June 10, 2002

The following study will examine various references to the Day of the Lord in the Old Testament writing prophets, and argue that the frequent collocation¹ was elastic in nature, diverse in scope, and varied with respect to timing. This conclusion will be drawn in response to three key questions that affect the nature, scope, and timing of the Day of the Lord. With respect to its nature, did the Day of the Lord emphasize God’s judgment, blessing, or both? Regarding scope, did the Day of the Lord primarily affect Israel, the surrounding Gentile nations, or an even broader entity? In reference to timing, did the Day of the Lord refer to a past, imminent, or eschatological event, or is it possible that multiple chronologies were in view? Following an examination of these questions, the study will conclude with a summary of common characteristics that can be ascribed to the Day of the Lord.

The Nature of the Day of the Lord

The Day of the Lord is clearly characterized by a pouring out of divine wrath on God’s enemies (Joel 2:1-2; Amos 5:18-20; Zech 1:14-15). Imagery of natural disaster, devastating military conquest, and supernatural calamity is connected to Day of the Lord references.²

On the other hand, the day is also characterized by a pouring out of divine blessing upon God’s people (Isa 4:2-6; 30:26; Hos 2:18-23; Joel 3:9-21; Amos 9:11-15; Mic 4:6-8; Zeph 2:7; Zech 14:6-9). Thus, while divine judgment is certainly a prominent theme in the Day of the Lord, it is only part of the picture.³

The dual nature of the Day of the Lord is further illumined by its purposes. The writing prophets describe the Day of the Lord as coming so that people might turn from idols (Isa 2:18, 20) and turn to Yahweh (Joel 2:12-14).⁴ Those recognizing the severity of the day will cry for God’s mercy (Joel 2:17), call on the name of the Lord to be saved (Joel 2:32), and seek refuge in the Rock (Isa 2:21). All of the above purposes highlight the blessing of this day for those who have responded appropriately. Ultimately, all the nations will recognize Yahweh in that day (Joel 3:17), but then it will be too late for those destined to destruction and death (Zeph 2:12-14). The example of the nations provides a clear picture of the dark side to this same day that is a blessing for others.

In sum, an accurate presentation of the Day of the Lord requires us to recognize that the day has two sides to its nature. Sometimes one side is prominent, sometimes the other. This should not come as a surprise to those who know the nature of the God who is behind the nature of the day. If the Day of the Lord is ultimately a demonstration of God’s sovereign rule, we would expect to see both wrath and blessing simultaneously.

The Scope of the Day of the Lord

In light of the fact that the Day of the Lord has a duality to its nature and purpose, it is natural to assume that its scope will encompass the diversity of peoples affected by both the side that brings blessing and the side that brings judgment. Indeed, the Day of the Lord was connected to the judgment pronounced upon Babylon (Isa 13:1, 6, 9, 13), Edom (Isa 34:8), Egypt (Jer 46:10; Ezek 30:3), and the Philistines (Jer 47:4). Obadiah expands the individual references to peoples and announces that the Day of the Lord will bring corporate judgment to all of the nations (15). Isaiah broadens the scope of judgment even further, describing calamity that will fall upon the entire earth on the consummate Day of the Lord (13:10-13). This increasing scope suggests that judgment is not only directed toward particular peoples or even the collective nations, but toward evil in general. Thus, the Day of the Lord is properly spoken of as bringing judgment to evil wherever it may be found in fallen creation.

Since the Day of the Lord involves both judgment and blessing, we would expect to see a development of the scope of blessing in a manner similar to the scope of judgment. Indeed, references to blessing expand from David’s kingdom (Amos 9:11-15), Zion (Isa 4:2-6), and all of Judah (Zeph 2:7), to the entire earth (Zech 14:6) and its creation (Isa 11:1-10; Hos 2:18). The Day of the Lord not only has a diverse nature, but that nature accordingly affects diverse categories of God’s creation.

The Timing of the Day of the Lord

By virtue of its diversity the Day of the Lord is not properly viewed as a one-time event, and technical force should be assigned to the phrase with caution.⁵ Nevertheless, even when one recognizes multiple referents for the phrase, distinguishing a given referent’s precise timing remains difficult.

Past references to the Day of the Lord emphasized God’s sovereign judgment over the nations. Assyria was raised up to judge the northern kingdom of Israel in the eighth century BCE (Amos 5:18, 20), Babylon was raised up to judge the southern kingdom of Judah in the seventh and sixth centuries BCE (Lam 1:12; 2:1, 21-22; Ezek 7:19; 13:5; Zech 1:7-13; 2:2-3), Babylon was raised up once more to judge Egypt in the sixth century BCE (Jer 46:10; Ezek 30:3), and Medo-Persia was raised up to judge Babylon shortly thereafter (Isa 13:6, 9). Determining the fulfillment of past references to the Day of the Lord is a relatively easy task.

Future references to the Day of the Lord are not difficult to locate. However, determining whether those referents point toward an imminent or eschatological event from the vantagepoint of the writer is another matter. Some descriptions are clearly eschatological. Isaiah (2:10-22; 34:1-8), Obadiah (15), Joel (3:1-16), and Zechariah (14:1-3, 12-15) all describe judgments, which will affect the entirety of nations simultaneously. Since no such collective judgment has occurred up to the present, these references to the Day of the Lord must be yet future. On the other hand, the Day of the Lord is described with the imminent terms “near” (Isa 13:6; Ezek 30:3; Joel 1:15; 3:14; Obad 1:15; Zeph 1:7) and “coming” (Isaiah 13:9; Joel 2:1; Zeph 1:14). It would seem somewhat problematic that five different prophets spanning four different centuries would continue to refer to the Day of the Lord in such terms, especially in light of the fact that latter prophets were most certainly aware of earlier ones. In other words, how near can “near” be if the day had not arrived in over four hundred years from the time of its first mention? This very question has led some scholars to suggest that the prophets viewed the Day of the Lord with “bifocal vision,” allowing them to see both historical and eschatological fulfillments at once.⁶

Interestingly, both imminent and eschatological aspects of the Day of the Lord are found in close proximity in the Book of Joel. The phrase “Day of the Lord” was used to describe the plague of locusts that destroyed crops and resulted in famine (Joel 1:15-20), as well as the imminent invasion of powerful armies (Joel 2:1-11).⁷ However, if one reads the celestial changes in Joel 3:14-16 literally,⁸ then Joel also refers to the Day of the Lord as an eschatological event. If read in this manner, chapter three functions as a climax to Joel’s prophecy, telescoping from the immediate (and escalating) events of chapters one and two to the far, eschatological event of chapter three. Some may question the validity of telescoping from a near to a far event without regard for events in between, but prophetic telescoping may legitimately be credited to ignorance on the part of the writer. God only provided that information which was necessary for the writer to know—nothing more and nothing less.

