Before the fall of man Adam and Eve enjoyed direct communion with God, but after the fall, the literal voice of God became a rare occurrence. From that time, one of the ways God spoke to us was through His Holy Spirit in our consciences, enlightening us as to right and wrong, and bidding us choose life. This is referenced to in the book of Genesis, where God through His Spirit had spoken to the antediluvians. Let’s read:
Genesis 6:1 And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
3 And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
God also speaks to fallen man through His prophets, for His chosen servants are used to convey truths of great importance to persons, warnings, entreaties, exhortations to righteousness, and promises. God’s prophets are also sent by Him to tell His people, and anyone who will listen, events of the future that will have a direct impact on their lives. This fact is also certified in the scriptures. Let’s read:
Genesis 6:12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
It is worthy of note that God did not speak directly to the people; He sent his servant Noah with the message of coming doom, and it was up to the folks back then to believe. However, God’s word through His prophets is just as good as Him speaking to us, for His spoken word carries as much weight as that which comes through the utterances of His chosen servants, the prophets. Let’s read:
Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
2nd Chronicles 36:15 And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:
16 But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy.
The voice of God can also be heard in His created works, for they testify of His character, and of His ways and methods. In some instances where the earth, and nature has become degraded, His voice may be less distinct, however, as long as the earth remains, there will always be evidences of the voice of God through creation. Thus, His character and His will are often discerned, at least partially, through observing nature.
For instance, when the animals were entering the ark before the flood, they went in two by two and seven by seven, but with every type and breed, the voice of God was made plain, as it pertains to His established order. As the animals walked down the aisle into the ark there was not to be seen any two female cheetahs, and there were no two male dogs. Male and female went in after their kind. Let’s read:
Genesis 6:19 And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.
20 Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind.
Psalms 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.
4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
God has also spoken to us through Jesus Christ, who is the express image of His Person, and it’s through Christ that the greatest revelation of His voice can be heard. When in the new testament we read of such statements by Christ as “But I say unto you” that is the voice of God speaking distinctly through His Son to earth’s inhabitants. Let’s read:
Hebrews 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
God also speaks to us through the pages of sacred writ, for it is His voice to all humanity, where each individual may learn of God’s will for our lives. The Bible contains more than enough information to get us from earth to heaven, and therefore, it should be the study of every intelligent, sincere person who is seeking for truth. Let’s read:
2nd Peter 1:19 We have also a more, sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
Last, but not least, the voice of God can also often be heard through His providences or actions, which are designed to appeal to our intelligence. Studying the working of God should occupy very much of our time, because by so doing we become acquainted, and familiar with His ways, to the point where we will be better able to detect the true from the false, and it will become easier to be led by The Spirit.
Often when persons become confused as to what course of action to pursue, is because a diligent and consistent study of the works of God in nature, and through His providence is lacking. There are certain principles and methods God often adopts, and then there are some others which He never uses, and as Christians, we should know the difference between His voice, and the myriad of other voices out there.
God never employs competition, nor does He ever encourage any of His creatures to seek the first and highest place. With God, any person who does their very best by His grace is a winner, for the race is not for the swiftest neither is the prize of eternal life for the strongest. In other words, if by doing our best we end up at the top of our game, so be it, give God the praise, but for anyone to seek merely to be first is not godly.
Thus, wherever the principle of competition is at play, wherever “first come first served” is adopted, there we may be sure that the voice of God has not spoken. When we have public servants vying for a particular position, or office, and tearing each other to pieces in the process, let it not be said that God was behind it. He may have permitted it, but it does not originate through His voice. Let’s read:
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.
Matthew 19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
However, on a personal level where we would need God’s guidance in everyday matters, His providence is what we rely on most often. We may not be able to hear His audible literal voice distinctly, and the Holy Spirit might be speaking clearly, but we may not be listening, and therefore what God does often makes our path forward more obvious.
By using the word “Providence” we are referring to the actions God takes, or the circumstances He may permit in certain instances to show us what course of action we should pursue, and how we ought to respond. These actions are described in the Bible as His voice, and thus, cumulatively speaking, all of the above-mentioned methods of God speaking to us mortals, are nestled under the umbrella of the words of Christ when He said “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which proceedeth from the mouth of God”.
This leads us to the core of our study because God’s providence often makes up the bulk of His voice, in trying to point us in a certain direction. If we were to listen patiently and humbly, we would be able to discern His voice when He speaks. We can draw our conclusions from several examples in the scriptures, where God may not say anything audibly per se, but His voice can still be distinctly heard, if we are keen on listening.
