Christianity Is a Living Religion
Christianity is a living relationship with the Creator and Redeemer, and every Christian must have the experience of hearing God's voice to walk in accordance with His will.
Bakht Singh emphasizes the importance of having a living relationship with God, highlighting the need for Christians to not only believe in the Lord Jesus but also to fellowship, walk, talk, and listen to Him. Using the analogy from the Song of Solomon, he explains how the Shulammite girl's testimony of hearing her lover's voice represents the Church's experience of hearing God's voice directly, which is both necessary and possible for every Christian. Bakht Singh encourages believers to silence the inner noises and maintain inner peace to hear God's voice, which can be found in nature, Scripture, and through meditation in His presence.
Text
"I hear my lover's voice" (Song of Solomon 2:8)
Christianity is not a dead cold religion of some lifeless philosophies, doctrines and dogmas. Christianity is a living relationship with the Creator and Redeemer of mankind. Christianity is not simply believing on the Lord Jesus but it is fellowshipping and walking with Him, talking to Him and listening to Him.
In the book of Song of Solomon, we find two major characters. One is the shepherd boy who is a type of our Lord Jesus and the other one is the Shulammite girl who is the type of the Church. In our present text the Shulammite girl is testifying about her experience. She says "I hear my lover's voice". Every Christian must have this experience. The Lord wants us to hear His voice. We must hear the prophets and apostles of our Lord. But we must also have an experience of listening to His voice directly. I submit humbly that it is both necessary and possible for every Christian.
If only we have the thirst and longing to hear, God is always willing to speak to us. In fact God is all the time speaking but unfortunately, we are unable to hear him. The reasons are many.
God is articulate in the nature. If you have your spiritual ears open the nature around you constantly conveys the message of our Lord. Needless to say He speaks when we read His Holy Scriptures. Then He speaks to us when we sit silently in His presence and meditate upon Him. Every Christian can hear God's voice in his own heart if all other inner noises can be silenced. There are too many noises in our hearts which hinder us from hearing His voice. It is important for us to maintain the inner calmness of our heart.
In order to achieve the silence in our heart we must stop worrying about the unnecessary worldly issues. We must leave all our burdens on our Lord and maintain inner peace in our hearts by the help of the Holy Spirit. Only then can we hear the blessed voice of our precious Lord. It is so enriching and satisfying to hear God's voice. No other joy can be compared with that experience. Only those who learn to hear the still small voice of the Lord can be confident to be raptured when the last trump sounds. May the Holy Spirit help us to hear God's voice and walk accordingly!
Sermon Outline
- Christianity is a Living Relationship
- Hearing God's Voice
- How to Hear God's Voice
- Having a thirst and longing to hear
- Silencing inner noises to maintain inner calmness
- Leaving burdens on the Lord and maintaining inner peace
Key Quotes
“Christianity is not a dead cold religion of some lifeless philosophies, doctrines and dogmas.” — Bakht Singh
“If only we have the thirst and longing to hear, God is always willing to speak to us.” — Bakht Singh
“Every Christian can hear God's voice in his own heart if all other inner noises can be silenced.” — Bakht Singh
Application Points
- We must have a thirst and longing to hear God's voice to experience His presence in our lives.
- Silencing inner noises and maintaining inner calmness is essential to hear God's voice.
- Leaving our burdens on the Lord and maintaining inner peace with the help of the Holy Spirit is crucial for hearing God's voice.