SCRIPTURE 1Ki 19:11-12                                                                                                                                             July, 2008

And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

SUBJECT - BE STILL, THEN YOU CAN HEAR !!!!![Part 2]

Last month, I began a message that many have long wondered about, and that is, 'Does God still speak to us today, as He did, in old testament times??'

And the answer to that question, is emphatically, yes.

The difference is, in the old testament times, He audibly spoke to men, like you and I speak to each other, to now, when He speaks to us, through our hearts. And here is the problem that man has. In order for us to hear His voice, we have to be totally in a position to hear, and identify His voice. And unfortunately, very few of us, as compared to the number of us that name the name of Christ, are in the position to do that.

The reason being, most of us, are too caught up with the distractions that the Devil, places in our paths to drown out, that still small voice, within us, that comes from Him.

Many would surmise, that if God would just do something to really get our attention, then, we would hear His voice.

My answer to that is, 'Really??'

Let me show you a few things, and you think about it.

9/11, increases of violent crime, immorality, loss of jobs, homes, peace of mind. Gas prices going through the roof. The most popular forms of entertainment, are those that are steeped in violence, sex, and drugs. Wars, and terrorism. Parents, usually mothers, killing their own babies. Kids killing their own parents. Essentially, all hell is breaking loose around us.

Yet, we are still wondering if He speaks to us.

All of the above things, are His attempt to get our attention, to let us know, He has something to say, but we still don't get the message.

Why??

Because we are too busy being self consumed, with our own personal comfort, activities, and priorities, to take the time to be still and listen to that still small voice.

For most of us, when that still small voice does manage to get through, we don't recognize it, because we don't really know God. Therefore, we treat it as some indication that we must be losing our minds, and as such, should be dismissed.

Time and time again, when some thing happens where we seem to be distressed, we will, in a moment of desperation, say, 'Lord, why is this happening??'

Well, if you really want to know the answer, He will tell you. But, if you are just saying that, without meaning it, which the majority of us usually are doing, then, He won't waste His time.

For the most part, He will answer us, through the scriptures in the bible. In fact, if we did more bible reading, then we wouldn't have to be asking Him why things are happening around us the way they are, because He has already given us that information in the bible. But, we are too busy to read it. So He gives us preachers, to tell us. But we are either too busy to go to church to hear them, or, we don't like what they are saying, because it would interfere with our comfortable lifestyle.

There are very few of us, that are willing to sit Sunday after Sunday, listening to someone telling us that we are sinful, and that our suffering is solely because we are disobeying God. We don't like to be made to feel like sinners. We want someone to pat us on the back and tell us that God understands, and in the sweet bye and bye, we will all be sitting around the throne room, and walking the streets of gold, because God loves us.

It is because God loves us, that He sends people in to our lives to not only pat us on the back telling us about His love, but also to chastise, and convict us of our sin, so that we can repent and get back into His good graces, so that we won't have to suffer for our disobedience.

Initially, He will first, as mentioned earlier, speak to us, through our own spirit. But if we don't recognize His voice, or are too busy to hear it, then He will use other means to get His point across to us.

No one, and I mean no one, can say that God has never spoken to them. They have no excuse.

If we look at several circumstances that are at the forefront of our problems today, we will see how our ignorance of His word, have brought these problems to pass.

First.

The removal of prayer from the public schools.

When the issue of prayer in the public schools was challenged by an atheist, as being a violation of the first amendment of the constitution, Congress shall make no law, respecting an establishment of religion, or forbidding the free exercise thereof......, people that had their ears open to what God had to say about the issue, warned that doing such a thing, would turn the schools, in to fertile ground for the devil to come in and destroy our kids.

The response of the courts, and, most preachers, was, that these people were religious zealots, and nuts, and referred to as, 'the religious right', were just trying to use fear tactics to keep the status quo.

They said there was no need to have prayer in the schools, when the kids could pray at home, if their parents were so concerned about their kids having prayer during the day. Besides, we don't want to offend others, whose religion may not be in line with the prayers of Christians.

So, prayer was eliminated thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The result

Today, the public school system in this nation, by and large, is a disaster area.

Kids come to the schools, to learn the essentials of what it takes to be productive citizens in society today, but end up graduating from them, with all sorts of problems, such as not being able to read, do math or fill out a simple job application. They therefore, only qualify for the lowest paying jobs in this nation.

Their moral compass, is AWOL[Absent WithOut Leave]. Their decisions on issues, lacks any sibilance of morality [God's standards for a prosperous life], and is replaced with man's corrupted idea of what is best for him, and everyone else.

In the schools, there is nothing but chaos. Drugs, violence, and sex, rule. The atmosphere lacks any possibility of things that are conducive for achievement. Everyone, just about, is operating from a spirit of anxiety, and fear.

And when these things are present, learning is nearly impossible.

None of these conditions were present, before prayer was removed from them.

Running a close second.

The teaching of the 'Theory of evolution.

This subject, was introduced in to the schools, as a direct challenge to the teaching of 'Creation'.

Before its introduction, the church, the family, and the schools, all worked together, to mold the children in to fine, upstanding, productive individuals, that had a level head on their shoulders, that were, for the most part, able to make decisions based on what was right, in the eyes of God.

They knew, and saw no difference between what they learned in church, and at home, with what they learned in school. All three were extensions of each other.

All of that changed, when the 'theory of evolution', was introduced.

This instrument of the demented mind of man, suggested that, man was not created by God, but rather, evolved from a lower species of life, spanning over millions of years.

This was direct conflict with what the church taught, or was supposed to be teaching.

Once again, men hearing from God, warned of the consequences that would arise from challenging God's word. They warned that without any recognition of a 'Creator', who has set certain rules for us to live by, man would, in effect, become like the animals, that surrounded him, wild and out of control.

But, once again, people, looking to escape the guilt that accompanied the idea of there being a God, and the consequences of 'sin', readily accepted the notion that there was no God, and all of this talk about God, Heaven, and Hell, was nothing more than the deluded imaginations of people that sought to control others, through fear.

The result

Just look at the condition of man today.

It's every man for himself. Dog eat dog. Very little respect for the law and others. People would just as soon kill you, just for looking at them wrong.

To them, we are nothing more than the animals, that surround us. In fact, according to some of them, the animals are more intelligent than us, even though we are the ones that are made in the image of God.

If you will notice what our young men call each other, it will give you a clue. They call each other, 'dog'. “Hey dog, what's up??” “Where you been dog??” “That's my dog, there!!” You would think they were talking about a canine, but they are talking about another man. The women then, are looked at as being 'female dogs, or 'the b-word"

Whereas, at one time, calling a female the b-word, would be an insult to her, now she accepts it as a sort of honor.

More on this subject, next month.

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