The Call

Everything on The Consider Podcast and website has to do with the call for all men and women to repent. Such is an offer of mercy for those willing to follow Jesus by hating their life and picking up their cross. After all, even the demons believe in God, but they are terrified. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder. James 2:19

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How to Hear God Through Others

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Text How to Hear God Through Others

. . . not to mention that you owe me your very self. (Philemon 1:19b)

In our pride, we hate to think that we owe someone for our salvation. For anyone to suggest that he is a father to us in the Lord and we should respect and listen to him, grates against our flesh.

Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. Therefore, I urge you to imitate me. (1 Corinthians 4:15–16)

“I don’t want to follow another man” is the usual justification for rejecting godly advice today in the church. “I don’t want to be taken in by another,” is the normal excuse for rejecting a fact that someone may be more mature than us in the Lord. Our independent, prideful, and self-satisfied Christianity has produced a hotbed of fertile ground for rebelling against God. While on the surface of things, these are valid concerns, but upon digging deeper we discover it is a cover-up for sin. This is easy to see because God has promised to protect us from every false Christian and church if we only die to ourselves. This promise is found in Proverbs, God declares He holds our victory and is a shield that will protect and guard us from the ways of wicked man, if, repeat if, our walk is blameless.

Not in the sense that we are perfect, but blameless in keeping a good conscious that confesses sin the moment God shows us. If we repent deeply as He shows, then we shall become blameless in His sight by the blood of Jesus.1

For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth comes knowledge and understanding. He holds victory in store for the upright; he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you. Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse, who leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways (Proverbs 2:6–13)

If we have ears to hear, the very mouth of God gives us knowledge and understanding and protects us from false brothers. I do not have to walk around all paranoid about being taken in by another man because God has promised to deliver me from every false doctrine. All I need to do is listen for His voice and guidance. Just as God delivered Paul, so too will He protect us if we die to ourselves.2 The mere fact we know the Father’s voice means that we can run from unfamiliar voices and God protects us long before any real danger occurs.

Whenever I have almost slipped into being taken in by someone, I don’t blame that person; I blame myself. I ask the Holy Spirit to search my heart and life to reveal what about my flesh was taken in by a man. God is always faithful to speak and show why I was taken in and I can then submit it to God to be crucified unto death. If Adam had done this in the Garden of Eden, his flesh would not have desired to eat the forbidden fruit.

Proverbs 15:22 tells us that “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” But how do we know which counselors to listen to? How can we tell when God speaks through a man or not? The greatest danger is that we might accept advice if we think someone is godly. If we believe someone to be a trusted brother or sister and godly in our own sight, then we will accept their advice, especially if it agrees with what we want to hear. Scripture reveals that we should pay no attention to any man but to listen for the voice of God; the presence of the Lord working through that man. Maybe even listen to a donkey, as was the case with Balaam.

The main point here is that most people are just too prideful to accept God speaking through anyone. In our pride, we have to have the voice of God come in certain ways, and by all means, it has to say what we think it should say. Like Naaman, we go away angry and full of rage if God doesn’t come to us in the way we expect or in the tone we like.

Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.” But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage. Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” (2 Kings 5:10–13)

Know this: when God speaks He will always, repeat always, seek to humble you. But like Naaman we want to be told “to do some great thing” before we will act. We want people to make a fuss over us because we think we are worthy. We want men to “come out to” us and “stand and call on the name of the Lord,” to “wave his hand over the spot” of our sin and cure us. We want the attention we think we deserve.

Over the years, we have known many who cannot accept advice from a woman or from a man, they simply will not listen. My sermons usually have a tone about them that most individuals don’t like. My words are not smooth and gentle and do not allow listeners to keep their pride intact. Therefore, people become indignant and thus cannot hear the voice of the Lord speaking through my sermons. So how can we know if God speaks through a man, without following a man? Easy: ask yourself this question at all times. Regardless of who the man is or is not in our eyes, is God speaking through him? Many times, I sense God speaking through many different individuals and situations. While great care and testing of everything occurs and a lot of things are rejected, the attitude is always one of listening.

David always listened and we know he had a heart after God’s. King David rode in from a battle with his army and a man began to pelt him with stones. One man against a whole army, yet David could hear the voice of God. David, who in an instant could have defended himself, struck back or allowed someone else to defend him, allows God to talk to him. David, with his special guard on his right and left, must have felt tempted to strike at God’s voice. But David came to the conclusion that the Lord had told the man to throw stones and curse him. Unless you are willing to hear everything from anyone that God would speak to you, don’t bother trying to listen.

As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the same clan as Saul’s family came out from there. His name was Shimei, son of Gera, and he cursed as he came out. He pelted David and all the king’s officials with stones, though all the troops and the special guard were on David’s right and left. As he cursed, Shimei said, “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you scoundrel! The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has handed the kingdom over to your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a man of blood!” Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head.” But the king said, “What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who can ask, ‘Why do you do this?’” David then said to Abishai and all his officials, “My son, who is of my own flesh, is trying to take my life. How much more, then, this Benjamite! Leave him alone; let him curse, for the Lord has told him to. It may be that the Lord will see my distress and repay me with good for the cursing I am receiving today.” (2 Samuel 16:5–12)

“For the Lord has told him to.” Could you tolerate these types of words from such an unworthy person? Until you can say yes, with the Holy Spirit bearing witness to that fact,4 you will easily be taken in by a man, for you listen to whoever speaks to your flesh, keeps your pride in place, and comes to you on the terms you think you desire. The secret to having ears to hear is humility that can hear God speak in whatever manner and through whomever He chooses. Do you really want ears to hear?

Chapter 12: How to hear God through others

• Why does God give us men to teach us His ways?
• What protects us from false prophets?
• What areas in your life do you not hear from God clearly on and tend to follow men? In what areas do you resist following men?
• Ask God for humility to accept correction from others.

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Ears to Hear: Chapter 13 | [Continue to Next Chapter →]

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The Consider Podcast
Examining Today’s Wisdom, Folly and Madness
www.archive.consider.info

Former Salt Shaker Bookstore

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The Salt Shaker Christian bookstore, because of persecution by Washington State Authorities, was destroyed and ran out of the town of Enumclaw. Just part of the proof that Sound Doctrine Church was walking the narrow road with Jesus.

For you, brothers became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men. 1 Thessalonians 2:14-15

It was a beautiful store. A result of the hard work of Sound Doctrine Church. In the store was a free rack because, as Jesus said, “Freely you received, freely give.” The following track is a small reproduction of the love that burned in our hearts to give freely.

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