Associate Pastor Collin Gregory
It’s Christmas time, I’m so excited. This is usually around the time of year I shed my Grinch coat and put on my “Let’s get this party started” Christmas attitude cause now it’s not longer October when most you Christmas junkies start getting your fix…
Our son Isaac is home. He’s stationed overseas… well, over seas in Hawaii, overseas… But we have missed him and we are getting him for about 20 days.
Matrix Reloaded: part 3
Matthew 2:13-17; 19-23 (ESV)
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.
Matthew 2:19-23 (ESV)
19 But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” 21 And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus [AA] + [KI] + [LAY] + [UHS] was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. 23 And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.
Two weeks ago, I spoke about a time where God was silent for 400 years, and although God was silent during that time, God was working in the background creating the perfect environment for the arrival of Jesus Christ.
Today we look at things from the opposite side of the coin, instead of God being silent, what do we do when God speaks to us. How do we know it’s God, how do we listen to what He is saying, and how do we move on what is being told to us?
Today, we’re going to touch on 3 specific topics:
LISTEN, DISCERN AND OBEY
(You have 15mins for this section, don’t doddle)
We’re going to start with the topic of listen, and to get the best understanding of how to listen to the word of God, we’re going to visit my favorite Old Testament prophet, Elijah. So, let’s set up the story and then look back into 1st Kings.
Start right after Israel kills all the profits of Baal and Asherah
…Jezebel wants to kill him…
…and so now he finds himself in a cave, ready to die…
1 Kings 19: 9-12
9 There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” 11 And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces 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. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.
God can speak very loudly:
- He did this with Joseph with the angel in his dreams
- Or when he spoke to Mary to tell her that she was to conceive the baby Jesus.
- He did this in the days of Moses through the burning bush.
- He just did this when Jesus stood in front of Thomas and showed the holes in His body…
God can speak very loudly… but that’s not how he spoke to Elijah this day.
When I was dating my wife, and even now when I want an intimate moment with her, I speak in a soft loving voice…
Could you imagine if all I did to express my love was yell?? (EXAMPLE)
God wants that intimate relationship with us, and he left the Holy Spirit to dwell in us, to speak to us, to have a one-on-one relationship with us… and just like Elijah in the cave, God speaks to us in a small whisper.
God speaks to our heart:
It’s that voice that tells you that you need to pray for someone you haven’t thought of in forever.
That voice that speaks to your heart to warn you of a bad situation.
The voice that whispers confidence into your soul right before a big moment in your life.
His messages are creative and can be delivered using any of our senses: words we hear, pictures we see, emotions we feel.
Sometimes God speaks to you… and sometimes God speaks to you, through Godly people.
And we need to be willing to listen to people who, hear from God and give you Godly advice. You’ll recognize them because they’re probably the ones telling you that you’re acting stupid…
They’re loving a caring, but they love and care enough to tell you the truth…
The Holy Spirit may speak in soft whispers, but what it says speaks LIFE into our heart.
But to hear a whisper. We must block out the noise.
(Pull out your phone)
I want to share something with you, so let’s talk about the biggest threat to your relationship with God your phone, your phone…
I wonder… You’ve been asking for God to speak to you about an issue in your life… and God is trying to communicate with you… and we may not be listening because we’re distracted.
You can really tell from up here because I can see everyone who has their head bowed, and face lit by a tiny screen during the sermon… just saying
Let me share with a little bit about screen time, this is shocking people:
(skip to the article below yellow)
SLEEP: LESS THAN 7 HOURS A DAY
COMPUTER SCREEN: 7 HOURS PER DAY
PHONE/TABLET: 6 HOURS A DAY
TV: 4 HOURS A DAY
PHONE CALLS: 3 HOURS A DAY
RADIO: 2 HOURS A DAY
FACE-TO-FACE: 1 HOUR A DAY
TOTAL: 30 HOURS A DAY?
The average American in 2023 is sleeping less than 7 hours a day… and we need more than 7 hours a day to properly survive… for our minds to get the appropriate amount of rest and process the day successfully.
The average American is in front of a computer screen more than 7 hours a day.
Americans are on their phones or iPad or tablet 6+ hours a day.
The TV is on for upwards of 4 hours a day.
(BTW, quick parenting advice… if you’ve got kids in front of your TV, four hours a day… you’re not setting the culture in your home… their iPad, their tablet or the TV is setting the culture)
We are on phone calls 3+ hours a day
2 hours a day listening to the radio (usually on a work commute)
This one kills me… Face to Face conversations… 1 hour a day.
The total is 30 hours a day… AND YOUR’RE PROBABLY WONDERING HOW WE ONLY HAVE 24 HOURS IN A DAY, BUT ARE SPENDING 30 HOURS A DAY EITHER DISTRACTED OR ASLEEP…
Sometimes we are on more than one device at a time.
How many of you watch TV while you’re on your phone?
Or listen to a podcast while working in front of your computer screen?
Some of you are so obsessed with your phone that you take your phone into the bathroom…
(JOKE) bottom ring… dead leg…
You leave no time for silence… all you hear is noise… and that noise is costly…
Now this is statistically true, the more you’re on your phone the worse your mental and emotional health is , the more time you spend on this (holding up phone) the more you have depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation… because all you’re getting is bad news, not good news. All you’re getting is fear not faith. All you’re getting is the spirit of the world and not the spirit of God.
