The voice of God is an instruction and a command. The angels, who are His messengers or His prophets, were the voice of God, and they always brought a command or message for the people. Because the Lord is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb 13:8), the way He spoke to His people in the Old Testament, in the New Testament, and even how He speaks to His people today is the same. God speaks to His people in a very specific manner and the scripture tells us that the language of God is that of mysteries (1 Cor 14:2). The Apostle Paul speaks about the way we are to speak to God is through the Spirit who speaks mysteries. The word mystery, as defined by Thayer’s Bible Dictionary, is “a hidden thing of God: the secret counsels which govern God in dealing with the righteous, which are hidden from ungodly and wicked men but plain to the godly.” This is the same way we hear from the Father, for the scriptures says,
“However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.” (Joh 16:13).
His voice is His word hidden in parables and mysteries.
His voice is His word hidden in parables and mysteries. Thus, it is given to say the Father is speaking throughout all Scripture and every word read and understood spiritually is hearing the voice of God (2Ti 3:16).
John 10:27 says to hear God’s voice, we must first belong to God. Jesus said, “The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me.” This clearly shows that those who hear God’s voice are those who belong to Him. Those who hear His voice and can recognize His voice, follow Him as they are led by the Shepherd and are being taught. The Lord also draws a line between those who can hear the voice of God and those who cannot when He says, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Mat 11:15, Rev 2:29).
A lot of people want to hear from God and don’t understand that it comes with a very heavy accountability to hear His voice. There has to be a conscious choice to listen to Him. John 8:47 says,
“Whoever is of God listens to God. [Those who belong to God hear the words of God.] This is the reason that you do not listen [to those words, to Me]: because you do not belong to God and are not of God or in harmony with Him.”
This is another clear line between those who belong to Him and those who do not belong to Him. The comparison is based on the action of listening to God. When Noah heard the voice of God in Hebrews 11:7, he listened and took action. Noah did all this by faith when the Lord warned him about the things that he had not yet seen. Scripture tells us that faith comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the preaching [of the message that came from the lips] of Christ (Rom 10:17).
Scripture tells us that faith comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the preaching [of the message that came from the lips] of Christ (Rom 10:17).
Noah had never seen or heard of rain before God told him He would bring flood waters onto the earth (Gen 6:17). He heard the Word of the Lord, took action, and was proven to belong to God. He was saved from the destruction God had brought upon the earth. Noah was favored (Gen 6:8) to hear the voice of God, and when he obeyed the instructions of God, he was able to save his family. Hearing the voice of God is one thing, but to obey and take action with the instructions God has given you is what saves. The earnest desire to know God and seek after Him is what draws us closer to Him. We are put in a place to be still and wait upon the Lord (Psa. 37:7, 46:10), and in those moments that we hear the Word, we are blessed as long as we keep it (Luk 11:28). Noah kept the Lord’s instruction and was blessed and not destroyed.
Noah kept the Lord’s instruction and was blessed and not destroyed.
The Apostle Paul says, “For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]” (Heb 4:12). This scripture explains how the Word or Voice of God is full of power and therefore causes action,making it to be effective. Because we cannot do this on our own strength or might, the Father gives us another to comfort, teach, intercede for, and remain with us forever (Joh 14:16-17). This is the Spirit of Truth that leads us into deeper things and brings life through revealing the truth. The Lord is asking us to hear His Word and to be doers of the Word. He does not want us to merely listen to the Word but to be blessed by being a doer of the Word, which is ultimately the voice of God (Jas 1:22-27).
Keywords:
Hearing God
Listening to His Voice
God’s Voice
Hearing God’s Voice