Has God Ever Spoken to You? How?

The FULL QUESTION:

Has God ever spoken to you? How – a voice, a thought, thru someone else, a vision, a dream, the Scripture?  In the Old Testament, God often speaks to the prophets in volumes of words; how were they receiving God’s voice?

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The SHORT ANSWER: “Yes! Every Day!” Jesus said, in John 10:27, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me….” Let me explain.

The INTRODUCTION:

Our questioner is on the right path when he says, “How – a voice, a thought, thru someone else, a vision, a dream, the Scripture?” The LORD speaks to us in six ways.  Let’s use the Bible’s words, “oracles, visions, dreams, actions, silence, and the Holy Spirit who indwells every believer. ” The Scripture does not use the words “actions or silence.” But they are implied through most Bible stories as we hear people reach out to the LORD, and He answers with his actions or silence. From Genesis to Revelation, God has spoken to humans in these six ways. But, before we explain each of these ways, we need to lay the groundwork and parameters for the answers to this question because the LORD has told us when He will answer and when He will not.

The GROUNDWORK and PARAMETERS: 

Knowing that such a question would one day be asked, the LORD has already set the groundwork and parameters of His answers in the Scripture.  His Holy Word tells us that there are certain kinds of prayers He will not answer. Let’s put that in bold letters.  SOME PRAYERS HE WILL NOT ANSWER! In other words, if your prayers fall into the realm of the following warnings, do not expect to hear an answer from the LORD; He will NOT speak to you.

  • Praying instead of acting on what God has already told you to do in the Scripture. (Exo 14:15; Joshua 7:10)
  • Praying to change God’s law or word, which He set up in the Scripture.  (Deu 3:23-27)
  • Praying to do something in total rebellion with God’s instruction and will in the Scripture. (1 Sam 8:9-10)
  • Praying to negate the deserved and imperative correction from God as warned in the Scripture. (2 Sam 12:16-18; 2 Cor 12:7-9)
  • Praying with an unclean heart. (Psa 66:18; Lam. 3:8; Lam 3:40-44)
  • Praying with selfish and ulterior motives. (Mat 6:5; James 4:2-3)
  • Praying with a heart of ill will and hatred for others.  (Mat 5:24)
  • Praying meaninglessly and repetitiously.  (Mat 6:7)
  • Praying without sincerity.  (Mat 6:5-7; Heb 11:6; James 1:6-7)
  • Praying to return to a lost opportunity.  (Luke 13:25-28)
  • Praying without the direction of the Holy Spirit. (James 4:2-3)
  • Praying without acknowledging a consciousness of sin.  (1 John 1:8-10)

The WAYS THE LORD HAS SPOKEN TO ME:

The LORD speaks to me in all the ways He spoke to people in the Bible. He speaks in 1) oracles, 2) visions, 3) dreams, 4) actions, 5) silence, and 6) the Holy Spirit. Let’s explain each.

ORACLES:

An “oracle” is an ancient term for a direct, spoken message from the LORD. The word “oracle” is used in Numbers through Malachi. Some Bible versions translate the Hebrew word as a “burden” instead of an “oracle.” You will see it used in the Bible as “The oracle of the word of the LORD” or “The burden of the word of the LORD.” When the LORD’s words are uplifting, it’s an “oracle;” if denoting evil, it’s a “burden.”

Oracles/burdens are found throughout the Bible and are His direct, audible word to man, whether spoken or written in the Scripture.  In the Garden of Eden, He spoke directly with Adam (Gen 1:29-30).  He spoke directly with Cain when Cain was determined to kill Abel (Gen 4:6-8). He spoke directly to Noah, “Build an ark” (Gen 6:14).  We can list hundreds of times when the LORD spoke directly to people such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Solomon, all the prophets of the Old Testament, to all the Apostles and disciples while He was here on earth, and to Paul on the road to Damascus. But in the Old Testament, you can quickly identify an oracle of the LORD, even though it is not called an oracle, because the verse starts with “the LORD said,” “the LORD spoke,” “the LORD answered,” etc. Called an oracle/burden or not, any time the LORD speaks, it is an oracle, a divine message from the LORD to humanity.  When the LORD said it, it was recorded on paper in the Scripture.  When I read the Scripture, the LORD still speaks those words to me as if He was whispering them in my ears.  When I read the Bible, I hear the oracles of the LORD.

