March 25, 2009
Voices
When God came to Noah, Abraham and Zachariah they all knew it was the Lord speaking to them. Today having the Holy Spirit dwelling within us we may sometimes wonder, “Is that the Spirit speaking to me?” The other night one television character said to another, “That voice inside your head is not your conscience...it’s your ego.” No doubt the Spirit has some competition when it comes to being heard over all the other voices in our heads.
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Gail;
-----When the Lord came to Noah, Abraham, and Zechariah, He was laying stones in His planned road to salvation for all who would come. The Word of God was not completely delivered. The Messiah had not yet come. And these men were fundamental elements in His plan. You can be sure He came to them in an unmistakable manner.
-----Today, the road has been laid, the bridge has been built, and the Word to man is complete. Our efforts do not lay stones in the road, rather they bring people to the road and encourage people to stay on the road. Although the Holy Spirit within us is imperative, the work He creates in us is different, and the message He delivers is personally directional. As such, it ties in with the Word of God perfectly. So the more someone understands the Bible, the more he is able to discern the messages heard from any of his inner voices.
-----Too many church leaders forget the importance of the completed Word of God. To be told by the Holy Spirit what your church must do makes you much more important, like Noah! And Abraham! And the more innovative the message, the more important the leader who delivers it! How convenient! Yet the Bible’s direction is entirely sufficient for the church. After all, God delivered it. Would it be any less? Is it really so mundane?
-----I guess that if a person does not go to the scripture and weigh the message to discover whether or not a voice was the Spirit, then maybe being spoken to by the Spirit has become more important than what the Spirit might be saying. As a result of this egocentrism the church’s mission has been clouded by Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, Christian Scientists, Branch Davidians, Catholics, and Rick Warren, to name just a few. And there are plenty more folks waiting in line for the Holy Spirit to make them important with a personally delivered message to the church.
-----A person’s relationship with the Holy Spirit is very fragile and can be easily distorted by the slightest egocentrism. Even the smallest desire and ambition to be a cobble in the road rather than a traveler upon it causes a vulnerability towards treasuring that you’ve heard from the Spirit as more important than what you may have heard. Sorting the voices may be a bit important, but checking the message against the Word is paramount.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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