From Reading to Hearing

This was an age when "Yahweh's word was rare." The old priest's eyes had grown dim, and the lamp in the temple had not quite gone out. On a night like that, God spoke. God spoke first — that order is worth pausing over. It was not that Samuel had trained himself to the point of receiving a signal; God came on his own, stood there, and called again and again to a child who "didn't yet know Yahweh." Notice too that Samuel ran the wrong direction all three times. He assumed it was a human voice. Even Samuel needed an Eli to recognize for him that "this is Yahweh," and to teach him a posture: "Speak, Yahweh; for your servant hears." Hearing is grace. Recognizing what you hear is a lesson learned inside a community.

The main and most reliable way God speaks today is Scripture. "God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son" (Heb 1:1-2) — the word has been spoken, and it has been written down. But written down does not mean finished speaking: the Spirit still makes those ancient words come alive today. You may have read a verse twenty times and then one morning it stands up off the page and calls your name. That is not new revelation; it is an old word lit up and landing in your situation today. God also guides through preaching, through the counsel of others, through doors that open and close — but all of it comes back to Scripture to be tested. As for whether God still speaks today through gifts such as prophecy and tongues, Bible-faithful Christians understand this differently. This curriculum will not make the decision for your church — take these passages and ask the pastors where you are. People who disagree with you about this are still your brothers and sisters.

There is a ditch on each side of the road. One shuts God inside an old book: the speaking is over, and all that is left is documentary research — read that way, the lamp is out. The other lets "I feel God is telling me" outrank Scripture: your own wishes, dubbed in God's voice. The person walking down the middle carries three tests. First: does it agree with Scripture? God does not contradict himself, and any "prompting" that runs against what he has plainly written can be set down (Isa 8:20). Second: does it stand up in the community? Samuel needed Eli — tell a mature companion "I think God is asking me to..." and be willing to be questioned (Prov 15:22). Third: what fruit does it bear? Guidance from the Spirit bears the Spirit's fruit — love, joy, peace (Gal 5:22-23); be wary of "leading" that makes a person proud, secretive, or eager to walk out on a commitment. Discernment is not a wet blanket. It is the shepherd's protection of his sheep: he wants you to know his voice.