When we believe that we may have heard from God, we are to test what we have heard or sensed.

     Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. (1 Jn. 4:1)

The first test for determining whose voice we have heard is always the Word of God.

We must determine whether or not the thought is consistent with God’s truth as revealed in His written word.  If not, disregard what you have heard. Of course, that also places a burden on us to know the Word of God well enough to test what we have heard against scripture.  We must always be aware that God will never contradict his word but He may contradict our understanding of His word.  Be open to the Holy Spirit giving you a new understanding of familiar scriptures as well as scriptures that catch your eye for the first time. If you are unsure whether a thought, a word, or an image lines up with scripture, share it with a spiritual mentor who has a strong biblical foundation.

There are four other good tests in addition to the Word of God.

1.  Does the “voice” or message seem consistent with the character of God or Jesus?

The character of God is revealed in the fruit of the Spirit passage of Galatians. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. “ (Gal. 5:22)

John tells us that “God is love” (1 Jn.4:8) and Paul gives us a working definition of love.  He says, “Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” (1 Cor. 13:4-8).

The message and the “spirit” or “quality” of the message, then, will reflect those characteristics if it is from God. If the “voice” you hear is accusing, condemning, rude, boastful, mean, angry, or demeaning, it is not from God. If the voice asks you to do something contrary to scripture or if it violates his righteousness, it is not from God.

2.   Does the message produce peace in your heart?

Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you.  My peace I now give and bequeath to you.  Not as the world gives do I give to you.  Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid”  (Jn. 14:27). Paul also spoke about peace.  He said, “But the mind of the Spirit is life and peace, both now and forever” (Rom. 8:6). The fruit of the Spirit includes peace.

Sometimes God speaks things we don’t fully understand.  Sometimes He may send conviction about sin in our life.  Sometimes we may receive a word of discipline or a message about changes or even hardships we will be facing. But when God has finished speaking, there is always a sense of peace that surrounds His word.  God does not have plans to hurt us, but to bless us and, in our spirits, His word leaves that assurance.

3.    Do spiritual mentors sense that what you have heard is from God?

It is always valuable to have one or two spiritual mentors who have learned to hear God’s voice themselves and to share with them what you are hearing. They will often have a sense about the quality and content of what you are hearing that will help you develop your discernment.

4.  Confirmations

God is not offended when we ask him to confirm the word we believe we have received from him. In cases where we believe God is calling us to drastic action or significant changes in our lives, it is wise to pray for confirmation. Gideon asked for confirmation through the exercise of a ram’s fleece (see Judges 6:35-40) before he led Israel in battle. Jonathan sought confirmation through the verbal response of his enemies (see 1 Samuel 14:6-14) before he and his armor bearer attacked a Philistine garrison alone.  When we believe God has called on us to act in some life altering way, we may want to seek confirmation that we have heard him correctly.

Remember, we are not doubting God. We are simply making sure that we clearly heard from him and understood his intent. Confirmation can come in a variety of ways. Perhaps, circumstances line up in extraordinary ways or provision comes to us in miraculous ways. Individuals may come to us and tell us that God spoke to them about what we have been considering. We simply put our own “fleece” forward and ask for that confirmation just as Gideon and Jonathan did.  God honored their requests and we can expect him to honor ours. There will come a time when we will know God’s voice so well that confirmation will not be necessary, but as we are growing in this spiritual realm we may well want to seek his confirmation before acting.

More on Discerning God’s Voice in the next segment of this series.

Revelation:

One of the reasons many Christians don’t believe that God speaks to them is that they don’t recognize his voice when they hear it and don’t understand the ways in which the Holy Spirit reveals God’s heart to us.  Paul helps our understanding with the following passages.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.  For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.  We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.  This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.  The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor. 2:10-14)

 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  (Rom.  8:16)

 In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul reveals the process through which revelation comes to every follower of Jesus. Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit searches the mind of God and Christ, takes their thoughts or feelings relevant to us, and reveals those thoughts and feelings to our spirit.  Our spirit, then, opens up those thoughts to our conscious mind so that we can perceive the mind and the heart of God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  Because of that, we often hear the voice of God as a thought, an impression, a mental picture, a dream, or a vision that rises from our spirit into our consciousness.

