God speaks to his people in many different ways. He speaks through the written Word of God. He can speak to you through a pastor, a teacher or another brother or sister in Christ. He can even use a donkey, as he did with Balaam. He also speaks directly to your spirit in still, small voice. In order to have a consistent walk of communion with God, you must obey whatever he speaks to you, regardless of the method of communication. If you want to hear the voice of God in the little details of daily life, you must learn to hear the voice that speaks to you within your spirit. His voice comes as a thought within your mind, but how do you know if the thought is from God? You may be hearing the Lord speak to you but wonder if it is really his voice.
It is important that you understand that you can hear three voices within your spirit. God can speak to you, your fleshly desires can speak to you and satan can also speak to you. These three “voices” manifest as thoughts within your mind. If you really want to walk with God and hear his voice, you must be able to distinguish between these three voices so that you can eliminate the voices of the flesh and satan and be confident that you are actually hearing the voice of God. In that way you can be confident that your obedience to his voice will develop consistent communion with him.
The Bible gives instructions on how to eliminate the voices of the flesh and the devil.
Colossians 3:5 (AMP) says,
“So kill (deaden, deprive of power) the evil desire lurking in your members [ those animal impulses and all that is earthly in you that is employed in sin ]: sexual vice, impurity, sensual appetites, unholy desires, and all greed and covetousness, for that is idolatry (the deifying of self and other created things instead of God).”
The King James Bible simply says to mortify your flesh. It’s not complicated! If you refuse to listen to the voice of your flesh and deny its desires, it will lose the power to control you. “The flesh” doesn’t just include obvious sins that everyone would identify as evil. It includes “all that is earthly in you that is employed in sin”. Your carnal man will always lead you into sin and disobedience to God. That is why you must deprive it of its power by submitting to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Galatians 5:16 (KJV) states it very simply.
” This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. “
Flesh that is denied (killed) cannot talk to you!
James 4:& (KJV) explains how you can eliminate the voice of the enemy within your thoughts.
” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ”
If you want satan to stop speaking thoughts to your mind, submit yourself to God! Resist the devil. God promises that he will flee.
2 Corinthians 10:5 (KJV) says,
” Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. “
Many Christians become confused because they have not eliminated the voices of the flesh and the enemy. They aren’t sure who is speaking to them. Because they are unsure of what to do, they often go back to their reasoning and understanding (which come from the flesh) and do the best they can. They hope they are hearing from God but usually they are following the dictates of their carnal man.
Other Christians believe they are hearing from God because they have memorized a lot of Scripture and try to apply it to any given situation. This can be very dangerous and actually cause you to miss God if you don’t submit the “interpretation” of the Scripture to God for his confirmation. Believers can be deceived into thinking they are so “good” and “mature” they don’t even need to check with God about what to do. I call this “spiritualized flesh”. It’s still flesh. It just looks spiritual.
Make no mistake! The job of being Lord has been filled by Jesus Christ and God will never give any of his children permission to run their lives from their own “spiritualized” lordship. This doctrine is being taught in some churches today and it is a deception from satan. It cannot be confirmed by the Word of God and it is a lie satan has used to lead many astray.
God will never authorize you to be the Lord of your life!