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And God Said…
Posted by Bowden McElroy in Bible & Theology
Warning: Mini-rant below.
“God told me”.
I’m always curious when I hear those words come out of someone’s mouth. If they are followed by the words “to tell you” then my curiosity turns to frustration if not anger. And I hear that phrase a lot. One reason is I live in Tulsa, OK, the Word of Faith capitol of the world; it is part of the culture to use the phrase “hearing from God” when the rest of us would speak of the application of biblical principles. Another reason is – in the counselor’s office – people are often trying to explain or justify past choices they have made.
Part of me wants to know how they hear from God. It’s rarely an audible voice, although I have had people tell me they heard an audible voice. Most often “God told me” (or “God showed me” or “God spoke to me”) doesn’t mean what most of us assume it means; instead, it’s verbal short hand for intuition or discernment or insight.
(I will say that when God speaks to me it’s often through a 5ft. 5in. blonde with her hands on her hips and a tone of “I WILL be obeyed” in her voice. My wife appears to believe first graders, small puppies, and husbands should be spoken to in short, concrete sentences using only one-syllable words. It has to be from God: no person that small can speak with so much power and authority all on her own.)
If you mean “discernment” instead of the audible voice of the Lord, then say so. “God told me” seems so final. So authoritative. So arrogant. It has the effect of shutting down conversation; I can talk with you about wisdom and discernment and interpretation but what can I really say about the Almighty giving you direction? “No he didn’t” seems about all that’s left to me: so now we can argue like my wife’s first grade students…
“Did too.”
“Did not.”
“Uh huh.”
“Nuh uh.”
That’s a productive theological exchange.
I wouldn’t be bothered nearly so much if “God told me” weren’t often followed by the craziest statements. “God told me to divorce my husband” was the most recent example (and the inspiration for this mini-rant).
The one that takes the prize is “God told me you were going to die and he wanted (another woman) to be my next wife. So it wasn’t really an affair.” I wanted to say that he was a self-deluded idiot but civility and a sense of professional decorum constrained me.
Another aggravating statement is “God’s will for my life”. (Admittedly, I prefer that over being told a third-party knows God’s will for MY life.) I do believe that each of us has a purpose in life. My aggravation has to do with the idea that there is ONE precise and perfect plan for each of us… and if you took a wrong turn years ago, well, it’s all over. I remember one lady who came to counseling because she had became convinced God’s perfect will for her life was to marry someone other than her husband. In other words, she had married the wrong man 40 years earlier and now she was stuck. Nothing she could do would make up for missing God’s will. Peace and contentment were available for other people but not for her. Joy in the Lord would never, ever be hers because of a four-decade old choice she made.
How do I hear from God? Not audibly. I am open to the idea it could happen, but so far it simply has not happened for me. I hear from God through the application of biblical principles. I hear from God through the counsel of others. I even hear from God through my wife (and not just when she has that Charlton Heston-esque authority flowing from her voice).
Understanding God’s will for my life seems easy. I know it’s his will to pursue holiness and draw close to him. I know it’s his will to keep his commandments. I know it’s God’s will to be his witness to all the nations. I understand it’s his will to provide for my family and be the best husband and father I can be.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta go: it’s God’s will I see the latest episode of 24.
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Brother Bowden,
Pastors would do well to spend lots of time learning and teaching about how we “hear from God”. It can be frustrating and devastating. Maybe I just do not have the confidence in God or myself, but I tend to use language like “It seems God is leading us…” and then I explain how I came to that conclusion. Take, for example, evangelism. We can say, “God told us to spread good news. Now, it seems like His desire for us is to do that by… because…”. What do you think? From a leadership perspective I think this is effective. It shows people the pastor is truly attempting to discern and discover how to be obedient. It also shows that pastors usually hear from God in the same way the rest of the brothers and sisters do- discernment, prayer, Scripture and community.
Blessings,
Zach
Bowden,
Let me preface what I am going to say by saying I agree with everything you say here. It is indeed a needed corrective to a lot of nonsense that goes on out there.
Having said that, I think it is vitally important we don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater. God does still speak today. And, in one way or another, we are able to discern his voice. We are never infallible in our discernment of His voice. Only He Himself is infallible. We must therefore always be a bit tentative and humble in our pronouncements of what we sense God telling (or leading) us to do.
