Listening For God
(Exhortation - November 2003)
There are many voices in the world, says the apostle Paul, but never have there been so many as are heard today. The voices of radio, TV and the press, penetrate our homes and have become so familiar that we take them for granted and hardly notice them. Yet they are always there, unconsciously influencing us. We live in an age of noise and excitement. In cities and towns, although we are not always aware of it, there is the continuous roar of vehicles and machinery, and often above us can be heard the drone of aircraft.
We tend to push extraneous noise into the background, selecting only the things that we consider important to hear. The following modern-day parable is a good example of this selective hearing:
Two men were walking along a crowded sidewalk in a downtown business area. Suddenly one exclaimed: “Listen to the lovely sound of that cricket!” But the other could not hear it. He asked his companion how he could detect the sound of a cricket amid the din of people and traffic. The first man, who was a zoologist, had trained himself to listen to the voices of nature. He didn’t explain, he simply took a coin out of his pocket and dropped it to the sidewalk, whereupon a dozen people began to look about them. “We hear,” he said, “what we listen for!” The first man had trained himself to listen to the voices of nature above the roar of traffic.
Similarly, through reading God’s word we must train ourselves to listen to the voice of God above the seductive voices of the world.
With whom are we walking?
In
the example of the two men walking; one was a teacher, the other a pupil.
If we identify ourselves with the pupil, we need to ask ourselves: “Whom
have we chosen for our friends? Where are we allowing them to lead us and
what are they teaching us?” Friends can so easily influence us: “Can
two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3). We find
ourselves attending to the same voices that they listen to, irrespective of
whether it is the voice of God, or the voices of the world. For this reason
Paul warns: “Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what
fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath
light with darkness?” (II Cor. 6:14).
If, on the other hand, we identify ourselves with the teacher in our story, are we showing others how to listen for the “still small voice” amid the noise of the world?
The teacher used a coin as a graphic example of what many people listen for today: the voice of materialism and covetousness. We are all too familiar with that voice, for just as it was in the time of Jesus, many are building bigger and better barns in which to bestow all their goods (Lk. 12:18).
The sound of mammon
The Pharisees loved the sound of their coins
as they cast them into the treasury. They did not contribute in faith, but
from the desire that others hear the tinkle of coins and marvel at their
generosity. Only the Lord, however, would hear the sound of the two mites
thrown in by the poor widow. The nameless woman, poor in worldly goods was
exceptional indeed, for she donated all of her substance to the service of
God (Lk. 21:2). What pleasure her faith must have given God. The natural
tendency is to hold on to what we own, not necessarily from a spirit of
acquisitiveness but more from expediency, preparing for “the rainy day.”
One wonders at the motivation of the rich young man told by Jesus to “go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come, follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions” (Mt. 19:21). Would the Proverb about riches be pertinent to him, as it undoubtedly was to the Pharisees? “Better is the poor that walketh in his uprighteousness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich” (Prov. 28:6).
Unhampered by
possessions
In the society of today, many have benefits
that exceed the dreams of their parents or grandparents and yet contentment
eludes them. They are consumed with the desire to increase their goods and
do not hide the envy they feel at the prosperity of others. We do well to
take to heart the warning of Luke: “Take heed, and beware of
covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things
which he possesseth” (Lk. 12:15).
Taking an inventory of the earthly possessions of some great men of the Bible, we find that both Elijah and John the Baptist had one garment of hair, and one leather girdle. Jesus the Son of God never owned a home: “But the Son of man hath not where to lay his head” (Mt. 8:20). When he needed a coin for an illustration he didn’t reach into his pocket, he had to look elsewhere (Mt. 17:27).
Unencumbered by possessions, all of these men frequently sought the Lord their God, surrounded by the quietness of nature.
In addition to everyday cares and trouble, life for us can be noisy and full of the frenzied activity of temptations and unwanted worldly thoughts. But there are many times when the Lord leads us beside the still waters and restores our soul. How precious these times of spiritual revival can be.
Respite in solitude and prayer
Generally the art of meditation in prayer has
been lost. Most people do not have the desire or the inclination to seek
and commune with God through prayer. They therefore deny themselves the joy
of reflection upon the wonders contained in His word. Those of us who make
a practice of listening to the voice of God know that by so doing the
threatening volume of voices of the world outside becomes subdued. It fails
to penetrate and disturb the harmony and peace that can exist within us.
We read that Isaac “went out to meditate in the field at eventide” (Gen. 24:63), and David spent many nights in quiet contemplation: “My mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches” (Ps. 63:5-6). Our Lord himself, “Went out into the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Lk. 6:12). On another occasion Jesus rose up in the early hours of the morning, “and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed” (Mk. 1:35).
In the business of the world, there seems to be too few moments when we are alone with our thoughts. The advice Paul gave to the young Timothy is still relevant: “Lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God” (I Tim. 2:2). He wrote similar directives to the Thessalonians: “Study to be quiet” (I Thess. 4:11).
Let us endeavor to set aside time to meditate whether we choose to rise early in the morning as Christ did, walk in the field at eventide like Isaac, or meditate in the night watches like David. The time spent listening to the still small voice is of great spiritual value. We need to physically withdraw from the hustle and bustle and quietly contemplate the goodness and mercy that God has shown to us. Young Samuel heard the voice of God in the darkness and silence of the night, while Eli the priest could not. Elijah received his strength in the loneliness of the desert and heard the still small voice amid the strong wind, the earthquake and the fire (I Kgs 19:12).
To hear the voice of God, above the noise, anxiety and excitement of the world, it is necessary to “be still and know, that I am God” (Ps. 46:10).
Listening for the knock
The Lord
Jesus frequently went to the Garden of Gethsemane to seek quietness and
solace. It was here that he experienced the presence of his Father and
received strength and comfort from the angel in the agonizing struggle of
his last hours (Lk. 22:44).
Our presence around this table is indicative of our choice to momentarily step aside from the chaos of these troubled days and focus on the symbols of his death and resurrection.
After he had risen, the Lord gave a message to his believers: “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” (Rev. 3:20). There is little doubt that these are the last days. The signs of Christ’s return are all around us; he is standing at the door. Are we listening for his knock? This is the sound for which our senses should be alert: “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Mt. 11:15).
Brian Carrick