How To Know You Are Hearing The Voice Of GOD

Do you remember in school when a classmate would whisper or make a noise just loud enough to get your attention while hoping that the teacher did not hear it?

Maybe you remember when your wife, an old girlfriend or even that first crush you had in school came up and whispered something sweet into your ear for only you to hear it.

How about those times when you were outside playing and it was getting dark and you heard your mom or dad yell your name so that the whole neighborhood heard it, that it was time to come home for dinner?

Do you feel like you are waiting to hear God shout your name to speak to you?

In episode 55, many of the ways that God spoke with those in the Old and New Testament, God can speak to us also. I will share some of the different ways that God can speak to you and I, and what we can do to respond when He does. On the 318 Project.

Hello, and welcome to the 318 Project.

So what are your first thoughts when you hear someone tell you that they heard God speak to them?

Do you look at them as if they are crazy or weird? 

Maybe you question them about it?

Do you ask them was it an audible voice and what did it sound like?

Maybe even you have told someone that God has spoken to you and they have given you that look.

How do we know we are hearing the voice of God?

In John 10 verse 27 Jesus said that “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” 

When you become trained to hear a special voice, it stands out about all the other voices that you may be hearing. Just as if you are standing in a crowded room and then you hear your wife or children speaking. Their voice is distinct to your ears and will stand out above all the others. That is how we should train our ears and heart to hear the voice of God.

It is just like the sheep when they hear the shepherd's voice. They are trained to hear that one voice, and not to respond to any other voices they hear.

Many times when we read in the Old Testament, it would say that God or the LORD spoke to them about what would happen, what to say or even do.

In Genesis Chapter 5 it said that God walked and was in close fellowship with Enoch.

1 Samuel 3 verse 2 through 10 tells us about when God called Samuel.  “And it came to pass at that time, while Eli was lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim that he could not see, and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the Lord where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, that the Lord called Samuel. And he answered, “Here I am!” So he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”

And he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” And he went and lay down.

Then the Lord called yet again, “Samuel!”

So Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” He answered, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” (Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed to him.)

And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. So he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.”

Then Eli perceived that the Lord had called the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant hears.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

Now the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.”

Here we see that Samuel had yet to hear the voice of God, but he heard an audible voice and had been trained to hear Eli and he ran to him; but Eli had been trained to hear the voice of God and in his spirit though he did not hear the voice he knew that God was speaking to Samuel.

You see in Exodus chapter 3 when Moses is in the backside of the desert and he sees the burning bush. At that moment God spoke to Him about what He would do to deliver the children of Israel from Pharaoh.

Even in the New Testament we see God speak to people. In Acts chapter 9, Saul was on the road to Damascus when God spoke to him that it even frightened those that were traveling with him, because they heard a voice but saw no one.

But not every time that God spoke to someone was it in an audible voice.

Joseph has dreams that he shared with his family of them bowing to him; and even later when he interpreted to the baker and butler, while in prison, of what would happen to them.

Daniel would pray and allow God to show Him the words to speak to interpret dreams of the leaders he served under; And even have dreams of future prophecies.

Prophets like Amos, Zechariah and others had visions from God showing them the words to say to Israel and other countries they were in about judgment and redemption. Other times the Holy Spirit would come upon them to speak what God had given them.

There were even times that God sent an angel to speak to people. He sent an angel to Abraham as Sarah to tell them He would give them a child. He also sent an angel another time to Abraham to warn him of the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Right before Joshua would go and attack Jericho, he sees a man near the town. In chapter 5 of Joshua verses 13-15 it says “And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are You for us or for our adversaries?”

So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord “ I have now come.”

And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?”

Then the Commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.

But the most simple way that God spoke to someone was with Elijah. In 1 Kings 19, after Elijah had defeated the 400 prophets of Baal, he fears for his life because of Jezebel. He flees to Mount Sinai and while hiding in the cave, God speaks to him. In verses 11-13  God tells him to “Go out and stand before me on the mountain”. After Elijah goes out it says that the LORD passed by and following Him was first a terrible windstorm, then an earthquake and finally fire, but that the LORD was not in any of those. After that there was a sound of a gentle whisper or a still small voice.

Most of the time that is how God wants to speak to you and I. It is in those still quiet times that He speaks to your heart. 

There are times when you are praying that the Holy Spirit will put something or someone on your heart to pray for or about. 

You may even have a dire need and seeking an answer from God. In that moment when you may feel like quitting or giving up, He comes along and gives you a word of encouragement from scripture, a worship song or even from a fellow Christian brother or sister, that God gave them the words to speak to you.

It may be a prompting in your spirit that you feel you need to go do or say something for someone to help them in a time of need that you didn’t even know about, but God placed it on your heart and spirit to go.

Maybe while you were praying that the Holy Spirit came into the room, just as he did in the Upper Room on the day of Pentecost, and you begin speaking and praying in Tongues. You may not know word for word what you are saying but God puts a person, need, situation or even comforts your spirit during that time of prayer.

There may be a time that you are reading the Bible and have read a particular verse many times, but then one day as you are reading something about it stands out to you to help you at that time that you need encouragement.

Recently, I was having to make a decision about something and it was weighing heavy on me. I had been praying for the answer about what I should do and to have a peace about it. After a few days of praying, I felt like God wanted me to look at some notes I had taken from a book by Christian comedian, Michael Jr. In his book called “Funny How Life Works”. In several of the notes from the book I had written down, some of the quotes that he wrote in his book stood out to me and spoke to me at that moment of what my decision should be and at that moment I had a peace about it.

So, not every time you hear someone say that God spoke to them, does it mean in an audible voice. He can speak to you and I through His Word in the Bible, in worship songs that uplift our spirit, through encouraging words from others, or simply as He did with Elijah in that still small and quiet voice of the Holy Spirit speaking to your spirit and heart.

If you feel like you still haven’t heard God speak to you, don’t give up and continue to seek Him and in that moment when you least expect it, He will present Himself to you. God can even reveal Himself to you in a way that I didn’t mention, but you know that He spoke to your heart. The way to know that God did truly speak to your heart is if it lines up with scripture. 

As I said in the beginning, just as sheep are trained to hear and follow only the shepherd's voice, so we should be hearing God speak to us and not being misled by Satan or others.

I hope this episode spoke to you and encouraged you. If you can, be sure to like and share this episode with others. If you haven’t already, subscribe to this podcast to know when future episodes come out and also, if you can leave a review about what you thought about this episode or podcast. 

And as always, I want you to have a blessed and wonderful day.