Wayne Grudem, in his book “The Gift of Prophecy in the NT and Today,” has some helpful advice regarding this. I don’t have the book in front of me, so I can’t quote it directly. But he says something like, “When you feel God is speaking to you, and wants you to communicate this word to someone else, it is best to preface it by saying something like ‘It seems to me God may be saying this.’” At some point, speaking openly what we feel God is leading us to say requires faith. Being TOO tentative may exhibit a lack of faith, if we really feel God has spoken to us, and wants us to convey that word to others. There is a delicate balance here.
But, in the end, it seems to me that if God is still in the business of relating personally to us as His beloved children, then He is in the business of communicating personally to us as well. That, in my estimation, is what the Christian life is all about on a day to day basis: communing and communicating (2-way) with our loving and sovereign Lord. One of the main ways He communicates with us is through His Word, the Bible. And He will never tell us anything that contradicts the Bible. But, He also communicates with us through the inner voice of the Holy Spirit. I think it is vitally important that we are open to hearing, and sensitive to this communication.
“The one that takes the prize is “God told me you were going to die and he wanted (another woman) to be my next wife. So it wasn’t really an affair.” I wanted to say that he was a self-deluded idiot but civility and a sense of professional decorum constrained me.”
… I would have told him he was a deluded idiot.
David,
I do believe God communicates with us. I tend to put “God told me” statements into two categories: the first is the exercising of discernment. I just wish people would phrase it differently; “God told me” leaves little room for any kind of dialogue.
The second category is the justification of poor choices. Granted, because I’m a counselor I tend to see the outliers more frequently than other people. I can’t tell you the number of times each week I hear “God told me” followed by a statement that goes against everything I understand about the character and nature of the Father.
If God did tell me to tell you something specific, and if I were tell you what God told me to tell you, there would be no need to tell you God told me to tell you, would there? Let the message stand on its own.
Like the gospel … we’re to tell it to folks, and the power is in the gospel itself, not in our telling people it is.
“God told me to tell you..” is a communication killer, anyway. The only responses are “Yes SIR!”, or “No He didn’t”. There’s simply no entree into discussing the message itself.
Brother Bob,
That is a good way of thinking about our “hearing from God”. If you are a believer, you best know that God does speak to you and there is abundant fellowship.
1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
The problem is, most people want to be the authority, instead of simply testing what they heard by way of scripture, and then speak the truth in love.
I like the way you are thinking…
Blessings,
Chris
Bowden,
I agree with you. When I hear people say that God told them….red flags go up everywhere in my mind. I have dealt with people just like you, who have said that God told them to do all kinds of silly, crazy, even unBiblical things. I’ve had people tell me that God told them this, or God told them that. And, when I have pointed out that that goes against what the Bible clearly teaches, then they’ve gotten upset with me, or even mad at me. Because, after all, God told them…. How do you argue with that? How do you discuss such things? I mean, afterall, “God told them…”
The only way we can know what God concretely says is to know the Bible, God’s Word. Therein lies the will of God.
But, some people dont want to take the time to learn the Bible. They want a McAnswer in McTime. They dont want to spend time learning the Bible, God’s Word. And, some people dont want to submit to it’s teachings anyway. What they really want is to do what they want to do, and feel good about it….to feel that God is in it.
Of course, in the areas where the Bible is silent, God invites us to ask Him to give us wisdom, and He’ll give it to us. The Bible also says that if we’ll delight ourselves in the Lord, that He’ll give us the desires of our heart. So, we need to trust the Lord to give us wisdom and give us the desires of our hearts….when we’re delighting in Him.
But anyway, I agree with you. This is a problem with immature Christians, who have been influenced by the charismatic crowd.
David
Great word, Bowden. I do not envy you in your ministry. A counselor can be a magnet for all kinds of disfunctions, and a Christian counselor a magnet for all kinds of “Christian” disfunction. I admire your patience.
One of the difficulties of hearing God’s voice is that fact that there are so many voices out there. Discerning which one is God’s is the product of years of developing the relationship — much like the relationship you have with your wife. If 50 people were in a room, you could probably discern which voice was your wife’s. God speaks to different people in different ways and is not limited in how He can speak (e.g. Balaam’s donkey). However, whatever He says through any means will always be in harmony with His word.
God’s word will always promote godliness in our actions and character. Those filled with the “Holy” Spirit will always demonstrate holiness in their character and conduct. Those who say, “God told me …” then state something that conflicts with God’s standards clearly revealed in His word — indeed are deluded and are listening to the wrong voice. They haven’t developed the relationship with Him enough to discern the right voice. You will know these people by the fruits they demonstrate in their life.
Bowden: Good words. This is a big pet peeve of mine. I wrote this article awhile ago summarizing my thoughts on the matter.
