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Today if ye will hear his voice,
Harden not your hearts… Heb3:15 The beauty and relevance of preaching is when one responds to the word of God the person is recreated into a new relationship in Christ. It is by responding to the word by faith that one is born again. The need of the preacher for the unsaved is the need for the unsaved to hear from God. The preacher becomes the mediator between God and the unsaved. Apostles, prophets, evangelists, teachers, and pastors have the gift and the responsibility to be mediators of God’s word. When people hear and respond in faith, they are healed, delivered, and set free. The problem arises, however, that the five fold gifts of Christ are not always present to give God’s word and minister as occasion requires. Maturity for the Christian begins to occur when a person starts to hear directly from God and responds in word and deed by faith. I think it is a great misunderstanding in the message of faith ministries when they do not make a distinction between saying what God says and saying things and doing things after hearing from God. Just saying what God says will never produce the fruit of the word. But if God through bible study speaks that word to us, we will be held responsible for responding to the word He speaks. If God speaks and we harden our hearts then the next time God speaks it may not be with the same intensity or import. We need to get into God’s word in order that God may speak to us through it and when He does, we need the faith to be obedient and speak and act from what He says. If we do this, then we will not need the five fold gifts of Christ to minister to us as babies, but we can hear directly from God ourselves. Then when we go to church or an evangelical meeting the blessing of God is not a necessity but rather an added blessing to the relationship with God that already exits. Then we will be the apostle or prophet or evangelist or pastor or teacher. Then we will be mature Christians and we will know with certainty that God will neither leave thee nor forsake thee; that God will provide all our needs according to his riches and glory; that God will do for you more than you can think or imagine. Get into a relationship with God where he can speak directly to you. Do not be like the Israelites who only wanted to hear God through Moses. They feared what God might require of them; they feared because they were not living a life in the Spirit but only one in the flesh. Do you fear what God may say to you? Do you doubt his love and his providence in your life? Then your conception of God is too small. When by faith you overcome your fears, then by faith, you receive the blessing of God. Get to the place where you no longer need an intermediary but have the faith to hear directly from God. When you do, harden not your heart, but be obedient to his voice and live. Amen |