Series: “Be Still & Hear God” - Part 2
"How God Talks to You"
Pastor Jerry
2 Timothy 3:14-17
------------------------------------- Message Synopsis -------------------------------------
We started a new series called
“Be Still & Hear God.” It’s about hearing God speak. We talked about four attitudes that can make or break whether you hear God or not. The four attitudes were: a
closed mind, a
shallow mind, a
preoccupied mind, and a
willing mind.
God tells us that He wants to talk to us.
In fact the Bible is full of examples, hundreds of examples of God talking to people. In the Bible, God uses many, many different ways to communicate. God can communicate any way He wants. He spoke to Moses
through a burning bush, to Jacob
through an angel, to the entire nation of Israel
through a cloud, and to a man named Balaam
through a donkey.
What is God using to try to talk to you?
In Job 33 it says,
“God speaks in different ways but we don’t always recognize His voice.” God has many, many different ways that He speaks to us.
The problem is we often don’t recognize it. This morning we’re going to look at six of the ways that God wants to speak to you. These are not the only ways. But these are six very, very
common ways that God speaks to us.
- God speaks to us through the Bible.
The number one way that God speaks to us – is through His word. There are a lot of people who say,
“I want God to tell me what He wants me to do.” However, God is not going to write it in the sky. He’s already written it in a book, the Bible.
The reason we have the Bible is because God has already spoken over thousands of years and to thousands of people who wrote down what God said. If you’re never opening the Bible,
God isn’t talking to you very much. Because the number one way He speaks to us is through this book.
2 Timothy 3:16
“Everything in the Scriptures is God’s word. All of it is useful for teaching and helping people and for correcting them and showing them how to live.” God gave us the Bible:
to teach us, to help us, to correct us, and
to show us how to live. It says everything in the Bible is God’s word and all of it is useful.
This is why a daily time with God is so important. If every
day you would take five minutes and say, I’m going to read the Bible, I’m going to let it speak to me, it would impact your life. Just stop and think about it and pray each day. Let God speak to you.”
Why is that important?
“Your word is a lamp to guide me and a light for my path.” The Bible says that it is a light for life.
It shows you the next step in life. You read today and take one step. Then you take another step.
He gives you just enough light for each day. That’s what the Bible’s for. What you need to do is read a little bit of the Bible every day. Why? Because it’s the first way God speaks. Through
His word.
- The Bible tells us that God speaks to us through gifted teachers.
That’s what the Bible talks about over in Ephesians 4:11-12 when it says,
“Christ gifted some to be apostles, prophets, missionaries, pastors and teachers.” And look at why:
“So that His people would learn to serve & His body would grow strong.”
How do you know if when somebody’s talking they have this gift from God to be a teacher?
Here’s how you know. If when that person is teaching there comes a moment when you feel like,
“God is speaking directly to me.” You know because
God is, in that moment, saying something to you. There is a test for the gift of teaching in Romans 12:6. The Bible talks to teachers and says,
“God in His kindness gave each of us different gifts. If your gift is speaking God’s word make sure that what you say agrees with the faith.” If somebody’s got the gift of teaching it’s going to agree with the Bible.
1 Corinthians 2:13 says,
“We don’t speak in words taught by human wisdom. This is something different. We speak in words taught by the Spirit as we explain spiritual truths to those who have the Spirit.” The truth is it’s about God speaking to us, not about what some human being is saying. God will use people who teach the Bible to help us to understand His truth.
- God speaks through godly friends and family
This one we often discount, because often we ignore those who are closest to us. We don’t realize that God actually puts people around you and then through them says things to you all the time. Proverbs 12:26,
“The godly give wise advice to their friends. The wicked lead them astray.”
We all have blind spots. God puts people around you to tell you the truth. Everybody needs
somebody in their life who loves them enough to tell them the truth.
Do you have anybody like that in your life? They don’t just tell you what you want to hear. But they love you enough to level with you.
This is why God hates pride so much. The worst sin is pride. One of the reasons its bad is it makes one defensive and un-teachable. A person doesn’t have to have their life perfect for them to point out something in your life.
When we’re prideful we build up these walls, we keep people far away. Then we can’t hear God’s voice speaking through these other people. Proverbs 12:15
“Stupid people always think they are right. Wise people listen to advise.”
- The fourth way God speaks is through impressions or ideas from the Holy Spirit.
He gives you thoughts. Actually when God talks to you in your mind we call that
inspiration. When the devil talks to you we call that
temptation. They are both the same method.
It’s just a suggestion.
John 14:26 says this
“The Holy Spirit will be your teacher and will bring to your mind all I have said to you.” This is Jesus talking. The Bible calls the Holy Spirit our teacher, our counselor.
“The Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our heart and tells us that we are God’s children.” God makes impressions on our minds through the Holy Spirit.
I want to tell you. You don’t just get impressions from God.
You get impressions from all different kinds of things. So you have to be very careful.
- God speaks through pain.
Sometime pain is the only way God can get our attention in a circumstance. I’m not saying that all the pain in our lives is God trying to speak to us. But God uses pain when He can’t get us to slow down and listen. The verse about this in the Bible is in Proverbs 20:30.
“Sometimes it takes a painful experience to make us change our ways.” We know that’s true. We’ve all seen the truth of that verse in our lives.
We change when we get desperate. It’s when we hit the bottom, often when we look up. God wants to let you know that He loves you more than you could imagine.
“Be still & and Hear God!”
The Bible says in Psalm 119:71
“The suffering You sent was good for me. For it taught me to pay attention to Your principles.” God speaks to us through our pain.
- God speaks through silence.
Sometimes God speaks by saying nothing. Sometimes God speaks by remaining quiet. This is extremely frustrating to us. But God has His reasons when He’s quiet and silent.
You’d better just wait and trust Him. When you run ahead of God you’re going to regret it.
What do you do when God is silent? You need to do two things.
First thing you do:
Remember God is in control! God may not share His plan with you but it doesn’t mean He doesn’t have a plan. He is in charge and you’re not.
Number two: you trust Him. I think God is asking that question of you today. God is asking you,
“Will you trust Me? Will you trust Me with your problem? Will you trust Me with your dream? Will you trust Me with that ache in your heart? Will you trust Me with your loneliness? Will you trust Me with that health issue? Will you trust me with your life? Will you? Will you trust Me?”
God is asking, “Do You hear Me now?” “Be sill & hear God!”
