"Hearing God" (III)

Discerning the Voice of God

When God speaks to us, how do we know? Willard writes that there are three ways to "authenticate" the voice of God over against our own thoughts or even thoughts given to us by the "powers and principalities" who seek to throw us off-course and lead us away from God's will.

(1) The Quality of God's Voice. "The quality of God's voice is more a matter of the weight or impact an impression makes on our consciousness... We sense inwardly the immediate power of God's voice. And once we have experienced it, we no longer wonder at the biblical phenomena of nature and spirits responding to this divine word. The unquestionable authority with which Jesus spoke to nature, humans and demons was but a very clear manifestation of this quality of the word of God." (175) Willard quotes E. Stanley Jones regarding how to discern the voice of God over our own subconsciousness: "Perhaps the rough distinction is this: The voice of the subconscious argues with you, tries to convince you; but the inner voice of God does not argue, does not try to convince you. It just speaks, and it is self-authenticating. It has the feel of the voice of God within it." (175-176) When God spoke to me on the highway several months ago, there was a certain weight in His words, a weight that stunned me, made me pause in my breathing, settled heavy over my heart and mind. It wasn't an argument. It was a command. Hope in Me. Trust in Me. Wait on Me--and watch what I will do! 

(2) The Spirit of God's Voice. "The voice of God speaking in our souls also bears within itself a characteristic spirit. It is a spirit of exalted peacefulness and confidence, of joy, of sweet reasonableness and of goodwill." (177) Willard quotes Bob Mumford's (not of Mumford & Sons) retelling of a moment God clearly spoke to him: "It couldn't have been any clearer if my wife had spoken the words right next to me. It was spoken straight and strong and right into my spirit. It wasn't a demanding, urgent voice. If it had been, I would immediately have suspected the source to be someone or something other than the Lord. The vocal impression was warm, but firm. I knew it was the Lord." (177) The words God spoke to me on the highway came in just that way: warm and firm, and the effect on my spirit was one precisely of a "peace that transcends all understanding" and a robust confidence in God, and of a joy that drew forth tears of gratitude and praise.

(3) The Content of God's Voice. "The content of a word that is truly from God will always conform to and be consistent with the truths about God's nature and kingdom that are made clear in the Bible. Any content or claim that does not conform to biblical content is not a word from God. Period!" (178) God's words to me weren't just comforting; there came with them a demand for obedience. God commanded that I hope in Him and trust in Him. These words didn't come from me, as if I were telling myself that I just needed to hope in Him and trust in Him. These were words from God telling me to do precisely that which I was struggling and even failing to do. Demonic powers seek to throw us off course from God, and no evil spirit in his right mind would promote confidence and trust in the Creator whom he is poised against. If we hear a voice that is telling us anything contrary to what God reveals to us in Scripture, there is a good chance that either (a) we are seeking self-justification for living out-of-tune with scripture, or (b) evil spirits are whispering in our ears, masquerading as God in order to turn us from Him.