1. LORD, CLEANSE ME BY YOUR BLOOD: Since receiving divine revelation is at the heart of biblical meditation, you must prepare yourself to receive from the Holy Spirit by repenting and being cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. You must be obedient to previous revelations from God (Matt. 7:6), and confess any sin in your life, so you are not cut off from ongoing revelation (Is. 59:1,2; I Jn. 1:9).
2. LORD, GRANT ME A TEACHABLE ATTITUDE: Revelation is given to those who maintain an attitude of humility, and it is withheld from the proud and the arrogant. So keep an open, humble attitude before God, allowing Him the freedom to shed greater light on any ideas you currently hold and to alter them as He sees fit (Jas. 4:6; II Pet. 1:19).
3. LORD, I WILL NOT USE MY FACULTIES MYSELF: You can do nothing of your own initiative but only what you hear and see by the Spirit (Jn. 5:19,20,30). You do not have a mind to use, but a mind to present to God so He can use it and fill it with anointed reason and divine vision (Prov. 3:5-7; Rom. 12:1,2). If you use your mind yourself, it is a dead work (Heb. 6:1,2).
4. LORD, I PRAY THAT THE EYES OF MY HEART MIGHT BE ENLIGHTENED: Slow down as you read, mulling the text over and over in your heart and mind, praying constantly for God to give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him (Eph. 1:17,18; Ps. 119:18).
5. LORD, I PRESENT THE ABILITIES TO REASON AND TO IMAGINE TO YOU TO FILL AND FLOW THROUGH BY YOUR SPIRIT: Meditation involves presenting your faculties to God for Him to fill and use. These include your left-brain reasoning capacities as well as your right-brain visual capacities. Look for the river of God (i.e. “Spirit flow”) to guide and fill both hemispheres, granting you anointed reasoning and dream and vision (Jn. 7:37-39). Music can assist you, as can muttering, speaking, and writing as you go through the discovery process (II Kings 3:15).
6. LORD, SHOW ME THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM I AM FACING: Focused attention brings additional energies of concentration of heart and mind, which help release revelation. For example, note the difference between a ray of sunlight hitting a piece of paper, and sunlight going through a magnifying glass to hit a piece of paper. The focused energycreates a ray so concentrated that the paper bursts into flames. When you have a hunger to master a new understanding and discipline, that hungry and searching heart will cause you to see things you would not normally see (Matt. 5:6).
7. THANK YOU, LORD, FOR WHAT YOU HAVE SHOWN ME: Realizing that the revelation came from the indwelling Holy Spirit, give all the glory to God for what has been revealed (Eph. 3:21).
Another Great Aid to “Seeing”: Writing Out Scripture
When you write or type out a verse, you discover words which you otherwise might have missed. Therefore, I write out verses which I know are key truths for my life. I pray over them, diagram them, analyze them, meditate on them. That is why I have written many of my books. I write so I can learn, so I can put truths I am understanding in my own words and in a framework which is meaningful for me.
The following is the law which God gave for new kings who had just been crowned and were coming to sit upon their throne for the first time: “Now it shall come about when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests” (Deut. 17:18). Since we are kings and priests, are we to do any less (I Pet 2:9)? Let us make the writing out of Scriptures an important part of our lives.
When we hear of one actually claiming to be able to hear the voice of God. However, we do not scoff, for several reasons. First, men and women throughout the Bible heard God’s voice. Also, there are some highly effective and reputable men and women of God alive today who demonstrate that they hear God’s
voice. Finally, there is a deep hunger within us all to commune with God, and hear Him speak within our hearts.As a born-again, Bible-believing Christian, I struggled unsuccessfully for years to hear God’s voice. I prayed, fasted, studied my Bible and listened for a voice within, all to no avail. There was no inner voice that I could hear! God set me aside for a year to study, read, and experiment in the area of learning to hear His voice. During that time, the Lord taught me four keys that opened the door to two-way prayer. I have discovered that not only do they work for me, but they have worked for many thousands of believers who have been taught to use them, bringing tremendous intimacy to their Christian experience and transforming their very way of living. This will happen to you also as you seek God, utilizing the following four keys. The key are all found in Habakkuk 2: 1,2. I encourage you to read this passage before going on.
