Still Small Voice 1987

Before Jesus began his ministry, we know how this happened. He came to the age of 30. He was baptized.

He was anointed with the Spirit. But before he preached one word, before he performed one sign of the Kingdom, it was necessary for him to settle this issue. During his ministry, what would be the source of his life? What would he live by? He was driven by the Spirit into the wilderness.

He was then led by the Spirit to fast for 40 days. And when his body was weakened and his mind was exhausted, the tempter came to him and said, Fear the Son of God. Command these stones to become loaves of bread.

Jesus answered, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, making clear that the source of his life, during his ministry now, which was about to begin, would be a living word from his Father and nothing else. I live by every word which proceeds from my Father's mouth. That's how it was for him.

And that's how it is to be for us, his disciples. We are to live not by bread alone, but by every word which proceeds from the mouth of God. We are to live by hearing from God, getting a word from God.

When we hear God speak to us, we live. And when we don't, when no word comes, we wither and we die. In the Scriptures, Jesus is called the Word of God.

But he is the Word of God for us only when we hear him speak. Here in the assembly, and when we're exercising our ministries out there in the world. Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock, be not silent to me, lest thou be silent to me.

I become like them that go down into the pit. Give me a word. Speak to me, O God.

Now we're not talking about Bible roulette. You know, where you close your eyes, and you flip through the Bible, and you go like this, and hope to get a word from God. And I'm sure in every one of our lives there have been desperate moments when we've done something as silly as God has been gracious and spoken to us.

But that's not what we're talking about. We're not talking about hearing voices in the middle of the night, or conversing with an angel every third day. But we are talking about hearing a word from God, spoken by God, any way he chooses to speak it, and which is so clearly from him that we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that came from God.

And by that word have received strength to live in this world as his sons and daughters. There's this mistaken idea held by many, many people that the men and women of Scripture had a kind of private line to heaven, that they never had any trouble hearing from God, that the Apostle Paul had a running conversation with Jesus all the time, and that the prophet Elijah always knew what God was saying, and that once Mary heard from the angel Gabriel, it was peaches and cream. That's not true.

It was no easier for them to hear from God than it is for us. For them, as it is for us, the major issue of our life is to hear a word, clear word from God, to know what that next step is. Be not silent to me, lest it thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.

Elijah was a prophet who indeed lived by hearing from God. He listened, and he heard, and then he spoke what he heard. And when Elijah spoke a word from God, God moved, things happened.

When Elijah shut the heavens with the word of the Lord, no rain for three years. When Elijah called down fire upon his sacrifice, when he was in contest with the prophets of Baal, the fire fell. When he announced the coming of rain, pretty soon here comes rain and torrents.

But when Queen Jezebel sent a message to Elijah, you're a dead man. I'm going to kill you. And nobody came to his defense.

Nobody stood with him. Elijah was so devastated by that, he fled into the Sinai wilderness, bitter, discouraged, and really wanting to die. You know, my life is no better than my father's.

Take my life. I've had enough. And now this mighty prophet, this prophet of God, can't get a word.

The only word that comes to Elijah now is, what are you doing here, Elijah? So he keeps on going down into the Sinai peninsula until he comes to Horeb, the mountain of God, which is another word for Sinai. This was the mountain where Moses first heard God speak to him in the burning bush. Same place where the people of Israel coming out of Egypt heard God speak.

Same place where the Ten Commandments came to Moses. Logical place to go is Mount Sinai. And he went to Mount Sinai the way we would go to Scripture.

Expecting God to reveal Himself to someone. So he gets to Mount Sinai, and he came to a cave and lodged there. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him and said to him, what are you doing here, Elijah? He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, slain thy prophets with a sword, and I, even I only, am left.

And now they seek my life to take it away. And he said, go forth and stand on the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and broken pieces of the rocks before the Lord.

But the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake.

And after the earthquake, a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, a still, small voice.

And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went and stood at the entrance of the cave, and now Elijah heard God speak. He heard God speak. Not in the wind, not in the earthquake, not in the fire, but in the still, small voice.

