THE VOICE OF GOD

2 Peter 1:16-18 For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to Him from the excellent glory, this is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice, which came from heaven, we heard, when we were with Him in the holy mount.

From Genesis through the Revelation we have a record of those things spoken by the voice of God. In Genesis 1:3 we find, And God said, "Let there be light:" and there was light. As we read further, we learn how God spoke the world, in its universal nature, into existence. To the Christian, the "Big Bang Theory" goes something like this - God spoke, and BANG the world was created. According to Revelation 1:1, we know that it was God's words which were spoken to His Son, Jesus Christ, which He gave to His angel, who delivered them to John to record. Referring to himself, John says that he was the one who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things he saw (Vs. 2). From the beginning of time to its end - from the creation of the world to its final destruction, the voice of God, His spoken word, has always, is today, and will continue through eternity, to rule with His omniscient authority.

For purposes of this lesson, a few quotations of God have been selected to study in further detail. For instance, consider the voice of God as he spoke to Abraham through an angel, And in thy Seed shall all the nations be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice (Gen. 22:18). The same promise was reaffirmed by God as He spoke directly to Isaac (Gen. 26:4). Because of his obedient faithfulness, Abraham obeyed God's commandments and was willing to sacrifice his only son, proving his trust in God's will. The angel of God said, because thou hast done this thing ...I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore (Gen. 16b-17b). The great nation, which was promised through his descendents, was a promise limited to Abraham and his direct heirs. However, the promise - in thy Seed shall all the nations be blessed,is universal. "All nations" include all mankind, regardless of their ancestry. We know this promised "Seed"to be our Savior, the Son of God, Jesus Christ and the plan of salvation He died to establish. What a tremendous blessing the world received when Abraham heard, believed, and obeyed the voice of God.

On another momentous occasion the voice of God was heard to say ...this is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matt. 3:17). As record by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, God spoke these words immediately after Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the river Jordan. Matthew's record says, and Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him (Vs. 16). Witnessed by John, and the great multitude that came from Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan (Matt. 3:5b), the voice of God proclaim Jesus as His Son, the Savior of the world.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record another occasion when the voice of God was heard. Peter, James, and John accompanied Jesus, as He went into a high mountain and there was transfigured before them: and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light (Matt. 17:2). As these three apostles witnessed this scene, Jesus was talking to Moses and Elijah (Vs. 3). Then Peter says, let us make here three tabernacles; one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah (Vs. 4). He was suggesting that all three should become the spiritual leaders and spokesmen for the world. Instead of Jesus answering, it was the voice of God that replied to Peter's suggestion: This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him (Vs. 5). Here, God repeats the words He spoke at the baptism of Jesus, but adds "hear ye Him."

With the coming of Jesus, God would not lead His newly chosen people by the Law of Moses. Neither would He give them spiritual guidance through the prophets. Instead, God would speak through His Son, Jesus Christ. The New Testament reveals, not only the words spoken by Jesus, but also the words of the inspired writers that He commissioned to proclaim His will. The New Testament, then, is the message of Jesus but it is the voice of God - hear it, believe it, and obey it! In it you will find salvation.