Regardless of the reasons for prophetic telescoping, contextual evidence strongly suggests that it is a common feature of Old Testament prophecy. With respect to the Day of the Lord, its continual unfolding in biblical history combined with its clear future element sets up the former as a precursor to the latter in an “already/not yet” fashion. Past events worthy of the designation “Day of the Lord” provided a taste of things to come, and provide continued opportunity for repentance before arrival of the day.

Summary of Common Characteristics Ascribed to the Day of the Lord

Diversified use of the collocation “Day of the Lord” suggests that emphasis does not belong as much to timing⁹ as to essence. The Day of the Lord constitutes a repeated event that will find ultimate eschatological fulfillment in the future. However, the diversity found in chronology is held together by the common characteristics that each Day of the Lord possesses.

It should be remembered that the Hebrew term <oy (“day”) signaled an important event in the Jewish mindset,¹⁰ hinting at divine intervention in human history¹¹ with particular attention to God’s rule over the earth. It should be further noted that all non-eschatological references to the Day of the Lord included the use of human instruments and activity to accomplish divine purposes, and this points to a distinguishing feature of the eschatological Day of the Lord. It has been previously noted that the “already/not yet” tension seen in historical/eschatological references to the Day of Lord is building toward an ultimate, climactic fulfillment. In this respect, the consummate, eschatological Day of the Lord finds similarity with those days that have gone before, but it is decidedly different in that the hand of Messiah and not primarily human instruments carries out divine purpose.¹²

This heightening of previous themes leads to the significant theological observation that the eschatological Day of the Lord represents an event in which human hands can play no part—the ultimate and permanent undoing of evil, and the lasting transformation and redemption of that which has been ravished by sin. This day is a picture of God’s ultimate triumph, and an unmistakable declaration of his prevailing justice. The ultimate purpose of this day perfectly reflects the dual nature of the days leading up to it, with the warning for some to repent and encouragement for others to persevere (cf. 1 Cor 1:8). The Day of the Lord is certainly a terrible day of judgment for some, but for others, it is the means to purification and renewed blessing that will surely ensue once the dust has settled.

Bibliography

Burge, G.M. “Day of Christ, God, the Lord.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Edited by Walter A. Elwell. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984.

Caird, G. B. The Language and Imagery of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980.

Chisholm, Robert B., Jr. From Exegesis to Exposition: A Practical Guide to Using Biblical Hebrew. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998.

“Day of the Lord.” In Dictionary of Biblical Imagery. Edited by Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, and Tremper Longman III. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998.

Glenny, W. Edward. “The Israelite Imagery of 1 Peter 2.” In Dispensationalism, Israel and the Church: The Search for Definition. Edited by Craig A. Blaising and Darrell L. Bock. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.

Hiers, Richard. “Day of the Lord.” In The Anchor Bible Dictionary. 6 vols. Edited by David Noel Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

Martens, Elmer. “Day of the Lord, God, Christ, the.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Edited by Walter A. Elwell. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996.

Witherington, Ben, III. Jesus, Paul and the End of the World. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1992.

---

¹ A study of the expression “Day of the Lord” should also take into account the synonymous expressions found in the Old Testament. The Hebrew collocation hw`hy+ <oy (“day of the Lord”) is easily identified fourteen times in the writing prophets (Isa 13:6, 9; Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11; 3:4; 4:14; Amos 5:18 [twice], 20; Obad 1:15; Zeph 1:7, 14 [twice]; Mal 3:23), but similar collocations such as hw`hy+ <oyB= (“on the day of the Lord”; Ezek 13:5), hw`hyl^ <oy (“the Lord has a day”; Isa 34:8; Ezek 30:3), toab*x= hw`hyl^ <oy (“the Lord of Hosts has a day”; Isa 2:12; 22:5) and hw`hy+-[a^ <oy (“the day of the anger of the Lord”; Lam 2:22) must also be considered. See Richard Hiers, “Day of the Lord,” in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, 6 vols., ed. by David Noel Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992) 2:83.

² It seems logical that the nature of the Day of the Lord would emerge from its conceptual origins. Though some have suggested a conceptual link with the day of divine rest following creation, cultic ritual (e.g., a king’s enthronement), or Israel’s troubled history, the use of battle imagery in connection with the phrase suggests a potential link with the conquest of Canaan (cf. Deut 1:30; 3:22; Josh 5:13-15; 6:2). This would certainly highlight the element of judgment experienced by some, but for others the outcome of battle meant newly acquired blessing.

³ Ben Witherington III, Jesus, Paul and the End of the World (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1992) 148.

⁴ Interestingly, Joel’s call to repentance takes the standard prophetic form of an appeal attached to a motivating argument (usually in the form of a promise or threat). Joel’s appeal in 1:12-13a is followed by a motivating argument that appeals to God’s gracious character in 1:13b, and potential mercy and blessing in 1:14. See Robert B. Chisholm, Jr., From Exegesis to Exposition: A Practical Guide to Using Biblical Hebrew (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998) 183.

⁵ G. M. Burge, “Day of Christ, God, the Lord,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. by Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984) 147.

