Through the prophets, God reminded Israel of this primary requirement which He had first laid upon them through Moses, and with which we dealt with in the beginning: to listen to the voice of the Lord. It is summed up very briefly, succinctly, and vividly in the prophet Jeremiah, chapter 7, verses 22 and 23 where God is reprimanding Israel for not understanding what He required of them, and not obeying Him. He says this:
“For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: [God says, “You’re so busy with your burnt offerings and sacrifices, but that wasn’t the primary thing that I required of you; there was something more primary than that.”) But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people.”
I believe that sums it up as simply and as clearly as it ever can be stated. “Obey my voice and I will be your God.” That’s the unvarying requirement of God from age to age and dispensation to dispensation. Many things may change but this remains unchanged. “Obey my voice and I will be your God.” But alas, Israel did not do what God required. And so, Jeremiah goes on in chapter 7, verse 24, the next verse:
“But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the councils and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.”
What was Israel’s great problem? We can put our finger on many outward manifestations of the problem but the inward essence of the problem is stated there, “They hearkened not, nor inclined their ear.” Notice it’s all to do with what they listened to. They didn’t listen. They didn’t bow down their ear. They didn’t hear the voice of the Lord their God. They didn’t receive what God had for them; they missed the whole of God’s purpose and plan. You remember God said in Exodus 19, “If you will obey my voice, then you’ll be a peculiar treasure; you’ll be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation; the one essential requirement is that you hear and obey my voice.” “Obey my voice and I will be your God.” I want to say that with the greatest emphasis. If you really want to belong to the Lord, to walk in His ways, to enjoy His blessings, that’s what He’s saying to you just as He did to Israel. “Obey my voice and I will be your God.” In the New Testament, with the teaching of Jesus, this vital, essential respect of hearing the voice of the Lord, has not changed. Other things have changed but this essential requirement remains unchanged.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at this in more detail, especially from the Gospel of John.
Father, I want to learn to listen to Your voice, so I may be obedient to You. I want You to be my God! I want to go forward with You, Lord. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit, helping me daily to hear, understand, and follow the voice of the Lord. In Jesus’ Name, amen!
