Bill Johnson - Following His Voice
The challenge of our faith is our willingness to hear other voices. And instead of emphasizing our inability or our weakness in hearing God’s voice, it would be wiser for us to emphasize his ability to be heard. The challenge with our faith is not our inability to the challenge of our faith is our willingness to hear other voices. There are so many opinions, ideas, ideologies that are all competing for our attention, and, ultimately, our affection. Whenever the Lord does a miracle, a healing, something extraordinary in our lives, he’s always trying to anchor our affections into a world when you see cause and effect, you see someone’s ear that is deaf, somebody prays, something unseen comes and opens the ear: they can now hear.
What’s happening? The Lord is awakening our affection for a world we cannot see. He’s teaching us, he’s training us on the superiority Paul anchored into that when he said: what you can’t see is eternal: what you can see is temporal. So, there’s a constant, it doesn’t have to be a conflict, but we live, oftentimes, in a conflict between those two realities, when they’re supposed to be joined together it’s not supposed to be the natural is an evil commodity and the supernatural is great. It’s supposed to be functioning together. It’s supposed to be, if I can use Israel’s analogy, as they went into the Promised Land, it’s supposed to be Israel works naturally to plant crops, God breathes on them, and they multiply in the size of the harvest.
The natural is supposed to cooperate with the supernatural. And you and I are the agents faith comes from hearing God’s voice. Everybody in the room can hear God’s voice. You wouldn’t be saved otherwise. That conviction that draws us to him, where we confess, we repent, we turn our lives to him, it’s only because it’s a we, unfortunately, as an achievement, sometimes centered people, especially in the western-world, we emphasize our ability, or, in this case, inability. And instead of emphasizing our inability or our weakness in hearing God’s voice, it would be wiser for us to emphasize his ability to be heard. If you’re talking to somebody who has a difficult time hearing you, you raise your voice. Perhaps, you wait till they’re looking at you. You do something to help make sure that you are heard. You take on responsibility to be heard.
If you and I know how to do that as people in this human race, then, certainly, God knows how to do that as our Heavenly Father. He makes certain that he can be heard. So, the issue is not ability as much as it is willingness. In some ways, the greatest enemy of our heart is business. And I don’t mean business being full schedule. I mean the business of heart. Jesus had probably as full a schedule as anybody’s ever had. He had people pressing about him constantly, trying to get close, trying to draw from him, questions following him anywhere he’d go. They’d follow him out into the wilderness where there was no food and just stay there without food, and just lose concern for their own needs to eat and to drink. They’d just forget about it. They’re with him. So, if there’s anybody who knew what it was to have demands put on him, it was Jesus. But he maintained that sense of personal peace, if you will. He maintained that peace, that peace of heart, that enabled him to recognize the still, small voice.
The Lord is obviously able to speak dramatically through circumstances. I’ve seen it, circumstances, unusual coincidences. There’s so many ways that he talks. And, sometimes, he uses words. But he speaks. And, oftentimes, it’s that still, small voice. And it doesn’t mean, if it’s loud around you, you can’t hear the still, small voice: it just can’t be loud inside of you. Maintaining, protecting peace, one of my, perhaps my greatest life verse, was given to me by and it was out of Proverbs 4, where he says: watch over your heart with all diligence because from it flow the issues of life. Watch over your heart. We use that as a model, Beni and I did, in raising our children. Because we would actually bring correction in response to attitude instead of just because if you can catch some things in attitude form, you can actually prevent the wrong behavior.
And so, the Lord’s inviting us into that kind of self-examination in a healthy way. «Watch over your heart with all diligence. For from it flow the issues of life». Making sure that I maintain not just right attitudes, but I maintain, I protect that peace. I protect the peace that seems to welcome and respond to the slightest nudge, the slightest movement of the Holy Spirit, where he speaks to me. Our life depends on his voice. Now, I want to emphasize for those who may not know us well enough, his voice will never contradict his word. But his voice is what makes this come alive. We need the voice of God. That’s where he activates what’s on the page into becoming flesh in us. We need that activation man should not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, the voice. We live, literally, by the voice of God. Everything is upheld by his voice, by his word.
Our need to hear from him is an ongoing continual thing. And protecting that peace is what ensures that we will always be a hearer of his voice. Lastly, before we get into Luke 8, here we know that faith comes from hearing. And hearing by the Word of God. Faith comes from hearing, hearing by the Word of God. Anyone who doesn’t have devotion to this will sometimes be misled by what they hear. Because there are other voices. And as I said to start with today, our issue in building faith, in being people of faith is not so much our inability to hear from God: it’s our willingness to hear other voices. And so, that’s what I wanna talk to you about. We’re gonna look at a parable. And I don’t think I’ve ever taken just one verse to study, out of this parable. I always read the whole thing. I like studying the whole thing. We’re not going to, today. It’s recorded here.
