Listening to God's Voice

I. Text: 2 Timothy 3:12-4:4

II. God’s will or purpose

A. God has thoughts, and perhaps plans, that He does not reveal to us

B. Deuteronomy 29:29 – Secret things belong to God

C. Isaiah 55:8-9 – God’s ways are higher than ours

III. Military analogy

A. In a war, the higher levels of military authority know the overall strategic war plan, the individual battle plans needed to win the war, and information on the enemy and other variables that can affect the outcome of the war plan.

1. Through the line of command the generals communicate what lower levels of authority need to know in order to execute their part of the plan to achieve the overall goals.
2. The officer in the field does not need to know what the plan is for the navy fighting separate battles at sea.
3. The officer in the field does not need to know the overall war plan but must know the battle plan in which he participates.
4. The soldier needs to know where to go and what to do to execute his part of the battle plan and does not need to be concerned with a broader scope of information.

B. In these relationships, each level has expectations in their role that may be defined by the plans of higher authority. They don’t have to know the overarching plan but they do know what is expected of them.

IV. God has revealed His will for man in the scriptures

A. It is obvious that the Bible does not contain the exhaustive knowledge of God, for He has infinite knowledge and we could not grasp all that could be known.

B. The Bible contains what He wants us to know about Himself, His work, and His instructions for mankind on how to live and serve Him.

C. God revealed His will for mankind in the scriptures

1. Revelation in the Old Testament era (before the church),
2. God spoke directly to people through various means
   • Direct speaking

Genesis 6:13f – God told Noah to build an ark

Genesis 12:1f – God directed Abram to leave his country

• Spoke through physical appearance

Genesis 18:1-3 – Lord appeared in the appearance of three men

Note also verses 16-21: “Lord said” in the men’s discussions

• Spoke through angels

Genesis 19:1, 12-13 – the angels communicated God’s plan

Genesis 21:17f – angel spoke God’s will to Hagar

Luke 1 – angels appeared to Zechariah and Mary to tell of John and Jesus

• Spoke through visions

Genesis 15:1f – God and Abraham talked in a vision

Ezekiel 1:1 – God’s message delivered through visions

• Spoke through dreams

Genesis 20:3-7 – warned Abimelech in a dream

Genesis 28:10f – Jacob’s dream in Bethel

Matthew 2:13, 19 – angel spoke to Joseph in a dream

• Spoke through prophets

Jeremiah 1:9-10 – words given to Jeremiah to proclaim to the people

Ezekiel 2:7 – instructed to speak the words of God

• Inspired writers recorded His will

Deuteronomy 5:22-23; 9:10 – God gave His law written on stones

Jeremiah 36:32 – Jeremiah’s message recorded on a scroll

• Urim and Thummim: Exodus 28:30

1. In all these cases the message was verbal, there was no doubt that God was speaking, and the message was clear and understandable.

V. Revelation in the Church Age

A. Hebrews 1:1-2 – Contrast between communication before Jesus and afterwards; Jesus spoke God’s will to man

B. Matthew 28:18-20 – Apostles instructed to teach Jesus words and make disciples

C. Holy Spirit would guide the apostles understanding of Jesus’ words and will as they took that message throughout the world.

1. John 14:25-26
2. John 16:12-15

D. The Holy Spirit inspired the writing of scripture

1. 2 Peter 1:20-21 – Holy men moved to write what was revealed by the Holy Spirit
2. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 – Message is inspired by God for our spiritual maturity

E. The scripture is inspiring but that is not what is meant by this passage

1. The scripture was “God breathed”; He gave it life
2. Ephesians 3:1-4 – Paul wrote what God revealed to him that they would know if they read what he wrote.

F. God revealed His will once and for all

1. Revelation 22:18 – cannot add or remove from the word
2. Jude 3-4 – once for all times delivered to the saints
3. 2 Peter 3:1-2 – refer back to the revealed message

VI. The nature of the revealed will in our time

A. Teach the saving plan of God and instruct us in righteousness

1. Titus 2:11-15 – Salvation and purity of the child of God
2. Ephesians 4:11-16 – verbally inspired message to perfect us

B. Christians were told to seek guidance from God’s word

1. 2 Timothy 2:2, 14-15- Know it, live it, and teach it
2. 2 Timothy 3:15-17 – (previously read) Study God’s word to be mature
3. 2 Timothy 4:2-4 – When people leave God’s word, they go into error

C. Paul warned about messages that contradict God’s revealed word: Galatians 1:6-9

VII. Some Christians teach that God reveals His will directly to individuals outside of scripture

A. They allege that God speaks through:

1. Emotions
2. Good feelings directing them towards a course of action and bad feelings indicating God’s displeasure with a choice
3. Feeling an impulse to act
4. Feeling peace about a decision
5. Internet story

