The First Thing He Tells You

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Shirley wants to know something that is really key to opening the door and being able to tap into and understand and receive the way that God intervenes in the life of the believer answering prayer moving miraculously other ways as well is the fact that when he speaks. The first thing that I hear him say if I can obey that thing that part.

The word that I hear initially, it becomes then a series of ongoing are progressive words from him so that one thing leads to the next to the next and to the next and I find that it's not so much the first thing I hear that is like the big big thing are the answer to my prayer as much as more often it is down the line the second or the third are the fourth thing, etc. and I'm just being trying to sound practical here. Doves are the things that open doors we do not know did not even know to ask for was not own.

Our radar was not in our thinking because you know it is that divine level that place in God that we can move into once we start, but we can't do it standing still we can't do it reluctantly waiting for complete proof that we've heard the first thing you know I love the expression in the word that really tells us that a little child can really hear him.

So clearly because that innocence their heart and mind is innocent toward him. They just hearing and they just can move as a result. So obedience is better.

The word says that our sacrifice if we obey the first thing that we hear him say and we stay with it until we hear the next thing. That means I began I stepped out I obeyed the prompting of that still small voice again like in childlike faith and then soon usually doesn't take very long. But even if it does take a while you will hear a second step and 1/3 etc. possibly even more powerful then the answer that you received with the first thing so the opposite is true. We understand from that expression obedience is better than sacrifice. It comes from first Samuel chapter 15 verse two where we read, to obey is better than sacrifice, and this is as a result of the instructions that God gave to Saul who was the king and in following what the Lord said to him what the prophet said the Lord said through the prophet to him. Then Saul obeyed, in part, but not completely. And we know the story.

It didn't turn out well and that's where we read how the prophet said to Saul look you didn't listen, you didn't hear what God said to do and that has set in motion. These undesirable events these things that we didn't want you know sometimes people think that God did not answer their prayer are did not intervene when in fact it was something own there in. In other words, we need to own those things and we don't need to stand in the way of the outworking of God's supernatural intervention in our lives. This verse really applies to choosing to hear the Lord's voice and therefore being able to discern if it is or is not his voice if his word is just a man talking or is sent from God, but I love I just love this verse. I think I love the wording, if any man will do the will of God, he will know he will know he will have more understanding and so that applies to our topic today that if we will choose to do the will of God and not be so intellectual or mental about it that the heart leads you and what you hear that simple voice that simple prompting.

Just follow that if any man wills to do the will of God, he will know and sometimes I interject the words he will know the will of God because that is not completely out of line with what that passage is teaching. If any man chooses to do the will of God, and has made up his mind to do the will of God. It opens up so much that you wouldn't have otherwise. Or if you had not chosen to do the will of God.

Also, another thing that really stands out to me is those two miracles at Cana of Galilee there and John to and John for two separate chapters of the book of John one probably one of the most well-known stories from the Bible about the wedding at Cana of Galilee when Jesus turned water into wine that story and then also probably a well-known story out of John for maybe not as well-known but it's the story of how Jesus healed the officials son and he did it really the way that that was really carried out in a spot act of faith on the officials parts. The first of all, at the wedding at Cana that day. You remember verse five of John to Mary said to the servants, do whatever he tells you and she instructed the servants ahead of anything that Jesus did. He had not made a move. The move are taken any action to help with the situation that was happening there at the wedding, but Mary moved really bad faith.

She had an auction and a prompting that God intended to move that day and when she said to the servants, do whatever he meaning her son Jesus. Whatever he tells you things began to move in the direction of the water pots being one by one converted from water to wine, which was the finest one that the master of the feast could serve. It was a demonstrative story in the Bible. It was a way of conveying how the miraculous that God does in this case, through his son, but in our case through our lives applies to every part of life that God is involved in every part every element, every facet of our lives, not the things that we think are the most important are the most religious, but in the smaller things that we say how could God be concerned about that.

Listen, he is creator. He put the desire in your heart. He put vision in your heart. He is concerned about those details as much as you. That's the story are one of the elements of the story out of this example at the wedding that day and then secondly, John chapter 4 verse 50 Jesus said to the official who had appealed to him concerning the healing of his son that his son was in another place at the door of death very, very ill, and the officials said to Jesus, please come to my house and heal my son and Jesus response to him, so he stepped out in appealing to Jesus for the first thing and Jesus answer exceeded his request and he said to to him. Jesus said to the official go.

In other words, go to your house. Return to your house, your son will live in the man's response he believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way and verse 51. Here it is.

And as he was going down to his house. He responded to Jesus. Jesus said, go on your way.

Your son will live. The man believed him.

What Jesus spoke at he's began his return to his home and as he was going.

The servants of his house, came to him and said your son is recovering well.

Your son is recovering the official asked them at what hour did you first notice this recovery was beginning and they realized it was at the moment. At the same time or in the same timeframe that Jesus said, go your way, your son will live.