⁶ E.g., G. B. Caird, The Language and Imagery of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980) 259.

⁷ There is some question as to whether the reference to an army in 2:11 is to be understood as a powerful military brigade or a figurative reference to the locusts of 1:15-20. Joel 2:25 makes reference once again to locusts, so some have argued that a literal swarm of locusts have been in view all along. Though the view which reads a literal swarm of locusts through all of chapters one and two finds support in curses leveled for abandoning the Mosaic covenant (cf. Deut 28:38-39), it is also true that multiple punishment is one of the curse types (cf. Lev 26:18, 21, 24, 28). In other words, it may be possible that the outbreak of locusts was the harbinger of an even greater catastrophe (i.e., military invasion) to come. Indeed, the Assyrian armies under Sennacherib in 701 BCE or the Babylonian armies under Nebuchadnezzar in the 590’s and 580’s would have carried the destructive potential depicted by Joel. Regardless of the manner in which one interprets the reference to an army in 2:11, this unmistakable sign of God’s judgment was clearly a past event worthy of the designation “Day of the Lord.”

⁸ In addition, Joel’s use of imagery seems to anticipate several New Testament texts (Matt 13:41-43, 49-50; 24:37-41; 25:31-46; 2 Thess 1:9; Rev 14:17-20). Clearer allusions are found in the collocations “that day” (Matt 7:22; 1 Thess 5:4), “day of God” (2 Pet 3:12), “day of wrath” (Rom 2:5-6), and “day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Cor 1:14; Phil 1:6, 10). In both anticipation and allusion, the same day produces a certain terror for the unbeliever and a joy for those who know the Lord behind the day.

⁹ Indeed, the collocation “Day of the Lord” is used by the prophets to describe any period of time in which God intervenes to save or judge. See “Day of the Lord,” in Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, eds. Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, and Tremper Longman III (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998) 196.

¹⁰ Burge, “Day of Christ, God, the Lord,” 295.

¹¹ Elmer Martens, “Day of the Lord, God, Christ, the,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, ed. by Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996) 146.

¹² This shared yet heightened theme is in keeping with general principles of typological fulfillment. W. Edward Glenny has identified three helpful guidelines for grounding typological interpretation in a careful handling of scripture: First, the type must be grounded in scripture and possess a solid historical foundation. Second, there must be a discernable pattern between the texts under consideration. Finally, a typological interpretation must manifest a heightening of meaning from the Old Testament to the New. See W. Edward Glenny, “The Israelite Imagery of 1 Peter 2,” in Dispensationalism, Israel and the Church: The Search for Definition, ed. by Craig A. Blaising and Darrell L. Bock (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992) 158.

Under the picture of the Word as our necessary food, these verses demonstrate the importance of God’s Word for motivation, courage and strength, and capacity for ministry. Living in and feeding on the Word, because it tunes our ear into God’s voice, produces the burden, the willingness, and the courage necessary for ministry regardless of our fears or the obstacles we face. Scripture brings us in touch with God Himself and with His heart.

In Ezekiel 2:8 and 3:1 “eat” is a fitting picture of feeding on God’s Word and filling our souls with His truth. This naturally leads to the ability to hear and follow the command.

After being told to eat, the prophet is told “go,” an apt picture of going or ministering according to the gifts and special leading of the Lord in any believer’s life. But if we aren’t feeding, we will not be listening, nor will we be in a position spiritually to follow the Lord.

Then the prophet is told, to “go to the house of Israel and speak my words to them.” This was God’s specific ministry and call for the prophet. It was God’s will for Ezekiel, but what about us both corporately and individually as believers today?

The impact of chapters 2 and 3 in Ezekiel may be lost on us because of an idea that is common in the church today, but one that is erroneous and that throws a wet blanket on the outreach of the church. Many would say this passage applies only to evangelists or pastors. The idea is that only such men have the call of God on their lives; these are the ministers of the Word. As a result, a large portion of the body of Christ excuse themselves from the ministry of evangelism or outreach.

In the church age every believer is a priest of God and called of God into full-time service of one sort or another according to their gifts. Furthermore, every believer is to do the work of evangelism, show mercy to others, help, give, and in general, do good works (Tit. 3:8, 14; 2 Tim. 4:5; 1 Peter 2:1-10; 4:10-11).

A Proper Response by Ezekiel (3:2)

“So” points us to Ezekiel’s response. In light of who is speaking and what the Scroll consists of (God’s Holy Word), the following is essential and logical—“I opened my mouth.” Revelation demands an adequate response. Opening the mouth portrays a teachable, hungry, and studious spirit.

“And He fed me …” Only God can ultimately feed us and make us understand the Word through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. But if we don’t open our mouths, if we aren’t hungry, and if we don’t make ourselves available, He can’t feed and strengthen us in the Word.

A Full Meal Deal (vs. 3)

God was telling Ezekiel to thoroughly digest and understand the message. To be a student of the Word. He was also telling him this message must saturate his life; he must become full of the message. But why?

• We must know the message if we are going to be able to communicate it accurately. Recent statistics show the majority of Christians are biblically illiterate.
• We must be absorbed with the Word if we are going to be willing and courageous to carry it to others and if we are going to be able to change our values, priorities, and thus, pursuits—if God’s burden is going to become ours. To be full of the Word is to be controlled by the Word, to have the mind of Christ.

Read carefully and reflectively on Ezekiel 3:3-15.

When we aren’t living in the Word and allowing it to saturate our hearts and minds, we will either fail to minister, or we will minister for the wrong reasons—and always without a sense of God’s purpose and without the joy of the Lord. Further, when we run into obstacles, and we always do, our tendency will be to run or throw in the towel. Ezekiel was given a very difficult task, but God’s Word in his heart fortified him and gave him the hardness to stand against the difficulties he faced (3:8-10).

In verse 14, we see the change that took place in the heart of Ezekiel brought about by the Word and the ministry of the Spirit of God. As he became associated with God’s message and God’s glory, he began to feel God’s righteous anger over Israel’s sin and stubborn rebellion.