Because this “download” from God’s Spirit to ours is experienced in the same way that we experience our own thoughts, we often dismiss a word of revelation from God as something we have intuitively known or discovered ourselves. Nearly every Christian has thought of someone spontaneously whom they had not thought of in days or weeks.  But suddenly, out of the blue, they think of that person and sense that they should give him/her a call.  When they do call, they discover that their friend or acquaintance was in desperate need of prayer or encouragement.  Then, that Christian goes on his way thinking about what a lucky coincidence all of that was.  What that person experienced was a revelation from God.  It was a “word of knowledge” about that friend and a prompting to make the call. God just spoke to that believer through the Holy Spirit but it seemed like an intuitive thought.

Many believers have had premonitions or foreboding thoughts about an event, an accident, or a disaster that they cautiously avoided.  They simply call it a premonition as if something had been floating around in the atmosphere and they had randomly sniffed a whiff of the future. What they actually experienced was a prophetic warning by the Holy Spirit.

Nearly all believers who study the word have had a moment when one scripture pointed to another and then another verse came to mind and suddenly a string of theological dots were connected that seemed like brilliant insight. What that person experienced was the Holy Spirit leading her into all truth and reminding her of things Jesus had said (Jn.14:26).  God had just spoken truth to that individual through the Holy Spirit.

My point is that Christians who don’t believe in the miraculous gifts of the Spirit or God speaking to his people today, have nearly all operated in those gifts themselves and have heard from God on many occasions.   They just call it something else because they have not been trained to expect the voice of God to come to them in a variety of ways.

The scriptures also tell us that God communicates with his people through dreams and visions. If we do not expect God to speak to us in those ways we will simply “write off” those dreams as something produced by our own minds and imagination.

If you, as a believer, have not been open to the voice of God coming to you, God has undoubtedly spoken to you or revealed himself to you on numerous occasions, but you simply did not know it was the Lord.  As a young man, the prophet Samuel heard God’s voice clearly and strongly on several occasions but believed it was a human voice calling to Him.  He finally asked Eli, his spiritual mentor, about the voice and Eli discerned that God Himself had been speaking to the boy.  It was then that Samuel began to recognize the voice of God in his own life.

As we come to expect God’s voice, we will learn that it has qualities that set it apart from our own thoughts.  Often there is a spontaneous quality when God speaks to us.  We simply know that the thoughts we are experiencing are not thoughts that have come from our reservoir of experiences nor are they expressed in ways that are common to us.  God speaks directly to us, not about us.  Dreams from the Father tend to be vivid and unforgettable.  Eventually, those who hear his voice on a regular basis will intuitively know it is God speaking to them as the Father, the Son or the Spirit.In addition to the inner voice of the Spirit, we may also hear from God in other ways as well – angelic visits, the audible voice of God, prophetic words, circumstances, dreams, etc. God desires to speak to his children in a myriad of ways and does so. .

Part of the joy of the Christian life is hearing personally from our heavenly Father in a variety of ways.I want to encourage you to begin to sense all the ways in a day that God has revealed himself to you and to begin to scan your own thoughts when you are in the Word or have been in prayer to sense the Father speaking to you.  Invite him to speak. Then listen.  Write down whatever you are hearing even though it will most likely feel like your own thoughts or imagination.  Tomorrow, I will talk about discerning whether what you hear is from the Lord or another source.

This is the second part of a series about God speaking to his people.  In Part 1, we explored the heart of God that deeply desires to reveal himself to his people and all the ways in which he has done that through the centuries. In this part we will discover that God’s word frequently emphasizes his speaking and our hearing in addition to reading the written word.

