"Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost saith, today if ye will hear his voice..."
- Hebrews 3:7
The Lord has really been moving upon me lately to really pay attention to details, especially when it comes to listening to his voice. So much goes unnoticed because of the busyness of our minds, but the Lord is stirring us up toward developing a listening ear where we catch even the slightest whisperings of heaven.
Remember Jesus said, "...with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you..." (Mark 4:24). Literally, what he was teaching was to try to get us to see that whatever rule or standard we use to value what we hear will determine how wealthy we become in measuring how we hear. To put it plainly, God has placed a premium on the value we give to our ability to listen.
Romans chapter ten says, "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Rom. 10:17). There are two different Greek words describing the word of God. One is LOGOS, and the other is RHEMA. In this particular verse, the word of God is defined as the RHEMA. The simplest way to distinguish the two is to think of the LOGOS as a complete thought that expresses everything you want to say. Whereas, the RHEMA is a portion of what is said, emphasizing something more specific as to a particular part of the whole. It would be like reading a book that covers an entire subject, but then something specific stands out that grabs your attention. Both are equally descriptive as being the word, but one becomes like a highlighted statement.
How many times have you found yourself reading the word, and while you are enjoying all of it, there comes that moment when suddenly it's like the word jumps off the page and strikes your heart with inspiration. That's what Paul is explaining as to how faith comes to us. It's as if faith becomes the most alive in the moment of listening.
"...God has placed a premium on the
value we give to our ability to listen."
Among all the ways that God speaks to us the number one way is through his word. When we read the word we must purpose to value his voice just as if we are hearing a personal message straight from the heart of our Father God. While all of it is the LOGOS, containing the full message of God to us, it's only as we value it and esteem it with the highest regard that we are able to catch the RHEMA. And really the premium value of hearing a RHEMA word is that it becomes a NOW word to us. It begins to speak to us just as if it was a fresh word directly from heaven!
One of the greatest truths I have come to realize in valuing the RHEMA is that in hearing his voice speak to me through his word, I have found that it is the same voice that speaks to me in life. In other words, if you want to learn how to be led by the Spirit of God then get acquainted with how he leads you and speaks to you through his word. The same voice that is talking to you through the scriptures is the same voice that guides you in your daily decisions. That's why the more you pay attention to the minor details of what he is saying to you, when you are spending time in his word, is the very thing that will help heighten your awareness to hearing him as he guides you day by day.
Jesus directed John to write what we have as the Book of Revelation to the seven churches in Asia. Everything he said to all seven churches was predicated on this one point: "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches" (Rev. 2:7, 2:11, 2:17, 2:29, 3:6, 3:13, and 3:22). As we develop a listening ear to hear we can improve our way of life in so many ways. There is increase in learning how to value his voice. The kind of increase that is immeasurable. You talk about something being worth its weight in gold! That's what developing a listening ear can bring to your life!
