Ideas about the Kingdom of the Heavens around us and the unity of believers in Christ within it
God gives us tests to use to determine whether a message we hear came from him or from somewhere else. Most of these tests apply regardless of whether the message comes from an internal voice or through the mouth or writings of another person who claims to speak for God. They start with the overarching test “do I recognize my Shepherd’s voice in what is said?”
As one who has long had the experience of being aware, at times, of God’s voice, I propose to the Church at large that we should 1) treat spiritual “voices,” in general, as real and not as mere symptoms of mental illness, 2) learn to distinguish God’s voice from the other voices in our world, and 3) resolve to follow God’s voice. #3 is the key, because we will not be able to discern God’s voice unless we are his sheep, who hear and follow it.
A God who Speaks, Compulsory Christianity, Conversation with God, God Acts by Speaking, God Never Stopped Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God's purpose for us, God's Voice, Heresy, Language and Speech, Peril of Seeking Power, Peril of Seeking Respectability, Social control and statecraft, The Kingdom is all around us, The Kingdom of the Heavens, To be in his image