Hearing the voice of God

I have recently been dialoging with someone who is trying to make a decision and she is getting mixed advice from genuine Christians. One piece of advice that seems to be regularly offered is that she should not act unless she hears the voice of God or receives a clear message of direction from Him. She feels frozen. 

I have regularly disagreed with that viewpoint. I do not believe it is normative for the Christian to hear the voice of God when facing a decision. Indeed, I believe there are some Christians who will go through their entire lives without one of these clearly supernatural messages. Yet we need to continue to make decisions as Christians.  How do we do so? 

I generally agree with what Greg Koukl and Kevin DeYoung teach on this issue.  God can, and occasionally, does seem to speak in supernatural ways, but that the normative way of action for the Christian is to use the wisdom model. We seek to know Scripture and apply it to our lives as we make decisions rather than waiting for God's "still, small voice." 

Greg Koukl received a note from a listener asking him to respond to the notion of hearing God's voice.  You can read the whole thing here, and I would encourage you to do so, but I want to draw your attention to this section.  Greg writes,


Here is my view. Does the Bible teach that we must learn to discern the voice of the Lord individually for ourselves to live optimal Christian lives? Does the Bible teach we must learn to discern the voice of the Lord individually for ourselves in order to live optimally as Christians? The answer is no it does not teach that. So when someone teaches that you hear the voice of the Lord individually for yourself for optimal Christian living as a Christian discipline, this is not a Biblical discipline, ladies and gentlemen. It is not in there. Are there incidents of God speaking? Yes, but that's not what I'm talking about here. I'm talking about the discipline of learning to discern the voice of the Lord for myself to live optimally as a Christian. It's not there.

Does the Bible teach that we are to seek this kind of guidance? The answer is no. It does not teach that we are seek this kind of guidance. Does the Bible teach that we are to expect this kind of guidance? Again the answer is no. And since the Bible doesn't teach that we have to learn this skill, since it doesn't teach that we are to seek this kind of guidance, since it doesn't teach that we are to expect this kind of guidance, then I don't know what all the folderol is about. Well, yes I do. 

This teaching that God will whisper in your ear all kind of particulars that pertain to you and His will for your life is very appealing to Christians. Even though when you look at the Scriptures, the specialized directions are rare. They are unusual. They are usually unsought. And they are always crystal clear. None of this "I think the Lord is telling me" business. People are still gravitating to the suggestion that we can develop a sixth sense that can tie us into a hotline to God so that we can have certitude about the things of life and the decisions we ought to make. Why is this appealing? Because it's easy. It's easy. You know Americans are given to quick fixes and this is the American Christian quick fix. We are also given to individualism and this is the American individualistic view of Christianity--guidance decision making. It fits the American mentality, not the Biblical mentality, not the Christian mentality, the American mentality. And that's why this point of view is distinctly American. It's a quick fix. It's an easy way out. It's kind of like Cliff Notes, only worse. 

This is a hard area for many Christians. If this is an area you struggle with, I would encourage you to get Koukl's teaching on this issue here.  Or buy Kevin DeYoung's book, Just Do Something, here.