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The Discipline of Listening


The Discipline of Listening

James 1:19 – “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”

            Paul Tillich writes, “The first duty of love is to listen.”[i]  One of the primary responsibilities of the believer is to learn to listen to the voice of the Lord.  Fifteen times in the New Testament, more than any other command, the believer is commanded, “He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.”[ii]
If we are going to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, then we need to learn the joy of hearing His voice.  Listening requires discipline.  We must become good listeners. There are times in our lives that we need to still ourselves, stop talking, stop praying, and learn to wait in His presence and hear what the Spirit is saying to you. 
You might ask, “How do I know that God will speak to me?”  God is always speaking.  The question is not, is God speaking, but are we listening?  God is always speaking. He is not silent.  Hebrews 3:7 – “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: Today, if you will hear His voice, Verse 8 – Harden not your hearts as in the rebellion.”  When does God want to speak to us?  Today! 
What does the Holy Spirit want to communicate to us?  He desires to give us direction for our lives (Psalms 37:23). He longs to reveal God’s plans for our lives (Jeremiah 29:11).  He will help us to understand and grasp God’s Word (1 Corinthians 2:10-16).  And He will speak to us about the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:13).
What is it that hinders us from listening to hear God’s voice?  What keeps us from becoming listeners?  Busyness?  Our schedules?  Ministry activities?  God is more concerned about us as individuals than He is about our ministry or careers.  He is more concerned with who we are rather than what we do.
The writer of Hebrews teaches that a hardened heart will keep you from hearing God’s voice.  How many times do we harden our hearts like the children of Israel did in the wilderness?  They heard the voice of God, they saw the lightning and heard the thunders from the summit of Mt. Sinai, but they refused to hear God’s voice. 
How does God speak to us today?  He speaks today just like He did yesterday.  I Kings 19:12 reveals, “Elijah heard God speak in a still small voice.” The Psalmist writes in Psalms 18:13, “The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the most high uttered his voice.” In Acts 9:4-7 Saul, who became the Apostle Paul, heard the audible voice of God and was forever changed.  Once you ever hear God’s voice you will never be the same again.

[i] Retrieved from the Internet, http://thinkexist.com/quotes/paul_tillich/. July 3, 2012.
[ii] Revelation 2:7.
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