When you read "selective hearing", what comes to mind? Are you able to remain laser focused when the world around you is chaos? Or do the littlest things throw you off track and divert your attention? Read 1 John 4:1-6
SERMON IN A SENTENCEAny voice that doesn't point you to Jesus is not a voice you should follow.
In John 10:1-5, Jesus gives the analogy of sheep and a shepherd. The sheep know the shepherd's voice, and trust it because of how the shepherd provides for them. The same is true for a child who trusts the voice of the parent. Like the shepherd and parent, Jesus is asking us to trust Him because He wants to take care of us, and lead us to good places.
However, simply following Jesus isn't as easy as we'd like to think. The reality is there are voices that we've allowed in our lives that aren't pointing us to Jesus. And we've learned to just deal with it. There are so many voices telling us things, so how can we truly hear the voice of God?
God's gift of scripture is the starting point. It contains the life-giving words of Jesus.
We have the promise of the Spirit of God to help us, and be with us forever; the Spirit of Truth inside of us. It contains the power and discernment that comes only from God.
The question is, are we willing to listen? Are we training our ears? One of the biggest challenges is we try listening for the voice of God alone. It's clear that God's design was for us to journey together through community. It is so easy to become distracted by noises, and having others who point us to Jesus will help us to stay on track.
Take some time to reflect on who you're listening to most. Is it the media? Is it a "friend" who doesn't have your best interest at heart? Or is it Jesus and His Spirit & people who want nothing but the best for you? If you have questions, or need someone to chat with, we can help you take those steps.
Want to hear more? Catch the full message here.
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