Key #1 – God’s voice in our hearts may sound like a flow of spontaneous thoughts. ( confused also by the devil’s obstructions sometimes) Therefore, when I tune to God solely ( In prayer I first do ask the devil to stop talking to me, and I ask God alone to speak to me, God next he answers this prayer, I tune to spontaneity. The Bible says that the Lord answered me and said…(Hab. 2:2). Habakkuk knew the sound of can and does speak that way at times. How ever, I have found that for most of us, most of the time, God’s inner voice comes to us first as an interrupted spontaneous thoughts, visions, feelings, or impressions, (since we tend top have no room for god and often are busy pursing our own selfish, self centered ways and thoughts) . For example, haven’t each of us had the experience of driving down the road and having a thought come to us to pray for a certain person? We generally acknowledge this to be the voice of God calling us to pray for that individual. My question to you is, “What did God’s voice sound like as you drove in your car? Was it an inner, audible voice, or was it a spontaneous thought that lit upon your mind?” Most of you would say that God’s voice came to you as a spontaneous thought.So I thought to myself, “Maybe when I listen for God’s voice, I should be listening for a flow of spontaneous thoughts. Maybe spirit-level communication is received as spontaneous thoughts, impressions, feelings, and visions.” Through experimentation and feedback from thousands of others, I am now convinced that this is so.
The Bible confirms this in many ways. The definition of paga, the Hebrew word for intercession, is “a chance encounter or an accidental intersecting.” When God lays people on our hearts for intercession, He does it through paga, a chance-encounter thought, accidentally intersecting our thought processes. Therefore, when I tune to God, I tune to chance-encounter thoughts or spontaneous thoughts. When I am poised quietly before God in prayer, I have found that the flow of spontaneous thoughts that comes is quite definitely from God.
Key #2 – I must learn to still my own thoughts and emotions, so that I can sense God’s flow of thoughts and emotions within me.
Habakkuk said, “I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart…” (Hab. 2:1). Habakkuk knew that in order to hear God’s quiet, inner, spontaneous thoughts, he had to first go to a quiet place and still his own thoughts and emotions. Psalm 46:10 encourages us to be still, and know that He is God. There is a deep inner knowing (spontaneous flow) in our spirits that each of us can experience when we quiet our flesh and our minds.I have found several simple ways to quiet myself so that I can more readily pick up God’s spontaneous flow. Loving God through a quiet worship song is a most effective means for me (For God inhabits the praises of his people, his nearness is made more real, note II Kings 3:15). It is as I become still (thoughts, will, and emotions) and am poised before God that the divine flow is realized. Therefore, after I worship quietly and then become still, I open myself for that spontaneous flow. If thoughts come to me of things I have forgotten to do, I write them down and then dismiss them. If thoughts of guilt or unworthiness come to my mind, I repent thoroughly, receive the washing of the blood of the Lamb, and put on His robe of righteousness, seeing myself spotless before the presence of God (Is. 61:10; Col. 1:22).
As I fix my gaze upon Jesus (Heb. 12:2), be coming quiet in His presence, and sharing with Him what is on my heart, I find that two-way dialogue begins to flow. Spontaneous thoughts flow from the throne of God to me, and I find that I am actually conversing with the King of Kings. It is very important that you become still and properly focused if you are going to receive the pure word of God. If you are not still, you will simply be receiving your own thoughts. If you are not properly focused on Jesus, you will receive an impure flow, because the intuitive flow comes out of that upon which you have fixed your eyes. Therefore, if you fix your eyes upon Jesus, the intuitive flow comes from Jesus. If you fix your gaze upon some desire of your heart, the intuitive flow comes out of that desire of your heart. To have a pure flow you must first of all become still, and secondly, you must carefully fix your eyes upon Jesus. Again I will say, quietly worshiping the King, and then receiving out of the stillness that follows quite easily accomplish this.
Key #3 – As I pray, I fix the eyes of my heart upon Jesus, seeing in the spirit the dreams and visions of Almighty God.
