God Speaks | Sunday, November 22, 2020

Surely the Lord our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks with man, yet he still lives. Now therefore, why should we die? ... If we hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore, we shall die. (Deuteronomy 5)

When Almighty God speaks, ancient Israel trembled—and the same words still unsettle believers and skeptics today, for very different reasons.

"We Have Seen This Day That God Speaks With Man"

As I was sitting in my home office this last week—where I feel I've been living under house arrest for the last eight months—I was reading through the passage in Deuteronomy 5 that we are studying, and these words stopped me: "We have seen this day that God speaks with man." Pause and think about those words.

What is fascinating is that the idea behind those words stopped the people of Israel 3,400 years ago as well, though not for the same reason it stopped me. Those words stopped Israel because they understood something of the power, glory, and holiness of God, such that they expected the outcome of Almighty God speaking to them would be their own death.

The Chernobyl Comparison

Last year, HBO came out with a historical drama revolving around the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in 1986. I was only six when it happened, so I have little memory of it, but I've watched a number of clips people have sent me, and it's gut-wrenching. When the disaster happened, the reactor core was exposed, releasing devastating levels of radiation. Many exposed died of acute radiation syndrome shortly after, and in the months and years following, countless others died from its effects. The radiation didn't kill them on the spot, but its effects did.

The people of Israel were afraid in a similar fashion—that after coming in contact with the living and holy God, the same sort of thing would happen to them. In fear and reverence they said, "If we hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore, we will die."

Why This Idea Unsettles Believers

These words caused me to pause for a different reason. The idea that God speaks with man makes both believers and unbelievers in the 21st century uncomfortable.

If you're a believer, this makes you uncomfortable for at least two reasons. First, if you affirm that you believe it's true, people you know will think you're crazy if they don't believe in God like you do. In our current cultural moment, you are made to feel stupid for publicly avowing that God is and that God speaks—just as the newly elected congressman from North Carolina's 11th district, Madison Cawthorn, was made to feel a fool this week for admitting he had tried to share the gospel with Jews and Muslims.

The second reason is that you want it to be true—I want it to be true that God is and that He speaks to us—but you're not sure God has ever spoken to you. Even though I've been a Christian for most of my life and have served in ministry all my adult life, I've always been a little bothered when I hear Christians say, "The Lord told me" or "The Lord spoke to me." Many times I've stopped people and asked, "How did God speak to you? How do you know it was the Lord?" A lot of shenanigans and trouble have followed those who say "The Lord told me." It might be the Christian equivalent of "hold my beer." But I digress.

Be that as it may, I don't know that I—even after more than 20 years as a pastor—have ever heard God's audible voice. That is not to say God does not speak. He does. That's exactly what Deuteronomy 5 says, and I believe it. God has spoken to me through the Scriptures, even though I don't think I've ever heard His audible voice.

Why This Idea Unsettles Skeptics

These words also make unbelievers uncomfortable. The obvious reason is that the skeptic thinks, "I like this person I work with or who lives next door. He seems sane and together, but he doesn't actually believe there is a God who speaks, does he? I don't want him to believe this, because I don't want to think he's crazy, or have the awkward conversation where I tell him I think believing in God is crazy."

But there's a less obvious reason. If you're an unbelieving skeptic—and there are more of you listening now because we're out on YouTube—if you're honest, this makes you uncomfortable because deep down, in places you don't talk about at parties, part of you is actually concerned that it could be true that there is a God and that He speaks. And for the skeptic, that's terrifying.

How do I know this? Because the Scriptures say that unbelievers do not like to retain God in their knowledge. You don't like that the thought of God is stuck in your mind, but it doesn't just go away. That's why every unbeliever has to replace the thought of God with some other superordinate idea, which is always insufficient as a penultimate answer to the deeper questions of life—questions of identity and purpose, origin, destiny, and morality. If you'd like further teaching on these deep questions, I recommend a series I did called Identity at lifeinconnection.com/identity.

He Is There and He Is Not Silent

As uncomfortable as this may be, it should also be a great comfort to us that God speaks with man. As the late Christian philosopher and apologist Francis Schaeffer wrote decades ago, "He is there and He is not silent." This is the philosophical base of the Christian worldview.

At the most basic level, this is what you discover when you open the page of Scripture: God is. He has made Himself known. Therefore God is knowable. He desires to be known by us, which means He desires a relationship with us. Whether you're a skeptic or a believer, this is one of the opening propositions of the Christian faith: God is there, He is not silent, and He desires a relationship with you.

