good… Gen 2:1 (NIV)  Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.”

Nine times the Bible records God’s voice as He spoke into existence all things as we know them, including humanity itself. Indeed, the voice of God is prominent in Creation. Secondly, we discover,

2. GOD SPOKE TO HIS CREATION 

Yes, the voice of God spoke directly to His highest creation, mankind itself. Adam and Eve, upon being created and given the life force of God for conscious existence, hear God speak to them. We read of this in,

Gen 2:15-18 (NIV)  The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” 18 The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Here God speaks to Adam personally and instructs him what his life and work in living is to be, and what He is NOT to do. Upon creating Eve from Adam’s very physical existence, both Adam and Eve hear God speak regularly to them.

Gen 3:8-9 (NIV)  Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”

It appears that every day in the late afternoon, God (the Preincarnate Christ) appeared in the Garden of Eden and walked with Adam and Eve communicating with them. So, we can deduce that God created us for the very purpose to form of intimate companionship and communication between us.  Sadly, the Scriptures tells us that Adam and Eve lost this communication and the ability to hear the voice of God clearly, when they listened to yet another voice, the voice of the fallen angel Satan.

We are told in Scripture, Satan came down to the earth and took possession of one of God’s creatures in the Garden of Eden, a snake. Satan spoke through the snake to Adam and Eve and convinced them God’s plan and purpose for them was not in their best interest. He convinced Eve first and then Adam to disobey God and His word to them. In so doing, our first parents plunged the entire world and universe into the spiraling downward digression of sin and evil.

Upon disobeying God and His Word to them, not to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge and good and evil, Adam and Eve were separated from God by the death of a part of their very being that enabled them to communicate and hear the Voice of God. What part of their being died that day? It was their human spirit that enabled them to communicate with and hear God speak.

As they were driven from the Garden of Eden and banished to a world now hostile to their existence, they had to scrape out of the soil food to live and exist till they physically died.

How sad, all communication was lost, except the fact that the Bible tells us God’s love overshadowed His wrath and judgment. You see the good thing is -- God loved His creation called humanity and promised not abandon it. So God promises Adam and Eve to send them a deliverer who could save them from the penalty of death now upon them. We read of this love and promise spoken by the voice of God to them in,

Gen 3:15 (NLT)  From now on, you (Satan) and the woman will be enemies, and your offspring and her offspring will be enemies. He ( Messiah to come)  will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Many Christian commentators since the second century have called this the “Protevangelium” (Latin), the "first preaching of the gospel." It has also been described as "the Bible in embryo, the sum of all history and prophecy in a germ." It is a specific prediction of continual hostility between good and evil, between man and the satanic forces that oppose his moral well-being, and between the people of God and the unregenerate world system in which they live. However, this is more than just a prediction. The "woman" is emphasized because she was beguiled by the Serpent; it is she who is "the mother of all living" ( 3:20 ), and it is by the woman that the Savior would come (Gal. 4:4). The "seed" of the Serpent must include all the followers of the Evil One (John 8:44 ).

There is a unique allusion in "her Seed," the first announcement of the virgin birth, for biologically in conception the seed or sperm is delivered by the man; but in the miraculous conception of the Messiah, the seed was the woman's, the result of her being overshadowed by the Holy Spirit (Gal. 4:4). Jesus Christ, then, as the "Seed" of the woman, was promised to ultimately defeat Satan and his "seed." The phrases "bruise your head" and "bruise His heel" reveal suffering for both sides, but the final wounds to the Serpent are ultimately devastating, while the victory most certainly comes for the greatest descendant of Eve, the Savior Jesus Christ who was "bruised for our [man's] iniquities" (Isa. 53:5), but His sufferings and death are now history. A bruised "heel" may be nursed until healed, but the crushing of the "head" means certain death. However God later spoke and said that in the atonement and promised return of Christ, Satan's head (his power and freedom) are forever crushed (Rev. 20:2, 3).

So we see that God spoke to mankind about SAVING US FROM OUR SINS! This is what the Bible is all about too. It is the recorded message of God working out His divine plan to fulfill His promise to Adam and Eve to save them from sin and death and to grant them new life through the Messiah and Savior of the world to come. How did Adam and Eve respond? They believed God and placed their trust in His promise to send a Savior miraculously through Eve.

Now down through history, as the Bible was being recorded of God’s communication to us, the voice of God has spoken considerably. However, once the Scriptures were completed with the final book of the Bible recorded, the Book of Revelation, there is no more verbal and written word from God for man to know and experience. Does this mean God is silent? The answer is no, for God still speaks in various ways to man. In the remaining moments I want to share with you how to hear God speak and to know His voice from all others.

Now basically there are FOUR VOICES man can hear today. Let’s go over them.