You see how this works is not a one and done. It's not the way we think of things is not the way that we would lay it out. It is that first, prompting your response to that first prompting step out move in faith with that that's what you have. You don't have more you can say you have more because you don't have more you have this one prompting by the way, my experiences, it usually is very simple is not a hard thing is not beyond my ability but sometimes it is beyond my will. My will is not there, I'm not willing to risk the embarrassment or the humiliation of doing something so simple like this official spoke up to Jesus and appealed. He didn't just say oh wow my son is ill. He said I need you to come to my house. That was the prompting he had that was the only thing he knew he didn't know Jesus was going to speak the word and that that was going to take care of it.

He didn't know that his response to the next thing Jesus said was going to be the reason things began to happen. He didn't know any of that. All he had was the first thing and as we said originally. If any man will choose to do the will of God, he will know he will know the next thing.

That's my rendering of that verse by the way, so I want to take it out of context. But you know God's word is so rich.

The application is beyond anything sometimes than we can think but it's the way that God speaks to our hearts simply aren't we humbled by that were not creating doctrine or a new approach or a strange doctrine. We are simply in our hearts responding to what we hear, like a child in that childlike faith and just look at this example, there's one more. I love this one out of Revelation 3 it's you know the principle of when God knocks on your heart and you hear him and you open the door. This verse 20 Revelation 3 behold, I stand at the door and knock.

If any man here underline here my voice and open underline open the door will come, and to him underline come in and I will sup with him, and he with me, Jesus is standing here and we apply this to. I think most often, I think of it in the constant context of someone coming initially to the Lord of inviting him into their heart initially to be Lord and Savior, but also as were talking today about hearing that gentle prompting of the Lord is the same thing the Lord is standing at the door and he is knocking with that initial prompting and he says if you will hear it. Hear his voice open the door. In other words, receive what he saying he will come in and sup. What does that mean it means that I've acknowledged his knock.

I believe that I am hearing him and I believe what he saying what he is saying to me. I allow him in to my heart and my understanding agreeing with him. That's really important.

You wouldn't let someone in your home. That was a stranger, or that on some level you didn't have agreement with maybe a neighbor, a friend so there many things we can say about this verse but here we can see it is like sitting down to a meal with someone and exchange takes place. That exchange begins to grow. There's more interaction and fellowship. A friendly setting may be a growing bond of friendship, a growing bond of fellowship and it can even become like having a meal that someone can become a really confidential time really intimate time of sharing for the believer. See, for believers, sitting down to communion with the Lord thinking of the communion meal having supper with the Lord. This is really something. You know what I mean.

This is really something. This is not a passive occurrence. Is it it's not so again just in this prompting. We are able to hear the Lord were able to hear him and were able to take that first step we do it by faith. And as we do that by faith, then we can hear from him. The next thing and then after we've heard again we hear the next thing. And on and on until this is really a lifestyle. I hear people talk about the miraculous the supernatural divine interventions in the life of the believer as if that is a remote possibility. That is a rare occurrence, you know, or maybe even like an extra biblical occurrence me. I hear all kinds of things. But if you keep it simple and if you stay in the word you really open your heart to hear the word trust the Holy Spirit to reveal truth to you. You come away with the six fats, and this expanding lifestyle of what happened at the wedding at Cana. What happened with the official that day when he appealed to Jesus for the healing of his son Jesus is saying in the book of Revelation about standing at the door of my heart and knocking to see will will open the door to him how long will he knock before I listen and hear it on the other side of the door is the answer to my most deeply held desire. My greatest prayer request so to speak. And, unlike King Saul that I'm not trying to offer a religious life of sacrifices in order to please him, but that simple small still voice speaking to my heart and my response just to do it by faith, whatever he tells me I do it, praying that way.

Praying that way with me now father in Jesus name. You've heard you've heard our conversation today, and we ask you, according to your deepest desire for our lives to be intertwined with you on this level and in this way that we open our hearts and our understanding and respond to that knock that simple instruction and as we respond. We hear you more and more, and as you said even more and more as we see the day approaching.

The day of your return as we move closer and closer to that day when ever it is, as we become more aligned with you, hearing your voice. We are so grateful for this amazing miraculous opportunity to do that very thing. In Jesus name we thank you Lord we say a man and a man hallelujah so because of first Corinthians 216.

Every believer has the mind of Christ. That means we have the thought life of 18 we have the thought life of the key and because the Philippians to our role is to choose to have his mind to have his mind over anything else. We let his mind be in us, we let his mind be in us. That's the way we do it. It's a simple thing. We just allow it, a man bites policeman did you enjoy this episode and you'd like to help support this project we shared with others posterboard media believe in leading and review the filaments visit.org you can subscribe to Shirley's email list and produce your very own copy of Shirley's 365 horses. Thanks again and we will see you next