Hearing the Small Quiet Voice

“However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you…” (John 16:13 NKJV) 

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things…” (John 14:26 NKJV)

When Jesus returned to Heaven He said it would be better for us that He leave and send the Holy Spirit on his place who would teach us, guide us, and write the laws of God on our hearts (John 16:7, Jeremiah 31:33). Our heart is not the thing that pumps our blood, it is what we cannot live without, our spirit. This is the breath of God that is our eternal being.

We get the term “born again” from the time Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” (John 3:3-5) The word Spirit is capitalized because it is the Greek word for the Holy Spirit of God. Later in verse seven, Jesus uses the term “born again” to refer to this process.
This is further explained once Jesus had risen from the dead and appeared to hundreds of people. Spending 40 days with His inner circle and His disciples, Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:22) Jesus always did what He saw His Father doing (John 5:19): God breathed life into Adam, Jesus breathed on His disciples.

The latter books of the Bible explain what occurred and that it was for everyone who believes in God:

In Him, you also, when you heard the word of truth, the good news of your salvation, and [as a result] believed in Him, were stamped with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit [the One promised by Christ] as owned and protected [by God]. The Spirit is the guarantee [the first installment, the pledge, a foretaste] of our inheritance until the redemption of God’s own [purchased] possession [His believers], to the praise of His glory. (Ephesians 1:13-14 AMP) 

Now it is God who establishes and confirms us [in joint fellowship] with you in Christ, and who has anointed us [empowering us with the gifts of the Spirit]; it is He who has also put His seal on us [that is, He has appropriated us and certified us as His] and has given us the [Holy] Spirit in our hearts as a pledge [like a security deposit to guarantee the fulfillment of His promise of eternal life]. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22 AMP)

The Holy Spirit is one of the greatest promises of God. Everyone who has taken Jesus as Lord is “sealed” by the Holy Spirit. The root of the Greek word used here is, sphragis. It refers to a seal or an impression made by a signet ring by which anything is confirmed or proved. After Jesus breathed upon them, He instructed them concerning the Holy Spirit:

For John baptized with water, but not many days from now you shall be baptized with (placed in, introduced into) the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:5 AMPC)

The disciples had taken Jesus as Lord and had been sealed with a promise placed upon them by the Holy Spirit. To do the work Jesus had for them, they needed more power, direction, and guidance from the Holy Spirit:

But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth. (Act 1:8 AMPC)

Many people refer to this as the “baptism” of the Holy Spirit. The meaning of the Greek word baptizo is to overwhelm, immerse, or saturate. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman; He is gentle and many times doesn’t move upon a person with strength until He is invited. When you are baptized by Him, you are immersed, filled, or overflowing. For this reason, many of the salvation prayers include a part about receiving the Holy Spirit. Have you been overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit so that He can guide you and use you for the work of the Father? If you aren’t sure, you can ask for Him right now:

Heavenly Father,

     Your Son declared that when He went to Heaven He would send the Holy Spirit to us. I ask now, Father for the Holy Spirit to come and live in me in my heart and fill me to overflowing. Holy Spirit, I welcome You. Speak loudly to me and teach me. I ask all this in the name of my Savior, Jesus. Amen.

You can also ask for a pastor of a church to pray for you to receive the Holy Spirit (a prayer is included in the video above). But once we accept Jesus as our Lord, each of us has the right to do this for ourselves. By accepting the Holy Spirit inside you, He becomes one with your spirit, which makes you a whole new being that never existed (on the inside).

This is what Jesus was talking about when He said we have to be “born again.” Mixing two things together, like a sperm and an egg, creates a new being: a little baby. When you add the Holy Spirit to your spirit, you become a son of God: (Romans 8:16) (“Son” is often used to refer to all mankind meaning both men and women.)

Once you have invited Him in, the Holy Spirit can speak to you. There are three ways the Holy Spirit may speak to you in a quiet way:

1. Gentle nudges
2. A small quiet voice 
3. With peace or by the removal of peace

Nudges

A nudge is a feeling that you need to do something. Much in the way you may feel when you are led to look in a certain spot for your keys. Often, we are drawn to talk to a person who has just the answer we need. These are the first steps of hearing from the Holy Spirit.

Are there times when information comes to you that you have no way of knowing? Do you find yourself saying, “I just knew that was going to happen!” This is one aspect of a word of knowledge — a gift of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit, who knows everything, brings you information that you have no natural way of knowing. (More on this later.)

The Small Quiet Voice

The most common way He does this is in a small quiet voice (1 Kings 19:12). I heard from Him for years and didn’t know what was going on. After I came back to God and asked Him into my life, the voice inside my head – some would call it one’s conscience – seemed to get really smart. Everything it said would come to pass. Like me, you may already be hearing from the Holy Spirit and not know it.

The small quiet voice always sounds like our own voice in our minds. It can be our soul, or even another spirit, but often it is the Holy Spirit. There are several ways to make sure it is the Holy Spirit, here are two:

• Does it line up with the Word of God?
• Is it acting in the love of God.