We have already alluded to this principle in the previous paragraphs; however, we need to develop it a bit further. Habakkuk said, “I will keep watch to see,” and God said, “Record the vision” (Hab. 2:1,2). It is very interesting that Habakkuk was going to actually start looking for vision as he prayed. He was going to open the eyes of his heart, and look into the spirit world to see what God wanted to show him. This is an intriguing idea.I had never thought of opening the eyes of my heart and looking for vision. However, the more I thought of it, the more I realized this was exactly what God intends for me to do. He gave me eyes in my heart. They are to be used to see in the spirit world the vision and movement of Almighty God. I believe there is an active spirit world functioning all around me. is world is full of angels, demons, the Holy Spirit, the omnipresent God, and His omnipresent Son, Jesus. There is no reason for me not to see it, other than my rational culture, which tells me not to believe it is even there and provides no instruction on how to become open to seeing this spirit world.
The most obvious prerequisite to seeing is that we need to look. Daniel was seeing a vision in his mind and he said, “I was looking…I kept looking… I kept looking” (Dan. 7:2,9,13). Now as I pray, I look for Jesus present with me, and I watch Him as He speaks to me, doing and saying the things that are on His heart. Many Christians will find that if they will only look, they will see. Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us (Matt. 1:23). It is as simple as that. You will see a spontaneous inner vision in a manner similar to receiving spontaneous inner thoughts. You can see Christ present with you in a comfortable setting, because Christ is present with you in a comfortable setting. Actually, you will probably discover that inner vision comes so easily you will have a tendency to reject it, thinking that it is just you. (Invalid Doubt is Satan’s most effective weapon against the Church.) However, if you will persist in recording these visions, your doubt will soon be overcome by faith as you recognize that the content of them could only be birthed in Almighty God.God continually revealed Himself to His covenant people using dream and vision. He did so from Genesis to Revelation and said that, since the Holy Spirit was poured out in Acts 2, we should expect to receive a continuing flow of dreams and visions (Acts 2:1-4,17). Jesus, our perfect Example, demonstrated this ability of living out of ongoing contact with Almighty God. He said that He did nothing on His own initiative, but only that which He saw the Father doing, and heard the Father saying (Jn. 5:19,20,30). What an incredible way to live!
Is it actually possible for us to live out of the divine initiative as Jesus did? A major purpose of Jesus’ death and resurrection was that the veil be torn from top to bottom, giving us access into the immediate presence of God, and we are commanded to draw near (Lk. 23:45; Heb. 10: 19-22). Therefore, even though what I am describing seems a bit unusual to a rational twentieth-century culture, it is demonstrated and described as being a central biblical teaching and experience. It is time to restore to the Church all that belongs to the Church.
Because of their intensely rational nature and existence in an overly-rational culture, some will need more assistance and understanding of these truths before they can move into them. They will find this help in the book Communion With God by the same authors.
Key #4 – Journaling, the writing out of our prayers and God’s answers, provides a greater new freedom in hearing God’s voice.
God told Habakkuk to record the vision and inscribe it on tablets…(Hab. 2:2). It had never crossed my mind to write out my prayers and God’s answers as Habakkuk did at God’s command. If you begin to search Scripture for this idea, you will find hundreds of chapters demonstrating it (Psalms, many of the prophets, Revelation). Why then hadn’t I ever thought of it? (Or why have I refused to do it is the question too)I called the process “journaling,” and I began experimenting with it. I discovered it to be a fabulous facilitator to clearly discerning God’s”
Many academic scholars study the Bible and they still fail at it drastically.
A Study (My use of one part of one hemisphere of my brain)
1. Is nowhere endorsed in Scripture (II Tim. 2:15 is a mis-translation in the KJV Bible).
2. Is self in action (Humanism – a false god).
3. Is self using reason (Rationalism – a false god).
4. Results in wisdom from below – earthly, natural, demonic (Jas. 3:15). For example, reason caused Peter to be
at odds with the purposes of God (Jn. 18:10,11).
Study violates the following biblical principles:
1. Gal. 2:20 – I resurrect self, which no longer lives.
2. Rom. 12:1 – I am using my faculties rather than presenting them to God to use.
3. Is. 1:18 – I’m reasoning, rather than reasoning together with God.
4. Gen. 3:5 – I’ve fallen prey to the temptation of the Garden of Eden that “I can know good and evil.”
Meditation (Hebrew/Lamad) To murmur; to converse with oneself, and hence aloud; speak; talk; babbling; communication; mutter; roar; mourn; a murmuring sound; i.e., a musical notation; to study; to ponder; revolve in the mind; imagine; pray; prayer; reflection; devotion” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance*)
Meditation (God’s use of every part of both hemispheres of my brain as He fills and flows out through my heart by His Spirit)