There are actually two Greek words that are translated “word” or “the word” related to what God says.  Logos tends to emphasize the entirety of God’s written communication to his people which is the Bible.  Rhema tends to emphasize a fresh word from God, which is not a binding revelation for all believers, but something that speaks to a certain situation or an individual.  Both words are used in the N.T. and the natural reading of the New Testament would not suggest that God’s fresh word to individual believer’s or churches was confined to the first century. So, if you have been taught that God no longer speaks to his children apart from the written word, let me encourage you to take a fresh look at some familiar scriptures.

Although God speaks to us in many ways his primary agent for communicating with His people is the Holy Spirit. The written word of God is his most available communication to us but even when we are seeking to know God and his will through personal reflection on the scriptures, the Holy Spirit is the one giving us understanding and application of that word. We experience the Holy Spirit in those moments as insight or understanding, but without the Spirit “speaking” to our spirit, we could not even understand God’s word as he intends.  “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14).

But through the Holy Spirit, God also speaks to our hearts and minds apart from our reflection on the Word.  Note the following scriptures and the words or phrases that have been bold-faced for emphasis.

The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep…He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…his sheep follow him because they know His voice … they do not recognize a stranger’s voice … I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and my sheep know me.  (Jn. 10:2-5, 14-15)

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.  (Rom. 10:17)

But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will only speak what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.  (Jn. 16: 13-14)

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.  For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.  We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.  This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.  The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor. 2:10-14)

The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  (Rom.  8:16)

This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it – the Lord is his name.  “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”  (Jer. 33: 3)

Notice that these scriptures use words that signify direct communication between God and his people.  It shouldn’t surprise us.  From Genesis to Revelation, the biblical record is that God spoke to individuals face to face, through his Spirit as the word of the Lord came to numerous men and women,  through dreams and visions, and through angelic visits.

God spoke in these ways in the Garden, from the Garden to the giving of the Law at Sinai, from the giving of the Law to the cross and, more than ever, after the cross and the sending of the Spirit by Jesus. Why would we assume he would suddenly stop speaking a fresh word to his people somewhere around the end of the first century when it is evidently the nature of God to speak to his children through his written word (whether the Torah or the New Testament) and through a freshly spoken word. Since, God is the same yesterday, today and forever should we not expect to hear his voice on a personal level since we are his children?

Today I want to start a mini-series about Hearing God.  I will admit that when I first believed God still spoke to his people I listened for a God-like voice in my head.  I assumed his voice would sound like the voice in Cecil B. DeMIlle’s old movie The Ten Commandments with Charleton Heston as Moses – deep, thunderous, mysterious. So I prayed and listened but never heard that voice. I think many Christians who have hoped to hear God speak may have had similar expectations and found themselves giving up on hearing from the creator of the universe.  But take heart.  God does speak to his people through his written word but also apart from it.  If you are uncertain about hearing God, these blog posts over the next few days may be helpful.

Let me tell you quickly why this is important. It is important because God wants to speak to his children personally like any father. The Bible is like letters from a Father to his family.  He gives the family history and writes down guidelines and wisdom for how the family should live and treat one another.  He even tells them some things about himself. But every parent knows that children are unique and have a unique destiny.  A good father will want to speak to that child personally in ways that his child can receive. He will want to speak to that son or daughter and tell them why they are so special.  He will want to speak into their unique destiny or give them counsel for their unique challenges. God is our Father.  He wants to speak to us as a family but also as individuals.

In addition, many of us carry wounds that are kept from healing by lies that the enemy has sown in our hearts.  Just as Christ verbalized words of healing to those he touched on the earth, emotional healing comes when God speaks to us about our wounds. Hearing or experiencing God in some other direct way is the most healing thing I know.  So…please spend some time reflecting on these next few blogs and consider a life of hearing God.

Hearing God

The majority of churches in America teach that God only speaks to us through His written word – the Bible. Many of us have been taught that God spoke directly to his people only in “Bible times.”  We were taught that all that we can now know is God’s general will for our lives from studying his word.  Then, we are left to discern His specific will for us from biblical principles. However, there are times when we need more.  Sometimes we face critical decisions.  Biblical principles can narrow down our options but sometimes we need specific direction. If we cannot hear from God about that situation, we are on our own.  Sometimes we don’t need direction but we certainly need encouragement or the affirmation of a father.  Even Jesus needed to hear, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”  Sometimes we just need to hear from God the Father or Jesus the Son.  He is pleased to speak to each of his children and express his love to every son and daughter.

