No Turning Back

Dear God seekers,

I'd like to show you something you probably already know, but may not have considered before quite the way I'm going to present it. Let's begin with some basics, followed by the point I'd like to make.

The Fate of the Non Believer
First of all, let's consider the eternal destination of a non believer. Let's say he is an atheist. Or perhaps he calls himself a Christian, and even attends a church, but he doesn't know Jesus Christ personally as his Lord and Savior. He has never been born again, and is not a child of God. He could be any one of these types of people, but regardless of which one he is, my point is that his fate would still be the same. His eternal destination when he dies would ultimately be in hell, which is a terrible place. If you don't agree with that, then you should read the Bible. The bottom line is that all have sinned and fall short of God's glory, and the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23), which is eternal separation from God. A few of my articles that will help you understand this are Where will you go when you die?, From Religion to Relationship, and You Must Be Born Again.

The Destiny of the Believer
Next, let's consider where the believer goes when he dies. Take for example, Paul the apostle. We know he's up in glory now with the Lord. Or take John Wesley and D.L. Moody, who also made it to heaven. A Korean pastor died and saw that these two famous preachers now have two of The Four Tallest Homes in Heaven. There is no human being who deserves heaven, but because Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins on the cross, those who believe in Him will not perish but have eternal life. Scripture says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (Joh 3:16, NIV). The bottom line is that the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom 6:23). It's only through faith in Christ and His atoning sacrifice on the cross that we can have eternal life. We must be born again and have a personal relationship with Him. For more on this topic, please see my articles, Christ Alone and By Grace Alone.

The Fate of the Apostate Man
Lastly, let's consider the eternal destination of the apostate man who falls away from Christ. Let's say we have a person who has come to know Christ and been born again. He's accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, and he begins to follow the Lord. Perhaps he follows the Lord for a day, or a month, or a year, or ten years. During that time he prays, reads the Bible, and attends church. Perhaps he even leads others to Christ. But at some point, for whatever reason, he falls away from the Lord and dies in that state. Perhaps he backslides and goes back into the world into a life of sin. Or perhaps he simply becomes a worldly Christian. Or perhaps he falls into temptation and commits sexual immorality with a woman and then dies immediately afterward in a car accident before he has a chance to repent.

Where would he go when he dies? Our natural inclination would be to assume that he would go to heaven and receive a lesser reward than he otherwise would have received. We assume the Lord would give him credit for trying and that he would at least make it to heaven, even if he ended up in the outer environs far from the throne. We might assume that God would not damn his soul completely, since he at least came to know Christ and began to walk with the Lord. At his funeral we might eulogize him right into the pearly gates of heaven, and overlook the sin in his life that he never repented of.

However, the Scriptures teach us something quite different. The Bible says he will not only go to hell, but we would be wrong to assume that he would receive a lighter sentence because he was a Christian. According to the Bible, he will receive a worse punishment than if he had never given his life to Christ in the first place. The Lord taught that he will be beaten with many blows, because he knew what his Master required and didn't do it.

Jesus said, “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." (Lk 12:47-48, NIV).

Likewise, Peter the apostle wrote: "If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them." (2 Pe 2:20-21, NIV).

According to Peter, the man in our story would be worse than if he had never given his life to Jesus. In fact, he would have been better off if he had never known the way of truth than to have known it and then turn his back on the sacred command. That's a frightening prospect, but it is exactly what the Scripture teaches. No wonder Jesus said to fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell (Mt 10:28b).

Don't look back! Remember Lot's wife. It's not worth it! The apostle warned us, "If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left...But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved." (Heb 10:26,39, NIV). If you don't believe it is possible for a born again believer to shrink back and be destroyed, then you should probably read my articles called The Apostasy Parables, Drifting Away, Sins That Will Keep You From Heaven, and The Forgotten Sin of Worldliness.

Scripture is very clear about this. That's why Jesus warned us to count the cost before deciding to follow Him. It will cost your life. He said: “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’" (Lk 14:28-30, NIV).

It's true that the one who backslides away from Jesus will be ridiculed in this life. Take it from someone who knows firsthand. I backslid after I had been saved for about three months and continued to do so for nearly six months until I repented and returned to Jesus. During that time, I was ridiculed by one of my unbelieving roommates in the Army barracks. I was living in deep sin and he was mocking me that I was supposed to be a good Christian. It was humiliating. But worse than that would be to die in that state and be mocked and beaten by the demons all throughout eternity. They do that to those who were once true Christians and ended up in hell.