These things should always be considered when listening to the small quiet voice. God is love and we are called to love even our enemies. If we are reading the Bible so we know who God is, and we are walking in love, then we can trust what we are hearing.

Guided by Peace

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. (Colossians 3:15 KJV)

There is a feeling of peace, ease, and calmness that the Holy Spirit will bring to your inner being when you are going in the right direction. If you are irritated, unsettled or anxious, this is not “peace.” The Amplified Version gives words in brackets [ ] that explain the original Greek words a little more:

Let the peace of Christ [the inner calm of one who walks daily with Him] be the controlling factor in your hearts[deciding and settling questions that arise]. (Colossians 3:15 AMP)

There will be an inner calm when you are walking with the Lord toward your destiny. “The controlling factor” or “rule” is actually the Greek word brabeuō, which means to control or direct, to decide or determine. God will often use inner peace to guide us in the right way to go.

Hearing more from The Holy Spirit There are two ways to strengthen the voice of the Holy Spirit:

• Speak in the Heavenly Language

• Read the Word of God 

Let's go straight to the Bible to see how these help our spirit:

As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby... (1 Peter 2:2 KJV)

When we are new Christians, we are "born again." just like natural birth, we start out as babies. It is by feeding on the Word of God that we grow, like babies feeding on milk from their mothers. The Holy Spirit will use the words we read to help our spirits grow. This is the first step in hearing more from the Holy Spirit. 

He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself...  (1 Corinthians 14:4 KJV)

“Edifieth” from the Greek word auxanō means to grow, to become greater. How are we growing? Speaking in an unknown tongue (Heavenly Language) causes our spiritual body to grow, it is our spirit that receives nourishment. When we pray in the Heavenly Language, we are exercising the connection with the Spirit and our spiritual body is fed.

In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him and He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way]. Proverbs 3:6 AMP)

The next time there seems to be a zero chance of rain and the small quiet voice in your head says, “Bring an umbrella” say, “Thank you, Holy Spirit” when the rain comes. This strengthens your relationship and the light on your path will increase.

Once, when my daughter was taking a math test, she would look at the answers before she began and a voice would tell her which of the four multiple-choice answers was right. As she worked out the problems, she was amazed that each time the answer was the one she heard in her head. The Holy Spirit was training her to hear and recognize His voice.

If you are married, many times the Holy Spirit will use your spouse to train you. A thought will come, sounding just like you: “Don’t say that…” If you ignore the thought, a seemingly innocent remark will lead to an argument. Learn to acknowledge the real Person behind the voice that sounds just like you. This gives Him more authority to speak to you.

God uses this way of speaking to people most often because it doesn’t give the enemy access to us. Satan can project thoughts into our head, but he cannot read our thoughts. Only God knows our thoughts (John 16:1-13, Psalms 139: 2-4, 1 Chronicles 28:9, Matthew 12:25). God is fair and just.  If He moves powerfully, then Satan gets to ask for more punishment in the Courts.

When God limits His influence to our thoughts, where Satan cannot perceive what God is doing, Satan has less to bring to the Courts of Heaven. This will increase the penalty when judgments are given. Speaking to us in the small quiet voice mitigates the consequences of our sins in the Courts of Heaven.

When angry, do not sin; do not ever let your wrath (your exasperation, your fury or indignation) last until the sun goes down. Leave no [such] room or foothold for the devil [give no opportunity to him]. (Ephesians 4:26-27 AMPC)

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5;8 KJV)

The Word of God is clear, we have an enemy. By heeding the small voice of the Holy Spirit we can avoid many of the attacks of the enemy. The voice may be small and quiet; it is up to us to acknowledge our Guide, the Holy Spirit. As we do this, it will be easier and easier to recognize His voice:

But solid food is for mature people, whose minds are trained by practice to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 5:14 NIV)

In order for God to bring us to the deep things of Him, He expects us to grow. Discerning good from evil is how we learn to recognize the leading of the Holy Spirit’s soft voice and act upon it. The next book in the Academy series, “Authority in the Courts of Heaven” will speak about this at greater length.

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Believer’s Boot Camp series is a collection of books which teach us how to hear more clearly from God with the goal to ready ourselves for a face-to-face meeting with our Lord, Jesus. The series reveals the “weapons and tools” God has given us and how to use them, so we can bring God’s kingdom to Earth. Each book in the series focuses on a single topic to clearly define one tool or weapon from our Heavenly Father. 

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Believers’ Boot Camp, Volume 3

Our rights to appear in the Courts of Heaven have been greatly undervalued. The missing key to our authority is here. Jesus has provided the access and the Bible shows us the court procedures. When we learn to operate in our rightful place as children of the Most High, the enemy will be defeated and we will see the victory we have prayed for.

The death of Jesus freed us from the curse of the law. However, we must declare this freedom just as we must make a declaration for our salvation.

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