The apostles themselves faced a situation in Acts 1:15-26 in which they needed direction from the Lord.  There we find the apostles searching for another man to replace Judas as one of the twelve.  Jesus had given them the qualifications for one who would be an apostle.  In the end, they had two men who met all the qualifications but there was only one position. The will of God that had already been revealed was not sufficient to make this final decision. The apostles prayed and asked God to give them specific revelation for that one unique situation.  The apostles prayed and cast lots and through that process God directed them to the one man whose heart qualified him to be an apostle.  In our own lives there are times we need a little more than biblical principles.  There are times when we need to hear from God about specific needs or situations.  God is longing to speak to us about those things and many other things as well.

The biblical record is that throughout the centuries God has not only revealed His general will to His people through the written word but over and over he has also revealed His specific will to individuals so that they might step into the destiny He had established for them.    God’s heart, as revealed in the Bible, is very clear.  He wants to speak to His people as a group and as individuals and has gone to great lengths to do so. He wants to reveal not only his will but himself to us because knowing him in a personal way is essential for love, intimacy, and friendship.  God has shown himself to us in numerous ways.

• Through His creation.  (Rom. 1:20; Ps. 19:1-2)
• Through His prophets. (Heb. 1:1)
• Through His Son. (Heb. 1:2)
• Through His written word. (2 Tim. 3:16)
• Through direct encounters. (Gen. 18; Ex. 3; Ex. 33:7; 1 Sam. 3)
• Through the casting of lots and fleeces. (Acts 1:26; Judges 6:36-40)
• Through dreams and visions. (Acts 2:18)
• Through circumstances. (1 Sam. 14:6-12)
• Through visitations by angels. (Matt. 1:20; Luke 1:11, 26, 2:13, etc.)
• Through His people to one another. (1 Cor. 14:26-33)
• Through the Holy Spirit by prophetic words, words of knowledge, impressions, tongues and interpretation of tongues, etc. (John 16:13; Rom. 8:14,16)
• And more….

God wants a relationship with you.  He wants intimacy and for that to occur there must be a dialogue where both parties listen and both speak – sharing their hearts with one another. God has gone to great lengths to do so and continues to share his heart, his will, and his ways with those who will listen.

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them.  Matt.4:23-24

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.  Matt.10:5-8

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.’ The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”   Luke 10:1, 17-20

Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.  I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.   Jn.14:12-14

But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.  For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:  But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.  1 Cor. 12:7-11

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of words but of power.  1 Cor.4:20

Notice a pattern.  It is a pattern of power.  Jesus displayed it first.  Preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, cleanse lepers, raise the dead. Jesus then delegated power and authority to his twelve apostles. He told them to preach, heal, deliver, cleanse, and raise the dead.  Then he sent out seventy-two ordinary disciples who were told to do the same.  They came back triumphant.

Then Jesus promised that anyone who believes on him would do the works he had been doing and in fact they would do even greater things.  Then the Holy Spirit descended on the church and distributed spiritual gifts to every believer which included gifts that display miraculous power. The power of the kingdom of God was not reserved for Jesus or even for the twelve. It was given to seventy-two others and then to the whole church so that the church might continue to do the works Jesus did and even greater things.

There is no hint in these passages that the power and authority distributed first by Jesus and then by his Spirit would fade to a whimper within a few decades of their inauguration.  Power has always been at the core of the gospel: preach it, then demonstrate it.  That is the pattern. Destroy the works of the devil.  Heal broken hearts.  Return health to diseased bodies. Set people free from every form of bondage.

Why would we ever want less or settle for less? Instead, press in, cry out for more, risk asking for and declaring the miraculous works of God.  Bring Jesus everyone he died for by using every bit of the power and authority he paid for.  For the kingdom is not a matter of words but of power.

