How Does The Holy Spirit Speak?
I am sure that many of you have been perplexed by those who so readily say: “God told me…”, or, “thus says the Lord”. The confidence and frequency of such affirmations leads one to wonder if some have a more direct link to the Lord than others. When these “words from the Lord” don’t come to pass, doubt of their authenticity blocks any possible understanding of the message. It is like the little shepherd boy who cried “wolf, wolf” so often, that when the wolf did come, the villagers did not believe the sincerity of the little boy’s cry for help. The fact is that the Holy Spirit does speak to us today, as He has throughout all of time. We just need to know how to discern what and when He is speaking.
Naturally speaking, one hears sound through their ears, then the brain assimilates what he hears into cognitive thoughts. To hear the Holy Spirit, one must hear through his spirit and then the mind interprets it into cognitive thoughts. The born-again spirit is where the Holy Spirit dwells. In I Corinthians 6.17, it says: “He who has joined himself with the Lord is one spirit with Him.” When the Holy Spirit speaks, He speaks to our spirit, but the mind remains “unfruitful”. (I Cor. 14.14) This is what is happening when one “sings in the Spirit”, or, “prays in the Spirit”, or “speaks in tongues”. The believer’s spirit is edified and this is good, but the mind remains in the dark.
For someone to understand what the Spirit of God is saying, there must be an interpretation. The eyes of the understanding must be illuminated. Let’s think of the soul, (mind), as a filter. If the filter is clogged up, then the liquid that passes through is contaminated and hindered by the dirt in the filter. This is when one hears what they want to hear, rather than what was said. The dirt can be preconceived ideas, negative mindset, selfish ambitions, fear, human traditions, etc. All these can have an influence on what one thinks he hears. It is important to have the mind of Christ; to cleanse one’s thought life and to set your mind on the things of the Spirit. (Rom. 8.5)
Since hearing God’s voice is a subjective experience, I have found it important to use certain guidelines before boldly saying: “God says”. These can be lined up and can serve as confirmations, bringing certainty to spiritual hearing. The first is what we have been talking about, and that is the inner voice. This is what we call intuition; the knowing that you know. It is the hearing inside your spirit the voice of the Holy Spirit. This alone can be misinterpreted, so another guideline is needed to bring assurance. This is the Word of God. God will never contradict what He has already revealed in the Bible. God speaks through His Word and is an objective check to what we subjectively hear in our spirit.
In making major decisions, I have found two other guidelines necessary to keep on track. They are circumstances and counsel. Circumstances are the “open or closed doors” of opportunity. Though alone they do not prove God’s leading, they do contribute to its confirmation. Counsel, from those God has place in your life to spiritual mentor you, is a valuable aid in knowing for certain God’s direction. When we heard God telling us to move to Portugal, we needed all these confirmations to make such a huge step of faith. Later, when difficulties arose, we could stand firm, knowing we had heard from God. God spoke, we obeyed and the victory came.
Scriptures to meditate on:
Acts 13.2; I Cor. 14.14-15; Rom. 8.26; John 10.3; 18.37; I Cor. 14; Eph. 1.17