International Church of Bishkek
  • Home
  • Resources
    • Sermon Blog
    • ICB on YouTube
  • ICB Staff
  • Visit Us
  • Contact Us

Second Look: Standing in God's Council

31/5/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
photo by Laura Evans

But if they had stood in my council, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people.
Jeremiah 23:22 ESV

Dear ICB family,

​On Sunday we saw from Jeremiah 23 what is perhaps the defining characteristic of a false prophet: They were people who, without standing in God's council first, spoke their own thoughts as if they were God's. 

Throughout the Old Testament, God is portrayed as a king in a throne room surrounded by his heavenly council (Psalm 82:1; 89:1–5). That council is not there to give God advice. In fact, according to Jeremiah 23:18, people enter the council of God "to see and to hear his word," meaning they're not the ones doing the talking. God talks, and according to Jeremiah, those in his council are to pay attention to his word and listen. Very simply put, true prophets are those who have been counted among God's council, who have paid attention to and have listened to his words, and who then speak what they've heard to God's people. 

We might be discouraged by the distance that seems to separate us right now from God's heavenly throne room. How does a person today stand in God's council, hear his word, and with any certainty claim to speak those words to God's people?

The Spirit
Jesus promised his disciples this in John 16:12–15: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you."

In other words, the Spirit of God takes the words of God, declares them to the followers of the Son of God, and leads those followers into the truth of God. When the Spirit who lives within us speaks and we listen, we are standing in God's council. 

The Word
The question then becomes, How do we hear the Spirit speak? Second Peter 1:21 says, "[N]o prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." Who put the words in the prophets' hearts that were eventually recorded by the prophets' pens? The Holy Spirit. In other words, if you want to hear the Holy Spirit speak directly, open your Bible. He has spoken, and because his words are alive, he continues to speak through that same word even now. My Bible is printed on over 1300 pages. The Holy Spirit has a lot to tell us.

This is how we enter the council of God today. The Spirit who lives within us speaks to us through the words of the Bible. We can stand in the council of God by listening to and paying attention to the Spirit as he speaks and guides us into all truth, and then—and only then—can we open our mouths and speak to others "as one who speaks oracles of God" (1 Peter 4:10–11).

Just be warned: There are no shortcuts. The person whose heart is not filled with the Spirit of God and whose mind is not steeped in the words of God should not expect to enter into the council of God, meaning such a person should never claim to speak the message of God to the people of God.

Are you filled with the Spirit, and do you know the Bible? Before you ever open your mouth to say a word, you must. Otherwise, you just might just find yourself lumped in with the false prophets of Jeremiah 23.

Longing for God's council,

Eric
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    January 2023
    September 2022
    May 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012

    Categories

    All
    1 Peter
    1 Thessalonians
    Acts Ch. 13 To 28
    Acts Ch. 1 To 12
    Advent 2013
    Announcements
    Easter 2014
    Ephesians
    Fruit Of The Spirit
    Habits Of Prayer Jan2016
    Hebrews
    Hosea
    Isaiah Series
    John
    John Part2
    Jonah
    Malachi
    Micah
    Psalms Of Ascents
    Psalms Summer 2016
    Psalms - Summer 2016
    Revelation
    SALUTATION
    Second Look
    Spiritual Disciplines
    Study Helps

    RSS Feed

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16 NIV).
  • Home
  • Resources
    • Sermon Blog
    • ICB on YouTube
  • ICB Staff
  • Visit Us
  • Contact Us