And to hear God speak in that still, small voice, Elijah had to do three things. First, Elijah had to become silent. He had to practice silence inside himself.

And really, that's what was going on when the wind and the earthquake and the fire went roaring by. It was God saying to him, be still. Quiet down.

Settle down, man. Second thing Elijah had to do to hear that still, small voice, Elijah had to bring his life in line with the word he already had, which was, what are you doing here, Elijah? Is this where I sent you? And the third thing he had to do was trust that God would speak to him. For us to hear God speak in that still, small voice through which he still speaks, we have to do the same three things.

We have to be silent within. We have to bring our lives in line with the word we already have. And we have to trust that God will speak.

First thing we have to do is practice inner silence. Learn to be still inside. The Lord is in his holy temple.

Let all the earth keep silence before him. Quiet down. Be still.

Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen. I will be exalted in the earth.

Could you just be still? And so with us, many times we start crying out, you know, give me a word, Lord. Speak to me. And things begin to happen.

You know, the wind blows, and the earthquake comes, and the fire roars. It's God passing by and saying to us, quiet down. Be still.

Hold your peace. It's impossible for us to hear what God is saying to us in this still, small voice when our inmost hearts are raging with anger and jealousy and bitterness and suspicion and self-pity and greed and on and on it goes. Those things within us, those attitudes and those roaring fires make noise that drown out the voice of God.

And if there's any word that's been coming to this congregation for the last year and a half, I believe, it's the Word of the Lord saying to us, quiet down. Learn to practice a Sabbath inside. Be still.

Listen. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him.

Listen to Him. When, as a body and as individuals, we learn to do that, learn to just get quiet inside, we will hear God speak in the still, small voice. There needs to be less talk, more listening.

Less opinions, and more listening. Less attitudes, and more listening. Less complaining, and more listening.

What's the good of saying, be not silent to me, when we're making so much noise that when God tries to speak, we hear nothing? Secondly, we will hear God speak to us in the still, small voice when we bring our lives in line with the Word we already have. See, when Elijah ran down into the Sinai wilderness, he was in fact running away from his calling as a prophet. He was running away from the Word he already had.

And so the only Word that would come to him was, What are you doing here, Elijah? Go back. Return. Do what I've already given you to do.

Speak what I've already given you to speak. That's all he got. With us, it's the same.

You know, what new Word can I expect to receive from God if I haven't done the old Word which is still throbbing in my heart and soul? To all of us here, there is a Word that we've been given already. For instance, to one, the Word will be, be reconciled with that brother. To another, it's, forgive that sister.

To another, it's, repent of that sin. Make that change. Show a little mercy to that relative.

Show some kindness to that Lazarus I sent across your path. Or it may even be, say no to that. When are you going to start saying no to this person who is playing on your guilt and you're doing them no good by always giving in? But there is a Word for each one of us.

And in obedience to that Word, when we practice that Word which we already have, then we will begin to hear once more the still small voice. Finally, we will hear God speak to us in the still small voice when we trust Him to speak. Which means, we don't prescribe how it's going to be.

We don't tell Him how He's going to talk to us. He may well not talk to us in the wind, or in the earthquake, or in the fire. But after the fire is over, that is, after we've done the repenting which we know we have to do, then, that still small voice will draw us.

We will hear God speak in a voice of holiness. And we will know that Word came from God. And by that Word, we will be revived.

And if we will do, if we will obey that Word, if we will obey what that voice says, if we will take that one step, mountains will move, doors will open, chains will break. Not only in our own lives, but in the lives of the people we're going to touch this week. Unto thee will I cry, O Lord, my rock, be not silent to me, lest thou be silent to me.

I become like them that go down into the pit. God will speak to us in this still small voice. We will practice inner silence if we will conform our lives to the Word we already have, if we will trust Him to speak.

For it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Let's just be silent before Him now and let His Spirit just breathe upon our hearts and speak as He wants to.