[Example # 1] The world back then is populated by about 7 billion people, according to some estimates, and their probation is about to close. The Lord has spoken to the antediluvians through His prophet Noah for 120 years, the masses of people refuse to listen, and the voice of God via His servant goes
forever silent to them.
Therefore, what He is now about to do through His providence is His voice, making the final appeal to man’s intelligence. This is the first example of what we’re referring to as God speaking clearly through His providences, thus demonstrating what ought to be done by those who care to listen. Let’s read:
Genesis 6:13 In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark;
14 They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort.
15 And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life.
16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in.
[Patriarchs & Prophets pp 97>98] Suddenly a silence fell upon the mocking throng. Beasts of every description, the fiercest as well as the most gentle, were seen coming from mountain and forest and quietly making their way toward the ark. A noise as of a rushing wind was heard, and lo, birds were flocking from all directions, their numbers darkening the heavens, and in perfect order they passed to the ark. Animals obeyed the command of God, while men were disobedient.
[Example #2] Moses is about to be sent into Egypt for the deliverance of the Hebrews, but he raises the prospect that they will not believe God has sent him. Therefore, the following miracles God gives are described as voices, which are His providences to the people designed to convince them of what they ought to do.
Again, God does not speak directly or audibly to the people, but instead employs miracles and the words of His servant. These should be sufficient to appeal to the intelligence of those who would listen. Let’s read:
Exodus 4:1 And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The Lord hath not appeared unto thee.
2 And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.
4 And the Lord said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
5 That they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.
6 And the Lord said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.
7 And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.
8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.
[Example #3] The Hebrews have now left Egypt, but Pharaoh’s army is in hot pursuit. The Hebrews look behind them, and lo, in the distance there is a sight of glittering swords, chariots and an immense army. The courage of the people fail, and they now begin to murmur about what they infer as themselves being caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.
Again, God does not say anything audibly to the people, but what He does next is His voice through His providential working designed to appeal to their intelligence, so that they may be reassured. God’s actions should be studiously observed, for in many instances we will be enabled to put two and two together, to arrive at obvious conclusions. Let’s read:
Exodus 14:10 And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord.
11 And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt?
13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more forever.
14 The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
19 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:
20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.
[Example # 4] The Midianites have been terrified of the Hebrews and because of this they turn to magic to try and fend off what they view as an existential threat to their nation. Balaam is enlisted to curse the Hebrews, but God speaks directly to him in the night, warning him against such a course of action. He refuses to listen and insists that he must go.
God gives him leave, but the next circumstances are referred to as God’s voice through His providences, showing in the most graphic way what Balaam must do. These providences are designed to appeal to his intelligence, so that he could reasonably conclude that his intentions should be aborted.
But as is too often the case, the most undeniable evidences are insufficient to convince the prophet who is bent on doing his own thing. He persists to the point of insanity, even having a conversation with his animal, thus giving evidence of how blinded we can become if we refuse the providences God allows to come our way. Let’s read:
Numbers 22:9 And God came unto Balaam, and said, What men are these with thee?
10 And Balaam said unto God, Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying,
11 Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, which covereth the face of the earth: come now, curse me them; peradventure I shall be able to overcome them, and drive them out.
12 And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed.
22 And God's anger was kindled because he went:
and the angel of the Lord stood in the way for an adversary against him. Now he was riding upon his ass, and his two servants were with him.
23 And the ass saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and the ass turned aside out of the way and went into the field: and Balaam smote the ass, to turn her into the way.
24 But the angel of the Lord stood in a path of the vineyards, a wall being on this side, and a wall on that side.
25 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall: and he smote her again.
26 And the angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place, where was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left.
27 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a staff.
28 And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?
29 And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee.
30 And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? and he said, Nay.
The same God of yesterday is still speaking through His providences, but are we listening. Would we like Balaam come out and kick against His providences, if we do not desire to go His route? When God has given unmistakable evidence of His will, would we bow to His sovereignty or will we like Balaam, insist on going in a different direction?
The 2300 day prophecy of Daniel came to an end in 1844, and God had predicted by His prophets that a few years prior to that time, there would be signs in the sun, moon and stars, portending some great event to take place in heaven. And just as it was with His providences in ages past, the essential pieces of the puzzle began to be moved into place. Let’s read:
Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.
Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.
