Read and Grow

Do you hear the voice of the Holy Spirit? Not every Christian feels confident that they do. There are many ways the Holy Spirit helps and guides Christians, and sensing or hearing a tangible voice is only one. If you want to share Jesus with your friends but hearing the Holy Spirit speaking to you is not your experience, you’ve come to the right place.

The first thing to recognise is just because you don’t feel like you hear the Holy Spirit doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong. God chooses how He wants to communicate with you and He is free to communicate how He chooses. God is not withholding his voice until you’re ready to hear him. Don’t get caught in the trap that you must perform for God in order for Him to bless you by speaking to you.

In the absence of a clear sense of hearing His voice, start with what is clear about the Holy Spirit. If you want to grow your trust in the Holy Spirit, start with what the Bible clearly teaches. When you grow confidence in the Bible’s promises about the Holy Spirit, you can grow in faith in areas which aren’t as clear.

Here are 5 foundational and clear truths about the Holy Spirit as revealed in the Bible:

1. If you’re a Christian, the Holy Spirit is with you.

And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38

The Bible teaches that every Christian, once they repent and believe in Jesus, receives the gift of the Holy Spirit. If you love Jesus and have been saved by him, you can be confident that the Holy Spirit lives in you.

2. The Holy Spirit is good, you don’t need to fear Him

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:13

There is a lot of mystery around what is and what isn’t the Holy Spirit. However, the Bible is clear that the Holy Spirit is good and there’s no need to fear a genuine exploration of who He truly is. Ask God to help you learn more about who He is.

3. The Holy Spirit is given as a gift to help you

Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. Romans 8:26-27

There are many ways the Holy Spirit will help you. He will bring you comfort, give you wisdom, work in your circumstances, bring healing, etc. The more you’re aware of His presence the more you will see His helping work in your life.

4. The Holy Spirit reminds you of God’s words

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. John 14:26

There are a few times in the Bible it mentions that the Holy Spirit will work supernaturally to bring things to your mind at the right time. This can be Bible verses and also it can be simply the right words to say. Be prayerful when you are in a conversation about Jesus and take note and speak the things that come to your mind.

5. Being Filled with the Holy Spirit is for all Christians

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, Ephesians 5:18

Being filled with the Spirit is not only about things like speaking in tongues and prophecy, it’s about His daily guiding presence in your life. It’s a daily presence He gives to you when you seek it. Don’t let your fear of the unknown stop you from receiving the blessing of His presence. Ask for it and seek it every day.

If it’s not your experience to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, start by pursuing Him in the ways that have been made clear in the Bible. Commit these Bible verses to memory, seek the Holy Spirit daily, and rely on Him as you talk to your friends about Jesus.

“I want to talk to people about Jesus, but I just don’t know where to start”.

Life is full and it’s easy to forget you have a helper (the Holy Spirit - John 14:26) for moments like this! Listening to the Holy Spirit is the place to start. He will speak to you and guide you when you need Him.

Let’s face it, listening to the Holy Spirit is a pretty weird concept. How exactly does it work? When does He talk? How do I know if it is Him or my own mind talking? Or did I just drink too much coffee at lunch time?

In the same way you know the voice of your mum or a good friend, you can learn to know the voice of the Holy Spirit by listening to Him, understanding more about Him, and good old fashioned trial and error.

Let’s set some foundations

The Holy Spirit IS God and shares in the God-head with God the Father and Jesus - that’s the Trinity. He spoke to Christians throughout the Bible, is our helper (John 14:26) and He is a good gift from God. The Holy Spirit definitely is a mysterious expression of God, but this is exciting and should cause us to be curious and learn more about Him.

The Holy Spirit will give us guidance when we need Him. There are many examples of the Holy Spirit moving and guiding people in the Bible (Luke 2:27-32, 2 Peter 1:21, Acts 8:29-31), if you talk to enough Christians you will discover that He continues to do so today. So, spend time listening to Him. He may speak through a Bible verse that suddenly stands out to you or it might be a thought or emotion that hits you as you’re praying. When it comes to sharing your faith He may guide you in a moment or conversation, encouraging you to say or do something. Sometimes you might suddenly recall a Bible verse, or a story or something your pastor once said. Sometimes it’s a strong feeling or urge to talk about a particular topic. Try following that guidance and see where the Holy Spirit leads the conversation.

The Holy Spirit is trustworthy. Although you might be cautious of whether the Spirit is speaking, you can be sure to trust Him when He is. God promises to work together all things for our good (Romans 8:28), but that doesn’t mean you always get what you want, it means you always get what is good. So, trust the Holy Spirit to guide your life and conversations about Jesus knowing that God is good and He is working all things for good.

The Holy Spirit should be pursued

The Bible tells us to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). To “be filled” in the Greek (the original language in the Bible) means that it is an activity that is ongoing, it’s something that happens to you and you are commanded to pursue it. But how do you do this? Spend time being thankful to God (Psalm 100:4), consider the times he has been good to you and thank Him for it. Repent and apologise to God for the wrong things you have done (Psalm 66:18) and trust that God has more grace for you than any sin you might commit.

