Hearing God - Living Waters

“My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)

The Bible tells us that when God created the world, He spoke it into existence. And throughout Scripture–from Genesis to Revelation–God speaks to people in different ways. Adam and Eve walked and talked with God in the Garden of Eden. The Lord called out to Moses from a burning bush. He advised Joshua to be strong and courageous, and counseled David as He grew from a humble shepherd boy to king of Israel. God affirmed Jesus at His baptism through a voice from heaven, and Paul was totally transformed by the Lord’s voice on the Damascus road. Whether it’s a quiet whisper, a voice like rushing waters, or even through the mouth of a donkey, the Bible is clear: Our God speaks–and He still speaks today. In fact, God delights in revealing Himself to us and He promises to answer if we call on. As we read in Jeremiah 33:3; “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

When we pray, we engage in conversation with God; and like every conversation, prayer should be a two-way street. In other words, we have to trust that God not only hears us when we pray, but that He also wants to speak to us. Why? Because we can’t have a real relationship unless there’s dialogue–unless we talk and listen. We need to talk to and listen to the people in our lives if we want to have a healthy relationship with them–and the same is true in our relationship with God. He talks, we listen. We talk, He listens. It’s that simple. This is how we get to know Him–and the more we know God, the more we’ll recognize His voice. As we read in John 10:27; “My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me.”

However, as we all know only to well, it’s not always easy to hear God’s voice–it takes effort on our part. We can get so involved in the affairs of this world that we either forget to listen and hear Him; or its difficult to distinguish His voice from all the other voices vying for our attention. Maybe you’re someone who wants to hear God’s voice, but you don’t know how. Perhaps you’ve tried, and feel like He didn’t answer you. Maybe you want to listen, but can’t focus long enough to hear. Or you’re frustrated, because it seems like God is talking to everyone else but you.

The Bible is filled with examples of ordinary people who heard the voice of God speaking to them–and the end result was always the same–their life was changed. Do you long to hear God? This 4-week series will look at important keys from the Bible to help us better recognize and hear God’s voice. It’s my hope that as we learn to hear God more and more, our lives will also be changed, as we grow in our relationship with Him.

SERMONS

Sermon: Tuning In

Preacher: The Rev. Christopher Doering

Date: Sunday, April 8, 2018

Scripture: Luke 8:8-15

Handout: Part1.HO