Quick review of
series
·
Putty – general and specific calling
·
Bob – identity to destiny
·
Today, how to get the most out of God’s voice every
day.
·
PRAYER
ME
Opening
story of my kids “TV face.” Probably get a picture.
When my kids get into what I call
TV mode, it can be hard to get their attention. I really want to interact with
them about their day… maybe tell them something about my day… maybe I even have
something for them to do, but they are so engrossed in their “own stuff” that
they don’t hear me.’’
Story of being home for 2 hours and at
dinner they saw me there.
Many
of us are asking questions like:
1)
How do I hear God’s voice?
2)
How do I know that what I heard was actually
God’s voice?
3)
Or even – Does God really want to talk to me?
Take
time to talk about our Worthy-Ness… you are worthy of the Father’s voice.
·
Creation
·
His thoughts
·
Cross
Sometimes just hearing the voice of the
Father means: taking our eyes off of what we think is important and readjusting
our position.
WE
John 10
2 But he who enters by the door is
the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To
him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear
his voice, and he calls his own sheep by
name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his
own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow
him, for they know his voice. 5 A
stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not
know the voice of strangers.
Maybe
you’re like me and you’ve longed to hear God’s voice more often… maybe you’ve
had crisis or big decisions & you desperately needed the Father’s voice…
maybe you’re in that place now where you need His heart for your situation.
What
I want you to begin to understand today is that we can always hear God’s voice.
And there is a simple path to following it once we do…
1)
He speaks
2)
He tells us who we are
3)
He leads
4)
Our job is to follow!
GOD
We’re
going to look at a famous story from the OT and hopefully from that passage
discover how we too can begin to hear and discern the voice of God calling into
our lives.
Give
lots of context to the story… 400 prophets/ Contract on his life/ afraid, alone
& wondering where God is… “Wanna get away” (Southwest commercials)
1Kings 19:9 There he came to a cave and
lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him,
“What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He said, “I have been very
jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken
your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the
sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”
·
Sometimes, we have to remove ourselves from
our circumstances to hear the Lord’s voice. …for him to (1)speak!
·
My Story:
o
Struggle in college to know what to do with my
life.
o
Took a few days with my Bible and journal to a
park.
o
Came back confident that I had heard the Lord’s
voice.
·
Not always realistic to remove yourself
completely from life.
·
But, you may need to take a step back and be
patient.
·
Who is the person you trust the most?
o
Spouse, Pastor
o
Friend
o
Is God’s echo in their voice?
11 And he said, “Go out and stand
on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and
strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord,
but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the
Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake a fire,
but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.
13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and
went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice
to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
·
Sometimes, we have to remove our assumptions
about God, to hear what the Father is really saying. …for him to (2)tell us who we are!
·
My Story:
o
Corrie and I’s call to leave Ohio.
o
Same word on the same day.
o
Miraculous came afterwards.
·
God’s call will usually be to something that
takes faith.
14 He said, “I have been very
jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken
your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the
sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” 15 And
the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus.
And when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael to be king over Syria. 16 And
Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the
son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. 17 And
the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu put to death, and the
one who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha put to death. 18 Yet
I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to
Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
·
Sometimes,
the call to serve the Father is so far beyond our own strength that we can do
nothing but trust Him with the mission.
·
Elijah had just heard the earthquake and the
fire on Mt. Carmel!
·
When we know the voice of the shepherd, he can
truly (3)lead us to
remarkable destinations!
·
My Story:
o
Youth conference in the 90’s.
o
Worship environment.
o
My call to be a “mouthpiece” for my generation.
o
Echoed at another event.
·
Don’t ask yourself is this going to be hard?
·
Don’t ask yourself is this going to fail?
·
Ask yourself:
·
Does this give me life?
·
Abundant life (John 10:10 - The thief comes only
to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it
abundantly.)?
·
Does my faith rise when I think of this call?
YOU
1
Kings 19 - The Call of Elisha
19 So he departed from there and
found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen in
front of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and cast his
cloak upon him. 20 And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah and
said, “Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he
said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?” 21 And
he returned from following him and took the yoke of oxen and sacrificed them
and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen and gave it to the people,
and they ate. Then he arose and went after Elijah and assisted him.
·
Elijah is obedient to the Father’s voice and he
goes right away to anoint Elisha… maybe the most amazing prophet in the OT.
·
Imagine what the course of Israel/Bible would
have been like without Elisha?
·
When we
take our eyes off what we think is important… and readjust ourselves to hear
the Father’s voice, then we’re ready to serve His kingdom vision.
·
We are ready to (4)follow him wherever he leads.
·
Then, through us, He will bless the world around
us.
WE
We
are in an amazing time in history. The Grace of God has paved a way for the
Lord himself to take up residence within us. No longer do we have to go to the
mountain to find God’s voice or wait for the prophet to come and call us &
give us his mantel. Today, we are all commissioned to “do the works of Jesus”
because He lives in us.
Which
means, His voice is readily accessible to us on a regular basis. Want to know
what the Father has to say about your business and/or your busy-ness? Simply interact with the Spirit who already
lives inside those who believe!
Let’s
get Practical for a minute:
1)
He speaks
·
Daily fill yourself with God’s voice.
2)
He tells us who we are
·
Daily listen… don’t just talk.
3)
He leads
·
With “big stuff,” don’t be afraid to remove
yourself from the situation (Jesus and the choosing of the 12 apostles – Luke
6:12-16).
4)
Our job is to follow!
·
When the whispers come, RESPOND!
o
Words of knowledge
o
Someone to encourage/love on
o
Powerful calls to ministry
Let me close with this…
We
all hear voices.
We
need to choose who we are listening to.
Here’s
how you tell the difference.
In John 16
7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth:
it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper
will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes,
he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9
concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness,
because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning
judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
·
The Holy Spirit is speaking from within you
every day.
·
If you are a believer (a sheep), you will be
able to hear HS voice.
·
If you are hearing a voice of condemnation or judgment
(Romans 8:1), you are hearing the voice of the thief (John 10:10).
·
If you are hearing a voice that convicts you of
righteousness
o
It gives you life
o
It raises your faith
o
It calls you to something great in the Kingdom
o
It sets you free
o
And tells you how loved and amazing you are
o
THEN you are hearing the voice of the Good
Shepherd who wants to guide you into greatness in His Kingdom!
PRAYER
OFFERING
COMMUNION
MINISTRY – 30 seconds of quiet, listen don’t talk
Short Review: The book of Hebrews is an
“onion” or the “earth”… and we’re peeling back the layers and going deeper into
each chapter.
