DID YOU KNOW THAT WE EXIST TO GET READY TO MEET GOD?
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one” (John 10:27-30).
How’s your Christian behavior these days? I am convinced that we are too easily distracted in the rush of this modern world we live in. There are so many choices and so many distractions all demanding our time and our attention. Sadly though it seems that we hear only what we want to hear and we often tune out Jesus. We do not take time to hear his voice. Maybe part of our problem is we do not have as trusting a relationship with Christ as we may think we have. How much one on one time do you set aside for him? How often do you spend time with the one you call Lord?
The following story may help explain what I am trying to say: “Two men were walking along a crowded city sidewalk. Suddenly, one of the men returned, ‘Listen to the lovely sound of that cricket,’ but the other man could not hear the sound. He asked his friend how he could hear the sound of a cricket amid the roar of the traffic and the sound of the people. The first man, who was a zoologist, had trained himself to hear the sounds of nature. He didn’t explain to his friend in words how he could hear the sound of the cricket, but instead, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a half-dollar coin, dropped it onto the sidewalk, and watched intently as a dozen people began to look for the coin as they heard it clanking around amid the sounds of the traffic and the sounds of the city. He turned to his friend and said, ‘We hear what we listen for.’”
Maybe that is our problem with the voice of Jesus, we hear everything else but him because we aren’t willing to listen, and maybe we don’t even want to hear his voice. This scripture is a promise and this Scripture is truth. My sheep hear my voice. It does not say we could hear his voice or should hear his voice or might hear his voice. The scriptures clearly tell us: My sheep will, present and future, “…hear My voice.” I know this will sound strong but it needs to be said: If you are not hearing his voice then you are probably not walking in his will. We are saying, we want to discern, we want to understand His plan for our lives. We want His guidance in specific decisions so we can make wise choices. We want to be obedient in how we live for Christ. We must get SELF out of the way and off the throne of our lives. The scriptures are extremely important in our lives and we are called to read and inwardly digest the scriptures.
If you are not meditating on God’s Word, if you never have time to wait upon the Lord, then how can the Lord come and quicken His Word to your heart? Remember the Holy Spirit will never contradict God’s written word. So, the words you hear, and all of your desires should be carefully screened against the Scriptures. So how do you hear his voice? This is truly a busy age. Many, far too many of those that call themselves followers of Christ are not taking time to listen to Him. And sadly we often do not take time to listen to each other. We need to slow down, calm ourselves and listen to our Lord and to others around us.
Why do some people not hear the voice of God? The Gospel is crystal clear: “You do not believe because you do not belong to my sheep.” “My sheep hear my voice,” “I give my sheep, eternal life and they will never perish.” We must be one of His sheep. We must accept the gift of eternal life that is found only in Christ Jesus. Confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believes in your heart that God raised him from the dead. And you will receive salvation. Then we must give time to our Lord, to put our lives in neutral gear not forward not backward but completely calm in your heart.
Wait upon the Lord. Sit silently and let Him know you want to hear His voice. Yearn to know His will. Learn to wait peacefully and listen for his words to you. Fasting is another tool that God gives us to be drawn into his presence. Whether in a Fast or in a prayer, you need to set aside a time, a quiet time, when you can be calm and truly listen to the one we call Lord.
There is a story about a man who was having difficulty communicating with his wife and concluded that she was becoming hard of hearing. So he decided to conduct a test without her knowing about it. One evening he sat in a chair on the far side of the room. Her back was to him and she could not see him. Very quietly he whispered, “Can you hear me?” There was no response. Moving a little closer, he asked again, “Can you hear me now?” Still no reply; quietly he edged closer and whispered the same words, but still no answer. Finally, he moved right in behind her chair and said, “Can you hear me now?” To his surprise and chagrin, she responded with irritation in her voice, “For the fourth time, yes!”
The hearing problem is not with God. It is with us! It is time to be mature in the Faith—to know his will and to hear his voice. It is time for those that are mature in Christ to submit out busy lives to our Lord and seek his will. Our Lord loves each one of us very much. He is calling to you. Do you hear his voice? It is time to mature in our faith. His sheep hear his voice. May you know his will and grow in the faith. For it is only in his will that you are free.