Bowden,
God told me to tell you to call the guy an idiot next time…oh, and to slap him up side the head!
Bowden, God told me to tell you not to let civility and a sense of professional decorum get in the way of doing what needs to be done.
Whoops! Clay beat me to it.
Bowden,
My preacher dad used to say, “God gets blamed for a lot of things He had nothing to do with.”
David R. Brumbelow
Bowden,
One other thing. You said,
“The one that takes the prize is ‘God told me you were going to die and he wanted (another woman) to be my next wife. So it wasn’t really an affair.’ I wanted to say that he was a self-deluded idiot but civility and a sense of professional decorum constrained me.”
I want to defend that guy. You should at least give him points for a creative excuse
. I don’t think I would have ever thought of that one. Aren’t we good (and creative) at justifying sin?
You post strikes a cord with a bunch of us preachers.
David R. Brumbelow
God speaks through His Word.
Jesus said, ”If any man will do his will, he show know of the doctrine.”
Everything He wants me to be, know, and do can be found in His Word.
Dr. Foltz,
I would say can be confirmed by His Word. (through the guidance of the Holy Spirit of course!)
Bowden
Excellent piece.
Robin
Brother Clay Alexander, I stand corrected. Thanks for your input.
In His Grace. Dr. Paul Foltz
You guys all need Gravatars … seriously.
http://en.gravatar.com/
The comments about the way your wife speaks is very demeaning to her. You should use a more relevant illustration. Your wife deserves more than such a frivilous reference.
Byron,
How’s the view from that tall horse?
And how long have you been married?
Thanks Geoff:
I am a Texan, but I do not ride horses. I have been married a total of 58 years. My first wife, to whom I was married 30 years, passed away with a malignant condition. My present wife’s (we have been married 28 years) husband passed away in his early forties from a heart attack. I have been married long enough, and have read God’s word often enough to know that marriage is much too holy to speak of one’s spouse as was done. I pray that we all shall learn to speak of marriage as Ephesians 5 does – as a model of the Christ-Church love relationship.
God Bless!
Byron,
58 years. Wow! Then you are experienced, there is no doubt. Leaves my 23 years “in the dust.”
But surely you can see and understand the attitude in which Bowden told his story about his wife. Words spoken in humor and love. Not to speak for him, but I simply could not find the disrespect that you seemed to read into his comments. They are very reminiscent of the way my wife can place her hands on her hips and give me a good “dressing down” when I need one. Like she did not too long ago when I brought up the subject of buying a bass boat.
Geoff
Good words, Bowden. I was on a semi-rant on this very subject a couple of weeks ago.
Here are my thoughts:
http://brushforkbanner.blogspot.com/2009/01/god-told-me-to-write-this-well-maybe.html
And here too:
http://brushforkbanner.blogspot.com/2009/01/dangers-of-personal-revelation.html
Geoff,
My wife reads my posts; I’m confident no disrespect was taken or given. Mr. Allen undoubtedly believes he was offering sage advice designed to be helpful. I will accept his advice as such and will continue to check and double-check my writing to make sure I’m not demeaning to anyone; least of all my wife. Marriage isn’t frivolous, but it can be fun.
First of all I would never say “God told me…” unless I actually heard an audible voice from heaven. To be honest when I hear someone say “God told me…” it sends up huge red flags and I am very cautious in my future dealings with this person. The most that I will ever say is that “I feel God is leading me in this direction” or that “God has allowing me this opportunity”. I feel that is enough.
Whenever I feel that I must communicate that God is influencing my decisions, in a way that is far more direct than his general guidance in my life, I will either give a Scripture quote or Biblical example to show that my actions are not outside of God’s permissive will. I think that is the first thing we must do when claiming God’s will in any matter. It should go without saying that if an action is sinful, and Scripture declares it as sinful, then it cannot be God’s will for anyone’s life.
Second, when seeking to find God’s will in any matter I began by looking for God’s providence. If it is God’s will; he will provide the finances, send the laborers, and open the doors of opportunity. If I cannot find God doing any of these things then I quickly know that this is not God’s will. I am not saying that God will make everything easy and that he does not call us to difficult and exhausting work; however I am saying that God makes his will evident through his providence.
Lastly, we should never be ashamed of a “Closed Door”. The apostle Paul had God close the door in his face many times… and in each of them Paul was directed to find God’s will for his life. I thank God for the closed doors in my life… if not for them; I tremble at the thought of where I might be.
Grace Always,