The Problem of Sin

But there is a problem—and you knew that was coming. Something stands in the way between God and man, something that hinders our relationship with a holy and righteous God. It is the very thing that made Israel fearful when God spoke with them 3,400 years ago. What stands between us and God? Our sin.

This whole section of Deuteronomy, dealing with the statutes and judgments of God, is about how the holy and righteous God would deal with the hindering power of sin. The problem is that we often don't recognize the chasm of sin that separates us from Him, nor do we have the self-awareness to see that the chasm is one of our own making—the result of our disobedience and rebellion.

The Purpose of the Law

The statutes and judgments we've been studying—you shall have no other gods, you shall not bow down to idols, you shall not take the Lord's name in vain, honor the Sabbath, honor your father and mother, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not lie, do not covet—were not established to make it possible for us to become holy enough to reach God. Rather, they were given to show us that we are unholy and cannot get to God by our own efforts. They reveal our sinfulness.

In the New Testament, Romans 3, 4, and 7 outline this clearly: it is by the law that we have the knowledge of sin. But it is also true that from the beginning, God determined to deal with the sin that brought separation and death. How? Deuteronomy and the rest of the Old Testament are the setup for the whole story of the gospel. God's determined plan to deal with sin is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross 2,000 years ago.

Preparing the Way for the Messiah

To make that a reality, Israel had to enter and remain in the promised land. So Moses spoke to them 3,400 years ago as they stood on the border, teaching them this law to prepare them:

Therefore you shall be careful to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. You shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess. (Deuteronomy 5:32)

In effect, God says, "Israel, keep these commandments so you are positioned to prepare the way, so you may be the people through whom the blessing of the Messiah will come to bring salvation to all nations." God had told their father Abraham that through him all nations would be blessed by the coming of the Messiah.

So this law was to order their lives as the people of God so the Messiah could come. It was never given to save them from sin. The law is our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ. The law will not save you, but it prepares the way for the Savior, Jesus Christ. We will never stand before God as holy and righteous on the basis of keeping the law, but the law brings us to the place where we recognize our need for the Savior and call out to Him. That's a big part of why I keep encouraging you to get to know these commandments, and I hope you'll continue as we study together.

A Word for This Season

I want to close a little differently, with a public service announcement. 2020 is not over, and its chaos is not done. I miss seeing all of you on Sunday mornings. We have been gathering on Sunday evenings at 5 p.m., and it's been a real blessing, but many of you have not and probably will not join us, and I understand. Some are fearful and hesitant about gathering in a group, and I can't fault you.

I am not one who thinks coronavirus is a sham. My wife works in the critical care unit of a local hospital and has spent a lot of time with people dying of COVID-19. These people die alone, apart from nurses like my wife standing by their side. This is real, even if it is not as deadly as we first feared—and we should all thank God it's not.

You may not fully agree with how our government has responded. I find myself conflicted as well. In some respects I believe the authorities have gone too far, and within reason our leadership has done our best to follow the guidelines. But we will keep gathering on Sunday nights, and I still encourage you to gather in small groups.

Why Connect Groups Matter Now

In my communication with people in our church, I find that those doing best right now are those connected to a Connect Group. This is why we began Connect Groups more than seven years ago—for such a time as this. We didn't know then that we'd be in the midst of coronavirus, but we recognized that, historically, the church has always existed as a people who gathered corporately and also from house to house.

Acts 2:42–47 says the church gathered from house to house in fellowship—this Greek word koinonia, communion with one another. The church has lived in fellowship since A.D. 32 and will until Jesus returns, which, with everything going on, sometimes feels like it could be at any moment.

You need to be part of a small group, even if it's just with one or two other couples. This is the new normal, and things are not going back to the way they were. Even when we gather again on Sunday mornings, Connect Groups will always be central to who we are, because Cross Connection Church is all about living life in connection with God, one another, and the world through Jesus. So please go to athome.lifeinconnection.com and consider hosting or joining a small group. I also encourage you to check out the shorter daily recordings I'm doing at coffeetime.pastormiles.com.

Closing Prayer

Father God, as we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, help us to pause this week to think about all the things we can and should be thankful for. Lord, I am grateful for our church, for this body of believers You have put together, and for the encouragement they are to me, my wife, my kids, and my extended family. I pray that You would draw us together even more as we come into this holiday season.

Remind us of how good and pleasant it is for the body of Christ to dwell together in unity. Unify us as Your people and help us to rejoice. Help us to be a city set on a hill, a light shining in a dark place. I believe the church has the ability to be that more now than at any time in my lifetime. So God, use us to shine brightly to our community, to reach people with the good news of the gospel and the hope we have in You. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.