The Voice of God (NOTES)

The Voice of God (Notes)

1.) INTO-Discerning God’s Voice

Job 37:2 Listen! Listen to the roar of his voice, to the rumbling that comes from his mouth. (NIV)

How does God speak?

1.) God speaks to us through His Holy Spirit. John 14:16-17 “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (NIV)

2.) God speaks to us through our minds and hearts. Psalms 119:2 Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—they do not go wrong. (NIV)

3.) God speaks to us through His word and will never go against His word. Psalms 119:11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. (NIV)

Mark 3:24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. (NIV)

4.) God speaks to us through people. 2 Samuel 12:1 The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor…” (NIV)

Romans 10:14-15 How then can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

5.) God speaks to us through dreams and visions. Matthew 1:19-20 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit…” (NIV)

6.) God speaks to us through nature. Luke 21:25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea…” (NIV)

Psalm 19:1-4 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. (NIV)

7.) God speaks to us through circumstances. Exodus 8:1-4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, “This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they ay worship me. If you refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of frogs on your whole country. The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. The frogs will come up on you and your people and all your officials.’ ” (NIV)

2.) BREAK—PROPHETIC-WHAT DOES GOD’S VOICE SOUND LIKE 07:30

When God speaks, things happen.

Genesis 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. (NIV)

Genesis 1:6 And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” (NIV)

Genesis 1:9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so.

Genesis 1:11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. (NIV)

Genesis 1:14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. (NIV)

Genesis 1:20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”

Genesis 1:22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”

Genesis 1:24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so.

Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” (NIV)

3.) BREAK—The Good Shepherd & His Sheep 03:33

People God Spoke to in the Bible

A.) God Spoke to Moses. Exodus 3:2-5 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” (NIV)

B.)  God Spoke to Abraham. Genesis 17:1-2 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” (NIV)

C.)  God Spoke to Jonah. Jonah 1:1-2 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Ninevah and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” (NIV)

D.) God Spoke to Samuel in a vision. 1 Samuel 3:10 The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak for your servant is listening.” (NIV)

E.)  God Spoke to Lazarus. John 11:43-44 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his faith. (NIV)

F.)  God Spoke to Jesus. Matthew 3:16-17 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (NIV)

John 12:28-29 “Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again. The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him. (NIV)

G.) God Spoke to Saul (Paul). Acts 9:3-6 As he neared Damascus on his 

journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” (NIV)

H.)  Judges 13:2-3 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoa, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son.” [Samson] (NIV)

4.) BREAK—I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say 02:32

How do you know God’s voice?

A.) God’s voice will be one of familiarity that lines up with His word. John 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. (NIV)

B.)  God’s voice will require you to have faith. Romans 10:17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. (NIV)

C.)  God’s voice will give you information that you wouldn’t have otherwise known. Jeremiah 33:3 “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (NIV)

D.) God’s voice will give you direction. Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (NIV)

E.)  God’s voice will draw you closer to Him. James 4:8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify you hearts, you double-minded. (NIV)

F.)  God’s voice will give you peace. Psalm 85:8 I will listen to what God the Lord says; he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—but let them not turn to folly.

David describes God’s voice. Psalm 29:3-9 The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over the mighty waters. (Jesus commanded the water. Mark 4:39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died and it was completely calm.)

The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. He makes the Lebanon leap like a calf, Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord strikes with flashes of lightning. The voice of the Lord shakes the desert; the Lord shakes the desert; the Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord twists the oaks and strips the forest bare. And in his temple all cry, “Glory!”

Obey God when He Speaks

Hebrews 3:7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hears as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness, where your ancestors tested and tried me, through for forty years they saw what I did.” (NIV)

Hebrews 3:15 As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” (NIV)

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (NIV)