LIKE A VOICE OUT OF NO WHERE!

1 Sam 3:1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. 2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; 3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; 4 That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. 5 And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. 6 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. 9 Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10 And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. KJV

One of my favorite Bible accounts tells the story of the young boy Samuel who eventually became one of the most revered prophets of the Old Testament. One night, according to the report, while lying on his bed, not far from where Eli, the high priest of Israel slept, Samuel heard a voice repeatedly calling out his name. Samuel supposed it was Eli calling and ran to his side to find out why he’d been called. Puzzled, Eli told the boy that he had not beckoned him, and told him to return to sleep. This happened again twice, probably to both their dismay, because Samuel was not familiar with the voice of the Lord, or how God spoke. Finally, Samuel ran to Eli’s side, a third time, and the aged Eli discerned that God must be calling the boy. Wisely and carefully, Eli instructed Samuel to return once again to his bed, but this time he told him to wait for the Lord to speak once more, and then when he did to respond, “Speak Lord, for your servant hears!”

I’ve often wondered how Eli felt when this happened. Did he ache to hear God for himself? Was he worried about what God would say? Was he jealous? Whatever he thought, he listened to what Samuel said in a respectful manner that made Samuel accountable to be true to every word the Lord spoke, without compromise. What an amazing, powerful lesson.

As we’ve looked into the numerous manners that God brings forth Kingdom Truths, we’ve seen that the Scriptures reveal that there is a wide variety of ways the Holy Spirit of Truth communicates truth to the believer. We therefore need to take a look at the biblical fact that God sometimes, though not frequently, speaks in an audible voice.

I have never been one to encourage people to “try” to hear the audible voice of the Lord. In fact, people who chase voices and pursue constant “so-called spiritual experiences”, often leads to serious error and deception. On the other hand, believers need to be instructed and aware that God may on occasion speak audibly. It is not the norm, but it is not something that can be ignored, either.  Furthermore, I am extremely cautious when believers tell me that they hear the audible voice of the Lord frequently. I just don’t see this type of thing being consistent with the record of occurrence in the Bible and I become concerned about people who say this is normal in their lives. Honestly, they could be mentally ill and or have a chemical imbalance in their brains. Therefore, when we say God speaks audibly, we need to use extreme discernment and biblical standards to instruct people lest we make seeing and hearing our basis for truth and diminish the other ways God may bring truth into our lives.

Ex 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.KJV

Acts 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.6 And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.7 And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. 8 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.KJV

Acts 9:10 Now there was in Damascus a disciple named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. And he answered, Here am I, Lord. 11 And the Lord said to him, Get up and go to the street called Straight and ask at the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying [there].12 And he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias enter and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.13 But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard many people tell about this man, especially how much evil and what great suffering he has brought on Your saints at Jerusalem;14 Now he is here and has authority from the high priests to put in chains all who call upon Your name.15 But the Lord said to him, Go, for this man is a chosen instrument of Mine to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the descendants of Israel; 16 For I will make clear to him how much he will be afflicted and must endure and suffer for My name's sake. AMP

Isa 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.9 And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.10 Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. KJV

There are numerous incidences when the Spirit of God spoke audibly to individuals in the Bible. Moses, and the Hebrew Children in the wilderness, probably top the list, because you see, God spoke frequently at Mount Sinai, and during their journeys through the wilderness. One also could furthermore determine that all of the Old Testament prophets heard the Lord speak to them. For example, Elijah heard Him speak in the still small voice. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel stand out in that Old Testament select group as well. Then, there are also the New Testament examples such as when God spoke to Paul on the road to Damascus. But one thing must be noted. In the great majority of times when God spoke audibly to these people, there was also an accompanying vision. Nearly all of them experienced some sort of visual manifestation when God spoke.  Think about it. Moses saw a burning bush and heard God speak. Isaiah saw the heavenly throne room and heard God's voice. Jeremiah and Ezekiel both saw visions and heard Him clearly. Paul saw the bright light from heaven and heard the Lord speak. The list goes on and on and it is an irrefutable reality that God does speak audibly. This however leaves us with loads of unanswered questions, some of which can be resolved, but others cannot, at least in this lifetime.

Scripture reveals patterns; patterns of how, when, why, what and to whom God speaks. These patterns need to be acknowledged because if and when God speaks to you audibly, you can then begin to discern what is going on.

WHEN GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY?

GOD SPEAKS WHEN DRASTIC CHANGE IS NEEDED

The first and most obvious example of when God spoke audibly was in the work of creation in Genesis! Now, obviously, human ears did not hear Him, but to ignore this example would be catastrophic because it reminds us that one of the primary functions of the Holy Spirit is to bring transformation and change. Therefore, we can be assured that if and when the Spirit speaks audibly to us, there will be often radical transformation.  Light will explode into reality out of darkness. So, I believe we can be safe to say that God speaks audibly when drastic change is needed!

Obviously, there are too many instances to go into, when God spoke audibly, so I will try to point out the most significant characteristics for the sake of time and space to write. So to condense this, please read the primary reasons God speaks audibly and the pertinent Bible references as follows.

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN YOU ARE IN TRANSITION AND NEED TO MOVE FORWARD INTO A NEW AREA OF LIFE- Exodus 3:1-14; Isa. 6:1-10

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN HE CALLS SOMEONE INTO CERTAIN CALLINGS OF MINISTRY, ESPECIALLY THE APOSTOLIC OR PROPHETIC MINISTRIES- Jeremiah 1; Exodus 3; Isaiah 6; Acts 9:1-8

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN YOU ARE TOTALLY AT THE END OF YOUR ROPE AND WHEN YOU HAVE LOST ALL HOPE- 1 Kings 19:1-12

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN HE NEEDS TO MOVE YOU FROM THE WRONG DIRECTION YOU ARE GOING ONTO THE PATH THAT HE WANTS YOU TO GO- Acts 9:3-8

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN YOU HAVE BECOME TOO COMFORTABLY IN YOUR LIFE AND HAVE FORGOTTEN YOUR CALLING- Exodus 3:1-14

GOD SPEAKS AUDIBLY WHEN HE CONFRONTS SIN – Numbers 12:1-15

GOD SPEAKS WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT! IN THE TIMING OF THE ORDINARY- Ex. 3:1-14

 You can't force God to speak, nor can you predict when He will do so! Moses was out tending his sheep, doing his ordinary thing, and then he saw the burning bush. Paul was riding on the road to Damascus and suddenly God met him when he didn't expect it. Don't be guilty of religious gymnastics that often try to manipulate God to do what you want. He's not fooled by our feeble efforts. Leave it up to Him. If He wants to speak to you audibly, He will. Let Him be God!

I realise that it is very possible that as the times progress toward the return of the Lord, more and more people will experience visions and hearing God speak in an audible manner. Peter's sermon in Acts 2 reveals that a large percentage of miracles and signs in the end will be visual!The sad thing is that because of a lack of solid doctrinal teaching on some of the most basic of doctrines, and the dearth for wise interpretation of Scripture, I fear many people will fall prey to deception from seducing spirits that would counterfeit God’s voice and speaking. We must always go back to the basics of our faith when faced with difficult times. Even so, we cannot dismiss the fact, that God has spoken audibly in the past and will do so again when the times and circumstances require it. Therefore, since visions and visible evidences often accompanied the voice of the Lord, we’ll take a look at those in future blogs so we can keep the balance of teaching according to His word.