God Talk

Amos 3:7 (NIV) “Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.”

Numbers 11:29 (NIV) “But Moses replied, ‘Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!’”

Acts 2:17-18 (NIV) “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.”

Everything in creation points to the truth that the Sovereign Lord speaks. The heavens declare the greatness of God. The earth itself cries out with his very nature and character. How is it possible that the One who gave mankind mouths to speak would be unable to do so himself? The Bible, his self-revelation, points out clearly that he speaks, and he does it through his people. Learning to hear the “voice” of God is one of the great privileges of being his child. He is not distant. He is near to us. Romans 10:8 says that the word is near you. Where does this “word of faith” come from? Where does it originate? Whose idea was it? Yes, it comes from the mind and heart of the Lord.

In prayer, we must learn to speak the words of God. This begins by declaring the truth of the scriptures. We proclaim the character of God. We speak about his great acts throughout history and in our lives. We pray through the prayers of the Bible. The apostle Paul especially has some great prayers that we can adapt to our local church and for whomever else we pray. I’ve noticed in many years of praying with other believers that our words occupy so much of our conversation with the Lord. However, as the Lord instructed Joshua, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night.” (Joshua 1:8, NIV) It is the Lord’s words which need to fill our mouth more and more as we pray. This is not a formula for creating prayer success. It is the path through which we resonate with what our heavenly Father is doing in the world. It is the revelation of how important and powerful the written word of God is in our daily relationship with the Word, Jesus Christ. His “talk” to us on a daily basis comes into focus and life is breathed into us as we “hang out” in the scripture.

The Spirit of God and the Word of God are One. They resonate with each other. They cannot contradict each other. So this is how we know when prophecies originate from a spirit other than the Holy Spirit. Jesus warned us about false prophets in Matthew 24:24. He warned, “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders.” (NIV) If there are false prophets than there are also true prophets. The world is overwhelmed with false prophets and false Christs, but what is needs more than anything is God talk which comes through his messengers. We will be true messengers of God’s words as we remain true to his Word and as we walk in his Spirit. These are not words that we make up. We should not be worried about what to say because as the Spirit moves in us we will be given words to say. (see Luke 21:14-15) We have been blessed to live in an era of history where the Bible is more readily available than it has ever been. And yet, in relative terms compared to the ocean of words and communication that comes directly from the mouth of the evil one, we may truly be living in a time of famine for the words of God. Let us make up our mind to be so filled with the words of God that we will be able to pray and to speak the word of God. The Lord has given us this awesome gift. Let us recognize it for the truly valuable gift that it is and not allow the opportunity to grow in the word of God to pass us by.