I think a more complete version is in Matthew 13. It’s the parable of the seed and the sower. It is the Cornerstone parable. It’s like: if you get this one, everything else falls into place. And, in this story, there is, Jesus uses an illustration of seed, a sower, and soil. The seed is God’s word. Now, just think with me. The seed is what God says to you and me. That seed, if you take a excuse me, when you plant it into the ground and it grows and ear of corn, every kernel on that ear of corn has the exact same DNA as the kernel that died in the ground. Same DNA. So, the Lord died that you and I might have life. And whenever he speaks to us, he actually gives to us a seed that Carries his entire, full DNA. The DNA of God is in the seed of whatever he says.
So, when he speaks to us, he’s actually depositing something that has the capacity to bring absolute, complete James put it this way, he said: «In humility, receive the word implanted». So, humility’s the condition of the soil, «In humility, receive the word implanted», and then, it says, «Which is able to save your souls». So, the ability to save, you’re already born again. The people he wrote that to were already saved. So, he’s talking about the the power for that transformation is in the seed that was received. And, oftentimes, because we don’t get the full thing that we prayed for, we actually abort the power of the seed because we were disappointed in not getting the full measure of promise that we had prayed for. Because we actually didn’t realize that what God spoke to us was a seed that carried the capacity for the full answer, if it’s stewarded well.
So, in the parable of the seed and the sower, we have the seed, which is God’s word that Carries his DNA. The soil is the condition of the heart. The Holy Spirit is the one who takes the seed, plants it into our heart so that the condition of the heart is the soil. Now, the seed has absolute capacity to reproduce the likeness, the power, the nature of God anywhere it’s planted. Would you agree with me on that? The seed has the power. What is the limiting factor is the condition of the soil. So, when God speaks to you, he speaks to me, he’s depositing something that has absolute eternal significance. Every time he opens his mouth, he says something that has an impact on our lives directly anything that you value and steward well will attract more of the same into your life.
Let’s get right into this parable, and, I think I’ve already stated it, I’m only gonna read one verse, although the whole parable is certainly worth studying, one verse 14, «Now, the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity». Okay, look at it, again, «The ones», the ones being seeds. Okay, so, let’s change the word to «Seed». «The seed that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, they go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity». This is not describing a hard heart. That’s dealt with earlier in the parable. This is talking about soil that receives many seeds. Let’s just say it’s corn. You put in corn, but next to it is thorns. What is that? That’s the product of another seed.
So, here I’ve received what God is saying, planted into my heart, but I’ve also received this other idea and this backup idea, in case this doesn’t work. And, this other perspective. 'cause, you know, I’ve seen other who’ve had that promise and God didn’t fulfill it in so, what happens is we don’t have a problem with hearing God’s voice: we have a problem by giving ourselves to other things that are not the result of God’s word, God’s voice to us. And so, what happens is we end up entertaining ideas, thoughts that become planted in us who rob from the soil what the Word of God needs to draw from, if you will, the nutrients that seeds draw from. It’s robbing from that. And then, it grows up and it competes for sunlight and it chokes the seed of what God has said.
The potential was there to produce the likeness, the nature of God, the atmosphere of heaven itself, through the development of that seed, that but, as soon as that began to entertain, if you can picture Peter on the water, walking towards Jesus, then, what did he do? He began to concern himself with the waves, which, all of us have done. In fact, most of us never got out of the boat. But he’s walking and what does he do? He begins to consider other issues, other problems. What are those? Those are rapid-growing seeds that create thorns that choke the promise of the word that Jesus looked at Peter and said, «Come». That was the word. Saw the waves. That was another word. Is the picture clear? All right.
So, here this says that the thorns that they are «Are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures and bring no fruit to maturity». Take those three things: cares, the word «Cares,» here, I didn’t know until, actually, today, this word «Cares» means divided mind. Divided mind. In the sermon on the mount, in Matthew 5, Jesus talked about, he said whoever’s eye is single, I mean, he wasn’t talking about having one eye in the middle of your forehead, whoever’s eye is single, their body will be full of light. I have this hunch that there’s Revelation in that thought about divine health. But let’s just leave that aside for a moment and stick to the concept. So, he says whoever’s eye is single, your body will be full of light.
