We Need to Hear - Part 2

By Iverna Tompkins
Transcribed by Jane Vaughn

In part 1 of this message, we began looking at 6 potential hindrances that cause us not to hear the voice of God.  The first was “indecision,” or lack of immediately acting on the conviction of the Holy Spirit.  We can literally talk ourselves out of responding to Him, and that can cause us not to hear.

The second blockage to hearing God is ignorance.

“How shall ye hear without a preacher?” scripture asks (Rom.10:14).  Now this has nothing to do with me as a preacher.  This isn’t speaking about this preacher or that preacher.  It’s speaking about the spoken Word, the rhema of God.  He is the preacher!  It is God Himself that quickens His Word in your heart.  He makes it come alive and fills it with His meaning for you!

One of the reasons you (not you this time, but some other “you” :-) ), one of the reasons they’re not hearing God is because they never open The (Recipe) Book or read the directions.  This is how you prepare vittles (Josh.1:11 victuals; food, provisions) for yourself: you get into The Book, the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit who inspired 44 or more men of old over a period of some 1400 years to put this down in print so we could read it – that same Holy Spirit takes the written Word and absolutely, indelibly imprints it in you (Jer.31:33; Heb.8:10).  You will see things in the Word I don’t see, and I will see things you don’t see – for your “Word” is your dinner!  It is your sustenance.  It is your “meat.”  The revelation of God is what nourishes your spirit and causes you to grow.

If we never feast on His Word, if we allow the busy-ness of life to steal away our daily times with God, how will we ever learn what He has to say in The Book?  It will not come into us sufficiently only on Sunday mornings in the congregational meeting.  That is good and a very necessary part of our Christian walk (Heb.10:25), but our real “filling station” needs to be alone with God.  We must become knowledgeable in the Word.  “Thy Word have I hid in my heart – that I might not miss the mark” (Ps.119:11).

• A third reason we don’t hear is impulsiveness.

Remember when David decided to do something God had not voted “yes” on?  David was determined to build the Temple.  Nathan the prophet looked at his King, and in the natural, looking through man’s eyes from a purely human perspective, David seemed like the logical one to do it (2 Sam.7:3).  Besides, it was in his heart to build something wonderful for God (vs.2).

Pastors, too often we fill positions in our churches impulsively.  We choose someone who has all the right capabilities for the task, or we reward them for longevity of service.  “Oh, God forgive us for not seeking Your face, Your desire, Your perfect will for every decision we make!”  Without carefully hearing His voice, we subsequently put the wrong person in the position, in the wrong timing, even though at the right time they might be the perfect fit, but we act precipitously in the moment.

Nathan says, “I think that’s a marvelous plan, David.”  When Nathan went home, God said, “Nathan, I have a little thing to say to you. That is not My plan!” (vvs.4,5)

Oh, if you’ve ever tried anything that was of your own doing alone, at any period of time in your life, you know: you – never – want – to – do – that – again!  You can fast and pray and scream and threaten God:  “This is my plan, and You bless it! – in Jesus’ name,” of course.  But darlin’, if it isn’t His plan, He most likely will not bless your human endeavor!  No matter how clever it is, or sound the idea, God will bless what He inspires in you.  Don’t be in such a hurry to make a decision that you do not wait patiently to hear His voice or specific instruction.

• Another reason that we don’t hear is incapability – literal bondage to the enemy.

If we don’t respond when God speaks to us, the enemy has a strategy of coming and making it impossible for us to hear.  This would be closely related to the first hindrance we noted, but here we are looking at the enemy’s activity rather than our indecision.  The truth is we always have an active role to play when dealing with either God or the devil. 

God is looking for a willing heart that leads to our response of obedience when we hear His voice.  By contrast, the enemy lays in wait for the opportune moment (see Lk.4:13) to snag, ensnare, derail, or otherwise impede our moving on with God.  The enemy is sneaky and deliberate, like a thief, and his purpose is “to steal, kill, and destroy” (Jn.10:10a; 1Pet.5:8).  He will set up an ambush to take us by surprise.

Our defense against this subterfuge of the enemy is primarily the continual building of our walk with God.  But, we also must actively resist the enemy’s wiles, his schemes and trickery, launched against us (Eph.6:11; Jas.4:7; 1Pet.5:8,9).  Not participating in this spiritual war, for whatever reasons, will render one subject to the enemy’s will and incapable of hearing God.  Let us not be ignorant of his devices, nor fear entering the fray.  The victory is ours because ultimately the battle is the Lord’s (1Sam.17:47; 2Chron.20:15; 32:8).  He equips us and provides everything we need, but we have to enter in and wield our swords (Eph.6:10-18).

• Then there’s the problem of inactivity.

