When God seems silent

There are times when God seems silent. Prayers go unanswered, even those asking for direction in desperate situations. Sometimes this is God testing my faith, or developing patience, but the OT tells of God being silent because the people were not listening to what He has already told them.

In trying to remember how this works, I think of a child who has been told, “no treats before supper” and as the mother stirs the soup for that meal, the child asks for a cookie and she just keeps stirring the soup without saying a word.

That is minor. I met a woman who was living with a man but not married to him. They moved into the community and she said she would start going to church and claimed to be a Christian. She didn’t seem bothered that her life choices did not please God. However, before she could attend church, she was in a head-on collision and died. 

I don’t know the will of God concerning her, but this was a warning to never act as if sin is okay because God says it is not. He kept warning His OT people to obey Him and when they didn’t, He said:

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it. (Amos 8:11–12)

After more than 50 years of hearing God speak in daily devotions (that is more than 18250 days), I sit before my Bible each morning with the wonder of hearing God speak, and a bit of dread that He will remain silent. Not the silence of unanswered prayer, but the silence that comes when His will is being ignored. These verses speak of this happening:

We do not see our signs; there is no longer any prophet, and there is none among us who knows how long. (Psalm 74:9)
Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but blessed is he who keeps the law. (Proverbs 29:18)

Another reason for silence is described. It happens when those who say God speaks but have not heard Him at all...

Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry “Peace” when they have something to eat, but declare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths. Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without divination. The sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be black over them; the seers shall be disgraced, and the diviners put to shame; they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God. But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin. (Micah 3:5–8)

If I’m going to share what God says to me, I cannot fake it or repeat things that listeners want to hear rather than tell the truth. If I become a ‘false’ prophet or a fake anything, it belies what God is like. He speaks truth and I cannot make up anything, only say what He says. If I do, either my hearing is bad or my agenda has become more important than His will.

Yet by grace He promises that His silence will not destroy His people. He will use it as a rebuke, or as a form of instruction. Even after many warnings, He still says words like this:

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when the plowman shall overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes him who sows the seed; the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it. I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them,” says the Lord your God. (Amos 9:13–15)

PRAY: Lord, You always speak, but I don’t always listen. Keep me turned in, not turned off or worse. Keep me from inventing what You say. If You ever are silent because I’ve not been doing what You already told me, don’t listen to my excuses. I cannot beg for a cookie if You say ‘no cookies’ nor greedily ask for more if I’ve ignored that You have already given enough. May the lessons and warnings of Your prophets remind me always of the importance of Your will and the need for my integrity. Obedience and truth honor Your great name.

God Speaks

 

I used to call myself a ‘word’ person because reading, word puzzles, and using the exact word has been important to me. It must also be important to God because the Bible uses WORD several thousand times in various forms. The book itself is called God’s Word.

In the OT, the verb and noun forms are used hundreds of times for human and divine speaking, with “The Lord has spoken” being many of those. The very first chapter relates: “And God said . . .” several times as He spoke the universe into existence.

This alone demonstrates the power of God’s Word. What He says is truth, commands the weather, puts evil to flight, blesses and curses, makes promises and changes lives. He calls people to listen to Him and tells His prophets to speak on His behalf. All humanity will be held responsible to God because His word is not secret and the truth of His work has been made manifest to all creation:

Isaiah 45:19. “I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the Lord speak the truth; I declare what is right.”

Romans 1:20. “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”

God makes plain how His people are to live and what He does not want for us. These are some examples among many:

Jeremiah 29:13. “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Luke 10:27. “And (Jesus) answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

Zechariah 8:17. “Do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord.”

The NT uses “logos” to express many forms of communication. In Greco-Roman literary culture, this term stood for the spoken word, “a message,” as well as what one does, “a deed.” The Synoptic Gospels identify Jesus as one who proclaimed the “logos of God,” and John 1:1–2;14 declares that He not only speaks for God but is God’s Word made flesh:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God . . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Colossians says that “In him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell” and “In him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.”

The message or Word from God is that God is revealed in Jesus Christ and this Word that spoke everything into existence is now the final Word to humanity:

Hebrews 1:1–3. “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

Another Greek term is also translated “word.” It is rhema and relates to individual statements, such as in Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” This is a direct statement to the human condition and to individual hearts. The Bible says that when anyone hears God speak this way, “See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven” (Hebrews 12:25)

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. I see God’s glory in His Word, in His words to me and in all that He does. My life in Christ is so deeply tied there. It concerns me that the Bible is so easily shoved aside. Amos 8:11–12 warned it would happen:

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it.”

How important that when I hear a message from the Lord, to realize there is no guarantee it will come again. I must read, study, and respond to God’s word as long as it is still available.

 

Can’t I stick to ‘This is the way I’ve always done it’?

 

1 Chronicles 13–14; Amos 8; Luke 3; James 1

 In biblical order, the last verse in today’s readings says that pure religion concerns itself with needy people and with keeping myself unstained from the world. Our small group has been discussing idolatry for the past couple of weeks and how the world is full of it, not so much little statues and shrines but putting all sorts of things ahead of God. I’ve been thinking that doing anything without consulting Him suggests that I am trusting myself, my own judgment and abilities. Is this idolatry? Is it worldly? Likely both.

Today’s example of how to avoid it is the way David began his reign in Israel when an enemy army attacked:

When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went out against them. Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the Valley of Rephaim. And David inquired of God, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up, and I will give them into your hand.” And he went up to Baal-perazim, and David struck them down there. And David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand, like a bursting flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim. (1 Chronicles 14:8–11)

David made no decisions on strategy for this battle without consulting God. Moreover, when a second attack came, he did not assume that God’s plan would be the same as the first one:

And the Philistines yet again made a raid in the valley. And when David again inquired of God, God said to him, “You shall not go up after them; go around and come against them opposite the balsam trees. And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.” And David did as God commanded him, and they struck down the Philistine army from Gibeon to Gezer. (1 Chronicles 14:13–16)

How easy to think that because something worked the first time, I should do the same thing the second time. This may be His will, however as I rely on God I’m discovering in a deeper and more comprehensive way that His mercies are “new every morning.” This suggests going to His Word and seeking Him in prayer every morning — for everything I do.

Examples: safety when driving, wisdom for each decision, skill in the kitchen, focus on artistic projects, the ability to sleep well, the right attitude when someone calls or messages me, patience when interrupted and so on. I also cannot assume that what worked yesterday will work today. It might (how many ways can I brush my teeth?) but no matter what it is, I need His enabling grace.

God is faithful to tell me what else I need too. Today He speaks about seeking His strategies for all of life, including that big one; how to keep myself unstained from the world. What is worldliness? The Bible defines it as attitudes and motivations as well as things:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15–17)

How do I live without those fleshy and sinful desires? By paying attention to what God says, reading it, doing it, loving His thoughts and strategies, being content.

Part of today’s readings is a warning made to the OT people. In my mind, this would be a disaster worse than any other and one that I pray will never happen to me or any of God’s people. Amos wrote:

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it. (Amos 8:11–12)

APPLY: Ask God’s forgiveness for so many actions taken without consulting Him. Ask constantly for grace and the focus to seek His will in every task on my to-do list and everything that comes up as interruptions or opportunities. May I be alert to His voice, appreciate the clarity of His Word, and be more like David — not assuming or letting the way I’ve always done something become a habit without first checking it out with my Savior.