We Need To Listen, Learn And Discern God's Voice
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The Need for Spiritual Discernment
When you read the Bible, do you sometimes find yourself scratching your head while trying to understand it? Everyone does! However, it mystifies some people more than others.
Not everything in the Bible is to be taken literally in an absolute sense. And yet, much of what's written in the Bible is not just figurative or symbolic. We need discernment—spiritual discernment—for a true understanding and to hear God’s voice through the Bible.
Events in the Bible are real, but they are also illustrations or examples we can learn from. The stories recorded in the Bible aren't random events, they're selected by God for a purpose. Intended to teach us something.
Just as in everyday life, we can learn from the successes, wisdom, and failures of others. This is so we don’t make the same mistakes as others did, or follow the example of those who are wise.
Most of us have certain doubts—about ourselves, our relationships, where our lives are heading, or the direction of our nation and the world. Perhaps you have doubts about all of those.
But doubts differ from unbelief. We all have doubts. These are uncertainties. But unbelief isn’t an uncertainty or a doubt, it’s an unwillingness to believe. This is an important distinction!
When a person or group of people have unbelief, they are unwilling to believe regardless of reasons to believe. To keep from becoming stubborn and unwilling to heed God’s voice, we need to learn to listen and discern God’s voice.
The last portion of Hebrews 3 is a forceful reminder of the danger of unbelief.
Scripture Text
Scripture says, “If you hear God speak today, don’t be stubborn. Don’t be stubborn like those who rebelled.”
Who heard God and rebelled? All those whom Moses led out of Egypt rebelled. With whom was God angry for 40 years? He was angry with those who sinned and died in the desert. Who did God swear would never enter his place of rest?
He was talking about those who didn’t obey him. So we see that they couldn’t enter his place of rest because they didn’t believe. (Hebrews 3:15-19 GW)
[Context– Hebrews 3]
Key Phrase —
If you hear God speak today, don’t be stubborn…like those who rebelled.
Dig Deeper Into the Text—
Are you familiar with the story of Israel's rebellion in the wilderness? (See Numbers 14)
How do the rhetorical questions and answers speak to this event?
What were the people who rebelled not able to do and why?
Things to Consider—
The quote taken from Psalm 95 is repeated for emphasis. “If you hear God speak today, don’t be stubborn. Don’t be stubborn like those who rebelled.” We need to listen, learn, and discern God’s voice.
Following the quote, a series of rhetorical questions, asked and answered, emphasize how important it is to learn the hard lesson from those who rebelled against God. Their rebellion stemmed from their unwillingness to trust God. They shut their ears to His voice.
The story of those forbidden to enter the land promised to their ancestor Abraham and his descendants is about unbelief and found in Numbers 14. But it begins in Exodus 12, when God brings enslaved Israel out of their bondage in Egypt to take them to the Promised Land.
After seeing God do many miraculous signs and save them supernaturally from Pharaoh's army, they refuse to trust God to bring them into a new land despite the confidence of faithful Joshua and Caleb.
They listened to the fear of others and chose to trust in their own reasoning. This leaves them stuck in a wilderness, a no-man's-land between Egypt and Canaan. They wandered in the desert wilderness for forty years until the entire unbelieving generation died.
Why? Because of unbelief. Unbelief is an action of the will, not mere doubtful thoughts. It’s not doubt nor fear, but an unwillingness to believe.
Remember, doubt is not unbelief. Unbelief is an unwillingness to believe. A stubbornness that resists trusting in God. Even though God’s people saw miraculous acts by God, they refused to trust God to lead them into the land He promised to them.
As said in a previous devotion, stubbornness is entrenched in our pride. It blinds us and deadens our spiritual heart. Stubbornness keeps us locked up, bound by our deafness to the Lord. It is a hindrance that keeps us from entering into the promised rest of God.
This is the lesson. We need to learn to discern and listen to the voice of God, rather than the fear and unbelief of others. Unbelief is a prison. Trusting God brings freedom.
Answer These Questions to Apply God’s Word in Your Life—
Why must we learn to discern, know, and listen to God's voice?
How can we keep our hearts from getting hardened and unwilling to listen to God's voice?
In what way have you found yourself unwilling to trust God with a situation or struggle?
Is your heart tender and open to hear and listen to God's voice today?
Here’s a link to a free study guide for the book of Hebrews— Study Guide and Study Questions for Hebrews
