A Paradox About Hearing God
God’s communications come to us in many forms (26)
We may have the wrong motives for seeking to hear from God (27)
We misconceive the very nature of our heavenly Father and of his intent for us (28)
Guidelines for Hearing From God
“Hearing God cannot be a reliable and intelligible fact of life except when we see his speaking as one aspect of His presence with us, of his life in us. Only our communion with God provides the appropriate context for communications between us and him. And with those communications, guidance will be given in a manner suitable to our particular lives and circumstances.” (33)
“The humanity of Moses, David and Elijah, of Paul, Peter, and Jesus Christ himself – of all that wonderful company of riotously human women and men whose experience is recorded in the Bible and in the history of the church – teaches us a vital lesson: Our humanity will not by itself prevent us from knowing and interacting with God just as they did. (35)
“We were important enough for God to give his Son’s life for us and to choose to inhabit us as a living temple. Obviously then we are important enough for him to guide us and speak to us whenever that is appropriate.” (38)
“When God speaks to us, it does not prove that we are righteous or even right. It does not even prove that we have correctly understood what he said. The infallibility of the messenger and the message does not guarantee the infallibility of our reception. Humility is always in order.” (39)
Never Alone
“The primary manner of communication from God to humankind is the Word of God, or God’s speaking. The bible itself is God’s word preserved in written form.” (53)
“We come to understand what God wants us to understand through immersion with him in his work. We understand what he is doing so well that we often know exactly what he is thinking and intending to do.” (54) [having the mind of Christ]
Blind faith in God’s presence + feeling or sense of nearness + display of supernatural effects + word and shared activity
Mistaken interpretations
Message a minute view – no evidence of CONSTANT revelations for anyone
it’s-all-in-the-bible view – principles, yes, every specific circumstance, no
Whatever comes view – taken to an extreme, any choice you make, Godly or not, can be justified as God’s will
Correct View
Conversational View – “there is appropriate, clear, specific communication through conscious experience from God to the individual believer within the context of a life immersed in God’s kingdom.” (62)