Perhaps they say with an sinister laugh, "Ha, ha, haaa! You were supposed to be a Christian. You had the Bible and you knew better. You have no excuse for being here. You deserve it. Don't you know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor homosexuals, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. You fool!" Then they beat that person severely and probably laugh saying things like, "Ha, ha, ha, ha! Now you will be here with me forever and I will get to keep tormenting you like this. You're all mine! Ha, ha, ha, ha!"

This is why Jesus cautioned us to first count the cost before we decide to follow Him, because once you start to follow Him, then it's too late to count the cost and decide you can't continue on the straight and narrow way.

Once you give your life to Jesus, you cannot turn back. The only way to go is forward toward Jesus and toward heaven. Of course, you have the freedom to choose to turn back after you start following Jesus, but it would be a terrible decision for all the reasons I have stated. Christians who turn back receive a far worse punishment in hell than those who didn't know any better. So once we begin to follow the Lord, we need to understand this and realize that no matter how difficult the journey may become, we must continue to go forward with Jesus and never quit.  Jesus said, "The one who stands firm to the end will be saved." (Mt 24:13, NIV)

No More Satisfaction
The other thing to keep in mind is that the Christian who turns back to a life of sin can no longer find the same satisfaction from it that he once had before knowing Christ. Now his conscience will bother him and he will always know he is not right with God. That's probably why backslidden Christians make some of the worst sinners, because they keep trying to drown out the pangs of their conscience. They keep trying to get the same level of satisfaction they once knew, but they can't unless they drive away the Holy Spirit, which is a dreadful thing to do. So not only is it worse for such a person in hell than for a non believer, but it is worse in this life, too.

Putting it All Together
Hopefully this has served as a warning for you and perhaps a wake up call for those who have already fallen away. It's easy to see how the non believer ends up in hell and how the believer goes to heaven. But I trust this message has proven to you that it is far worse in hell for the believer who shrinks back to destruction. Don't let that happen to you.

If you have fallen away from the Lord, then repent today, because you don't know if you will have another day. This could be your last chance. It's not by accident that you are reading this article. Repent while you are still on earth and while mercy is still available. Jesus loves you and wants you back.

For those who are faithfully following the Lord: Never give up! Never give in! Never give over to the enemy! Keep following Jesus. Endure to the very end. As that song says, "I have decided to follow Jesus. The cross before me, the world behind me. No turning back. No turning back."

Attribution notice: Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like The Apostasy Parables, The Forgotten Sin of Worldliness, Remember Lot's Wife, Avoid Becoming a Corrupted Christian, Eternal Security, Holding Fast the Faithful Word, Holy Living in a Perverted World, Separation from the World, Don't Look Back (poem), The Straight and Narrow Path, and Ask for the Ancient Paths. I highly recommend reading, Only the Holy -- Three Shocking Testimonies, Conditions of the New Covenant, and Holy Fire Baptism. You may find the Main Directory for this blog at Home, and also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Following in His Steps

In my article, What Jesus Did Not Do on the Cross, which I highly recommend reading, I highlighted twenty-one things the Lord did not do during His betrayal, passion, and crucifixion. One of those was that He did not sin. Today I would like to focus on that one in particular, since He did not sin at any point during His earthly life. Let's see what the Scriptures say:

He Did Not Sin
We know for certain that the Lord did not commit any sin, because the Bible tells us so. It says:

"For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin." (Heb 4:15)

I have highlighted in my article, The Temptation of Christ, how He overcame all the devil's temptations in the wilderness and committed no sin. What was true of that experience was true of His entire life. He never sinned.

The apostle Paul affirmed the sinlessness of Christ when he wrote: "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2Co 5:21)

The apostle Peter wrote: "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth." (1Pe 2:21-22)

We learn two important things from this passage. First, that Jesus committed no sin, and secondly that He left us an example that we should follow in His steps.

He Suffered for Righteousness
Another important point that Peter made in verse 21 was that we have been called to suffer. This is clearer when we read it in context with the verse before it:

"For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps..." (1Pe 2:20-21)

Later in that same epistle, he further emphasized this aspect of participating in Christ's sufferings, when he wrote: "But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed." (1 Pe 4:13, NIV)

The apostle Paul affirmed this in his epistle to the Philippians, when he wrote: "For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him..." (Phil 1:29, NIV). For more on that topic, please see my article, The Fiery Sufferings of the Believer.

