We live in times when perhaps spirituality is on the increase. People may not necessarily hold a Christian view of spirituality, albeit, they hold a kind of spirituality. Even those who claim not to believe in anything often speak of a higher power. Among Christians also, “spiritual” is a word that is often banded around with varied meanings often riddled with error. One common area of so-called spirituality is people claiming to hear from God and indeed receive messages from him. Audibly. But what are we to make of these supposed audile utterances of God? Is it supported by Scripture? Can we indeed hear from God?
The answer to the last question is yes, we can indeed hear from God. But how, one may ask. Audibly? No, I don’t believe that. I will want to turn at this point to a very popular text and attempt for the rest of this post to explain how one can hear from the Spirit of God as the title suggest.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches (Revelation 3:22).
From the text, we can assume at least two things (i) The Spirit of God speaks and (ii) The Spirit of God can be heard. These assumptions will lead us in answering the question How To Hear The Spirit Of God. The churches mentioned in the text were seven churches in 1st-century Christian history who were given specific messages through the apostle John. He was instructed to write these specific messages to the churches
Write what you see in a book 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 (Rev. 1:11 see also 1:19; 2:1; 8; 18; 3:1; 7; 14)
The Spirit Speaks Through Scripture
So when the Scripture calls the one with ears to hear what the Spirit says to the churches, the reference point is to be understood as what the Spirit has asked John to write. Every church mentioned in Revelation 2—3 was not to hear the Spirit speak in the same manner he spoke to the apostle John, i.e. in a vision with an audible voice. Rather, they were to hear the Spirit’s words through what John was instructed to write. In that understanding, the medium by which the Spirit speaks becomes clear. The churches were to read what is written and hear the Spirit speaking. must refer to what was written to the churches.
As have been stated already, the reference point to what the Spirit says is the written word. It is written down in words for us to read, study and understand.
Scripture, therefore, is God’s medium of communication to us. Read your Bible if you want to hear the Spirit speak.
Within a certain period in redemptive history, God spoke his words through his Prophets and Apostles. These spoken words were then written down and documented and have become what we use today as Bible. Scripture is a merciful and benevolent act of God’s mercy he has bestowed on humanity. If there were no Scripture, we would have no proper knowledge of God. Nature will give us a sense of a Creator, albeit it will fall short of teaching us how to relate with this Creator. Scripture—the Bible— therefore comes handy as God’s medium of bringing us into a fruitful relationship with him. Scripture is sufficient to reveal to us who God is, who were are and what is required of us to live a life pleasing to God.
…therefore it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal Himself, and to declare that His will unto His Church;[3] and afterwards, for the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing;[4] which maketh the Holy Scripture to be most necessary;(5) those former ways of God’s jrevealing His will unto His people being now ceased.(6) (1) Ro 2:14,15; Ro 1:19,20; Ps 19:1,2,3; Ro 1:32; Ro 2:1 (2) 1Co 1:21; 1Co 2:13,14 (3) Heb 1:1 (4) Pr 22:19,20,21;Lk 1:3,4; Ro 15:4; Mt 4:4,7,10; Isa 8:19,20 (5) 2Ti 3:15; 2Pe 1:19 (6) Heb 1:1,2
— Westminster Confession of Faith 1.1
The words the Spirit speaks today, therefore, is written down in Scripture through which the Spirit speaks to us.
What Is The Spirit Saying To The Churches?
The messages to the individual churches in revelation can be summarised as encouragement (in things they were doing well), a rebuke (where they had fallen short) and a call to repentance. Their encouragement therefore becomes our encouragement. Their rebuke becomes our rebuke and the call to repentance becomes our call to repentance. What do we make of this then?
The Spirit of God through the Scriptures indeed encourages us to continue in the faith and in good works. It also rebukes us where we are slothful and calls us to repentance.
Grace and Truth 