HEARING THE VOICE OF GOD 1 Samuel 3:1-14 By Chris Losey When I went to Alaska on a remote tour with the Air Force, I was not looking forward to being away from my family for a year. The commander pulled me aside and said, "Chaplain, we allow military personnel to use the government WATTS line to make phone calls home once a week for 15 minutes but I want you to call home often. If your morale is not up you won't be much good to the my airmen." Needless to say, I heeded the commander's words and called often. What was it that made those calls so special, besides the fact that the government paid for them? It was that I got to hear my wife's voice! Even though I couldn't see her, just the sound of her voice meant so much. We talked about the children, our daily lives, future plans, and a myriad of other things. We laughed and cried together. Hearing Sharon's voice was one of the main things that kept me going when it was 50 below zero outside and dark nearly 23 hours a day. Isn't it great to hear the voice of someone you love? There is something about a person's voice that is unique. It has been said that no two voices are exactly alike. They are like finger prints. If you were blindfolded in a room and had to pick out your mother's voice from a thousand different people who spoke to you one at a time, I don't think you would have a problem doing it... We especially recognize the voices of those we love. 1 Copyright Chris Losey 2006 Today we aren't here to talk about human voices, I want us to talk about hearing the voice of God. It is important that we as Christians learn to hear and heed God's voice. When I speak of hearing God's voice I am not referring to hearing an audible voice although I believe that God can speak that way if He choses to. I personally have never heard the audible voice of God, but I am convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that God speaks to me. He still speaks to all His people. We just have to learn how to listen. I invite you to turn to 1 Samuel 3 as we explore this subject. I've entitled the message, "Listening to God's Voice." It might also be called, "How Every Christian Can Hear and Heed God's Voice. Do you believe it is important to hear God's voice? There are many Christians today who are confused on this subject. Hopefully some of this confusion can be eliminated as we explore seven key areas: WHO GOD SPEAKS TO WHEN GOD SPEAKS HOW GOD SPEAKS WHAT GOD SAYS WHY GOD SPEAKS HOW WE SHOULD RESPOND WHO GOD SPEAKS TO Who does God speak to? Any ideas? Do you have to be a minister in order for God to speak to you? Perhaps a deacon? Do you have to attend some special class or seminar? No! Who did God speak to in 1 Samuel 3? He spoke to a boy. Notice the first four words of the chapter, "Now the boy Samuel..." Isn't it exciting to know that God speaks to any age group! He speaks to men and women, boys and girls. 2 Copyright Chris Losey 2006 God speaks to anyone He wants to! God can speak to you and me. Listen to 1 Samuel 3:1-4 1 Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord before Eli. And word from the Lord was rare in those days, visions were infrequent. 2 It happened at that time as Eli was lying down in his place (now his eyesight had begun to grow dim and he could not see well), 3 and the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was, 4 that the Lord called Samuel; and he said, "Here I am." God speaks primarily to those whose heart is right It is interesting to note that God spoke to the boy, Samuel, and not to the priest, Eli. Wouldn't it have made more sense for Him to talk directly to Eli? Eli was not only a priest, he was the high priest. The answer to this question gives insight into who God talks to. He primarily speaks to those whose heart is right toward Him. If you remember 1 Samuel 2, Eli failed to rebuke his sons for their sin. 1 Samuel 2:22-25 states: 22 Now Eli was very old; and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 23 He said to them, "Why do you do such things, the evil things that I hear from all these people? 24 "No, my sons; for the report is not good which I hear the Lord's people circulating. 25 "If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?" But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death. 3 Copyright Chris Losey 2006 Although Eli talked to his sons about their sin, he failed to do anything about it. He chose his family over God, and God rejected him for it. Not only had Eli's physical sight grown dim, his spiritual sight was dim as well. We must be sure that we never choose a relationship with any person including our own family members over our relationship with God. Do you remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 10:37-38, 37 "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 "He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it. Eli made a terrible mistake of choosing man over God. I have seen Christians do this same thing. Adults will sometimes go along with the crowd at work and do and say unethical things rather than stand up for what they know is right. Teens will do the same thing with their peers. When we choose man over God, we may find that God will not speak to us except to convict us of sin. If we don't heed these promptings of the Spirit we may find that God will stop speaking to us all together. Sin hinders the voice of God. In contrast to Eli's hard heart, Samuel loved and served God faithfully. 1 Samuel 2:26 says, "Now the boy Samuel was growing in stature and in favor both with the Lord and with men." What a beautiful statement! Oh to be growing in favor with God! This same basic statement was said about Christ in Luke 2:52, "And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." I believe that God chose 4 Copyright Chris Losey 2006 to speak to Samuel because his heart was right. Notice that 1 Samuel 3:7 states, "Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor had the word of the Lord yet been revealed to him." I do not think that this means Samuel was an unbeliever. It simply means that up to this point in his life he did not have a close personal relationship with God where he heard God's voice on a regular basis. How about your heart today? Are you and I growing in favor with God and men? Notice it says God first, then men. If we are growing in favor with God, He will undoubtedly speak to us. How would you rate your heart-for-God on a scale of one to ten, one being no-hearted and ten being whole-hearted? I hope your rating would rate high! Psalm 95:7- 8 has a key phrase related to how our heart condition is closely related to hearing God's voice: "...Today if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts..." Let's now look at WHEN GOD SPEAKS WHEN GOD SPEAKS When does God speak? If your answer is, "Whenever He wants to," you would be right! But the passage indicates some principles regarding when God speaks. Listen again to verse one, "Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord before Eli. And word from the Lord was rare in those days, visions were infrequent." Sometimes infrequently Notice it says that in those days a word from the Lord was rare and visions were infrequent. Why do you think God spoke infrequently during those days? Sin was rampant, just like it is today, maybe even worse! Historically, the book of 1 Samuel follows the book of Judges. 5 Copyright Chris Losey 2006 Do you remember the last verse of that book? It states, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). In a society where most people are doing whatever they want with no regard for God, I believe that God will speak infrequently.