Why do some things seem to tumble into place as soon as we pray and others take months or decades or a lifetime?  Is it our intensity in prayer, our faith for God to move mountains, or our personal intimacy with God that makes the difference? At times, each of those elements may factor in.  But often, the same person with the same intensity, the same faith, and the same intimacy finds that some prayers seem to be answered quickly while others take time – sometimes a great deal of time.

Dutch Sheets, in his book Intercessory Prayer (a great read ), suggests one possibility for your consideration.  He speculates that prayer releases the power of the Holy Spirit into situations and that some simply take more power to accomplish than others. I know I could object immediately to that notion since God has all power and he dispenses that power as he chooses. But God only acts in concert with his people on a great number of spiritual playing fields. There are many things God wants to do but holds back until his people pray so that we are “partnering with him” in the work of the kingdom.

I don’t think there is just one answer to our questions about prayer but I think we should consider the possibility that strongholds exist in spiritual realms like walled cities standing against siege weapons.  Some walls are higher and thicker than others.  Some are made of timber like forts on the frontier. Others are made of dirt piled high and others of great stones. Think of prayers as spiritual catapults where we continue to hurl stones at the wall of the enemy where he has established a stronghold in a person’s life, in generations of a family, or in a community.

As we press in and pray, is it possible that we are firing shots at the wall and must continue to bombard the enemy’s stronghold until the wall cracks, then begins to crumble, and then finally collapses sending the enemy scattering into the night? We don’t always know how high or thick the wall is or how long it has been in place when we begin to pray.  We don’t know how skilled and experienced those are who man the walls for the enemy.

Another way to think of this is that prayer is like an energy weapon. We carry power generated by the Holy Spirit. He is responsible for the energy that powers our weapons. But we are responsible to track down the enemy, point, and shoot.  As we point our faith toward a situation and pull the trigger of prayer, the Holy Spirit releases energy into the situation that our heart and prayers are focused on.

So, when we pray, we are assaulting enemy strongholds and when we and the others praying with us have released the power of the Holy Spirit into that situation long enough with faith and fervor, the wall must eventually fall and when it does…we will see the kingdom established quickly in that place and the enemy in wild retreat.  Undoubtedly, many things related to prayer are still a mystery.  However,  we do know that the one in us is greater than the one that is behind the wall.  We do know that the power that overcame hell and raised Jesus from the dead is at work within us.

So, in those moments when you are weary and you wonder if you should continue to pray because you have seen no change – pray again.  Perhaps, the wall is already beginning to crack and crumble.  Perhaps, the next volley will see its collapse and hearts will be opened, bodies healed, and cities transformed.  Remember, Jesus told us that the gates of hell will not prevail against his church.  In Christ, we have the enemy surrounded. Victory is assured. Just keep firing away in the faith that we are more than conquerors in Christ – every time.  Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and never give up (Lk.18:1).

Few of us are ever aware of the provision and power that God offers us when we face impossible moments in our lives.  I admit that I am one who often misses it as well.

I love the story of Elisha when he was surrounded by the army of Aram in the small town of Dothan.  The king of Aram was at war with Israel. Each time he set an ambush for Israeli troops, Elisha would receive a word of knowledge from the Lord, warn the leaders of Israel, and the King of Aram’s plans would fail miserably.  His initial thought was that a spy was leaking his battle plans to Israel but one of his captains convinced him that the prophet Elisha was the one informing on the King.

The King ordered a nationwide manhunt for the prophet who was to be found and captured.  Word got back to the king that Elisha had been seen in Dothan in northern Samaria and so he commanded his army to surround the settlement.  We’re told in 2 Kings 6, “When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots surrounded the city. ‘O my lord, what shall we do?’ the servant asked.  ‘Don’t be afraid,’ the prophet answered. ‘Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, ’O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

The Lord had already responded to the need of Elisha and his servant with the power of heaven poised to do battle on behalf of the man of God. The servant was terrified because he had no faith to see what God had already made available in this impossible moment.  Apparently, God left the fate of those soldiers in the hands of his prophet who could have called on the angelic army to destroy his enemies.  Instead, he asked the Lord to strike the army blind for a season while he led them to Samaria where they were eventually released. After a demonstration of God’s power on behalf of his people, the text says, “So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory” (2 Kings 6:23).

