Listen & Led

Listen. Really listen today. Let the Holy Spirit lead you and speak life as the Spirit flows through you.

“Solomon built the temple of the LORD and his own palace, Solomon rebuilt the villages…whatever he desired to build…the places the ark of the LORD has entered are holy…Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the LORD, according to the daily requirement for offerings commanded by Moses…In keeping with the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their duties, and the Levites to lead the praise…according to each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers…because this was what David the man of God had ordered. They did not deviate from the king’s commands to the priests or to the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries. All Solomon’s work was carried out, from the day the foundation of the temple of the LORD was laid until its completion.“ 2 Chronicles 8:1-16

Are you a good listener? Listening is a critical skill for those who learn from and live for Jesus. Look at how important listening and obeying were in building the kingdom in Solomon’s day. He was the king, but he obeyed the commands of Moses and his father each day. He did not use his authority to avoid obedience; rather, he modeled it each day for those he influenced.

The text says the people did as the king commanded. They listened and obeyed. It says they did not deviate in any way. All the work was carried out as it was commanded. What work have you been given to do? Are you doing what Jesus commands each day? Or are you prone to deviating and doing things your way?

We live in a world with a lot of choices and opinions. We tend to be people who have preferences and who, at times, can deviate from God’s divine design for our lives. Who and what we choose to listen to and what we choose to do will determine what we will build. God wants to teach us discernment. He wants us to learn to listen to His voice and do His will. Will you be like the Israelites and do what the king commanded? Jesus said the greatest commands are to love God and each other.

“We praise you, God, we praise you, for your Name is near; people tell of your wonderful deeds…To the arrogant I say, ‘Boast no more,’ and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns. Do not lift your horns against heaven; do not speak so defiantly…No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt themselves. It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another. As for me, I will declare this forever; I will sing praise to the God of Jacob”

Psalms 75:1-9

Praise or pride, what will come out of your mouth? There is a great song with a verse that says I am an instrument of exultation. Have you ever considered that you were made to praise God? Have you ever thought that praise might be your primary responsibility or duty to perform each day? How much time do you spend praising God? Are you expanding your palette of praise? Or do you sing the same song every day? David made a personal decision to daily praise the Lord.

How does pride get in the way of praise? David was not fond of people lifting their horns to heaven. The imagery is of a puffed-out bull with horns lifted high, ready to fight. The prideful person does not have ears to hear their personal Savior. Pride is the root of much sin. What does pride accomplish? Does it build anything lasting? How does it impact our ability to do God’s will, God’s way? David does not entirely write off the proud. He encouraged them to change. He says boast no more. The moment we stop boasting is the moment God can start building the kingdom through us.

“An unfriendly person pursues selfish ends and against all sound judgment starts quarrels. Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. The words of the mouth are deep waters, but the fountain of wisdom is a rushing stream. The mouths of fools are their undoing, and their lips are a snare to their very lives. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts. One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys. The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; they imagine it a wall too high to scale. Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor. To answer before listening— that is folly and shame. The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out. From the fruit of their mouth a person’s stomach is filled; with the harvest of their lips they are satisfied. The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” Proverbs 18:1-21

How do you respond to the passage above? Does anything speak to you? Jesus spoke of living water. Water that is meant to flow from God through you to others. Water is life. When we listen to God, we receive the life and the fruit of the mouth of God. The fruits of the Spirit. We receive joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, self-control, goodness, faithfulness, and love. Would you like any more of these? How much time will you spend receiving from the God who generously gives to those who listen? Like Jesus, Solomon said wisdom is a rushing stream.

You cannot give what you do not have. Consider all the words that will come out of your mouth today. Solomon said you have the power of life and death. How are you stewarding the power of your tongue? Do you want to know how you can prevent death? Stop and listen to the Spirit before you speak. Discern what is good and what is not from God. Be quiet if what you want to say is harmful.

Intention does not matter when it comes to our words. Reception is what matters. Regardless of what you intend, if the person who receives your words is harmed, then you have done harm and you have disobeyed Jesus. Like his dad did in Psalms, Solomon warned against pride. Pride poisons our words and prevents the Spirit from speaking life. What would happen if we took time to listen before we spoke a single word to another person today?

One of the things to remember is that following Jesus is not a life of avoidance. Not speaking life can be as harmful as speaking death. There are people who need to hear that things will work out and receive encouragement. What happens if we withhold the good that we could speak? What happens if we are silent when God wants us to help save? There are times when we should absolutely be silent and avoid sins like gossip or slander, but there are also times when we must speak life and let the saving grace of Jesus Christ flow through us.

“I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God…the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel…I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light…in the fire was what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was human, but each of them had four faces and four wings…Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went. Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne…and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.” Ezekiel 1:1-28

Do not read too quickly past the beginning line. Ezekiel was among the exiles. He was in a foreign land and found himself among people who had lost everything. In the middle of the darkness came a great light, and he received the word of the Lord. God pursues us whether we are on a hilltop or in a valley. He had a vision. He saw creatures led by the Spirit who went wherever the Spirit led. Then above them, he saw the glory of God, and he bowed down.

What do people see when they see you? You are made by the hand of the living God and have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. Do they see someone who follows the Spirit wherever the Spirit leads? Or do you already have plans that can’t be changed? Do you have preferences that prevent you from following? What would happen if each day we said, Lord, I hand this day over to you, and I will follow wherever you lead?

Would we have more Ezekiel moments? Would we see the glory of the Lord and His fire come upon us? Would you like God to give you a vision? David said no one can exalt themselves before the Lord, and we see that Ezekiel’s natural response was to bow down before the Lord. What will our response be to Jesus today?

“Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius…Paul warned them, “Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.” But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. When a gentle south wind began to blow…they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved…Paul stood up before them and said…I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed…God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me…Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food—you haven’t eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. Altogether there were 276 of us on board. When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea…the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground…everyone reached land safely.”

Acts 27:1-44

God wants to speak to you today. Will you listen? From Solomon following what God had commanded, to David choosing to praise daily, to the creatures in Ezekiel following wherever the Spirit led, to Paul hearing and then sharing good news in a storm with the people who had previously ignored him, the invitation is to listen and let the Spirit lead you. Pride is a barrier. It tells us we know and do not need help. Humility says I need help. We do not have to have ears to hear, but how many shipwrecks could we avoid if we listened to God? How much pain could be prevented if we stopped to hear the Spirit before we spoke, reacted, or went about our day?

Jesus said my sheep know my voice. He wants to speak to you. He wants to fill you with heaven so that you might bring healing with your words and work. He wants to fill you with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control so that those things naturally flow out of you.

There is work to do. Someone needs the encouragement you can give. Someone needs to know the grace you have received. Someone needs all of the goodness of Jesus that is stored in you. Let the river flow.

In God’s kingdom, it does no good to listen without doing. There is a simplicity to following Jesus if we will listen and obey. When Jesus says be quiet, be quiet. When Jesus says speak, speak. When Jesus says go, go. When Jesus says stay, stay. When He says forgive, forgive. When Jesus says encourage, encourage. So do your best to open your ears and let the love of God be a river of life that is ever flowing in and through you.