Look at it this way: the word «Single» here means, it’s two words. It’s the number one and it’s the word «Voyage». Whoever’s eyes of their heart are set on one voyage, «I am alive for one reason», everything about them will be enlightened by God’s own personal presence. There’ll be no shadows, one voyage. The word «Cares» means what? Divided mind. He goes on and he says, now, the fruit of these thorns, if you will, we’ve got the Word of God planted, we’ve got thorns, and the fruit that these thorns create that actually take the life of God’s word, his seed. The fruit is cares, divided mind: riches: and pleasures of life. God is the king of pleasures of life. He himself is undistracted and is quite wealthy. Fairly wealthy, yes. The problem isn’t the pleasure. The problem isn’t the riches or the provision, the abundance of God’s blessing. That’s never the issue. The issue is the place it has in my heart.
And this is what happens, whenever my attention is turned from seeking first the kingdom to the reward of breakthrough, and I take the blessing and make that my goal, I have actually sown into that which will now choke the word for the next season and I’ve chosen where I’m going to level off. Did that make sense? The seed of God’s word is planted. I feed these other things, by what? Suddenly, the cares of life. I’m anxious. Why? I’m anxious for this, I need to buy that, I need to purchase this, I need to make this decision, I live with this tension, this anxiety in life. I got the rich. I need more of this and I’ve gotta have that. And the pleasures of life, that’s a real focus. Gotta make sure that we have this in our life. And that anxiety, that stress of life, actually deadens my sensitivity to the voice.
But it also is me shifting my focus from being a kingdom-oriented person with an appetite and a hunger and affection for the unseen: I am now prioritizing what I can see. When I do that, the scripture says that fruit actually competes with God’s word and chokes it. Chokes God’s word. It’s amazing 'cause God’s word’s the most powerful thing but the Lord, for a season, Mark 7 says through your traditions you make the Word of God of no effect. It means you render powerless the most powerful thing in the universe. So, God, for a season, has allowed us to have a voice in the effect of that seed. So, in this case, he says: all right, now, suddenly, what you’ve been entertaining, the anxieties, the stresses, all these issues of life, they now have fruit in your life. And that fruit is pleasure, riches, these other things that now draw you away from your devotion to what you can’t see. Amen.
Verse 18 says, «Take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given: and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have». Look at it again, verse 18 of Luke 8. «Therefore, take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given». That’s implying we obtain increase through hearing. Remember, this is in the context of the voice of God, him speaking into our lives. He says: «All right, whoever has, take heed how you hear», it’s about hearing, «Whoever has, to him more will be given: and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him». Anything that you value and steward well will attract the same, more of the same, into your life.
If you value testimony, I mean in your heart, not just as a value, you know, a mental thing, but, truly, in your heart of hearts, you love to hear what God is doing, you will actually attract to you people with stories. In the negative, if you value gossip, slander, people who gossip will find you. It’s an unseen thing, but they’re attracted to you. That that they carry, they recognize, subconsciously, on you and they will be drawn to you. A person who likes foul language and dirty jokes, they attract you. Put 'em in the middle of any business, within a week, the people that are there that like to tell those kinds of stories will be attracted to that individual. Because like attracts like. But, this also pertains to the kingdom. Those who value words of promise, those who value that, that tenderness of what God is saying into a given situation actually attract that.
And here’s the thing that I’ve been watching in my own life for a number of years, now. Revelation attracts Revelation. Insight that is stewarded well actually attracts more. And there are certain environments that are so pregnant with Revelation. Now, Revelation, for those that may not know this well, I don’t mean in addition to scripture. I mean where God highlights and gives us insight into what’s in print. This, here, is Jesus in print. Don’t tell me you love Jesus there if you don’t love him here. Show me your love for Jesus by your love for this. You say, «Well, I don’t understand it». I don’t understand him, either. He’s way beyond what I can understand.
«Well, I don’t remember what I read». Well, I don’t remember what I had for breakfast last week, either, but it still nourished me. «I don’t remember what I read»! Well, I don’t remember what I had for breakfast last week, either, but it still nourished me. People say, «Well, I pray, I fall asleep». I never got mad at my kids for falling asleep in my arms. If you could picture the foundation of a house has been laid. It’s all set. The flooring is there. There’s no walls, roof, windows, nothing else, just the flooring. If you could sum up, if I was able to do a cartoon, I could show you that Revelation is when you establish the foundational principles of God’s kingdom deep into your heart and you live them, it attracts the walls, the windows, the ceiling, the carpet, the paneling. It actually attracts it. It draws it. That’s what he’s saying. To whoever has, more will be given beside it. You will actually attract what you value into your life.