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Christianity Today, April (Web-only), 2007 |

SPEAKING OUT

The Morning I Heard God's Voice

I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God still speaks today.

John Piper | posted 4/10/2007 08:26AM

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I grieve at what is being communicated here. The great need of our time is for people to experience the living reality of God by hearing his Word personally and transformingly in Scripture. Something is incredibly wrong when the words we hear outside Scripture are more powerful and more affecting to us than the inspired Word of God. Let us cry with the psalmist, "Incline my heart to your word" (Ps. 119:36). "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law" (Ps. 119:18). Grant that the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened to know our hope and our inheritance and the love of Christ that passes knowledge and be filled with all the fullness of God (Eph. 1:18; 3:19). O God, don't let us be so deaf to your Word and so unaffected with its ineffable, evidential excellency that we celebrate lesser things as more thrilling.

John Piper is the pastor for preaching at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Related Elsewhere:

John Piper's Desiring God Ministries' resources include a blog (where a version of this article first appeared), broadcasts, sermons, reflections, and Q&A.

Piper appeared in Christianity Today's "Passion Takes It Higher," "Young, Restless, Reformed," "What's Next: Local Church," "The Top 25 Most Influential Preachers,"and "The Top 50 Books That Have Shaped Evangelicals." Christianity Today also reviewed his books, God is the Gospel (an excerpt is available on our site), and Don't Waste Your Life.

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April (Web-only) 2007, Vol. 51

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Brenda~

Posted: April 24, 2007 6:10 PM

I think we all agree with the part of Pastor Piper's prayer that we should not be "deaf to" or "unaffected by" the EXCELLENT Word of God (Amen!?), but many are shocked that he rates God's chosen forms of communication, as he observes "that we celebrate LESSER THINGS as more thrilling". I don't think that anyone should judge how God reveals himself to us, and then discourage God's servants from responding with joy to whatever form those interactions take. God's spoken word is not less than God's written word, even though people's claims do need to be tested against scripture. It's OK to “eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. Everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort" (1 Cor. 14:1,3). Our omnipresent God is never too busy for those who call on him, so get to know him through scripture reading, "pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests" (Eph 6:18), AND listen closely.

Pearl

Posted: April 24, 2007 7:41 AM


Both gentlemen are right. God speaks to us in the way HE chooses, when he chooses and how he chooses. How to judge/know when it is God Speaking? By the peace and love that you experience, the presence of His holy Spirit which is unmistakable.

Don	Posted: April 22, 2007 11:02 PM

I believe the issue is diferentiating between the subsequent revelation of the Qu'ran, the Book of Mormon and Jim Jones and when God speaks to us, sometimes in Scripture but also personally. I have had the experience of God calling me to task in such a way that my life was profoundly changed and that was almost 40 years ago. Since I have worked with people who accept the broader defenition of subsequent revelation I describe the difference as corporate and individual. I don't hold to corporate subsequent revelation-that takes us places we should not go-anything that disagrees or diverts faith and life from the established canon of scripture is not scripture. Individual words from God must first of all be consistant with Scripture as we have it and then are not for someone else but rather for yourself, to say otherwise would be inconsistant with the experience of the church throuhgout the ages. Listen to God- He is consistent with His Word, you can count on it.

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