Spiritual Prerequisites

I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, 

that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, 

which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world; 

but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, 

that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

(Romans 12:1-2)

There are some necessary conditions if you are to come to know the voice of God. It is something required before you are able to fully obtain and appreciate a right relationship with God.  Our goal, in this instance, is to come to know the voice of God.  Jesus said:  

If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.  John 7:17

I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  Romans 12:1

If you meet these prerequisites, then you will come to know God’s voice and His will for your life.

Sin separates us from God's presence and because of sin, we have difficulty hearing and responding positively to the voice of God.  

In the natural world you do not recognize the voice of a stranger. You recognize voices of those you know and with whom you have developed a relationship. The same is true in the spiritual world. If you are to come to know God's voice, you must first come to know God and you cannot develop an intimate relationship with Him with sin in your life.

The word beseeches YOU to make the move towards God by giving your life to Him. God has already spoken through His written Word and revealed it is His will for you to develop such a relationship:  

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  2 Peter 3:9

God does not want us to spend our life in sin. He wants us to live it according to His plan:  

That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.   1 Peter 4:2

Picture God standing at the door of your life desiring entrance so He can develop a relationship with you:  

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.   Revelation 3:20

God's stated purpose from the beginning of Adam and Eve's fall was to bring all men into the knowledge of Christ Jesus:  

Having made known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him.   Ephesians 1:9-10

You are "gathered into Christ" by becoming part of the family of God. Just as you are born into a natural family, you must be "born again" spiritually into this spiritual family.

In the book of John, chapter 3, it explains in detail what it means to be born-again. 

To experience the new birth you must:

 →  Acknowledge you are a sinner:  

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.   Romans 3:23

 →  Recognize the penalty of sin is death:  

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.    Romans 6:23

God warned Adam and Eve that if they sinned, they would die. This meant both spiritual death (separation from God's presence) and physical death. When Jesus died on the cross, He died in our place. He died for our sins so we could have everlasting life.  If we accept His sacrifice for sin, we are no longer under the penalty of death.

→  Repent, confess our sins, ask forgiveness, and believe that Jesus died for us:  

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.   1 John 1:8-9

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16

→  Be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission (forgiveness) of your sins 

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.    John 3:3 

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  Matthew 19:28

→  Receive the gift that Jesus promised us; His Holy Spirit – which is evidenced by speaking in unknown tongues 

Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.  Acts 2:38

When we present our life to God in this manner, we are "born-again" spiritually:

Therefore, if any man be in Christ He a new creature; old things have passed away; Behold, all things are become new.   2 Corinthians 5:17

When we are born again we become part of God's spiritual family. We are no longer separated from the presence of God. When we die to the kingdom of darkness, we will live eternally with God.

We have established a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. We have heard and responded to the truth of the Gospel. We are now in a position to learn how to recognize God's voice:  

To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.   John 18:37b

The Holy Spirit is a part of the prerequisite that will allow us to come to know God's voice. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit results in the Holy Spirit dwelling in our life and empowering us to live a holy life which is acceptable to God.

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.  1 John 4:4

One of the most important ministries of the indwelling Holy Spirit is to guide the believer into God's will:  

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.   John 16:13-14

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.  Romans 8:14

There is a definite relationship between being a child of God (born again) and being led by the Holy Spirit.

The natural man (who is not born-again) does not receive and follow guidance of the Holy Spirit. Because he has not become a "spiritual man" through the new birth experience, He does not recognize the voice of God:  

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.  1 Corinthians 2:14 

The following examples from the book of Acts demonstrate the leading of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers:

Philip:  

A disciple, by the name of Philip, was led by the Spirit to join a chariot he saw on a desert road to Gaza:  

Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near and join thyself to this chariot.  Acts 8:29

Philip obeyed the leading of the Holy Spirit. This resulted in the salvation and water baptism of an Ethiopian man who was riding in the chariot.

Peter:  

Peter was told by the Holy Spirit to go with three men who came from Caesarea. Peter said:  

And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting.  Acts 11:12

Peter recognized the leading of the Holy Spirit. He had no doubts when the Spirit spoke in his inner being and revealed God's will to him. He obeyed and it resulted in the first cross-cultural ministry to the Gentiles.

Paul:  

Paul often changed his evangelistic schedule at the prompting of the Holy Spirit:

After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia; but the Spirit suffered them not.  Acts 16:7

Paul planned to go to Mysia, but the Holy Spirit gave him different directions.

These three examples are just a few of many in the Bible which illustrate how the Holy Spirit enables you to hear God’s voice. 

As Jesus promised, the Holy Spirit takes the will of God and reveals it to you.

Biblical Studies

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04/02/15

07/04/16

07/17/19

02/03/21