“So listen carefully”
(Luke 8:18)

Introduction

We might begin by asking the question, What exactly is the Bible? Most Christians would answer that it is God’s Holy Word, His special instrument of communication to man. And they would be right. Then we need to ask another question. If we believe the Bible is God’s Word and special means of communication, do we take the Bible seriously? Do we have a holy reverence for Scripture and the time we assemble together to worship and study this Word from God?

Are we like the one God esteems or looks for in Isaiah 66:2? “I show special favor to the humble and contrite, who respect what I have to say.” Or as the KJV reads, “but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.”

God is looking for people who have a holy reverence for the Word and His plan for learning and applying it. This means truly hearing God’s voice in the Word. God is the master communicator and biblical history is not only the story of redemption but it is also the story of communication and revelation from God. He encodes and transmits, and we are to decode and receive.

Isn’t it true that one of the keys to life and good relationships is effective communication? And for effective communication to occur, there must be effective listening. This is just one of the reasons we must take the study of the Bible very seriously, whether privately or corporately. This is true not only in Bible study, but in our prayer life and in all aspects of corporate worship. Why? So we might truly listen to God through the various aspects of a worship service, and especially our time in the Word.

We need to listen to God even though He has chosen to use human instruments to communicate with us. It would be well for each of us to take to heart Paul’s praise to the believers in 1 Thessalonians 2:13: “And so we too constantly thank God that when you received God’s message that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human message, but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe."

The process looks something like this:

• COMMUNICATION: Listening to God
• COMPREHENSION: Understanding what God says
• CONFIDENCE: Trusting in what God says
• CHANGE: Being transformed by what God says

Without this process of communication, there simply cannot be any real spiritual change in the life of man. Because of this, God is deeply concerned about how well we hear when we are listening.

The Importance
Scripture Places on Listening to God

Have you ever noticed how often the Bible emphasizes the idea of listening? It is a concept that is repeated over and over in a variety of ways. This is obviously not without purpose.

Illustrations:

(1) The specific clause “hear the Word of the Lord” occurs 32 times in the NIV and 28 times in the NASB.

(2) The words “hear” or “listen O Israel” are found six times in the NIV and the NASB. “Listen” is found 331 times and the majority of these passages in some way deal with listening to the Lord. “Hear” is found 347 times, and again many of these also have to do with hearing God’s Word.

(3) We also find a number of comments like “incline your ear,” “give ear” or “pay or give attention” and similar expressions used in various ways to call man, and especially God’s people, to listen intently to God.

(4) In the New Testament, the Lord warns us to consider carefully what you hear (Mark 4:24) and how you hear (Luke 8:18).

(5) The words “today, if you hear his voice,” are found three times in Hebrews and once in the Old Testament (Heb. 3:7, 15; 4:7; Ps. 95:7).

(6) Seven times, once in each of the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 we read “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

(7) In Mark 4:9 the Lord warned, “Whoever has ears to hear had better listen!” and again in verse 23 He said “If anyone has ears to hear, he had better listen!

(8) And is it not significant that one of the titles of the Son of God is the Greek term logos which refers to some form of communication? It means “speech, word, saying, discourse.” As the Logos, Jesus Christ is the living Word of God to man. Of Him Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 18:15, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you—from your fellow Israelites; you must listen to him.”

(9) But not only is there the call to listen carefully to the Lord, there is the warning about listening to the wrong voices or influences in the world in numerous passages in both the Old and New Testaments.

The Point is Simple. God has much to say to us and because He is the all-wise and sovereign God and because of our finite humanity as well as our fallenness, it is imperative for us to listen carefully. But, as fallen people, even as fallen people now redeemed, we are ever so prone to be distracted and drawn away with other things, even with good things.

We can too easily be like Martha, who was distracted by so many things, rather than Mary who sat at the feet of the Savior to hear His Word (Luke 10:38-42).

As portrayed in the parable of the sower, the soils, and the seed, we can be like the thorny ground, full of thorns and thistles which represent the cares of the world and which choke the Word and cause it to become unfruitful in our lives (Mark 4:18-19).

Why do you suppose God created man with two eyes and two ears, but with only one mouth? That in itself ought to be a visual object lesson worth a thousand words.

Listen to these words from Proverbs 20:12: “The ear that hears and the eye that sees—the Lord has made them both.” You know, I find it significant and interesting that Solomon says nothing about the mouth. The Lord made that too, yet it seems Solomon purposely didn’t mention the mouth. He only mentions that which is a source or means of receiving instruction from the Lord.

The fact is we are all too quick to reveal our minds and too slow to listen. James reminds us of this very fact: “Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters! Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.” (James 1:19).

With this in mind, we might note Proverbs 18:2, “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding but only in disclosing what is on his mind.” Compare also Proverbs 22:17-19.

The lesson is obvious: We are to listen so we can learn to trust the Lord. To fail to listen shows our determination to pursue life through our own resources and foolishness

The Instruction of
Scripture on Listening to God

How God communicates should teach us something about how we should listen. So how does God communicate, and how should we listen? What do we need to do to be prepared to listen attentively and effectively?

God Communicates Through the Bible

The Bible is our index or guide for all the other ways God communicates. If we are going to listen to God and discern His voice in the other avenues He uses, we must be listening to His Word, the Bible. Of course, God communicates His Word in many ways: through those who teach it formally and informally as in counseling, in personal exhortation and encouragement, through song or music, through books, tapes, film, etc. However, the primary method God has chosen, and that which is foundational to all the other ways God communicates in the church age, is the local assembly when the church is assembled together for the hearing of the Word. Other things are involved, prayer, singing, praise, the Lord’s table, but at the center is the proclamation of the Word (2 Thess. 2:13; 1 Tim. 4:11, 13; 2 Tim. 4:1-4).

God Communicates Through the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the resident teacher whom the Father has sent through the Son to indwell every New Testament believer as God’s special anointing to teach and make the truths of the Word understood and real to the hearts and minds of believers. One of His primary ministries today is that of communicating the Word—the completed canon of Scripture.