B. God putting thoughts and desires into their hearts (an inner voice)

1. “God is telling me to…”
2. “God is speaking to my heart”
3. “God laid it on my heart”
4. “The Lord laid a scripture on my heart”
   • Francis Chan ( Forgotten God): “My hope is that instead of searching for’God’s will for my life’ each of us would learn to seek hard after’the Spirit’s leading in my life today.’ May we learn to pray for an open and willing heart, to surrender to the Spirit’s leading with that friend, child, spouse, circumstance, or decision in our lives right now.”
   • Francis Chan ( Forgotten God): “It’s much less demanding to think about God’s will for your future than it is to ask Him what He wants you to do in the next ten minutes.” This is asking expecting that God will give a course of action.
5. Divine appointments – feeling that God led them to choose certain actions that brought about certain results (not by choice of wisdom or coincidence)
   • Francis Chan ( Multiply): “God may well want you to take His gospel overseas. Too many Christians discount that possibility too quickly. Some people are too comfortable with their current lifestyle and would never dream of sacrificing their comfort for God’s glory. Others quickly assume that they are called to something else, something more normal. We shouldn’t make these assumptions. Have you ever genuinely told God that you would submit yourself to His will in this area? Right now, you should ask God if He wants you to pursue living in a different location for the sake of the gospel. It may be a terrifying thought, but we have to trust God more than we trust ourselves.”
6. Interpretation of omens and signs
   • Viewing random texts of scripture as divine guidance for a course of action (Gilley)
   • Viewing opportunities as God wanting them to take a course of action
   • Viewing coincidental events as having a God-given meaning

VIII. Story from the Grace Communion Site

1. Poll by Alistair Begg that 1 in 3 Americans believe God speaks to them directly

IX. Problems with this view

A. There are no examples in the New Testament of individuals taking a course of action based on having a feeling that God wanted them to act in a particular way. They acted in response to specific verbal instructions from God or His agents.

B. There is no instruction for the believers to expect messages from God through feelings, impulses, interpretation of events, or message directed to their hearts.

C. In fact, the scriptures teach us to be inherently distrustful of the heart

1. Proverbs 28:26 – Fool trusts his heart
2. Jeremiah 17:9 – Heart is wicked
3. Proverbs 14:12 – Way that seems right…
4. As Mark Copeland said in his excellent work on the Holy Spirit, “Don’t let feelings of the human spirit keep you from following the teachings of the Holy Spirit!”

D. There are no instructions on how to interpret such feelings, events, or speaking to the heart to determine God’s message, discriminate it from one’s own thoughts, or how to make sure that is not evil feelings or thoughts influenced by Satan.

1. Martin Lloyd-Jones: ““Let us imagine I follow the mystic way. I begin to have experiences; I think God is speaking to me; how do I know it is God who is speaking to me? How can I know I am not speaking to man; how can I be sure that I am not the victim of hallucinations, since this has happened to many mystics? If I believe in mysticism as such without the Bible how do I know I am not being deluded by Satan as an angel of light in order to keep me from the living and true God? I have no standard. The evangelical doctrine tells me not to look into myself but to look into the Word of God; not to examine myself, but to look at the revelation that has been given to me. It tells me that God can only be known in His own way, the way the way which has been revealed in the scriptures themselves.”
2. Some say that good feelings show God’s approval, yet self-satisfaction and self-justification will produce the same emotional feedback.
   • 1 Timothy 4:1-2 – Who is to say that a feeling or impulse is not the product of a seducing spirit who portrays himself as an angel of light?
   • Some proponents admit this but claim that one can discern the message of God when he becomes one of the spiritually elite who is in tune with the wavelength of God.
   • Henry Blackaby (leading proponent) when challenged about how he knew the source was from God but not others: “You come to know His voice as you experience Him in a love relationship. As God speaks and you respond, you come to the point that you recognize His voice more and more clearly.” (GIlley)
   • This was the claim of the first century Gnostics who claimed to have a superior walk with God due to divine insights and mystical experiences (Col. 2:18-19).
3. Historically, those who have recognized an authority outside of God’s word to accompany it tend to eventually supplant God’s word with personal revelation (David Wells)

E. Some say that the Holy Spirit just directs people in the divine application and interpretation of the written word through feelings, promptings, impressions, and insights but they cannot even find the scriptures to prove that such takes place. (Gilley, 33)

1. Some spend much time trying to interpret their feelings, coincidental events in life, etc. to determine what God wants them to do in life or what choices to make.
2. Bruce Waltke ( Finding the Will of God: A Pagan Notion?): “When we seek to ‘find’ God’s will, we are attempting to discover hidden knowledge by supernatural activity…If we are going to find His will on one specific choice, we will have to have to penetrate the divine mind to get his decision…this is a form of divination. The idea was common in pagan religions…in fact it was the preoccupation of pagan kings.”
3. Just as idolatrous people sought the Oracle at Delphi, reading tea leaves or animal entrails, astrology, and omens to determine a course of action, some Christians are acting with a superstitious approach to their feelings and events in life to determine God’s will.