Inactivity, or failure to immediately respond to Him, causes us to forget what we have heard.  We would be embarrassed as preachers if we stood at the exit greeting the congregation at the close of a service, and when the people said, “That was a marvelous message,” if we would follow that up with, instead of “Thank you so much,” say, “What did you hear?”  Obviously, you know I would do that – and have done it.   :-)  So many people just stutter and stumble and turn red-in-the-face and say, “Well, I don’t remember everything, but I really enjoyed it.  It was such an inspiring message.”  :-)

We need to retain what God says to us, especially personally, and that is accomplished by acting on it without reservation.  “Today, if you will, harden not your hearts; hear the voice of God…” (Ps.95:7,8 paraphrased).

I love Elijah.  I love his story and everything about him.  He was the kind of man you could be proud of knowing.  He just took his stand and that was it.  Until a woman went after him! :-)  and then he kind of “wimped out.” :-)   When she threatened him, he panicked and ran as far as he could go (1Kngs.19:2,3).  Then God had to wake him up and feed him (vvs.5,6) and give him crutches to get him to the Mount (Horeb; vs.8).  And when he got up there, Elijah revealed by his conversation with the Lord, his attitude about himself.  It’s called “pity - party.”

“What are you doing up here, Elijah?” (1Kngs.19:9).  His response was pathetic and whining.  It went something like this, “Oh thank you for asking.  I’ve served You all these years.  I’ve been faithful to You.  I’ve paid my tithe.  I’ve given offerings.  I have never missed a meeting.  I’ve spoken everything You ever told me to speak, and I’m the only good thing You’ve got going for You.” :-)  (vs.10).  Most of that is accurate from the text   :-)  – at least true from the standpoint that I paraphrased what he literally said, but basically, that is what he was saying.  “Everybody else has flaked out, God.  And I’m sick of being the only one who takes a stand for You!”

Oh, how many of us have felt that way at times?  We have sung this in years gone by: “I’ve sacrificed a lot of things to walk this narrow way.  I gave up fame and fortune – and I’m worth a lot to Thee.”  Oh, what a sad song that is!  And then I hear Him gently speak to me these words from the same old hymn, “I left a Throne of Glory – and counted it but loss.  My feet were nailed in anguish upon a cruel cross!” 

Come on, Church!  It’s time for us to open our ears again!

Here’s what I hear as I travel in the Church.  I hear people my age and older wearily saying, “Let the young folks do it.  We’ve been fightin’ long enough.  We’ve been….”  Or, “God knows we’ve tried.  It’s time for the young people to take it over.”  They can’t take it over!  They don’t know a lot – yet.   :-)  The truth is, I’ll lean on their enthusiasm – you can believe that!  I need it.  I love their strength and daringness!  Oh, I do love that!  But they need my wisdom, because there is a wisdom that does not come from books – it comes from living.  And we can’t just die off and say, “Hey, I hope you do a better job than I did.”  We need the strengths God puts in each of us – in all of us – from one generation to the other.

• Another reason we don’t hear His voice is – selective hearing. 

We are programmed to hear what we choose to hear.  I’m so sorry I have done this many times in my life.  “I want to hear this, God.  I’ve got to know.”

I remember a time when I was making a very significant decision.  I’d received an offer in ministry that would mean relocating geographically, among a whole lot of other inconvenient things.  So, I determined that I simply had to hear from God – “Yes” or “No.”  I needed to know, definitively, what He wanted me to do.  So, I went on an extended fast – because we foolishly figure that’s like twisting His arm to get whatever it is we’re after.   :-)  When that didn’t work  :-)  I enlisted other people to pray with me.  I had a multitude of people praying: “She’s gotta know, God, Yes or No.”  Now there was a deadline to this offer – if I did not respond to them by such-and-such a date, the offer would be rescinded.  And so, I kept telling God – in Jesus’ Name, of course – “I have to know by this time!  They need to know!”

Days went by and I heard nothing!  Finally, I heard that still small voice, right after I said to Him, “Lord, tomorrow, they have to know my answer.”  He said, “’They’ who?”  That was not what I wanted to hear.  :-)  “‘They’ – the people who made the offer!  You know who ‘they’ are!”   :-)   It sounds humorous in the re-telling of it so many years later, but I was totally serious at the moment.  The end of the story is that they called me the next day, and through their pressure I said “Yes” and made one of the biggest mistakes of my life.  I entered into a horrendous two years. 

Learn from me, dear friends.  Oh, if only I had waited for His reply.  “But, if you had waited past the deadline, they would have withdrawn the offer.”  May I say, “DUH?”  I mean – maybe, just maybe –that’s what God had in mind?  If they had withdrawn the offer, I wouldn’t have had to make a decision.  It would have been decided for me and I would have been spared the lessons I learned the hard way.

                                                                                              Go to Part 3