Follow Him
As I have just mentioned, Peter said that Jesus Christ is your example, and you must follow in his steps (1 Pe 2:21). Truly in all things, Jesus is our perfect example. The apostle John also said the same thing in his epistle: "Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did." (1 Jn 2:6).

This is what Jesus Himself taught His disciples. He said: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me." (Mt 16:24, NIV). When He said we must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him, He meant just what He said. We must follow in His steps in every aspect of life.

These are the requirements in order to be a disciple of Christ. He said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be My disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple." (Lk 14:26-27, NIV 1978).

This is a daily requirement: "Then he said to them all: 'Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.'" (Lk 9:23, NIV)

On another occasion He said, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Mt 11:29, NIV). This also speaks of learning from Him the way to live and doing what He did.

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus
As that old hymn I Have Decided to Follow Jesus says, "The cross before me, the world behind me. No turning back, no turning back. Though none go with me, still I will follow." According to Wikipedia, "...the lyrics are based on the last words of Nokseng, a Garo man, a tribe from Meghalaya [India] which then was in Assam, who along with his family decided to follow Jesus Christ in the middle of the 19th century through the efforts of an American Baptist missionary. Called to renounce his faith by the village chief, the convert declared, 'I have decided to follow Jesus.' His two children were killed and in response to threats to his wife, he continued, 'Though none go with me, still I will follow.' His wife was killed, and he was executed while singing, 'The cross before me, the world behind me.' This display of faith is reported to have led to the conversion of the chief and others in the village."

The article goes on to say that "The formation of these words into a hymn is attributed to the Indian missionary Sadhu Sundar Singh. The melody is also Indian, and entitled 'Assam' after the region where the text originated. An American hymn editor, William Jensen Reynolds, composed an arrangement," which we now know as the wonderful old hymn I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. It aptly describes the point I am making in this article.

No Turning Back
As that hymn says, once we have decided to follow Jesus, we must never turn back, no matter what happens. As Jesus said, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." (Lk 9:62, NIV). For more on this, please see No Turning Back and Remember Lot's Wife.

Putting it All Together
Since Jesus committed no sin, then we should follow in His steps and follow in His example, which means we should also commit no sin, as I explained in my article Aim for Perfection. Just as He denied Himself and took up His cross, we also must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. And just as He suffered for righteousness, we must participate in His sufferings, too.

I hope this has helped to encourage you in your walk with God to seek Him with all your heart. Fight the good fight, keep the faith, deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus! The cross before you, the world behind you, no turning back, no turning back. Though none go with you, still you must follow Jesus without turning back.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB, unless otherwise noted. Other Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®. Image from Christ Lutheran Church, which may be subject to copyright, used according to Fair Use Act for educational and commentary purposes only.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like Aim for Perfection, Called to Be Blameless, Christian Perfection, Walking in the Perfect Will of God, For the Glory of God Alone, Crucified with Christ, What Jesus Did Not Do on the Cross, Sins That Will Keep You From Heaven, The Glory of Martyrdom for Christ, The Obedience of Faith, Restored Truth, Ask for the Ancient Paths, Pleasing the Lord, Clean Hands and a Pure Heart, Salvation with Fear and Trembling, Righteous Deeds and White Robes, The Ways of Life, The Forgotten Sin of Worldliness, Is Tithing Required for Christians?, Godly Attire and Adornment -- Seven Divine Revelations, Having a Servant's Heart, Alcohol and Cigarettes -- Ten Divine Revelations, Divorce -- Three Divine Revelations, A Warning for Married Christian Couples, Separation from the World, and Standing in the Gap. My daughter has also written a lovely poem called Cross Bearing. You can access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master." Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org

The Cost of Discipleship

Deitrich Bonhoeffer

Most preachers today are preaching cheap grace.  But this is not the true gospel.  True grace is costly.

Years ago, when my friend, Mike, was discipling me, we read a book together, called The Cost of Discipleship, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  It challenged and enriched my understanding of grace and what it means to be a disciple of Christ.  Let's look at some quotes from Bonhoeffer.


 “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship 

“Grace at a low cost, is in the last resort simply a new law, which brings neither help nor freedom.”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship 

"Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheapjacks' wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices. Grace is represented as the Church's inexhaustible treasury, from which she showers blessings with generous hands, without asking questions or fixing limits. Grace without price; grace without cost! The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the account has been paid in advance; and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing. Since the cost was infinite, the possibilities of using and spending it are infinite. What would grace be if it were not cheap?...

Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.

The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer is available at Amazon.


Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock.

Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: 'Ye were bought at a price', and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.” 
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship 

“But the disciple had the advantage over the Pharisee in that his doing of the law is in fact perfect. How is such a thing possible? Because between the disciples and the law stands one who has perfectly fulfilled it, on with whom they live in communion...Jesus not only possesses this righteousness, but is himself the personal embodiment of it. He is the righteousness of the disciples...This is where the righteousness of the disciple exceeds that of the Pharisees; it is grounded solely upon the call to fellowship with him who alone fulfills the law.”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship    

Willingly He Died
I think the way a man dies says a lot about his character.   According to the Wikipedia article about him, "Bonhoeffer was condemned to death on April 8, 1945...without witnesses, records of proceedings or a defence...He was executed there by hanging at dawn on April 9, 1945...the execution was particularly brutal. Bonhoeffer was stripped of his clothing and led naked into the execution yard, where he was hanged with thin wire for death by strangulation."

The article goes on to state that. "The camp doctor who witnessed the execution wrote: 'I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer ... kneeling on the floor praying fervently to God. I was most deeply moved by the way this lovable man prayed, so devout and so certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the few steps to the gallows, brave and composed. His death ensued after a few seconds. In the almost fifty years that I worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God.'”

In Bonhoeffer's death, we see a lovable man who was entirely submissive to the will of God, as the doctor who witnessed it said.  He was able to die this way, because he had died to self long beforehand.  He lived what he believed, and he possessed the costly grace of Christ.  Within him lived the Lamb of God, Who said, "I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting. For the Lord GOD helps Me, Therefore, I am not disgraced; Therefore, I have set My face like flint, And I know that I will not be ashamed." (Isa 50:6-7).

When Jesus was crucified, it was not as though He was dragged away against His will.  He could have easily prevented His own arrest.  But He came to die for our sins, and He did not shrink back.  He did not resist the brutality directed against Him.  No, He offered Himself willingly.  And He expects us to do the same, as Bonhoeffer did in his life and in his death.

I want to make an appeal to you, my friend.  If you are a preacher, please seek the Lord for a true understanding of this costly grace, before you preach another message.  Then speak as a voice for God about it.  Please do not simply be an echo of all the other voices in the world, preaching cheap grace.

To those who are not preachers, if you are a Christian, and you never realized the grace of God was so costly, I ask you to get with the Lord.  Cry out in repentance for all known sin in your life.  Ask the Lord for this costly grace that will cost you everything.  Come and die, so that you may follow Jesus.  This is true grace.  This is the true gospel.


Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

Author's note: This post is a follow up on the following articles I've written recently:

The Law of Love in the New Testament
The Law Established Through Faith
Is Obedience Optional?
The Law Fulfilled in Us
Keeping Sundays Holy
Resting from Work
Is Tithing Required for Christians?
Salvation with Fear and Trembling
Is Practical Righteousness a Lost Truth?
The New Covenant
Obedience by the Spirit
The Highest Form of Slavery
Called to be Blameless 

I invite you to read my daughter's poem, called "The Cost." You can also find my complete collection of blogs at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Hearing the Lord's Voice

Do we only know how to recognize and listen to the voice of a man, such as a pastor, preacher, or blogger? Or do we know how to recognize and listen to the voice of the Lord? What have we been trained to do?

One of the most important aspects of seeking the Lord is hearing His voice. Every disciple needs to learn to do this as an essential part of making Christ central. Let's turn to the Scriptures and let the Word of God speak for itself.

Jesus said His sheep would know His voice
"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." (Joh 10:27). If you are one of His sheep, Jesus said you would hear His voice. It comes with being a sheep, and sheep are not very smart. So don't feel like this is beyond your ability to do.

Moses heard the voice of the Lord
The Lord spoke to Moses on top of a mountain in a burning bush. "When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he approached to look more closely, there came the voice of the Lord: 'I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC AND JACOB.' Moses shook with fear and would not venture to look." (Act 7:31-32)

Peter heard the voice of the Lord
There was a time when God was about to direct Peter to begin taking the gospel to the Gentiles. Up to that point, they were only preaching to Jews. But God first spoke to a Gentile man, named Cornelius, who sent his servants to get Peter. "On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. But he became hungry and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance; and he *saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air. A voice came to him, 'Get up, Peter, kill and eat!' But Peter said, 'By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.' Again a voice came to him a second time, 'What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.' This happened three times, and immediately the object was taken up into the sky." (Act 10:9-16).

