Expect To Hear God

PRAYER - "Don't Stop Praying Too Soon" 

God was going to destroy the evil cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham began to make intercessory prayer for his relatives there. He asked God to save the city if He could find fifty righteous men. Then forty-five, forty, thirty, twenty. Finally, ten. Since there were not ten righteous men in Sodom, Abraham stopped praying. Abraham might have yet saved the city if he hadn't stopped praying.

Genesis 18:4 NAS - "...wilt thou not sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of fifty righteous that are in it?"

PRINCIPALS -"Shem"

First son of Noah, Shem is a very significant character. Shem and Japheth intervened to save their father's modesty when Ham discovered him drunk. Noah blessed Shem and Japheth for that. Ham's descendants, the Canaanites, were cursed to serve the descendants of both Shem and Japheth. That is why Abraham was given the land of Canaan. Abraham descended from Eber (source name of "Hebrew") who descended from Shem (source name of "Semite"). Jesus Christ descended from Shem.

Genesis 9:26 - "Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant."

PRINCIPLES - "I Am Crucified"

We mourn the crucifixion of our own flesh, presuming it to be a loss. A lost possession, a lost love, a lost job -- any or all material losses are perceived to be sorrowful, if not tragic. In God's economy, however, it is merely the removal of an obstacle to the revelation of divine providence. Without death to self we cannot see the stupendous infinity of His life. Better to live in Him than in oneself. 

Galatians 2:20 - "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me."

PROPHECIES - "The Destruction of Sodom"

The Contemporary English Bible renders Genesis 19:4-5 thus: "Before Lot and his guests could go to bed, every man in Sodom, young and old, came and stood outside his house and started shouting, "Where are your visitors? Send them out, so we can have sex with them!" God already knew their wicked hearts. That is why the angels came - to destroy it!

Genesis 19:13 - "For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it."

Expect to Hear His Voice

The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me. – John 10:27, The Amplified Bible

So many believers are unsure of their ability to hear God or know His voice. They're always afraid that they won't be able to tell when the Spirit of God is talking to them. What they don't realize is this: Hearing the voice of the Spirit is a privilege that the Bible says belongs to every believer (Romans 8:14). All we have to do to exercise that privilege is to receive it by faith and put ourselves in a position to hear. Next time the devil tries to tell you that you can't hear God's voice, remember that. Jesus said His sheep will know His voice and a stranger's voice they will not follow. That is a promise of God to you today. You see, the Spirit of God will never guide you in opposition to the written Word of God (John 16:13). So, if you're not familiar with what the Word says, you'll find it more difficult to discern His leading. Get familiar with God's voice by meditating and studying the Word of God. Follow God's instruction to Joshua and meditate on it day and night. Act on what you find in the Word, not just when it's easy but every time. Be obedient even in the slightest things. That continual obedience to the written Word will bring you into maturity and tune your inward ear to the voice of the Spirit. You'll soon be able to recognize it as easily as you recognize the voice of your dearest friend. So, instead of wondering about it, start expecting to hear from Him. Then start sharpening your spiritual ears by spending time in the Word.