Here is the lesson.  If God is for us, who can stand against us?  God is never taken by surprise.  When the King of Aram ordered the capture of Elisha, God had already provided for Elisha’s victory. The servant was overcome by fear.  Given the chance he would have stolen away in night and hidden in the hills. Elisha, having faith in both the power and the character of God, stood without fear and saw the provision of God that others could not.

We will all face our impossible moments when no strength or resource of our own will provide the victory we need. Failing marriages, children bent on self-destruction, financial crisis, cancer, or the overwhelming loss of a loved one. We all come to moment when we feel as if we are surrounded by an overpowering force that we cannot stand against. In the moment, pray Elijah’s prayer for yourself, “O Lord, open my eyes that I might see!  Lord, show me by faith and by your Spirit, the power and provision that you have made available to me for this impossible moment. For with you nothing is impossible.” In the kingdom of God, those who are with us are always more than those who are with them.

Yesterday my wife Susan shared a story with me from the Internet about a tribe in Africa that takes a unique approach to tribal discipline.  When a tribe member breaks one of the tribal laws or social conventions, the assumption is that the individual is essentially good but broken. Instead of punishing the behaviors, they place the offending individual in the middle of the village and for two days, the rest of the tribe surrounds them and speaks positive things and good names over them.

The story didn’t report on the tribe’s assumptions about the benefits of the ritual so I’ll speculate on a few possibilities.  If they assume an evil spirit has corrupted the person, then perhaps they sense they can fight evil by speaking good over the person and in that way drive away the enemy.  Perhaps, they believe the person has forgotten his or her essential goodness and so two days of declarations reminds them of who they are or “reboots” them to their default settings. Perhaps, all the positive things spoken over the offender are simply designed to call them to a higher standard of living.  I have no idea if there as been any Christian influence in the tribe but there is something very biblical and very powerful about their approach.

Now, I am speaking about our tribe of believers only.  Ours is the tribe marked by the presence of the Holy Spirit living in us. Mankind, in general, is not essentially good because mankind has a fallen nature.  However, once an individual has been born again, is a new creation in Christ, and has the Spirit of God within…he or she must be considered essentially good. God says that we are priests and kings, holy and sanctified, sons and daughters in the household of God, and partakers of the divine nature.

Within each of us is the goodness and greatness of God.  This goodness and greatness is the reality that God has placed within us but it is often a reality that needs to be called out, nurtured, and developed. James says something interesting in regard to this truth.  He says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ja. 4:29).  Paul says that prophetic words spoken over believers should always strengthen, encourage, and comfort (1 Cor.14: 3). There is something about declaring positive things and good names over one another that builds up and even heals.

There are numerous other passages in the N.T. that have the same flavor. Nowhere do I see passages commanding the opposite.  The gospel of the flesh and the demonic would certainly contain commands and passages such as,  Be ye critical one to another; Be hateful and demeaning in all that you do;  Be quick to point out failure and remind one another of it as often as you come together; Shame one another daily;  Speak the truth one to another with great disdain and condescension. We could go on…but you get the drift.

The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, spends a great deal of his time telling us who we are in Christ.  He goes to great lengths to describe our new identity as children of the Most High God.  The writers of the New Testament speak that identify over the church in their letters. There is purpose and intentionality in doing that.  God declares, “So is my word that goes out from my mouth.  It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isa. 55:11).  We all know that God’s word carries creative power and that it is living and active.  It has the power to call forth something out of nothing and to shape creation to conform to God’s will.

Have you noticed that the word from God’s mouth was most often declared to creation through the lips of his prophets?  As God put his word in the mouths of prophets, they declared that word and nations rose and fell, kings were placed on thrones and removed.  Bones lying in desolate valleys rattled together and became standing armies as God’s man declared God’s word over the valley of death.