Sometimes the Lord speaks to both parties, in order to prepare them for something extraordinary. In this case, He spoke to Cornelius and Peter to prepare them for what He was about to do in their lives, before they even met each other. I've seen the Lord do this over and over in my own life. For example, before and after we were married, the Lord has spoken to both my wife and I about many things, including ways He was directing us to serve Him.

Paul heard the voice of the Lord
When the apostle Paul was on the road to Damascus, sent with authority to persecute the disciples of Christ there, the Lord met him on that road in a vision and changed his life. "And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?' And he said, 'Who are You, Lord?' And He said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do.'" (Act 9:4-6).

When the Lord speaks to you, sometimes He will ask you a question. He already knows the answer, but wants you to discover it yourself. So don't be surprised if the Lord asks you a question.

We must not harden our hearts when we hear the Lord’s voice
The writer of Hebrews stated: "He again fixes a certain day, 'Today,' saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, 'TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS.'" (Heb 4:7)

This teaches us that when the Lord speaks, you have a choice. You can either humble yourself and receive what He tells you. Or you can harden your heart. Be careful not to harden your heart. In order to avoid that, you will need to have faith and believe what the Lord is saying.

God’s Word is active and living
"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Heb 4:12)

God's Word is alive. So when He speaks to you, it penetrates deep down inside of you, reaching places that even a surgeon could not reach if he were to cut you open with a knife. The Word is sharper than any scalpel. It's able to get into our soul and spirit and separate the two. It's able to show you your own thoughts and motives.

Israelites perished because they didn’t listen to the Lord’s voice
"For the sons of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, that is, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD, to whom the LORD had sworn that He would not let them see the land which the LORD had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey." (Jos 5:6)

It's true that thousands of Israelites perished in the wilderness, because they did not listen and obey the Lord's voice when He spoke. So we need to be careful that we are not merely hearers, but also doers of God's Word.

The voice of the Lord is powerful and majestic
"Ascribe to the LORD, O sons of the mighty, Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due to His name; Worship the LORD in holy array. The voice of the LORD is upon the waters; The God of glory thunders, The LORD is over many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful, The voice of the LORD is majestic. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; Yes, the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, And Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the LORD hews out flames of fire. The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; The LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the LORD makes the deer to calve And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everything says, "Glory!" The LORD sat as King at the flood; Yes, the LORD sits as King forever. The LORD will give strength to His people; The LORD will bless His people with peace." (Psa 29:1-11)

When the Lord needs to utter His voice, He can make it loud and clear, if He needs to. It's powerful and majestic, and shakes the wilderness. So no matter where you are at, trust more in His ability to speak to you than in your ability to hear from Him.

Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord
Isaiah the prophet had an amazing vision of the Lord. Here is what the Lord said to Him at that time. He wrote: "Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'" (Isa 6:8)

You see how the Lord asked him a question, as He did with Paul? The Lord was looking for a voluntary commitment from the heart, and Isaiah willingly offered Himself to the Lord for His service.

Samuel heard the voice of the Lord
Perhaps one of my favorite examples in Scripture of someone hearing from the Lord is Samuel. When he was just a boy, serving in the temple with Eli, the priest, "the LORD called Samuel; and he said, 'Here I am.' Then he ran to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But he said, 'I did not call, lie down again.' So he went and lay down. The LORD called yet again, 'Samuel!' So Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But he answered, 'I did not call, my son, lie down again.' Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor had the word of the LORD yet been revealed to him. So the LORD called Samuel again for the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' Then Eli discerned that the LORD was calling the boy. And Eli said to Samuel, 'Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, "Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening."' So Samuel went and lay down in his place. Then the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, 'Samuel! Samuel!' And Samuel said, 'Speak, for Your servant is listening.'" (1Sa 3:4-10)

As a little boy, when he first heard the Lord's voice, it sounded familiar, and he thought it was the person in the other room. But he quickly learned that it was the Lord speaking. When you go before the Lord, you should pray with an attitude like Samuel, "Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening."

The Lord has enabled us to know the mind of Christ
Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ." (1Co 2:16)

Who has ever heard of someone knowing what God is thinking? Yet that's exactly what happens when we are a disciples of Christ. We actually have His mind, and through prayer we can discover what the Lord desires in a given situation.

