John 10:27 — “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

In Hebrews 5, Apostle Paul admonishes the believers for being “dull” of hearing and for being spiritually immature.

He writes in verse 13 “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe.”

Then in the verse that follows, Paul exhorts them “But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:14).

Definitions:
(1) Full of age: mature
(2) Oracles: messages from God
(3) First Principles of the Oracles of God: refers to the basic teachings God gave through Moses, also called the Law of Moses.

Knowledge is crucial if you want to attain maturity. ‘Unlearned’ people are usually quite naive because they lack knowledge. God says in Hosea 4:6 “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge”. And in Proverbs 29:18, we see that “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keeps the law, happy is he.” Both knowledge and vision act like a spiritual compass and provide direction to the believer.

Immature believers are easily preyed upon by wolves in sheep’s clothing. They are easily deceived by crafty, conniving, thieving, deceitful con men & charlatans that prey upon naive, unsuspecting and unlearned Christians. For this reason, Jesus established within the church body the 5-fold ministry “offices” of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelists, Pastors & Teachers for the purpose of equipping and edifying the church (Ephesians 4:11).

There is a saying “You are what you eat”. I’d like to ask you: what are you consuming? Are you still drinking baby milk or are you consuming solid food (the meat of God’s word)? If you’re consuming solid spiritual food, then I’m presuming that you have reached a certain level of spiritual maturity where, as Apostle Paul says, instead of being taught (Hebrews 5:13) you are now equipped enough to equip others.

The 5-fold ministry offices are for “the EQUIPPING of the saints for the work of ministry, for the EDIFYING of the body of Christ”. (Ephesians 4:12). They help believers come to spiritual maturity in Christ by teaching them how to become skilled laborers in the kingdom. They guide them in how to sharpen & exercise their spiritual tools.

However, the believer has to take full personal responsibility for their own growth and learning. No one can make you want to attain spiritual maturity if you have no desire for it. You have to desire spiritual growth and then put in place certain changes to make it happen.

I’d like to look at the office of the Prophet in this post because true prophets have their ear-gate well trained (exercised) to discern the Voice of God very clearly. For this reason, they are the right persons to equip others on how to HEAR the voice of God.

Habitually, many people have become so reliant on receiving directions from prophets rather than learn how to hear from God for themselves. One of the reasons is that they have not learned to discern the voice of Holy Spirit (Spirit of Prophecy) who lives in them. Believers must have the desire & responsibility to want to hear God’s voice for themselves.

Prophecy is about God making known to you the intentions of His heart. He reveals His plans and purpose for your life. Sometimes the Lord will reveal certain things about your situation to a prophet but only as CONFIRMATION to what He has ALREADY told you.

Here are a few tips to help you start your journey to hear from God:

1. Position yourself to Seek/Pray for God to reveal to you the intentions of His heart (prophecy) for your life, situation or circumstances. Ask for His directions.

2. Keep a record/journal of what He says to you. Pay attention during this time to your dreams & visions. Write down key scriptures that are highlighted to you.

3. When you think that He’s given you something (a word), begin to pray for His KAIROS (God’s divine & appointed timing) for the word He’s given to you. To know God’s intentions (plans & purpose) is one thing. To understand His timing is another, so seek to know His timing!

Trust God’s process.
Don’t try to rush it.
It will come to pass just as He has purposed.
Read: Habakkuk 2:1-3

Anne Janssens
01 March 2021