Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm 95:1-5 Come, let’s shout joyfully to the Lord, shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation! 2 Let’s enter his presence with thanksgiving; let’s shout triumphantly to him in song.
3 For the Lord is a great God, a great King above all gods.
4 The depths of the earth are in his hand, and the mountain peaks are his.
5 The sea is his; he made it. His hands formed the dry land.
Read the Entire Psalm
Praise God and Give thanks to Him. Everything belongs to Him. He is great and above all gods.
SCRIPTURE READING:
John 10:22-42 – The Message
22-24 They were celebrating Hanukkah just then in Jerusalem. It was winter. Jesus was strolling in the Temple across Solomon’s Porch. The Jews, circling him, said, “How long are you going to keep us guessing? If you’re the Messiah, tell us straight out.”
25-30 Jesus answered, “I told you, but you don’t believe. Everything I have done has been authorized by my Father, actions that speak louder than words. You don’t believe because you’re not my sheep. My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life. They are protected from the Destroyer for good. No one can steal them from out of my hand. The Father who put them under my care is so much greater than the Destroyer and Thief. No one could ever get them away from him. I and the Father are one heart and mind.”
31-32 Again the Jews picked up rocks to throw at him. Jesus said, “I have made a present to you from the Father of a great many good actions. For which of these acts do you stone me?”
33 The Jews said, “We’re not stoning you for anything good you did, but for what you said—this blasphemy of calling yourself God.”
34-38 Jesus said, “I’m only quoting your inspired Scriptures, where God said, ‘I tell you—you are gods.’ If God called your ancestors ‘gods’—and Scripture doesn’t lie—why do you yell, ‘Blasphemer! Blasphemer!’ at the unique One the Father consecrated and sent into the world, just because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I don’t do the things my Father does, well and good; don’t believe me. But if I am doing them, put aside for a moment what you hear me say about myself and just take the evidence of the actions that are right before your eyes. Then perhaps things will come together for you, and you’ll see that not only are we doing the same thing, we are the same—Father and Son. He is in me; I am in him.”
39-42 They tried yet again to arrest him, but he slipped through their fingers. He went back across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized, and stayed there. A lot of people followed him over. They were saying, “John did no miracles, but everything he said about this man has come true.” Many believed in him then and there.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanksgiving to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Join with others from River and pray for Christian Challenge as they meet tonight at River.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
Another reason we can live apart from our confidence in Christ is that we are not training in the disciplines of a disciple. If we are not spending daily time in God’s word and in prayer, then we are not going to grow in our relationship with Christ. Like in any relationship, confidence in the friendship grows over time with regular time together. We want to form the habit of scripture reading and prayer. This habit is necessary for our long-term growth. At the same time, as we are developing the habit, we must be nurturing a heart for God. The habits are to help us at the heart level. How do we pay attention to our hearts? Mostly by paying attention to our hearts. I’m not trying to confuse; I’m trying to make things clear. As we do the habits, or disciplines, of a disciple, we must ask God to search our hearts and see if there is anything there that is not of him. As we read God’s word, we must see ourselves there and not someone else. We must let his word shine its light on any dark places of our heart so that we can live in the light. Make the disciplines habitual so that you can have a heart that is fully his.