A few days ago my attention was taken to the book of Hebrews where the writer takes on a scolding tone in their letter stating that those receiving the letter had become dull and all this explaining they were doing really should not have been necessary. The passage is this:
Hebrews 5:11-14 Concerning him we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
Most of us are pretty aware of our senses, right? We know that if you hit your thumb with a hammer it’s going to cause pain and that if you put your favorite food in your mouth you will be filled with the wonderful sensation of your taste buds springing into life. Most of the things we sense we can explain in fleshly terms but why would the writer to the Hebrews make this statement, “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” The context of this writing is about understanding the “elementary principals of the oracles of God” and the call is to train our senses so we become mature. Just for the sake of clarity the word ‘oracle’ means, “An utterance of God” reference Strong’s Bible Dictionary (g3051). That is what we are talking about here, simply put, hearing Him when He speaks. In fact, maybe if we were to realize the we actually carry the oracles of God we would be more prone to speak up instead of let the moment pass. The point is that “the voice of the Lord” can come through any of our human senses and that it takes practice or training to be able to discern His voice however he speaks. Several times over the years He has spoken to someone around me through something other than an impression of words or thought.
I was part of a prayer team some years ago and two of us were ministering to a person who was grappling with anxiety. Anxiety is cruel and can totally imprison a person, but Jesus came to take our anxiety upon Himself so we can be set free. So, we were waiting on the word of freedom in the presence of the Lord. I was sitting quietly interceding while my partner was speaking with the person. Suddenly, I was gripped by a terrible pain in a certain part of my body. It felt like I was being cut, literally, with a knife and I began to squirm in my seat and try not to interrupt the healing moment that was unfolding for the person in need. The pain lasted about 15 seconds then disappeared. I thought, “Wow, that was really weird!” and tried to concentrate on what was happening in the room. A few moments passed and there was silence. I heard the quiet voice of Holy Spirit say, “Tell the person about the pain you just experienced.” In the silence that followed I knew I was about to learn something about when He speaks. I broke the silence by stating, “This is really strange but I think the Lord wants me to share this with you…” and I related what had happened a few minutes ago and I showed them the exact spot where the pain had occurred. Their reply was astonishing, in that exact spot on their body was a scar, it was a scar received in a very traumatic set of circumstances. The trauma from those circumstances, years before, was the beginning of the anxiety that filled them now. Then the work that only the Holy Spirit can do began to take place and, as the person realized the great love behind the very specific message that showed up as a pain in my body, the healing power of Jesus completely transformed their life.
It never gets old, watching the chains fall away from those who are bound and I wonder why I am so timid and feel so awkward and unqualified when He speaks. I want so badly for the Church to realize that the voice of the Lord is real and that we need to move beyond what is comfortable and safe and speak the very oracles of God to the hurting and lost around us. I hope that we will be challenged to engage all our senses in this and maybe spend a moment asking the Lord about that “random” pain we just felt. What miracle have we passed by just because our senses were not trained and we didn’t hear Him when He spoke?
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. God bless you and have a Merry Christmas!
His Kid, Your Brother
Ken
His Kid, Your Brother 