Since the cessation of the temporary, foundational, and miraculous gifts, He does not give special or new revelation, but He works through the Word which is our index for belief and practice.

To be able to listen to God, to comprehend truth, to worship the Lord, and to be transformed by the Word through faith in God, God has given us the Holy Spirit. He is God’s special agent who takes the things of Christ and teaches them to us whether we receive them by personal study or through the human instruments who teach us the Word.

God Communicates Through Events

• Through special times of worship (singing, praise, prayer, teaching, ordinances)
• Through blessings that reveal His love and grace.
• Through trials and irritations that become tools to get our attention and build character as we learn to rest in the promises and principles of Scripture.

God Communicates Through People

The Bible is full of illustrations of how God uses people to communicate His love, mercy, and grace. This comes in many forms: sometimes in the form of encouragement, sometimes in the form of godly example, and sometimes even in the form of rebuke. Note these passages to illustrate the point: 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Proverbs 27:5-6, 17; John 13:34-45; Malachi 3:16; Ephesians 5:19-20; 1 Timothy 5:1-2; Ephesians 6:4; Galatians 6:1-3; 1 Peter 3:1-2, 7).

Our primary focus in this short study is on how God communicates to us through the Word and the Holy Spirit especially in relation to our times of worship together.

What does this mean in terms of how we listen to God? As already pointed out, listening to God must involve God’s Word and the Holy Spirit working together in the mind and heart of the believer. Even when God uses people and circumstances, we must always consider what God is saying to us in the light of His infallible Word.

God never contradicts His Word. We must learn to examine everything in the light of the Holy Scripture. Further, this means we need to recognize that since the Spirit communicates to us through the Word of God, we need to expose ourselves to the Word privately and corporately as often as we can.

But listening to God also means something else. Listening to God—really hearing what He is seeking to say—demands spiritual preparation and active participation on the part of the listener. In order to listen to God, one must be prepared to listen. Listening to the Lord is a spiritual matter.

But any kind of learning involves preparation and active participation or concentration. Because of this, God is very concerned about how we listen and worship. He is concerned about our mental attitudes and our spiritual state when we worship corporately or sit down privately with the Bible.

The problem is that we can simply go through the motions of religious activity and deceive ourselves as James warns us in James 1. We can play church and do a kind of ‘nod to God’ routine putting in our appearance physically while we are in essence absent spiritually. The result is we don’t even come close to truly hearing the voice of God because we have removed our hearts from Him. We have become passive listeners because we aren’t really prepared physically, mentally, and spiritually to hear the Word of the Lord.

Church attendance is often simply a part of our plan to pursue life on our own terms. We attend church not to meet with God or listen in order to know, love, and serve Him, but to feel good, to have an experience, to hear beautiful music, to hear an eloquent speaker, to see people or even to be seen by people. We attend church to soothe our consciences and maybe earn a little of God’s favor. In this case, our religious activity is a kind of insurance policy—a protection we think. But we are dead wrong if we think this way because such reasons do not line up with what God says to us in His Word (read carefully Ecc. 5:1-2; Isa. 29:1,13; Eze. 33:30-32).

So, the key question is, what can we do to prepare our hearts so we are in a position where we can hear what the Lord is seeking to communicate to us, i.e., understand the message and respond with faith and obedience whether the message comes through a hymn, or a testimony, or through the teaching of the Word?

What Is Needed to Effectively Listen to God

We Need Spiritual Preparation

As has already been stated, God’s communication through the Word always involves the teaching/convicting ministry of God the Holy Spirit. This is evident in a number of passages but we will illustrate the point from Ephesians 3:16-19 and 1 Corinthians 2:9-3:3.

That God communicates the Word through the ministry of the Spirit means we must be properly adjusted to or in right relationship to this divine teacher who indwells us. This is a relationship where, believing that He is present, we consciously depend on Him for insight to God’s Word (understanding and personal application).

But as we can see from 1 Corinthians 3, carnal believers, those who are not dealing with sin in their lives, cannot and will not effectively listen or hear God’s message. Carnal believers are apathetic and simply cannot understand and respond to the things of God while in that condition.

Why is that? Because known sin in the life, things like wrong attitudes (envy, jealousy, resentment, pride, unbelief, self-centeredness), self-protective ways of living, indifference or apathy to God, preoccupation with other things, and other forms of sin grieve the Spirit’s person (Eph. 4:30) and undoubtedly stifle or quench much of His ministry like teaching and making the things of Christ real (1 Thess. 5:19). His ministry is changed from leading and teaching the believer to that of convicting him of his condition. The Lord Jesus put it this way in Mark 4:19, “but worldly cares, the seductiveness of wealth, and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it produces nothing.”

Martha gives us a classic illustration of this. Though in the very presence of the Lord Jesus, Martha (in contrast to Mary) had no ears to hear what the Savior was saying because she was distracted and drawn away by other concerns (Luke 10:38-41).

Another illustration can be seen in the disciples when the Lord fed the five thousand (Mark 6:30-52). They had failed to truly listen to what the Lord was teaching them through the events of the day because they too were occupied with other things, like with who was the greatest. The result is seen in the Lord’s rebuke in verse 52, “because they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.”

An Open Heart

There needs to be a heart open to personal soul-searching examination for the purpose of seeing our motives, our sources of trust or the things we depend on for our security, i.e., the condition of our lives as they really are. This needs to be done prior to personal study or a worship service in order to prepare our hearts for hearing God. And then it needs to be maintained as other things (or thoughts) distract or hinder our listening while studying or praying, or during a worship service (Ps. 119:18; 139:23-24; 1 Cor. 11:28f).

Often this is simply not done. People arrive at church harried and upset because of something that happened at home or on the way to church. People get caught up chatting with friends and then sit down and never give any thought to their need to secure a spiritual focus and to be sure they are controlled by the Spirit.

