Do You Know the Voice of God?

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, 

and they follow me. 

(John 10:27)

There is a one, God, who communicates with man.      Do you recognize God's voice when He speaks to you?  Do you obey Him or do you override His voice with your own inner voice?  God speaks to us daily; leading and directing our paths.   Prayerfully, we learn to recognize His voice; knowing that everything He has to say is something worthwhile. 

This belief is based upon the truth that there is a God who is revealed to man through the written record of His Word.

The Bible is the inspired,  unrefuted, unequivocal, written record of God's communication to and dealings with man. It details the ways which God spoke to man and the response of individuals and nations to the voice of God. The Bible often repeats the phrase ". . . and the Lord said" in incidents where He spoke to man.    For those that believe in God and His word, this confirms that God communicates with men and women. There are many instances where, though God spoke, man did not weight or take heed to the word of God. 

For example, in the account of Balaam; God spoke to Balaam, but Balaam refused to heed or take seriously to what God was saying: 

And God came unto Balaam, and said, What men are these with thee?  Numbers 22:9

God wanted to communicate to this man so much that He finally resorted to using a donkey. Balaam was:

 . . . rebuked for his iniquity; the dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the madness of the prophet. (2 Peter 2:16)

The Bible verifies that believers can know the voice of God. Jesus said:   

I am the good shepherd and know my sheep , and am known of mine. . .

And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. . .

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. . .   (John 10:14,16,27)

God has something important to say to mankind. He does not talk for the sake of hearing Himself speak.  We are warned:  

Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith), Today if ye will hear His voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness. . .

While it is said, Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. . . (Hebrews 3:7,15)

The "temptation in the wilderness" and the "provocation" (provoking) of God mentioned in these verses refer to the disobedience of the nation of Israel.

After Israel was delivered from Egyptian captivity, they repeatedly disobeyed when God spoke to them. In these verses God warns us to respond when He speaks and not disobey as Israel did.

The phrase "today, if ye will hear His voice," confirms that God still speaks to men in present times just as He did in times past. The warning to listen confirms that what He has to say is important.

The Bible reveals that there are many voices in the world clamoring for attention:

There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification. (1 Corinthians 14:10)

What are these voices in the world?  

√  The voice of man is easy to recognize. 

It is the audible voice of another human being.  

Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:29)

Sometimes the voice of man may give wise advice, but anytime the voice of man conflicts with the voice of God, it is God's voice that we must obey.

√  The voice of Satan was first heard by man when he spoke to Eve in the Garden of Eden: 

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.   (Genesis 3:1,4,5). 

Satan's voice lies, deceives, and always attempts to lead man into sin away from God. You can easily recognize this when you read about the temptation of Jesus by Satan in Matthew 4:1-13. You can study examples of conversations Satan had with God in Job 1:7-12 and 2:1-6.

Evil spirits (demons of Satan) also have voices:   

For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them. . . (Acts 8:7)

And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God. (Luke 4:33-34)

Sometimes the voice of Satan is actually audible when demons use the vocal cords of a possessed man or woman. Most often, however, Satan speaks in an inaudible voice. He speaks lies, deceit, and sinful thoughts into your mind.

√  The voice of self is man talking to himself. You can read examples of this in Luke 16:3, 18:4 and in Jonah 4:8 where the prophet wished in himself to die. The Bible warns concerning the voice of self:   

O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. (Jeremiah 10:23)

Jesus said believers could know God’s voice and distinguish it from other voices:  

To Him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear His voice; and He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.  And when He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him; for they know His voice.  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from Him; for they know not the voice of strangers. (John 10:3-5)

Believers are compared to sheep. It is the characteristic of sheep not to know where they are going. They must be led. Jesus said He was the shepherd or leader of the sheep. He said His sheep would know His voice and follow Him instead of the voices of man, self, or Satan.

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