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The Critical Importance of Hearing God's Voice
In our daily lives, we arrive at events and gatherings carrying various emotional states - from joy over becoming grandparents to devastation from job losses, from celebration of promotions to grief over terminal diagnoses. Yet for believers entering God's house, there's a tremendous advantage in harnessing these states of mind to hear from the Lord.
Recognizing the Shepherd's Voice
Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice" (John 10:14), establishing this as a key marker of authentic Christian faith. In the fields of Judea, shepherds would gather their flocks into communal caves at night. Come morning, each shepherd would call out with their distinct voice, and remarkably, only their sheep would respond - the others remained unmoved by a stranger's voice.
This powerful illustration from John 10:3-5 demonstrates how true believers recognize and follow Christ's voice while refusing to follow strangers. The sheep's ability to distinguish their shepherd's voice wasn't optional - it was essential for their survival and flourishing.
The Two Voices
In reality, there are only two foundational voices speaking in this world:
- The voice of God
- The voice of Satan
While Satan speaks through many voices, advocates, and apparent choices (called pluralism), this multiplicity is deception. Truth cannot exist in the synthesis or combination of multiple competing thoughts. The very concept of pluralism proves self-contradictory - if truth can only be found in the combination of multiple viewpoints, then one of those viewpoints must be that truth cannot be found through multiple viewpoints.
Hearing God's Voice Through Revelation
The only way to truly know God's mind is through His revelation by His Spirit. As 1 Corinthians 2:11 states: "For who knows a person's thoughts except his Spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God."
This revelation comes primarily through Scripture - the inspired source of God's truth. While God may speak to individuals, any claimed revelation must align with Biblical truth. John 1:18 affirms that no one has seen God except the Son who has revealed Him.
Preparing for Our Unavoidable Destiny
Every person has two unavoidable appointments:
- Death (unless Christ returns first)
- Judgment
As Hebrews 9:27 states: "It is appointed for men to die once, but after this judgment." Christ's sacrificial death provides the only preparation for these appointments. Through His blood, we can stand justified before a holy God.
For those who have obeyed the gospel, Christ "will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation" (Hebrews 9:28). This is the believer's blessed hope. However, the stakes could not be higher - if Jesus does not bear your sins, you must bear them yourself.
The message is clear: We must recognize Christ's voice, follow His leading through Scripture, and prepare for our eternal destiny through faith in His sacrificial death and resurrection. There is no middle ground - either Christ bears our sins, or we bear them ourselves with eternal consequences.