Here is the essential point. The oracles of the LORD have been written down.  Everything the LORD has to say has been recorded in the Bible.  The Bible is “THE ORACLE OF GOD.” It speaks His word to us today.  Every theological question that can ever be asked has already been answered by the LORD in His Bible.  In addition, the Bible, as the oracle of the LORD, is filled with stories to tell us what the LORD approves and what He disproves. It is the book of the LORD’s principles for living life. These principles point out what is good and what is bad. Therefore, that is the reason I study the Bible. That is why I tell Bible stories to answer people’s questions.  I do not need to have the LORD whisper in my ear some special answer for those questions. If I hear something whispered in my ear, I must immediately ask if it matches the entire oracle of the LORD – His Holy Word.  Remember these warnings,

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). 

“I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false;” (Revelation 2:2).

Therefore, test everything you hear against the Scriptures. I do.  Here is where we must be careful. If you ever hear someone say, “The LORD told me to tell you,” be nice, but ignore what comes from that person’s mouth. The LORD speaks audibly to me through His written word, and I find most of my answers in the Oracle of His Divine Written Scripture.  Warning, we talk about taking everything to the LORD in prayer, which is a true and trustworthy statement. But, when we seek an answer from the LORD, we should always seek His answer in the Scripture first. Why? If the LORD has already answered in His word, He will not answer it again. For that reason, many people think the LORD is not answering their prayers. However, when searching for the answer in the Scripture, we must ask the LORD to lead us to the answer He has given. The LORD’s oracles deal with true or false theology, morality or immorality, friends or enemies, good or evil, and right or wrong in His eyes. 

VISIONS and DREAMS:

Let’s combine visions and dreams because the LORD uses both in the same way, even though the two are slightly different. The LORD speaks to me in visions and dreams.

Think of a vision as a “daydream.”  You are awake, but when the LORD speaks to you, the Holy Spirit gives you divine direction, what to do, what to know, and what to avoid. You immediately see the whole picture with a plan to move ahead. Or, it can be a warning to run. Such was the case with John on the Isle of Patmos when the LORD showed him the future recorded in the Revelation. Such was the case when the LORD spoke to Samuel as a child (1 Sam 3:15). The LORD spoke to Isaiah in visions (Isaiah 21:2). In Numbers 12:6, the LORD promised to speak with the prophets in visions or dreams. The LORD spoke to Ezekiel in a vision while sitting in his tent in the Babylonian Empire, but he saw precisely what was occurring point by point back in Jerusalem.

A dream occurs while you are asleep. In your dream, the Holy Spirit shows you what to do and what you need to know, just like in a vision. The LORD directed Daniel with knowledge and intelligence in every branch of wisdom in visions and dreams (Dan 1:17). But nothing in a vision or dream will disagree with the written oracle of the LORD in Scripture.  Let me give examples of how the LORD has spoken to me in visions and dreams in my ministry years.

ACTIONS and SILENCE:

At this point, we need to learn how to know the LORD’s will in particular areas of life. How did the LORD speak to me when something was not His plan vs. something that was His plan? It all comes down to the LORD’s actions or His silence. Many, many, many times, I have been asked to do projects or consider different things. I just could not come up with a plan or answer of any kind. Prayer after prayer with no answer. Without an answer to my prayer, without the LORD’s plan, without His actions, and just with His silence, I knew the answer was, “No, do not do this.” No matter how many times I asked, the silence was always “No.” But when the answer was “yes,” it was immediate. In the Scripture, there are examples of people asking the LORD for definite “yes or no” answers.  Here are two Bible examples.

