When God Speaks Do We Listen

I believe God speaks, not always by words. I believe God is speaking to the nations of the world today, through the remedial judgments upon them, intended to draw them back to the God of the Bible, but I don't believe too many are paying Him any mind. I believe God is speaking to the church in the West by His withdrawn presence, but I fear we haven't noticed that He is gone from our midst.

We're too busy counting nickels and noses in our churches today to realize God has left us to ourselves. There's a remarkable passage in the Gospel of Mark, friends, I'd like for us to look at today. You can turn your Bibles there to Mark chapter 9. We will be in verses 2 through 7. Here now is the word of God, and may His Spirit attend the reading of His holy word.

And after six days Jesus taketh with Him Peter and James and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain, apart by themselves, and He was transfigured before them. And His raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow, so as no foaler on earth can white them. And there appeared unto them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.

Let me pause here, friends, to say that this picture of a glorified Christ gives us a peek into what's going on in heaven right now. I believe the risen Christ will be approachable to us in heaven. I believe He will talk to us man to man if I may so speak, even though He is God.

Do you know, friends, from time to time in my life I have asked Jesus if He didn't mind, would He walk over to someone already in heaven and tell that person that I miss them. I believe Jesus is our advocate with the Father. I believe we can speak to Jesus now as a man speaks to another man with familiarity, so long as we keep in mind that we are a mere sinful mortal and He is an elevated holy God.

This picture of Jesus talking with Elijah and Moses is not much different from Jesus talking to Peter, James, or John. They were having a conversation. Just Jesus was dressed in His heavenly best for the occasion.

The next verse shows Peter putting his foot in it once again by running his mouth when he should have been quiet. I remember the first time I met Adrian Rogers one-on-one and I made the mistake of running my mouth when I should have kept it shut and just listened to him more. Well, Peter does that here for he was afraid and didn't know what to say.

This text, friends, is a lesson in listening to the voice of God. We see in verse 7, And there was a cloud that overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son. Hear Him.

I will stop there. This begs the question, do we hear what Jesus is trying to say to us today? If you think God is not minutely interested in the life of one of His children, you are sadly mistaken, friend. God has a vested interest in us because His dear Son bought us with His very blood.

My message today is entitled When God Speaks, Do We Listen? I remember I asked Henry Blackby a question. At the time, I had a group of men that met weekly in my home who I was discipling. I asked Henry Blackby if he were in my shoes with some men in a disciple group, how would he lead it, and what advice could he give me? He thought about it before he answered, and this is what he said.

Jesus had some very important truths He wanted to teach His men, so He taught those truths to them over and over again until they learned them. I think that's good advice, don't you, friends? Do you think Jesus stopped doing that when He went back to Heaven? Do you think He left us alone? Didn't He say He would send the Comforter, His Holy Spirit? I believe that Jesus has an active part in our discipleship every day of our lives because we are in the school of Christ, but are we paying attention? Do we preach? I believe He can speak to us by different means. I believe He can, at times, speak to us by circumstance.

I believe I can prove that in the Word of God. I believe He can speak to us through His written Word. That's how I received my call to preach.

I was in His Word, and He gave me a clear call to preach. This is how we hinder Him. Today in our churches, because there is so little preaching taking place, it's mainly teaching.

Teaching informs, and preaching transforms. We need more preachers today who rightly divide the Word of Truth. God can save a lost sinner by a sermon.

We need more sermons today instead of just dialogue. I believe He speaks to us through His Word. There have been times in my life, though not often, where God has spoken directly to me.

Now, some of you are scratching your heads and pointing your finger to your forehead, saying, the old boy has gone off his rocker now by saying God talks to him. Several years ago, morning to have my quiet time. It was two in the morning, and I thought I was dying, so I got out of bed and made it to my study, back when I had one.

And there I opened my Bible and I started talking to God in prayer. I told him I was worn out from work. I told him I felt like I was dying.

I asked him a question. Was he ready for me? And he answered by asking me a question. He said, What do you do for a living? I replied, Investments.

He said, I have an investment in you, and I will receive the dividends from my investment. That voice came with power, majesty, and authority, and he was right, so I got up and went back to bed. And here I am, all these years later, still alive, now working for him, and still bringing him dividends.

Our text says, This is my beloved son. Hear him. Are we listening? Let us pray.