The purpose for examination and self-revelation is honest to God confession in a spirit of repentance. While people can’t see our hearts, God can and He rejects worship that is not in spirit and truth, where the heart is kept from Him (Isa. 29:13).

Regarding confession, we are talking about a confession which seeks to go to the root causes of sin in our lives, especially our stubborn determination to run our own lives and live by our own devices for peace, security, and significance (Jer. 2:13; 17:5; Ps. 66:18; Pro. 28:13-14; 1 John 1:9; Ps. 51:5f; Jam. 4:6-10).

Both James 1:19-25 and 1 Peter 2:1-2 teach us that before there can be a proper response to the Word that leads to true spiritual deliverance through an active faith, a response where we are quick to listen, receive, and hunger as a newborn babe for the pure milk of the Word, we must honestly deal with sin. In James 1:23, “receiving the word implanted” is dependent on “putting aside all filthiness …” In 1 Peter 2:2, the command to “And yearn like newborn infants for pure, spiritual milk” is dependent on “get(ting) rid of all evil and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.”

How do we deal with sin? By personal examination and honest confession of sin. Then we will be free to listen to God’s Word and depend on the Holy Spirit to give deliverance over sin.

Active Participation

In our TV generation we have become passive listeners. I think the term is “couch potatoes.” We have become mentally lazy. We have forgotten how to think and stay actively involved in the listening process. Active listening means concentrating, searching, probing, questioning, thinking, interacting, responding and applying.

God doesn’t want pious, passive spectators. He wants actively involved listeners. We aren’t receivers who turn ourselves on, tune ourselves in, and relax. Active involved listening is spoken of frequently in Scripture.²⁴³

Note the following passage:

James 1:22-27 But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves. 23 For if someone merely listens to the message and does not live it out, he is like someone who gazes at his own face in a mirror. 24 For he gazes at himself and then goes out and immediately forgets what sort of person he was. 25 But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty and fixes his attention there, and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out—he will be blessed in what he does. 26 If someone thinks he is religious yet does not bridle his tongue, and so deceives his heart, his religion is futile. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their misfortune and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Having challenged us to deal with any sin so we can truly receive (hear) the Word, James then warns us about the difference between superficial and substantial listening. He is warning us against unprepared, passive, and uninvolved listening. James is teaching us we need the kind of active listening that is diligent to understand and respond to God’s Word in order that its truth touch the heart so that it begins to bring change—not by our own strength, but by the power of the indwelling Spirit of God through faith. Compare 1 Corinthians 2:15.

The words “peers into” in verse 25 represent a different word for “looking” than the one used previously in this section (vss. 23-24). This is the Greek word parakuptw which refers to a very intent and concentrated look. Literally parakuptw means “to stoop down in order to have a close look.” It is used in John 20:5 and 11 of the investigation of the empty tomb by the disciples, and in 1 Peter 1:12 of the angels intense interest and study of the person and work of the Savior. So parakuptw suggests keen interest, close attention, and active investigation.

In 1 Timothy 4 Paul told Timothy to “take pains” and “be absorbed” in these things, a reference to the previous commands regarding his ministry in teaching, being an example of Christlike character, and using his gift (4:11-14). One simply cannot “take pains” and “be absorbed” and remain a passive listener. “Take pains” is the Greek word meletaw which means “cultivate, think meditate, attend to carefully.” “Be absorbed” is literally, “in these be,” and connotes the idea of “be totally enveloped, absorbed,” “give yourself totally to them.”

But note the next verse: “Be conscientious about how you live…” Bible study or hearing the Word is to be aimed at personal application for changed living from the inside out.

Passive, uninvolved listening to God is inadequate and judged by God as futile religiosity. Believers are always to be on the alert, probing for meaning and application. Lethargic, half-hearted listening just doesn’t cut it with God nor can it result in spiritual deliverance. In practical terms what does this entail?

What does this mean in terms of my listening to God? When I read and study the Word, I must put everything else aside and concentrate on what He is saying to me. I must give Him my undivided attention. I should do this on a regular basis, for that is the only way I can develop my listening skills. I should do this in a place where I have minimal distractions. I should read and meditate out loud and take notes and ask questions, for these are the kinds of things that make me an active participant.

I should observe carefully to whom God is speaking, what He is saying and why He says it. I should interpret accurately what God means I should apply these truths personally and practically in my own life.²⁴⁴

Finally, to round out our preparation, there are two more things we need so we can listen carefully.

Biblical Participation

The nobility of the Bereans refers to the fact that the Berean Jews (in contrast to Jews in Thessalonica) were teachable and open, though not gullible. They listened attentively as active participants, but they tested Paul’s teaching against the Scriptures as their index for truth—always a noble and biblical attitude. Their authority for what was truth was the Word. They sought to set aside or block out their prejudice so God’s Word could speak for itself. The result was many came to trust in the Savior.

When we attend church, God wants us to be like the Bereans—good listeners and teachable—and also biblically active participants who search the Scriptures to see whether these things are so.

Mark 7:7-13 stresses the ever present problem of prejudice and background whether religious or secular which we all bring to church and to our background. This passage shows how our background, tradition, experiences, prejudices, etc., can nullify the power and truth of the Word in our lives.

Second Timothy 3:15 teaches again the value of active participation in the words “be diligent” or “study” (KJV). But to that it adds the importance of applying sound principles of Bible study so we are truly listening to God and not the ideas of man that are so often based on man’s tradition or human experience, including our own (cf. 2 Pet. 1:17-21). We need to be precise in our hermeneutics so we truly hear what God is saying.

Why did the apostle say this? Because Timothy was faced with false teachers who were neither diligent nor accurately handling the Word. That leads to hearing man’s voice and not God’s. When we apply poor methods of Bible study and poor methods of listening, we can end up hearing man’s voice rather than God’s. There is simply no place in God’s plan for lethargic, passive listening, or listening carelessly.