When Moses came on the scene and the Holy Scripture began to be recorded on paper, the LORD answered Israel’s questions through the priests with the Urim and Thummin.  The priest would ask the LORD a specific question, and the LORD would respond by causing the gems on the Urim and Thummin to glow in particular ways. Unfortunately, we do not have the Urim and Thummin to use; therefore, this method from the Old Testament does not work for us. However, the same principle is found in the story of how Gideon asked for the LORD’s answer with the fleece.  Gideon asked the LORD to act a certain way to give a “yes” answer.  If the LORD did not act but was silent, Gideon knew the answer would be “no” (Judges 6).  Likewise, when the LORD did what Gideon asked, the answer was “yes.” When I ask the LORD to answer in a specific way, when He acts in that way, I know the answer is “yes.” When He is silent and does not act, He answers “no.” Warning, don’t ever manipulate or go around the answer. It will be costly.

The method of prayer, which has been my mainstay in hearing from the LORD for decades, is the same as Gideons.  If the LORD says “yes,” He will do what I ask.  If the LORD says “no,” nothing happens but silence.  Let me give some ministry examples.

Holy Spirit:

Unlike in the Old Testament, when we are saved, the LORD sends the Holy Spirit to live inside and direct us. He works in our lives to bring us comfort or distress. Comfort and distress are important words because the Holy Spirit moves us inside with those two feelings. When seeking an answer, we must ask.  It is one of the LORD’s interesting principles. As we discovered in 2 Samuel, the LORD waited patiently for David to ask before He answered a problem. Problems will come. Still today, the LORD patiently waits to provide the answer, either by His Word, action, silence, or the Holy Spirit, but He is waiting for you to ask. I am constantly praying daily, asking the LORD, “What should I do about this? What should I do about that?” I take everything to the LORD in prayer.  When things come up, you might audibly hear me say, “LORD, I’m in trouble now; what do I do?” Then, like a miracle, clarity comes, and the difficulty becomes easy. But when it doesn’t, the LORD’s answer is clear; I am to seek help or abandon the project.

For these reasons, here is my plan for making decisions about people’s lives. First, I will ask the LORD to bring comfort or distress to my conclusion. (Notice the words “comfort or distress!”) Then, I will make a decision. I will wait a week for the Holy Spirit to convict me before I reveal my decision.  If I am totally comforted, and at total peace in my decision at the end of the week, I will proceed. However, if during the week I cannot find peace in the decision, it is the Holy Spirit telling me that I must change my decision. Why? Because it is the Holy Spirit that speaks to me through comfort or distress.  In my three-decade ministry of helping people, I immediately made a “Yes or No” decision with each request. Then I let the Holy Spirit deal with me for a week.  If, at the end of the week, I was still comforted with the decision, I proceeded with that decision.  But if, during the week, I was discomforted about my decision, I knew that I needed to change that decision. Sometimes I needed to start the whole process over again.

I have often been asked to decide immediately about something. I refuse to choose without researching. People often put pressure to accomplish their will: “Now, now, now; we must have an answer now.” They did not want me to research.  They wanted me to stamp approval on the matter with little knowledge.  They wanted me to think that they had completed all the research, knew all the answers, and needed to be trusted. “Trust me. Trust the process,” they would say. Trustworthy people do not need to ask for your trust.  Ill-intentioned people will demand your trust.  Long ago, I had learned the pitfalls of the trust issue with people saying to me, “If I had only known, I would not have done that. But all along, I knew something was wrong. I just could not put my finger on it.”

The CONCLUSION:

Hearing from the LORD requires three things. First, you must know His Word. When you read your Bible, the LORD speaks right to you every day. He will answer many of your prayers there in your daily Bible reading. Second, you must be like Gideon and ask for specific answers to your prayers. If the answer comes, it is a “yes.” If there is no answer, it is a “no.” Third, you must follow the Holy Spirit working in your life. He will bring you comfort when things are right and distress when things are wrong.