How God Speaks to Us (Sermon Outline)

Privileged Promptings: Hearing and Heeding God’s Voice

How God Speaks to Us

Memory Verse: (Prov 8:33 NIV) Listen to my instruction and be wise; do not ignore it.

 Scripture: Acts 16:6-10

(Acts 16:6-10 NIV)  Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. {7} When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. {8} So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. {9} During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." {10} After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

God has spoken through Angels, Dreams, Symbolic actions, Gentle whisper, signs and wonders, natural events, Prayer, Fire, Writing on wall, Visions, prophetic messages, fleece, donkey, trumpet, casting lots, audible voice and burning bush just to mention a few.

1.           The Written Word of God:

“The most predictable way to hear from heaven is to read and apply God’s word.”--Bill Hybels
 (Psa 119:11 NIV)  I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

(Psa 119:105 NIV)  Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

(2 Tim 3:16 NIV)  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,

 (Rom 15:4 NIV)  For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

   2. The Gentle Whisper of God:
(1 Ki 19:12 NIV)  After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.



(Acts 11:12 NIV)  The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man's house.

(Acts 13:2 NIV)  While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."





  3. Through Dreams
(Mat 1:20-21 NIV)  But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. {21} She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

(Mat 2:12-13 NIV)  And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. {13} When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."

  
4. Through Spiritual Impressions and Visions

(Gen 15:1 NIV) After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward."

 (Acts 10:9-18 NIV)  About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. {10} He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. {11} He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. {12} It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. {13} Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." {14} "Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." {15} The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." {16} This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven. {17} While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon's house was and stopped at the gate. {18} They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.

5. The Counsel and Prompting of other Believers

(Prov 12:15 NIV)  The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.

(Prov 27:17 NIV)  As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

(2 Sam 12:1-7 NIV)  The LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, "There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. {2} The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, {3} but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him. {4} "Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him." {5} David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, "As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die! {6} He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity." {7} Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

  
6. Through Opened and Closed Doors

(Acts 16:6-10 NIV)  Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. {7} When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. {8} So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. {9} During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." {10} After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

(Psa 37:23 NIV)  If the LORD delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm;

  
   7. Through Circumstantial Events of Life

(Exo 3:1-4 NIV)  Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. {2} There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. {3} So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight--why the bush does not burn up." {4} When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, "Moses! Moses!" And Moses said, "Here I am."

  

8. Through the Prophetic and Preaching Word

(Jonah 3:4 NIV)  On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned."

(Acts 21:10-11 NIV)  After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. {11} Coming over to us, he took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, "The Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.'"

9.  An Unusual Experience

(Est 6:1 NIV)  That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him.