1.  THE VOICE OF CONSCIENCE AND SELF 

Remember, we are created in God’s image, and therefore have the ability to think, feel, and converse in what we call our ‘mind.’ All of us do this as we talk to ourselves, mostly in thoughts inside our heads. There is no limit how we can communicate with ourselves conjuring up images, pictures and even people. This is why books are such a joy to read, as we form all the images we can imagine to fit the words we read and see. In the Bible, this aspect of ourselves is often referred to as our inner being, nature or “flesh.” Sadly, this part of man is stained and corrupted by sin, so often the voice of self draws us to things that are continued disobedience to God, as well as hurtful to others and ourselves.
We must not listen to the voice of self unless we can be assured it is in alignment with God Word and will. Now the second voice we can and often do hear is,

2. THE VOICE OF EVIL THAT IS SATAN 

Yes Satan, the fallen angel, speaks to our minds. He doesn’t appear to us physically, but works behind the scenes and projects evil self gratifying thoughts into our minds to draw us away from God, and to sin more greatly against God and ourselves. All too often, those not walking with God will confuse Satan’s voice for God’s as the Devil will impersonate God to us to deceive us. We are told of this in,

Eph 6:11-16 (NLT)  “ Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. 12 For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms… 16 In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan.

These “fiery arrows” refers to the voice of the Devil or Satan who speaks to us to sin against God, against our fellow man, and against ourselves.  However, God gives the ability to discern this evil voice that plagues humanity incessantly, when one turns to the one true living God by faith and surrender of their life to God’s Son Jesus Christ. Now this brings us to the third voice we can hear and that is,

3. THE VOICE OF OTHERS AROUND US 

Yes, thank God we can communicate with others and them with us. Do you know that failing to hear the voice of others is a most detrimental thing? Being alone and not hearing others speak to us is a tremendous form of emotional suffering. Often when we listen to others speak it can help us learn from their experiences to better our own way and thoughts in this world. However, the voice of people can often be the wrong voice to hear. The point I’m making is everything we hear, and all advice we receive from others should be checked out with God’s written Word, to know if it is good for us or not. Today the advice of our secular psychologists and educators fill us with disobedient thoughts and actions that God condemns as the wisdom of man, not of God. We must be careful to screen everything we see or hear by God’s filter of His Word to be safe and avoid the effects of sin and the disciplines of God. But now we come to the fourth voice we can hear and that is,

4. THE VERY VOICE OF GOD HIMSELF 

Yes, God wants to communicate with you and me and the very first way is through the call to salvation. Jesus said,

Mat 11:28 -30 (NIV)  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

John 10:27-30 (NIV)  “ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all ; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”

What a joy to know that God is ready and willing to establish regular loving communication with those who will turn from their sins and receive Jesus Christ into their lives as their God and Savior. Once they do, the Bible says God restores that dead spirit Adam and Eve passed on to us, and communion and communication with God becomes and ever present reality. Yes, in every Christian, God takes up residence in their new spirit to live with and commune with us every day we choose to hear His voice. God speaks through His Word, through our minds and conscience, and as often as we call upon God to speak, He hears us and returns His mind and thoughts.

Now the great problem we face is, how to hear God’s voice. It is really simple. First you must become a Christian and then you must seek to hear Him speak to you. Do you take time out of your busy life to read the Bible, devotionally? God will and does speak always from His Word to His children. Do you want to know what God wants you to do today, or tomorrow? How you are to respond to life situations you are facing? -- Then go to God’s Word and pray for God to speak as you read His Word carefully and devotionally.

The voice of God is there, He is never far away from His children who seek Him. Another way God speaks to us is through the preaching, instruction and study of the Bible. As a pastor it is my calling from God, to open the Word of God for everyone’s knowledge and learning to understand the texts of Scripture in our modern day and age and apply it to our lives we live and experience. When this is done, God speaks to the hearer and directs them in what He wants them to do and be at that moment. I tell you everyone can commune with God daily and even throughout the day if they seek him. The Bible promises us all,

Deu 4:29 (NIV) “ if…  you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Say, what is the Spirit of God saying to your mind and heart right now? Perhaps He is calling you to turn from living a life without God and His voice, to turning to Him and receiving His Son Jesus Christ into your life?

You do this by a prayer of faith, confessing your great sin of leaving God out of your life, and asking Him to take up residence in you by the power of His Spirit. You then acknowledge that your sins are worthy of death and that God in His love has canceled that death penalty for you by sending His Son Jesus Christ to die in your place; which He did on a cross thousands of years ago. You then ask God to forgive you and grant you His new life in Christ and thank Him for doing it through this simple but profound prayer of faith.

Yes it’s that simple! There is no need to be baptized, pay any penance, confess to a priest, and do a series of good works to buy your forgiveness. Jesus paid it all, and all to Him I and you owe!

Once you become a Christian that new spirit that comes alive in your soul now can clearly hear the voice of God speak to you if you listen. This year marks my 31^st year as a believer in Jesus Christ. I clearly remember the moment I prayed to receive Christ and confessed my sins. At that exact moment God opened my heart, my eyes and my mind to see Jesus and I’ve enjoyed that sweet fellowship and communion ever since. Now this doesn’t mean I became sinless, on the contrary God reveals to me day by day how deep my sin was and still is, as long as I yield to my old sin nature within me, but God speaks to me as I speak to Him. And friend that is a key to hearing the voice of God. Do you speak to God? Often in a moment of idleness I say, 

“Lord Jesus here I am.. I need to you guide me in this decision or that… Lord how do I manage this… or Lord Jesus, I need your comforting right now to calm my heart and quiet my spirit… Lord Jesus here I am again I’ve sinned against You, I’m sorry…” 

It matters not what you say, but speak to God and He will hear His children. Indeed, the VOICE OF GOD is out there if you will listen. May God so bless your heart to hear Him and if necessary, restore that broken fellowship now and for eternity through Jesus Christ. Amen.