How Do I Know It’s God Speaking?

How do I know God is the One speaking to me?

The most difficult and most often asked question about hearing God is the question of authenticity. How can I be sure that God is speaking?

Over the next several days we will be looking at hearing from God. We will ask how we can know whether this is an authentic message from God.

The Bible is very clear and helpful about this.

First, God tells us to test the spirits. What he means is that we are to test for authenticity when someone speaks in the name of God. “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

Christians should not be naïve. God wants us to be wise and discerning. He gives believers the gift to discern. As we study Scripture, we understand how God speaks and what he says. All of this helps us to test the spirits for authenticity.

Second, the Bible itself gives tests for authenticity. In Deuteronomy 18:22, Moses gave the people of Israel a simple and effective test for determining authenticity.

Moses told them to look at what the Prophet said and what happened as a result. If what the prophet says comes to pass you may determine that this is a word from God. If it does not come to pass, it obviously did not come from God.

Third, Moses gave the people a further test. Simply because something happens that someone had predicted or talked about doesn’t mean that the prophecy comes from God.

At this point, you need to examine further. Does the prophet lead you closer to God or farther away? Does he encourage you to follow God or ignore Him? Is his teaching the truth about God? These are all questions you should consider. If the prophet keeps you from complete obedience, you can be assured He does not speak God’s word.

God gives practical help to His people. We should follow His teaching and give Him our obedience.

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