1. Is endorsed 18 times in the KJV Bible.
2. Is God in action within the individual.
3. Is God granting revelation through the heart and mind which has been yielded to Him.
4. Results in wisdom from above – pure, peaceable, gentle (Jas. 3:17).
Meditation applies the following biblical principles:
1. Gal. 2:20 – I let Christ live through me.
2. Rom. 12:1 – I am yielding my outer faculties to the indwelling Spirit (to “flow” – Jn. 7:38).
3. Is. 11:2 When reasoning together with God, I receive a spirit of wisdom and understanding and knowledge.
4. Jn. 5:19,20,30 – I’m living as Jesus did, out of divine initiative, doing what I see and hear my Father doing. “
– Visit www.cwgministries.org for many more free articles, free downloadable books and additional information on hearing God’s voice.
So did you start your journey with God in full, or are you still lost, in the wilderness? still in un-confessed, un-repented sins, self centered, selfishly doing your own thing. Trying wrongfully to do it in your own strength.
One of the most successful of Satan’s deceptions is the promulgation of the belief that he and his angels are not here on the earth, In Revelation 12:7-9 we read, “And there was war in heaven: Michael [Christ] and his angels fought against the dragon [Satan]; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Satan’s angels are the angels that he deceived into following him in his rebellion against God. Notice that Satan and his angels [devils] were not cast out of heaven to hell; they were cast out to the earth, which is where they are right now! Jesus says in Luke 10:18, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” Revelation 12:12: “Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” Additional texts which show that Satan resides on the earth are found in the book of Job. The story of the Garden of Eden is given in Genesis 2:8 through 3:24. There are only four persons mentioned: God, Adam, Eve, and the devil, Satan, who masqueraded as a serpent. Then, after Adam and Eve had been expelled, God stationed angels to guard the garden. “Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created. . . .” God therefore certainly did not create the devil, but He did create the perfect, holy angel who later became the devil. When God created beings with free will, He knew that sooner or later one of them would begin to experience pride and selfish ambition just as Satan did. If Satan had not been created, the experience that happened to him would have happened to another angel. Why God created beings with free will, beings who can disobey if they choose, The devil still walks on earth and reports to God. Job 1:7 says, “And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” Genesis 1:31 tells us that “God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.” Everything was in perfect harmony with everything else. None of God’s creatures ever hurt another or made another unhappy. Where, then, did these obnoxious things come from? Where do the diseases from which mankind suffers come from? Why do animals and human beings hurt and kill one another now when they did not do this originally? Why does the lion eat other animals now instead of straw like the ox, as it did before? Consider the experience of the apostle Paul. A dedicated soldier of truth for the Lord and writer of many of the books of the New Testament, Paul had a physical infirmity. In 2 Corinthians 12:7, he tells us where his infirmity came from. “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.” Paul says that his problem was from Satan. He also says that he was given the problem so that he would not become proud because of the abundance of God’s revelations to him. God revealed to Paul the whole truth concerning Satan’s rebellion, and it is easy to see that this privilege might have tended to make Paul proud. You see, God did not afflict Paul, but He allowed Satan to do so. Another text that shows that the devil is the cause of pain and suffering is Luke 13:11. “And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.” Here a woman is described who was paralyzed in a bowed-together position, probably with arthritis, for eighteen years. Did God do this to that poor woman and make her suffer for eighteen years? Of course not. God is the ultimate of love and kindness. In Luke 13:16, Jesus explains who did do this to the woman. “And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?” You see, Satan afflicted this woman just as he afflicted Paul and just as he causes sickness and suffering in our world today. Satan is the one who causes all disease and suffering in our world. The only hope we have of penetrating this wall of lies and deception which Satan has built around us is in the whole Bible, the New Testament included, the standard for truth in our world. Remember that God cannot lie. (Titus 1:2). First Peter 5:8 tells us to “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” We get a further understanding of the extent of our deception in 2 Corinthians 4:4, which explains that Satan “hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” Proverbs 16:25 tells us that “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” First Corinthians 2:14 says, “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him.” In Matthew 24:24 Jesus Himself warns that “There shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” 2 Corinthians 11:14,15. “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”
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