X. Some argue that God speaking in this way is “non-authoritative”.

A. When does God ever speak to man without being authoritative?

B. If we determine that God wants us to choose a course of action and we ignore or disobey it, will we be judged as disobedient and rebellious (as Jonah who disobeyed the direct instruction of God)? If not, why not?

C. Denominational Meeting Story

D. After reading much by people who believe that God is directing them, there is uncertainty as to whether God is actually instructing them on a course of action based on feelings, etc. There is confidence that God uses such means to communicate but no confidence in what the exact message is that is being communicated!

E. Non-believers have impulses, feelings, coincidental encounters, and random events that they interpret or learn from to choose actions that they do not attribute to God. They recognize these are just insights or becoming aware of other options.

XI. Spiritual Maturity

A. We should be growing and maturing as God’s people through daily study, prayer, and godly living.

1. 2 Peter 1:3-4: Scripture gives all things that pertain to life and godliness
2. Colossians 2:6-7: Established in the faith

B. When we grow in our knowledge we become more spiritually discerning and blending our natural thoughts with God’s revealed and inspired God our thinking should change:

1. We should become more aware of opportunities to teach and serve others.
2. We should become better decision makers as we make choices in light of whether it will please God, make us more holy, and allows us to glorify God in our lives.
3. We will become more useful in God’s service by applying the revealed word. In this way the Holy Spirit, through the revealed word, can lead us in righteousness and service.
4. Glory still goes to God because this is how He taught us to live

XII. Story from the Grace Communion Site: http://www.gci.org/god/toldme

XIII. “God told me to move my family to Saudi Arabia.”

XIV. Alex stared at his friend, wondering if he was just joking or had gone mad. Alex had known Tom for more than 10 years. He’d been best man at Tom’s wedding, not to mention godfather to Tom’s and Alicia’s twin girls. And Alex knew that Tom and Alicia were as cut out for missionary life in Saudi Arabia as toads are for an omelet.

XV. “That’s, well, a pretty big decision, Tom. How do you know it’s really God’s will for you?”

XVI. “Well, just a lot of things.” Tom stared deep into his coffee cup. “Pastor Mel’s sermon a few weeks ago really got me thinking.” He glanced up at Alex. “We’re pretty selfish enjoying the good life here in America while people all around the world need help. I gave it a lot of prayer, and God seemed to answer that we should go.”

XVII. Alex nodded thoughtfully, weighing how to respond. “How did God give you that answer?”

XVIII. “Well, for one thing, I was talking to the Hogarths, you know, the missionaries in Saudi Arabia. They said they could use some help.”

XIX. “What kind of help?”

XX. “Well, you know, I’m pretty good at carpentry, and they said that’s just what they’d been praying for—somebody good at carpentry. It was like God was just saying to me, ‘This is what I want you to do, Tom.’”

XXI. “What does Alicia think about it?”

XXII. “Oh, she’s not as excited as I am, but I’m praying she’ll come around.”

XXIII. “Not as excited?” Alex said.

XXIV. “Well, actually she’s dead set against it. She can get pretty hardheaded sometimes. But I think the Lord will show her it’s the right thing for us to do.”

XXV. “Hmm, I see,” Alex dumped a pack of powdered sweetener into his coffee. “What if he doesn’t?”

XXVI. “He will, Alex. I trust the Lord. And I have a really good feeling about this decision.”

XXVII. Tom is not unique. Every day, Christians somewhere are convincing themselves that God is telling them to marry a certain person, take a certain job, go to a certain college, or “get out there” and do something really big and meaningful for him.

XXVIII. Denominational Meeting Story

XXIX. On one occasion we were discussing various ministry strategies and plans when a member of staff shared what they believed was a word from God with us. To be honest I cannot even remember what it was that God was meant to have said but I do remember the unease in the room as the rest of the people around the table tried to figure out how to precede.

XXX. Do we disagree and argue God has it wrong? Do we tell them they did not hear from God? How do we know if that’s true? Do we go to scripture to test the Word that they have given? What if there is nothing contrary to scripture in the Word? Do we simply have to accept it?

XXXI. It was clear from the mood in the room that there were at least some reservations about acting on this supposed word from the Lord. The hardest part was that the person sharing this word genuinely believed that God had spoken to them and were offended when people did not fully believe in the same way they did. They left the meeting convinced that they were right and that God was on their side and on reflection it was another marker on the way to the division that would eventually befall this leadership group.