Physical Preparation

In Luke 22:7-14, we find that the Lord sent Peter and John to make preparations for the Passover meal that they might observe it according to its meaning and significance. The word “prepare” is used three times in these verses (vss. 9, 12, 13). The Lord saw to it that everything needed was properly prepared so He could observe the Passover with His disciples.

Truly listening to God involves physical as well as spiritual preparation. Certainly without spiritual preparation, the best physical preparation in the world accomplishes little. But we often fail to see the need to be physically prepared to listen to God. Physical preparation should be seen as a part of the spiritual preparation needed to listen to God.

• Noise, people moving around, poor lighting, and other physical conditions can be distracters which hinder our ability to concentrate.
• Being physically tired from failing to get enough sleep the night before can create a major hindrance to good listening.
• Those who have a part in the worship service as song leader, pianist, organist, ushers, the speaker, etc., can call attention to themselves through a lack of preparation and thus hinder people from listening to God.
• Preparation needs to start at home on Saturday night by getting to bed early, getting the kids clothes ready, and by even planning breakfast. For many families, getting to church becomes a frantic, harried experience with mom and dad looking for socks and shoes, and trying to feed the family. In such circumstances, who is prepared to listen?
• Preparation can include something as simple as seeing to it that the children go to the bathroom before the service.

The bottom line is that listening to God is no small issue. If we are not prepared to listen so we can respond with our hearts, let’s face it, we are simply playing church and we are withholding our hearts from the Lord. Our religious activities then become an exercise in futility and deception (Jam. 1:22).

²⁴³ Grant Howard, The Trauma of Transparency, Multnomah Press, Portland, 1979, p. 91.

²⁴⁴ Howard, p. 92.

Introduction

In the New Testament there are a number of key passages which are important to the subject of sin and forgiveness for the child of God.

Acts 24:16 This is the reason I do my best to always have a clear conscience toward God and toward people.

1 Corinthians 4:3-4 So for me, it is a minor matter that I am judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not acquitted because of this. The one who judges me is the Lord.

1 Corinthians 11:28-29 A person should examine himself first, and in this way let him eat the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For the one who eats and drinks without careful regard for the body eats and drinks judgment against himself.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the point of dividing soul from spirit, and joints from marrow; it is able to judge the desires and thoughts of the heart.

1 John 1:5-2:2 Now this is the gospel message we have heard from him and announce to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. 2:1 (My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.) But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One, 2 and he himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world.

1 John 3:19-22 And by this we will know that we are of the truth and will convince our conscience in his presence, 20 that if our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience and knows all things. 21 Dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God, 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him.

The Old Testament is not silent on this subject and adds to our understanding of forgiveness for the believer. Some key passages are Genesis 3 and the responses of Adam and Eve who tried to cover their sin by blame and their own solution of fig leaves. In addition to those below, compare also Psalm 32:1-7 and 51:1-13.

Psalm 66:18 If I had harbored sin in my heart,
the sovereign Master would not have listened.

Psalm 139:23-24 Examine me, and probe my thoughts!
Test me, and know my concerns!
24 See if there is any idolatrous tendency in me,
and lead me in the reliable ancient path!

Proverbs 20:27 The human spirit is like the lamp of the Lord,
searching all the innermost parts.

Proverbs 28:13 The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper,
but whoever confesses and abandons them will find mercy.

Jeremiah 17:9-10 The human mind is more deceitful than anything else.
It is incurably bad. Who can understand it?
10 I, the Lord, probe into people’s minds.
I examine people’s hearts.
And I deal with each person according to how he has behaved.
I give them what they deserve based on what they have done.

There are three needs involved in forgiveness:

• Examination (1 Cor. 11:28)
• Self-judgment (1 Cor. 11:31)
• Confession (1 John 1:9)

The above passages from the Old and New Testaments amplify and clarify this whole element of forgiveness and our responsibility regarding personal sin. From these passages, a number of important principles emerge.

The Problems We Face

• Inherent sinfulness with a bent for foolishness or the disease of self-management (Prov. 4:23; Jer. 17:5; 1 John 1:8; cf. Isa. 2:6-8 with 1:3-4).
• The delusions and temptations of Satan to temp us to sin. We should be aware that the key goal of Satan, regardless of the sin or the temptation, is to get us to act independently of God.
• Defilement as we walk in an evil world using human solutions (John 13:1f; 1 John 1:9).
• This defilement and the use of human strategies form a barrier to fellowship, growth, and honest change from the inside out (Isa. 2:6; 30:1-2; 50:10-11; with 59:1-2).

Unconfessed known sin in the life constitutes negative volition to the leading and control of the Holy Spirit (cf. Jam. 4:17; Rom. 14:23). It grieves His person (Eph. 4:30), quenches His power (1 Thess. 5:19), causes God to ignore our prayer requests (Ps. 66:18), and cuts us off from experiencing much of the blessing and power of God (Prov. 28:13).

Our bent for self-management and control, and our failure to recognized this and deal with it, not only creates a barrier to fellowship with God but it creates a barrier to real inward change. We devise methods by which we can appear and act religious on the outside (cf. Isa. 29:13) while we seek to manage our own lives by handling our fears, insecurities, and frustrations with our own strategies (our man-made firebrands) rather than with God’s resources (cf. Isa. 50:10-11; Jer. 2:13).

The Needs We Have

Examination

We each need not a morbid preoccupation with self, but a daily inside look at our lives, our patterns of behavior, our strategies for living, and our feelings, fears, and attitudes (cf. Ps. 139:23-24; Prov. 20:27; 1 Cor. 11:28f).

Honesty

An inside look is useless without honesty with God and with self. Duplicity or deceit by way of self-justification or just plain denial through which we seek to cover up our attitudes and behavior is the enemy of spiritual growth and fellowship with God (cf. Ps. 32:2b; 51:6; 15:1-2; Prov. 24:12; 21:2; Luke 16:15).

Confession

Honest examination is needed for the purpose of confession in the form of genuine repentance—specific acknowledgment of all known sins with a commitment to change by God’s grace through faith.