John heard the voice of the Lord
The apostle John recorded his experience on the isle of Patmos. He wrote: "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, saying, 'Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.' Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength." (Rev 1:10-16)

John clearly heard the Lord's voice as loud as a loud trumpet, and like the sound of many waters. He also saw visions from God. We have the book of Revelation today because of it. All that happened to him while he was in a lonely, desolate place, being persecuted for his faith in Christ. So when you feel alone, remember that the Lord may want to speak to you during that time when you are free of distractions.

When everyone is hearing the Lord, there is a common sense of expectation for God to move
The prophets Elijah and Elisha both knew God was about to take Elijah. :And it came about when the LORD was about to take up Elijah by a whirlwind to heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, 'Stay here please, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel.' But Elisha said, 'As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.' So they went down to Bethel." (2Ki 2:1-2)

Not only Elisha and Elijah knew, but the prophets at Bethel also knew God was about to take Elijah. "Then the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, 'Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?' And he said, 'Yes, I know; be still.'" (2Ki 2:3)

Because Elisha knew the God was about to take Elijah from him, he followed Elijah, so that he could be with him when it happened. "Elijah said to him, 'Elisha, please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to Jericho.' But he said, 'As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.' So they came to Jericho." (2Ki 2:4)

Even the prophets at Jericho knew the Lord was about to take Elijah from Elisha. "The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho approached Elisha and said to him, 'Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?' And he answered, 'Yes, I know; be still.'" (2Ki 2:5)

Elisha insisted on staying with Elijah, knowing God would soon take him. "Then Elijah said to him, 'Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan.' And he said, 'As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.' So the two of them went on." (2Ki 2:6)

I just want to point out that when all these people -- Elisha, Elijah, the prophets at Bethel, and the prophets at Jericho -- were all hearing from the Lord about the same thing, they had a sense of expectation. And the same is true today in the Church. When the Body of Christ is listening to the Lord's voice, we will all be hearing the same thing. Then we'll have a mutual sense of expectation for what the Lord is about to do.

Elijah heard the Lord’s voice in a gentle breeze
The prophet Elijah fasted for forty days after eating and drinking. "So he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God." (1Ki 19:8)

The Word of the Lord came to him while fasting for forty days. "Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'" (1Ki 19:9)

He spoke to the Lord of his zeal saying, "I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away." (1Ki 19:10)

The Lord was not in the wind or earthquake. "So He said, 'Go forth and stand on the mountain before the LORD.' And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake." (1Ki 19:11)

The Lord was not in the fire, but in the gentle breeze. "After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'" (1Ki 19:12-13)

At that time, the Lord's voice was not in the tornado, and it was not in the earthquake or the fire. It was in a gentle breeze, and what Elijah heard was a still, small voice. Many times this is the way the Lord will speak to you. It's not dramatic. It's just a still, small voice in your heart. You need to learn to distinguish it. Often fasting will help you hear more clearly what the Lord is saying to you.

Putting it All Together
Moses, Peter, Paul, Isaiah, Samuel, David and John heard the voice of the Lord. So did the Israelites, but they perished in the wilderness, because they didn’t listen to the Lord’s voice.

When everyone is hearing the Lord, there is a mutual sense of expectation for God to move. Elijah and Elisha both knew God was about to take Elijah, as did the prophets at Bethel and Jericho. Because Elisha knew the God was about to take Elijah from him soon, he insisted on staying with him.

The voice of the Lord is powerful, majestic, and shakes the wilderness. John heard it as loud as a loud trumpet, and also said his voice was like the sound of many waters.

The Word of the Lord came to Elijah while fasting for forty days. The Lord was not in the wind or earthquake. The Lord was not in the fire. Elijah heard the Lord’s voice in a gentle breeze.

Jesus said His sheep would know His voice. That means you can hear the Lord's voice. It's not that difficult. The Lord has enabled us to know the mind of Christ. Many times the Lord’s voice sounds like our own thoughts. It will come to us as we quiet ourselves before the Lord in prayer and worship and reading the Word.

God’s Word is active and living. But we need to believe the Lord is speaking to us and act upon what we hear. If we don’t believe, we will not act. If we don’t believe or act, we will harden our hearts. We must not harden our hearts when we hear the Lord’s voice.

Let me encourage you today to listen for the Lord's voice. Get alone with him and quiet yourself. Worship and read His Word, and then wait upon Him to speak. He will be faithful to do it, and it will always agree with the Scriptures. Then just be sure to do whatever He tells you.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, I recommend reading The Voice That Changed Everything, Inquiring of the Lord, Led by the Spirit - Part I, and Led by the Spirit - Part II.  You may also like the other posts in this blog available through the Home page. You may also access my blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.