In your conversations about Jesus, be aware that the Holy Spirit might be speaking to you. Listen to His voice and follow it the best you can.

All of us are familiar with the voices of the people closest to us. Think of a family member or close friend. What does their voice sound like? What’s the tone and pitch? Is it harsh, or soft? Quick or slow? Do they have an accent? Could you recognize their voice over the phone? Even now as you read this, you can probably hear their voice in your head.

Voices carry authority. Words of advice coming from the voice of a friend or parent will carry a different weight for us than the same words coming from a stranger. So when it comes to hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit, it’s vital to identify who is actually speaking. Is it the Spirit? Our own desires? Or something else entirely?

Every person has unique vocal qualities. In the same way, the Holy Spirit’s voice has unique qualities that will help you know it’s Him. So what does He sound like?

Language

“The Bible” - (2 Timothy 3:16) The Holy Spirit will never contradict the Bible. The better you know the Bible, the better you will be able to recognize His voice.

Tone

“Still Small Voice” (1 Kings 19:11-12) - The Bible describes His voice as a whisper. It’s not a literal whisper but a voice that’s hard to hear when you’re busy.

Pitch

“Peaceful” (Psalm 23) - His voice will help you find peace even when chaos is all around you. A shelter in the storm.

Resonance

“Affirmation” - His voice will resonate with other Christians. It’s helpful to affirm His voice with Christian friends.

Rhythm

“Timing” - His voice will often speak to you in your circumstances. Keep a lookout for miraculous coincidences.

Give yourself time to practice learning the voice of the Holy Spirit. One day His voice will be so familiar it will be second nature to recognize it.

The Bible says pursuing the Holy Spirit is something to seek out actively (Ephesians 5:18-19). Intentionally put yourself in a position so you can hear His voice. Come to God in prayer with an expectant heart that He will speak to you and lead you.

Here are some key ways to position yourself to hear the Holy Spirit:

• Be thankful (Psalm 100:4)
• Say sorry for anything you’ve done wrong (Psalm 66:18)
• Silence Satan (James 4:7)
• Listen to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit (1 Kings 19:11-12)

Learning to hear the Holy Spirit takes time and commitment. Don’t give up just because you don’t hear anything straight away. Be intentional. Find a quiet place today and spend 15 minutes actively seeking the Holy Spirit’s voice.

Have you ever invited friends to your house and had to do a frantic, last-minute clean up right before they arrive? You invited them around but forgot that your house or room is an absolute mess. Like, ‘dirty plates on the floor’ kind of mess. So you rush around hiding your clothes and dishes into the nearest cupboard, run a wet cloth over the bench, and empty an entire can of air freshener to mask the smell. All too often, we do the exact same thing when it comes to sharing Jesus.

Every Christian sins, including you. And the associated feelings of guilt and shame can be a barrier to talking about Jesus when the opportunity comes. “How can I talk about how much I love Jesus when I’ve just failed him?” If you resonate with this, you’re not alone. You might feel the impulse to try harder and to make it up by doing lots of good things. Hide all of your failings and cover up the smell of your faults. But that’s not what Jesus wants you to do.

It’s important to pay attention to the guilt you feel after you sin, but what you do with that guilt is crucial. To try and fix yourself is pride in disguise. Rather, the Bible encourages us to confidently take our sin straight to Jesus, who is quick to forgive. There is nothing you can do to be more forgiven than you already are. The Bible says there is no more condemnation for you. Your identity is saved, forgiven, and righteous. Perfect in God’s sight.

Don’t try and fix yourself but go to the one who can — Jesus. Talk to him, confess your sins, and ask for His forgiveness. You can do this knowing He will forgive you because he has promised to. When you confess your sins, the Spirit will take away your feelings of guilt and shame and replace them with peace and acceptance.

As you do this, understand the fullness of God’s grace towards you and choose to live from that place. You have received grace upon grace, His grace is sufficient for you, and you have been adopted as a child of God. All this is true about you regardless of your actions. It’s prideful to try to add your own good deeds on top of God’s forgiveness in order to make yourself more right before God.

The truth of the gospel is that you were saved while you were still a sinner. This is a powerful truth. Why? Because your friend who doesn’t know Jesus needs the same forgiveness. What better way to share Jesus than to be honest about your own imperfections and how you can come to Jesus every day and be free of guilt.

Take time to consider Jesus’ love and grace towards you. Confess your sins and you will find forgiveness. And the next opportunity you have, don’t hide your imperfections but punch Satan right in the face and use them to share the truth and grace of Jesus.

References
Romans 8:1 - There is no more condemnation for you.
John 1:16 - You have received grace upon grace.
2 Corinthians 12:9 - His grace is sufficient for you.
Romans 8:15-16 - You have been adopted as a child of God.
Romans 5:8 - The truth of the gospel is that you were saved while you were still a sinner.