But what is confession? “It is saying the same thing about sin as God does. It is having the same perspective on that sin as God does. This must include more than simply rehearsing the sin, for God’s perspective would also include forsaking that sin. Therefore to confess includes an attitude of forsaking that sin.”²⁴⁶

Vital to self-judgment and confession is the need for a commitment to allow God to change us from the inside out or at the core of our lives through faith, not in our own strategies or even for our own purposes, i.e., to make life work so we can be happy, but by faith in His resources, the Word, the control of the Spirit, prayer, and even the trials of life (James 1:2-4).

Also crucial to biblical change through confession and dependence on the Spirit of God is a biblical view of sin. We particularly need to understand that the root of sin in all its various shades and colors is the sin of self-management. Self-management is the culprit that sprouts up like a weed and produces the other categories of sin with which we deal. Here is an issue that is often either not understood or ignored because the hardest thing for all of us to do is to relinquish control.

We tend to confess the surface sins, the obvious, but we fail to see them for what they really are, the fruit of a deeper problem of sin that we typically want to disregard, indeed, one that we want to overlook, one that is at the heart of man’s sinfulness—the desire to run our own lives, to live independently through our human strategies for life.

Categories of Sin

(1) Sins of Commission—doing what we should not.

(2) Sins of Omission—failing to do what we should.

Or

(1) Overt Sin—murder, fornication, theft, manipulating others, and sins of the tongue such as lying, criticism, murmuring, nagging, foul language, gossip.

(2) Mental Attitude Sins—resentment, anxiety, hatred, fear, pride, sinful desires like coveting.

(3) Root Sins—Self-management sins, failing of the grace of God, human substitutes (religionism, secularism, materialism, human strategies for handling life, defense and escape mechanisms, etc.).

Therefore, in light of the effects of sin and self-controlling strategies on our fellowship with the Lord and our capacity to change, we need to:

(1) Examine our lives regularly in the light of God’s Word through study and meditating on the Word.

(2) Confess, acknowledge specific sins, as they are revealed to us by the tools God uses (the Spirit, the Word, failures, people, trials).

(3) Trust God’s promise to forgive us when we confess sin and know that our sins are forgiven.

(4) Draw upon our resources in Christ to enable us to deal with our sinful nature and those areas of foolishness that produced the sin, draw near to God, to make Him our refuge and source of life.

The Purpose We Need to Embrace

Personal examination followed by confession of sin is designed to stop sinful behavior, but it really only does so when it draws us to God in such a way that it increases our dependence on Him and His solutions for life and our sin. Confession is never to excuse sin until next time, nor is self-examination to make us aware of ourselves for a better identity. It is to move us toward God and change our character. This is the point of 1 John 1:8-2:2; Ps. 119:59; 139:23-24; Proverbs 20:27; 28:13 and Jeremiah 17:1f.

Proverbs 28:13 says, “The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses and abandons them will find mercy.” The word “transgression” certainly includes any sinful pattern, and “conceals” includes the tactics people use to ignore, justify, or deny sin. One excuse we often hear and we are all perhaps prone to use is: “That’s just the way I am.” The implication is that the weakness, etc., is someone else’s fault and we can’t change because this problem is a part of our makeup. But God says we can change because He has provided for us in Christ.

Note how the broad and sweeping statement, “forgive me of all my sin,” can be a means of ignoring or concealing specific sin in our lives. Such a prayer may be a means of accepting some sin as part of our lifestyle. When we fail to identify our sins first by examination and then by honest, sincere confession, we conceal them.

The person who conceals his sin, our verse tells us, “will not prosper.” The Hebrew text means that he habitually cannot prosper. So long as he continues to ignore or make excuses for his sin, he will not find the peace of God, nor real happiness, and certainly not spiritual success. The Hebrew word for “prosper” is tsaleach. In the Old testament it is used of the person who finds prosperity through the work of God in and on his behalf because he has sought the Lord and followed Him (Josh. 1:8; Ps. 1:3; 2 Chron. 26:5, 31:21). On the other hand, when we hide or ignore our sin, we cut ourselves off from God’s purpose, blessing, and strength. This means we forfeit deliverance, peace, rest, and spiritual prosperity, the abundant life, regardless of our external religious behavior (cf. Ps. 50:16-23; 66:18; Prov. 28:9).

The second half of Proverbs 28:13 (quoted above) gives us a special promise if two things are done.

The Conditions

We must confess our sin. As explained above, this means we must honestly acknowledge all known sin, admit to ourselves and to God that what we have done and are doing (the sinful pattern for instance) is wrong, sinful, and hinders our fellowship with God.

The sinful pattern is also to be forsaken, and, according to the analogy of Scripture, this means replaced with godly alternatives (cf. Eph. 4:24-32). In the Hebrew text, “abandons” is a participle of continuous action which would include the process of learning how to overcome and leave the sinful pattern behind. It takes time and growth to be able to deal with some of our deep-seated patterns, but we must be committed to the process and the pain involved.

The Promise

God promises such a person will find compassion. The words “find compassion” in the Hebrew mean “to love deeply, have mercy, be compassionate.” It connotes a special love, mercy, or compassion for the helpless, for those who, because of their special problem or weakness, need the uplifting love and aid of another. This has in view our natural helplessness and sinful condition which causes us to stumble and sin, even when, as Paul stresses in Romans 7:15, we do not want to sin. So this promise of compassion means not only forgiveness, but the blessing of divine love and provision: the supply and power of God to overcome and to change.

We must see, therefore, that the purpose of confession is change, deliverance from sin, and this requires being specific about the sin in our lives. Dealing with known sin and discovering these self-protective strategies, etc., is critical to our spiritual health, to real change, and our daily well being. It removes guilt, gives peace, is a means to restoration to fellowship with God, the filling of the Holy Spirit, effective prayer (Ps. 66:18), spiritual illumination, and a loving and ministering relationship with others.

²⁴⁶ Ryrie, Basic Theology, pp. 302f.