Our identity, our holiness, our strength, our glory, and our victories have all been spoken by God and written down.  His Spirit puts those words in our mouths and as we also declare the word of God given to us, his word once again goes forth.  As it goes forth, it accomplishes its purpose.  God calls us to be a tribe that surrounds those among us who are broken and declare good things over them.  We are to call out who they are in Christ and the destiny he has ordained for them so that God’s word will accomplish its purpose in their lives.

As we speak honor to one another, encourage one another, and speak only words that build up, we help to establish the believer’s self-image – the internal view we hold of ourselves. We typically conform to that view because it is who we believe we are.  But more than that, we activate supernatural forces that draw those things out of us and make them realities. The words we speak that are God’s words are prophetic in nature.  As we, like Isaiah, consistently prophesy over the wasteland of someone’s brokenness, life and holiness will come forth.  And, by the way, we should declare  that same word of God over ourselves until we see God’s goodness and greatness fully formed in us as well.

As followers of Jesus, how many of us really believe that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12)?

The New Testament is full of reverences to satanic schemes, demonic oppression and torment, and battles in the heavenly realms.  It is full of admonitions to recognize the enemy’s ploys and stand up against him.  In Matthew 4, we see a wilderness showdown between Jesus and Satan as soon as Christ’s public ministry is launched.  We then see Jesus, the twelve, the seventy, and the church exercising authority illness and over demons and casting them out each time the gospel was preached.

There are a number of ways demons afflict people in the New Testament record.  There is the tormented and “insane” tomb dweller of Mark 5.   Then there were those who were deaf, mute, and blind.  Some had back problems for years while others seemed to have conditions that produced seizures. Undoubtedly demons manifested in people in numerous other ways as well.  Tradition maintains that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute before coming to Jesus. We are told in scripture that she had seven demons cast out of her.  No doubt they contributed heavily to her brokenness and destructive lifestyle.  Many references to deliverance say that a demon was cast out and the person was healed as a result. It’s fair to speculate that demons manifested as all kinds of physical and mental illnesses as well as physical conditions.  Wherever there is an authentic disease or condition that exists in the natural realm, it is likely that demons mimic and produce those conditions in many. For one, medication will suffice.  For the other, deliverance is needed.

It’s interesting to me that many of the people who came to Jesus seemed to have an accurate diagnosis of physical illness versus demonic affliction. One would come and say that his daughter or servant was ill and needed healing while another would come and say that his son or daughter was suffering from a demon. We live in a culture where even Bible believing Christians never consider that an illness or psychological condition might be caused by demonic forces.

First century Jews lived in a culture that gave great credence to the spiritual realm.  When disaster, affliction, or torment entered their lives, they considered spiritual causes as much or more than natural causes.  So they ran to Jesus or his followers and found healing and deliverance. In our world of rationalism, technology, and science those who believe that physical illness, physical impairments, addictions, learning disabilities, or psychological conditions such as depression, rage, anxiety, panic attacks, etc. might be rooted in demonic activity are considered weird or backward.  In many cases, even the church rejects the notion of demonic affliction and would invite anyone who wanted to minister deliverance or supernatural healing to leave immediately.

Yet the biblical model is to preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, and even raise the dead.  Most churches declare that the Bible is their guide in all things and strive to duplicate biblical patterns and models in their churches … until it comes to “spiritual forces of evil in heavenly realms.” How many of us have heard prayers asking God to help the doctors do what they do rather than asking God to heal by his power and compassion?

I’m not saying we shouldn’t go to doctors or pray for them. I believe medicine is a grace of God and doctors are a grace to this world.  What I am saying is that greater power and greater solutions lie in the spiritual realm. I am saying that some illness and physical conditions have spiritual roots and vaccines will not solve that issue.

It is clear that the majority of believers in the western church believe our healing is in the hands of doctors and secular therapists much more than in the hands of God. Even believers tend to exhaust all solutions they can find in the natural realm before they turn to the spiritual realm in desperation. Paul’s admonitions would seem to suggest that we should look for spiritual solutions even before we turn to solutions in the natural realm.

