HE Is Speaking, Are You Listening?

He is speaking... Are you listening? 

Jesus said:
Revelation 3:20-22 (NKJV)
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Would you like to have the kind of relationship with Jesus where you hear His voice? Would you like to be able to sit with Him and have a real conversation? You can have this because Jesus has already invited you to do so. We have contact with Jesus through His Holy Spirit.  These contacts often manifest in the form of hearing His voice. Typically that hearing is an inward voice similar to your thoughts but there is a knowing that these thoughts are in fact Jesus. It is this inner witness that you will need to develop to communicate with the Lord, and it really isn’t difficult. It takes a little practice and the same faith as when you chose to make Jesus your personal Savior.

The Holy Spirit dwells in us, and brings to us the words of Jesus and His Father. That “still small voice” from the Holy Spirit sounds like our own voice in our head, so the many emotions and distractions that swirl around us can be a hindrance from clearly hearing what the Lord is saying.
“A Christian’s spiritual ‘telephone line’ to the Lord translates messages through the same message processing center in the soul (i.e. the brain) that the soul itself uses.  Hence revelation from the Lord into your spirit ‘sounds’ like your own thoughts’ ‘tone of voice.’ Put another way, your soul has only one translation device….Therefore, regardless of the source of the message, the ‘sound of the voice’ seems to be the same.” (p.133-134 Chapter 9: Deception vs. Revelation: How to Discern the Difference, Dining at the Master’s Table, Paul D. Norcross, 1997).
So how do we receive from the Lord Jesus Christ, and hear His words spoken to us?  The Lord’s voice comes to us in a whisper, as a ‘still small voice.’


1 Kings 19:12 (KJV)
And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

We need to put distractions aside, get quiet, sit, and listen for the Lord to speak to us, without any prayer lists or other agendas.  He will be faithful to speak.

Psalm 46:10 (NIV)
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”

As long as you have made Jesus Christ your Lord (Romans 10:9), Jesus says that you WILL hear His voice!

John 10:27 (AMP)
The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me.

We need to both HEAR from and LISTEN to the LORD.  To listen means to “give attention…; attend closely for the purpose of hearing; to pay attention; heed; obey.  Isn’t that what we desire????...to really hear the Lord speak to us and to listen to what He is saying?  If a corresponding action is requested, shouldn’t we follow up on His advice?
What about hearing?  And hearing HIS WORDS to us?

Romans 10:17 (NKJV)
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Word in this verse is rhema in Greek.  It means sayings, or words spoken.  This is what we want to hear from the Lord.  Many people refer to this Greek word as ‘revelation’ or a ‘revealing’ of something that you hear from the Lord.  But, you may ask, how do I know if it is the Lord who is speaking to me, and if the words I hear are truly from Him? All ‘rhema revelation’ will be based on scripture, on the written word.

Hebrews 4:12 (NKJV)
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Word in this verse is logos in Greek.  It means the written word, or what is written in the Bible.  This is the plumb line of truth for us.  When we ‘hear from the Lord’ we can be assured that what we are hearing is from the Holy Spirit if it is confirmed in the written word of God. He will never tell you anything that does not line up with scripture. This is your assurance.

When we come and sit beside the Lord, He will speak to us and tell us the words of Life. (John 14:6)  Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord and Savior, is seated beside the Father in heaven. (Hebrews 12:2) He will speak to us and show us the things that are on His heart for us.

Jeremiah 33:3 (AMP)
‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and tell you [and even show you] great and mighty things, [things which have been confined and hidden], which you do not know and understand and cannot distinguish.’

We would like to invite you to listen to His voice today. Ask Him whatever you like and then listen. When you reach out to Him with sincerity He will respond. You don’t have to worry about thinking, “Was that just me? Or was that something other than God?” Truly fear and doubt are the biggest hindrances to hearing His voice. His voice is going to sound like a friend. He won’t be speaking in the King James version of English. The Lord’s still small voice will be recognizable and your heart will agree with what He says to you.  Come and sit beside the Lord Jesus Christ today.  Be refreshed, renewed, and rejoice in His presence!
Please join us for our next segment on Hearing the voice of God….. Having eyes to see Him.