Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS
| Talking with God series |
Knowing Him and Recognizing His Voice
“Is that You God?” Have you ever had a thought while you’re praying and wondered whether it was His voice or just your own? How do we discern if He’s talking to us? In John 10, Jesus explains our relationship with Him as a Good Shepherd with His sheep. He assures us not only that He will speak to us, but that we will recognize His voice: “The sheep hear His voice, and He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. … and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice.” (John 10:3-4) So, how do we develop this capacity to recognize His voice?
Whenever the passage says that “they know His voice”, this word for “know” comes from the Greek root eido. In short, it means “to perceive”. If someone said something and at first you didn’t understand, but then you got it, you might say “I see what you mean”. You “perceived”, that is, you understood/knew what they meant. What I like about this use here is that this word describes a kind of knowledge that isn’t immediately obvious. Like Gideon’s story from the last post, it might take a minute to realize that it is God’s voice.
While the sheep in John 10 do “perceive” that God is talking, the verse we saw in Job last time revealed that many people do not: “God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it.” (Job 33:14) So why are the sheep able to perceive His voice? Throughout the passage, Jesus helps us to understand this: “I know my own and my own know me” (John 10:14) “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27) Now, the word for “know” in these verses is actually different from the one used in verse 4. It comes from the Greek root ginosko and describes knowing something or someone through personal experience. We are able to perceive God is speaking only when we know Him personally.
So, how do we get to know God in this way so that we can recognize His voice? The most powerful illustration comes from how this word, ginosko, was used in Jewish culture. It’s the same word used in Matthew 1:25 when it explains that Joseph was not physically intimate with Mary: “knew her not”. You see, God has given us marriage and even intimacy within marriage as a picture of our relationship with Him (see God’s Faithfulness is Love). Intimacy in marriage more broadly (not just physical intimacy) is rooted in knowing your spouse and being known by them. The connection that comes from this intimacy is the result of being vulnerable and is both enjoyable and meaningful. Physical intimacy is the private display of this intimacy which, in the same way, requires vulnerability, and is both enjoyable and meaningful (e.g. pregnancy).
Intimacy with God carries these same attributes. In order to have a personal, moving encounter with God, we must first be vulnerable: not hiding our sin or holding back our emotions but worshipping Him genuinely and seeking Him with all our heart (see Hearing God). This vulnerability leads to these moments in worship or prayer where you feel His presence so tangibly that you can’t help but smile: it’s enjoyable. It’s in these moments that we are able to most clearly hear His voice and recognize that He’s speaking to us. Often, these are the moments that inspire meaningful change in our lives and deepen our relationship with Him.
Intimacy and Immunity
I’d like to explore this further through an incredible analogy God showed me. As I was doing research for our guide for couples who are trying to conceive, God surprised me with a lesson on how we can learn to recognize His voice. Our immune system is intimately connected to our DNA. Our body will use DNA to determine if something is part of us, or if it doesn’t belong (i.e. it doesn’t share our DNA). The problem is that a baby in the womb has their own unique DNA. There is a pregnancy complication where the mother’s immune system responds to the baby’s DNA as if she were infected with a disease. God’s design for pregnancy includes many elements that work to reduce this risk, one even operates before conception occurs.
Whenever a husband and wife are intimate, something remarkable happens in her immune system. After his sperm are deposited on her cervix, her white blood cells will rush there. They aren’t there to fight an infection however – they are there to learn. Her white blood cells will begin to analyze her husband’s sperm, which each contain a sample of his DNA. Their aim is to learn his DNA so that, whenever she becomes pregnant by him, her immune system will recognize that the baby isn’t a foreign infection but her and her husband’s child. While this risk cannot be eliminated, this incredible design has been shown in some studies to reduce the risk of preeclampsia by more than half.[1] [2]
Now, a woman does not always become pregnant after intimacy, but her body learns her husband just a little bit better each time. As a result, whenever she does become pregnant by him, her body is able to recognize this is a baby from her husband and should be protected and nurtured rather than rejected by her immune system. In the same way, while we don’t always hear a life-changing word from God every time we have an intimate encounter with Him, we can still speak with Him and learn who He is just a little bit better each time. As a result, whenever we do receive a word from Him, we are able to recognize this word is life from God that needs to be protected and nurtured rather than rejected by doubt.
Whenever we listen for God’s voice in prayer and worship, that word contains His DNA. So, as we analyze it, we get to know Him a little better. Over time, we are able to recognize His voice. Developing the capacity to recognize God’s voice grows little by little each time we are in His presence, getting to know Him through personal experience.
[1] Klonoff-Cohen, H., Savita, D., Cefalo, R., & McCann, M. (1989). An epidemiologic study of contraception and preeclampsia. Journal of the American Medical Association, 3143-3147.
[2] Hernández-Valencia, M., Saldaña Quezada, L., Alvarez Muñoz, M., & Valdez Martínez, E. (2000). [Barrier family planning methods as risk factor which predisposes to preeclampsia]. Ginecologia y obstetricia de Mexico, 68, 333–338.
I go back to these posts often and they are fresh words each time I hear. Much appreciated!! And Abigail’s part was so precious!!
thank you so much!