(SKIP THE YELLOW)
THE MORE YOU ARE ON YOUR PHONE:
NEGATIVE MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH
MORE DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND SUICIDE IDEATION
RECEIVE BAD NEWS, NOT GOOD NEWS
FEAR, NOT FAITH
SPIRIT OF THE WORLD, NOT THE SPIRIT OF GOD
(PICK BACK UP HERE)
(Hold up phone as example…)
FOR MANY THIS IS AN IPHONE, FOR OTHERS, THIS HAS BECOME AN I-DOL
IF we spend 3/4 of our day with Noise and 1/4 of our day asleep…
THAT LEAVES US ZERO MINUTES A DAY FOR SILENCE.
If God is speaking, HOW DO YOU HEAR HIM THOUGH ALL OF THE NOISE???
You’ve got to:
Cancel the noise.
You’ve got to find time to get silent with God.
That means No music, no distractions, no children, no spouse, only you and God.
You may have to get up early,
You may have to wait until everyone is asleep at night.
Either way, carve out time for God, sit in silence and listen for that whisper…
The more time you spend listening, the more you’re able to focus on His voice.
Jesus say that we will hear His voice and know him..
John 10:27 (ESV)
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
And when we hear the voice in our head, or the feeling in our heart… how do we know it’s God?
Discernment, is one of those fun Christian-eze sayings
Discern: (Oxford Dictionary)
To perceive or recognize something. To distinguish (someone or something) by sight or with the other senses.
In a Christian sense, Discernment is recognizing and seeing God’s will, with our sight, and our senses, BASED ON GOD’S WORD.
When we begin to hear from God we must take what we’re hearing, and discern what is being said. Sometime what we think is God, is not God. It’s us, trying to convince ourselves of something.
Have you ever wanted something so badly, you made up God excuses?
- “God wants me to be happy, so I’ll buy this…”
- “If I go to this secular concert, I’ll be able to talk to people about Jesus..” “yeah, like dropping $1400 on tickets for Taylor Swifts, Eras Tour was you mission field…”
- I’m not going to church this morning, because I’m tired… I know God wants me to be well rested…
- I’ve even heard someone who justified divorcing their spouse because the next woman was a better Christian.
- Like God told you to break His marriage covenant so you could follow His will… with someone outside of the marriage covenant…
Or have you ever trusted someone, who has lied to you, in order for them to benefit, but they posed it in a way that made it sound like it way for your benefit?
“They Holy Spirit told me that you were supposed to clean my house, for free”
“God really placed you on my heart to come to you about funding my jacuzzi tub in the backyard”
“(it’s 3AM) Brothers and Sisters… If you’ll send me a spiritual blessing of $119.95, I’m going to personally pray into this handkerchief and send you a healing in the mail… don’t wait, this hanky blessing only lasts a few more minutes… ACT NOW!”
Godly people, speak into you. The world, wants to take from you.
So, I’m trying to hear God speak Pastor Collin, but how will I understand God’s will in my life???
Here are three ways to understanding God’s will:
1. Surrender your personal desires
To really understand what God is saying to you, be open to God guiding you in any direction. When your desire to follow God outweighs your desire for a certain outcome, you are ready to hear from God.
Also, learn to surrender YOUR desire to please other people. The apostle Paul says, Galatians 1:10 (ESV)
10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Consider how your choices will impact other people, but don’t make a decision just to please someone else.
Following God will not always make everyone happy, (let me repeat that for those of you in the back)
So be willing to disappoint others in your pursuit of God’s will.
2. Meditate on God’s Word
Psalm 119:105 (NLT) says, “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”
THE. WORD. OF. GOD. CAN. BE. FOUND. IN. YOU. BIBLE.
When you make a decision, it should line up with, or at least not contradict, what God has said through the Bible. As you read Scripture, you will understand more about God’s character and be better able to know what He wants. Just as you know the things that please your close family and friends, you will learn what pleases God as you get to know Him better.
3. Spend focused time in prayer
The most obvious answer to the question, “How can I know God’s will for my life?” is to ask Him. Turn to God in prayer and ask Him what He wants you to do.
James 1:5-6 (NLT)
5 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.
When you spend time with God in prayer, be expectant that God will give you wisdom in your decision. You will know this when you are at PEACE with your choice.
Sometimes the answers aren’t easy, sometimes it takes time to hear God’s will. During that time spend it in meditation with Him…
Sometimes decisions are made in meditations… and sometimes you look down a dark alley, and the Holy Spirit goes, “um yeah, NO!” and it’s immediately apparent to you that you’re not going to walk down that path.
I want to end of this…
We’ve talked about listening to God’s will. It can be as loud as the Angel that visited Joesph to tell him to take Mary and Jesus to Egypt. Or it can be as soft as a whisper, like Elijah in the cave of Mt. Carmel.
We’ve discussed discerning God’s will in your life, understanding that creating a deep relationship with God, through knowing His word, and spending time with God in prayer. Will lead you to knowing the difference between God’s will, and the world’s desires
But if you’ve done nothing but look at your phone this entire sermon, if you’ve done nothing but get distracted by what your lunch plans are, or that report you have to finish next week at work, or if the spending time trying to figure our plans for your family who are coming into town next week. If you’ve allowed NOISE, to take you away from this sermon… I’m going to ask you to pay attention to this one last point…
When it comes to hearing God speak, we must learn to Obey what God says:
Outcome is God’s responsibility, obedience is ours.
As Joseph is told by an angel to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt, and then again to bring them back to the land of Israel, Joseph is given FREE WILL to make the choice. The bible does not say “and an Angel appeared and whisked them away to Egypt”
Joseph listened, Joesph understood, and Joesph took the appropriate action.
(Depending on time, either end here with a small explanation, or give Covid Testimony)
I was at peace once I got rid of the noise and listened to God’s will for me.
Not my will, but yours be done.
Luke 22:42 (New King James Version)
42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”
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