I am encouraged, however.  There is a worldwide move of God at this present time where the power of the kingdom of heaven is being displayed in the name of Jesus. Millions are coming to Christ.  Thousands are being healed and delivered.  Even in western nations and America, churches are beginning to live out the commands to preach, heal and set free in the name of Jesus. It is just my heart that every Christian would find the power of Jesus Christ for their lives and the lives of those they love who live in torment and brokenness.  The church simply needs to remember Paul’s admonition in Ephesians 6 to live with an awareness of where the real battles are waged and the real solutions are found.  Then, press in to discover the power of God and the divine weapons he offers to every follower of Jesus.

Words have power.  Your words have power.  Not just the power to influence or persuade but supernatural power.  God spoke creation into existence – both the seen realm and the unseen realm, the spiritual and the natural.  You are made in God’s image.  Your words also carry power. Although our words have power to create to a much lesser degree than the Father’s, they still have power to set things in motion with life-changing and world-changing  outcomes.

God intended to rule the earth through those he created and into whom he breathed his life giving Spirit.  He gave Adam and his descendants dominion over the earth and all the works of his hands.  They were given authority to subdue the earth and establish the culture of heaven (God’s will being done) on this earth.

How does anyone rule?  With power and authority.  Authority directs the power that backs it up.  In the case of Adam, he would command with authority and the power of heaven would back him up.  How do you command?  You command with words. As Adam would command, the Spirit of God or the angels of heaven would move to establish what he had spoken.

Our prayers accomplish the same thing.  As we pray, we invite heaven to act on our behalf or another’s behalf to bring about outcomes on the earth that are consistent with God’s will.  When we speak a blessing over another person, it is a form of a prayer and by faith we believe that God will act on behalf of the one we blessed to bring about some positive outcome.

In other words, your words set things in motion in the spiritual realm that creates realities in the natural realm.   That is why we pray and bless.  That is why we are commanded to pray and bless, even our enemies, because the heart of God is to do good to all men.  When we speak, he acts on our words.

But there is another part of the spiritual realm that hopes to harm, to oppress, and destroy.  The demonic realm also hears our words and has the capacity to act on them.  When we speak hurtful words, condemning words, or vengeful words we are declaring curses.  Curses are simply prayers for the harm or destruction of another.  Curses have the capacity to mobilize the demonic realm to being about destructive realities in the natural realm.

In Numbers 22, Balak, the king of Moab, was confronted with the presence of a million or more Israelites camping along his borders.  Terrified, he summoned Balaam and asked him to place a curse on Israel so that Moab might defeat them in battle.  The idea was to summon spiritual powers to war against Israel and to hinder them so that they might be defeated. Balaam sought God before he pronounced the curse.  God told him not to do so because he should not curse what God had blessed.

The blessing of God sets angels in motion to bring about positive outcomes for the one who is blessed – provision, success, victory, good health, protection, favor, etc. God commanded Balaam to refrain from the curse because that would set the demonic realm against Israel and hinder the blessing and victories that God intended.

Words, then, have the power to set things in motion for good or for bad in the spiritual realm. That’s why proverbs tells us that the tongue has the power of life and death. It’s why James counsels us to guard our tongues so that we don’t burn down a forest with one spark – so that our words don’t ignite a destructive force in the spiritual realm that goes far beyond what we intended.

Your words have power.  You walk in the authority of the kingdom of heaven so your words have great authority.  God directs us to bless and not curse. He directs us to be careful with our words and speak only those things that build others up. In the same way we need to speak life to ourselves.  We need to speak blessing and goodness over ourselves rather than condemning words that curse and demean.

Watch your words.  They are powerful and authoritative.  Speak blessing, strength, success, peace, competence, provision, safety and affirmation over others as well as yourself. You have the capacity to set powers in motion in the spiritual realms for great good or great harm.  Watch your words and choose to be source of blessing.  Be fresh water that gives life wherever you go because you speak life to every person and situation your encounter.