The Voice of the Spirit

Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” John 10:25-30

Everyone is trained to follow a voice. 

The voice you listen to the most is the voice you will follow. As you tune your ears to that voice, it becomes your native language. You both understand the language of that voice best and you will begin to communicate in that voice. You will communicate naturally with those who also follow the same voice, but communicating with those who follow a different voice becomes increasingly difficult. You and others can change the voice you listen to (you once followed the voice of the world). Still, it is difficult to learn the language of a new voice, and the longer anyone follows a voice, the harder it is to follow a new one. Train yourself to listen to the shepherd’s voice so you won’t be led astray by other voices, and find ways to bring the Shepherd’s voice to the world so they can decide to listen to Him as well.

You can’t fix a spiritual problem with an earthly solution.

If the voice you listen to only speaks about earthly matters, you will miss the spiritual backdrop that shapes the earthly context. The voice you listen to will shape how you understand the problems you see, and how you see problems shapes the solutions you discover. If you want to fix a spiritual problem, you have to listen to a spiritual voice to understand the problem. Earthly problems always have a deeper spiritual context, and you can only discover the contours of the spiritual context when you listen to the voice of the Spirit. 

The wickedest of men is not your worst enemy. 

Although mankind can be cruel and wicked, the early domain of man is not your primary battle ground. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12). Satan and the spiritual hosts of wickedness are your primary enemy. Wicked men are simply earthly vehicles that are used by the principalities of darkness to bring a spiritual problem into an earthly domain.

The greatest of men is not your greatest friend. 

Human beings are complex creatures. We create a unique convergence between the spiritual and physical realms. While a great man can be a friend, your greatest friend is God, yet God has caused the Holy Spirit to dwell in man, so your greatest friend could be dwelling in your fellow man who is before you. Since your primary nature is your spiritual nature, those who are follow the same spiritual voice will be your greater friends. When you listen to the Holy Spirit in community with other believers, you will discover the spiritual solutions that form the root of many earthly problems. Worldly men are not your worst enemy—the spiritual forces behind them are, and heavenly minded men are not your greatest allies—Heaven is.