The Voice of God

In the Bible there is a guy named Eli who was the head priest at one time, he ministered to the LORD in Shiloh, where the tabernacle, or house of the LORD was located. We see his story in the book of 1 Samuel.  Eli had two sons, Hophni and Phineas, who were corrupt and did not know the LORD. They had no respect or reverence for their priestly duties and did not heed God's law concerning them. They also showed very little respect towards people and God's other laws. The Bible tells us that 'the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD...'

This small story of Eli's sons is very important when we consider how it shows the social and religious decay in this time... so when we come to chapter 3 and read, "In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions."(3:1) It doesn't surprise us. God isn't speaking, because no one is listening, no one is turning their ear to heaven. Now when we read the phrase 'the word of the LORD' in the old testament, it means God literally speaking or showing visions to humanity. God spoke to the prophet Jeremiah, "I have put my words in your mouth." God's voice was heard. Samuel however ministered before the LORD even as a child, he took his apprenticeship with Eli very seriously, and yet even in the midst of the chaos and corruption God's voice was finally heard.

This occurs later in Eli's life, the Bible states that he was advanced in years and his eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see at all. On usual nights he would probably walk through the house of the LORD, check on his apprentice, check to see if the lamp of God had gone out yet, and then went to lay down in his usual place. But tonight is different. Something different happens. We get two other details about this setting. The first is that the lamp of God had not yet gone out, but Eli probably hadn't noticed because he can barely see, and that Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was.
Samuel is trying to get some sleep next to the ark of God, but he's probably wide awake waiting for the lamp to go out, but then he hears something... his name. Immediately, he yells,
'"Here I am." And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”
Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. A third time the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
And the LORD said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle..."'

It took Eli three times to realize that God was speaking to Samuel. That Samuel was indeed hearing the voice of God. And what was his reaction? He told Samuel to answer, 'Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.'
God then came and stood there, calling his name again as before.

Remember the Lamp of God had not yet gone out.

God is standing before him.

Samuel should have been able to see that someone was standing before him.
But nothing is mentioned of Samuel seeing the LORD. He only hears. He was given instruction by Eli to seek God's voice.
And the LORD spoke, "SEE, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears it tingle."

See. Look. Watch. All who hear what I am about to do will have my voice tingling in their ears.
The verb has just changed. Samuel has heard, now it's time for him to see.

It's everyone else's turn to hear.

Samuel's journey has just begun. He was told to seek God's voice, and now he is hearing, he is listening, and God tells him it's time to see.

But here is where Samuel's story becomes our story.

Where his journey meets our journey.

The same God who spoke the world into creation, the same God who said, "Let there be..." is the same God who speaks to us, calls to us... non stop. Even in the middle of the corruption, in the midst of our depravity, God's voice is tingling in our ears... Are we listening? Are we seeking God's voice?

Now unlike in Samuel's day, we have a complete Bible... we have God's word written down for us to use, read, study, memorize, and meditate upon. And God speaks to us through it, God's voice is heard. But God's voice isn't confined to the pages of a book, no matter how living and active it is, no matter how authoritative it is.

Before the heresy red flag is thrown at me... let me make one thing clear. The Bible, the written word of God is our final authority while here on Earth. We have already talked about seeking God's word, with 'Eating or Burning'.
As the theologian J.C. Ryles stated, "We are to measure everything in this world by the standard of [God's written] Word."

But what about the sounds of creation?

What about the noise emanating from the starry host?

What about the preacher's sermon that tears us apart inside when convicted?

What about the whisper in our thoughts?

What about our circumstances we are placed in?

What about our pains and sufferings?

In his book, The Problem of Pain, C.S. Lewis writes one of my favorite quotes, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

The sad thing is not that God needs to use something like pain to get our attention, but rather that he needs to do anything more than a whisper for us to start listening.
God's voice is expressed through many different means, and seeking his voice is not as hard as it may sound or appear.

Sometimes the easiest way for us to hear is for us to stop talking.

Sitting in silence.

It's deafening.

Because all of a sudden we start hearing thoughts, passions, ideas, plans, and new directions.
Our minds become filled with noise and our journey comes to a pause because we now need to discern what we are hearing.

When we are truly seeking God's voice our journey brings us to a mountain, a mountain that stops us.

It did for Elijah the prophet.

And this is where discernment comes in.

In 1 Kings 19 we meet up with Elijah coming off of a major victory in which God proved himself by sending fire down from heaven on Mount Carmel. Elijah however falls into a fit of depression because his life is still in danger, and he flees to Mount Horeb.

Scripture calls this place the mountain of God.

'And the word of the LORD came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
The LORD said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram.  Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him." ' (19:9-18)

God's voice demands a response, but sometimes we don't know where his voice is leading us, sometimes we don't know which sound is his voice. Elijah stood waiting, discerning, between the sound of the wind, the sound of the earthquake, the sound of the roaring fire, and then a gentle whisper. Elijah reacted when he heard the whisper. He pulled his cloak over his face and stood before his God.

Is it unlike God to speak through the wind? No, he spoke to Job out of a whirlwind. (Job 38:1 ESV)

Is it unlike God to speak through the earthquake? No, God most definitely communicated something with the earthquake when Jesus died that left 'the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus...terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” ' (Matt. 27:54)

Is it unlike God to speak through a fire? No, God spoke to Moses through a burning bush (Exodus 3:2-4) In fact, it was upon the same mountain that God spoke to Moses that he has just spoken to Elijah,  Mount Horeb.

And isn't it odd how God answers Isaiah about how he will come to his rescue...

"But your many enemies will become like fine dust,
   the ruthless hordes like blown chaff.
Suddenly, in an instant,
 the LORD Almighty will come
with thunder and earthquake and great noise,
   with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire." (Isaiah 29:5-6)

God's voice speaks to each of us in different ways.

For some of us it is with a calling in the middle of the night.

For some it is in a still small voice, a whisper.

For some it is with power and might.

For some it is through other people.

For all it is through His Word by His Spirit.

God's voice can be heard through a heartbeat.

God's voice can be heard in a newborn baby's cry.

God's voice can be heard in a loved one's last breath.

God's voice is all around us.

Are we seeking it?

Are we listening for it?

If not, what are we listening to?

And how do we silence it?