Revelation 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
The 1755 Lisbon earthquake occurred in the Kingdom of Portugal on Saturday, 1 November 1755, the Catholic holiday of All Saints' Day, at around 9:40 am. The first shock was followed by an even more powerful second shock which sent buildings toppling down. According to reports, the tremors and the ground motions from this shock lasted for three-and-one-half minutes.
Gigantic fissures of up to 15 feet wide tore through the centre of Lisbon. Effects from the earthquake were far reaching. Severe shaking was felt in North Africa where the quake caused heavy loss of life in towns of Algeria and Morocco - more than 400 miles south of Lisbon. The town of Algiers was completely destroyed. Tangiers suffered great loss of lives and extensive damage.
The earthquake was particularly destructive in Morocco, where approximately 10,000 people lost their lives. Mosques, synagogues, churches, and many other buildings collapsed in Meknes, where there was heavy loss of life. In Europe the Lisbon earthquake caused considerable damage in Spain - particularly in Madrid and Seville. Shaking was felt in France, Switzerland, and Northern Italy, too.
However, the worst damage occurred in the south-west of Portugal. Lisbon and its inhabitants were particularly badly hit by the earthquake. In 1755, Lisbon was a great city legendary for its wealth, prosperity and sophistication, it was one of the most beautiful cities in Europe with an estimated population of 275,000. When the earthquake arrived, most of Lisbon's population were praying in six magnificent cathedrals. Within minutes, this great thriving city-port of Lisbon, capital of Portugal and of the vast Portuguese empire and seat of learning in Europe, was reduced to rubble.
The destruction caused by the earthquake was beyond description. Lisbon's great cathedrals, all full of worshipers - collapsed, killing thousands. Lisbon's whole quay and the marble-built Cais De Pedra along the Tagus disappeared into the river, burying with it hundreds of people who had sought refuge.
Within minutes fire spread and turned Lisbon into a raging inferno. Unable to run, hundreds of patients in the Hospital burned to death. The public squares filled with people but as the fire approached, these squares were abandoned, and the fire reached catastrophic proportions.
Two thirds of the city were destroyed by the flames that raged for five days. Immediately after the earthquake, many people fled to the waterfront, believing the area safe from fires and from falling debris from aftershocks. Some of them looked for safety on the sea by boarding ships moored on the Tagus River.
But about 40 minutes after the quake, an enormous tsunami wave engulfed the harbor and downtown. People were unaware of the danger and remained around the shoreline to observe the exposed seabed. The first tsunami wave was followed by two more waves which hit the shore, dragging people and debris out to sea and leaving exposed large stretches of the river bottom. Boats overcrowded with refugees capsized and sank.
By Tom de Castella BBC News Magazine
Three centuries ago in parts of North America, a strange event turned morning to night. It remains wreathed in mystery. Halfway through the morning the sky turns yellow. Animals run for cover and darkness descends, causing people to light candles and start to pray. By lunchtime night has fallen.
The Dark Day, as it's become known, took place on May 19, 1780 in New England and parts of eastern Canada. Some lawmakers in Connecticut believed it was the day of judgement. The sense that a decisive moment was afoot would have been bolstered by the fact that during the preceding days, the sun and moon glowed red.
nasa.gov/history
On the night of November 12-13, 1833, a tempest of falling stars broke over the Earth... The sky was scored in every direction with shining tracks and illuminated with majestic fireballs. At Boston, the frequency of meteors was estimated to be about half that of flakes of snow in an average snowstorm. Their numbers were quite beyond counting.
This 3rd phenomena coming just ten years before 1844 was a wakeup call to earth’s inhabitants, to let them know that the great investigative judgment was coming on board shortly. At this time several other pieces of providences were given. In different parts of the earth, several persons, who had no known connection to each other began preaching that God’s kingdom was near.
At this time also a prophet was raised up by God to explain certain truths of the Bible, and to bring to His remnant people, much pertinent information on a wide range of subjects, ranging from health and foods, to family relations and finances, to last day events, so that the remnant would be well prepared to meet God, and to be able to discern the working of antichrist, as the final conflict for our planet is to take center stage.
As in times past, God did not speak audibly to the people, but He gave much providences, and several confirmations which were designed to appeal to our intelligence. These, together with the evidences of truth given are meant to guide our feet in the way we should go, so that we would not stumble in darkness, as so many protestant churches have done.
And now brethren, it is left up to us to choose to believe, and act. God does not coerce the will, but He gives us a body of substantial evidence on which to base our faith. Let us therefore cultivate a heart to believe, for where there is no vision, the people perish.
God bless!