Does God Still Speak?

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| Talking with God series |

• Does God Still Speak?
• Learning God’s Voice
• Overcoming Loneliness

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Is it a sign?

Have you ever found yourself wondering if God’s trying to tell you something? I know I have. We long for His direction in our life, but it can be hard to know when He’s speaking. Sometimes I think I’ve heard Him, but when everything goes wrong, I start wondering if I missed the mark. Other times I don’t really know what to do, and I wish He would just make it easy and give me a sign. But figuring out whether it actually was a sign from Him is just as difficult.

However, at a very fundamental level, our communication with God isn’t based on deciphering signs. We aren’t relegated to interpreting omens like in Greek mythology. Instead, a sign from God is meant simply to confirm something that He has already told us. Consider how God first spoke to Gideon and told Him what to do before giving him a sign to strengthen his faith (Judges 6:36-40). Whereas an omen is mysterious and relies almost exclusively on an interpretation, a sign from God is explicit in confirming something He has already told us.

As a counterexample, consider the Israelites in Egypt. Whenever they first heard from Moses that God was going to rescue them, they believed. While this was indeed God speaking to them, their circumstances were often against this word. Whenever they faced adversity along the way, they immediately questioned whether it was God who spoke or if it was just Moses (Exodus 5:21, 14:12, 16:3, 17:3). I can relate. Whenever the road gets bumpy, the first thing I do is question if I heard right in the first place. However, just as with the Israelites, God’s leading often comes with difficult circumstances.

While God can use circumstances to get our attention, when He does so it’s only the first step in starting a conversation with us. He isn’t satisfied to simply leave us guessing but desires a deeper relationship with real communication. Psalms 32 explains it this way, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.” (Psalms 32:8) The very next verse draws a distinction between this quality of communication and one where God must use circumstances to get our attention, “Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.” (Psalms 32:9) He desires to have an active dialogue with us that is defined by quality communication. But what does that look like? Does He really talk with us like He did in the Bible?

Does He Still Speak?

Whenever we read the Bible, it’s easy to feel that God doesn’t speak today like He did in Biblical times. However, it’s easy to forget that we’re getting the benefit of God’s commentary on the events while we read. For example, it’s obvious that God is speaking to Gideon when we read, “the Lord said to [Gideon] ‘But I will be with you…’” (Judges 6:16). However, that doesn’t mean it was obvious to Gideon at that moment. Consider why Gideon asked for a sign in just the next verse. It was because he wasn’t sure if God was the one speaking to him: “show me a sign that it is you who speak with me.” (Judges 6:17)

In fact, many of the characters in the Bible wondered why God wasn’t answering them, just like we do. Consider what David said in Psalms 28:1, “To you, O Lord, I call; my rock be not deaf to me, lest if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit.” Whenever Job complained that God wasn’t answering him, Elihu’s response revealed the subtlety of God’s communication: “Why do you contend against Him, saying, ‘He will answer none of man’s words’? For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it.” (Job 33:13-14)

While we may not know for certain if God is speaking to us, many accounts in the Bible illustrate that this uncertainty is nothing new. But we know that God was speaking in these accounts, in much the same way that He speaks to us today. In fact, I would suggest that we might have more opportunities to hear Him today than most people in the Old Testament. Let me explain why.

In 2 Samuel 24, David wanted to conduct a census. While Joab warned him not to, David didn’t listen. After conducting the census, “David’s heart struck him… And David said to the Lord, ‘I have sinned greatly in what I have done.’” (2 Samuel 24:10) While David could feel God’s conviction on his heart, it was still the prophet Gad who told him the specifics of God’s answer (2 Samuel 24:11-14, 18-19). Like David, most people in the Old Testament relied on the prophets to hear God’s voice. Unlike David, not everyone knew a prophet personally (the prophet Gad is referred to as David’s seer, or prophet, in 2 Samuel 24:11). To know what God was saying, they would have to seek out a prophet.

However, we have something they did not. We all have the benefit of knowing a prophet personally. A prophet is simply someone who says what he heard God say. Jesus explains that this is precisely the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak.” (John 16:13)

We may not often hear God’s voice audibly, but we can be confident that He still speaks to us. He has given you the Holy Spirit precisely because He “still has many things to say to you” (John 16:12). When we pursue an active dialogue with the Holy Spirit, we allow Him to fulfill His role in our lives, guiding us into all truth. It’s in this way that what Moses desired comes to pass: “I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them all.” (Numbers 11:29)

But how do we determine whether we’re hearing the Holy Spirit or just our own thoughts? In the next post, I’d like to share an incredible analogy God gave me that helped me understand how to recognize His voice.