LISTENING

8 15 12 Listening  

Scripture: John 10:14-17 (NIV) ¹⁴ "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me-- ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. ¹⁷ The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life--only to take it up again.

Note: “My sheep know me: …my sheep listen to my voice.”

Do you hear the voice of the Shepherd? If you spend time in His Word, the Bible, you hear his voice each time you open the pages and start to read. It is truly amazing that many individuals who have been Christians for years don’t understand this. God speaks. We hear his voice in our spirit, using our spiritual ears, as we read the Bible. The more we read the more sensitive we become to his voice. Even in the midst of the clamoring voices and noise going on around us in this world, we can hear his voice clearly because he has given us special ears to hear. God speaks and his Word contains important messages for his followers. We need to stay alert, be sensitive to his voice, and be willing to submit our will to his.

While it is not God speaking in the following story I think it is a good illustration of how He communicates to his followers in the midst of a group of people that are oblivious to a message that is he is clearly speaking.  

Gary Preston writes: Back when the telegraph was the fastest means of long-distance communication, there was a story, perhaps made-up, about a young man who applied for a job as a Morse code operator. Answering an ad in the newspaper, he went to the address that was listed. When he arrived, he entered a large, noisy office. In the background a telegraph clacked away. A sign on the receptionist’s counter instructed job applicants to fill out a form and wait until they were summoned to enter the inner office.

The young man completed his form and sat down with seven other waiting applicants. After a few minutes, the young man stood up, crossed the room to the door of the inner office, and walked right in. Naturally the other applicants perked up, wondering what was going on. Why had this man been so bold? They muttered among themselves that they hadn’t heard any summons yet. They took more than a little satisfaction in assuming the young man who went into the office would be reprimanded for his presumption and summarily disqualified for the job.

Within a few minutes the young man emerged from the inner office escorted by the interviewer, who announced to the other applicants, "Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming, but the job has been filled by this young man."

The other applicants began grumbling to each other, and then one spoke up, "Wait a minute--I don’t understand. He was the last one to come in, and we never even got a chance to be interviewed. Yet he got the job. That’s not fair."

The employer responded, "All the time you’ve been sitting here, the telegraph has been ticking out the following message in Morse code: `If you understand this message, then come right in. The job is yours.’ None of you heard it or understood it. This young man did. So the job is his." [In Character Forged from Conflict by Gary Preston Logos Bible Software. Printed in Leadership Journal]

God doesn’t speak in Morse code but he does speak a spiritual language only those who have been born again can hear and understand. He speaks in the midst of the cursing, anger and shrill cries of the lost. They hear the language they understand because it appeals to their flesh and their fallen nature. At one time we were like them and it is only by the grace of God that we can now hear. Pray for the lost of the world those who do not know Christ. They cannot hear the voice of the Shepherd and they have not experienced the love he has for them. They are confused and bound by sin, many thinking they are living the good life. Pray that God can penetrate their darkened minds enabling them to hear his invitation. Pray that they will respond to him and be brought into His marvelous light, the light of His salvation.

Word from the Lord:  “Beloved, I have revealed my mind to you in my Son. I sent the Holy Spirit to you to guide you into all truth. When you were born-again you became a spirit being fully able to hear and understand my voice as I speak to you through my Word. You have the mind of Christ and can understand my will for you. When I speak I reveal my will for you and want you to evaluate the things going on around you from my perspective and then to adopt my values loving what I love and hating what I hate. Listen closely. I am doing a new work in you each day that you walk in faith. My purpose is to make you holy and one day to have you stand in my presence in the perfection of my Son, Jesus Christ.” (I Cor 2:14-16)   

Did the Lord speak to you today?  Why not write it down and claim it for His Glory.

Prayer:  What do you need to pray to the Lord today? Listen to your heart. He loves you!