God Doesn’t Contradict Himself

We try our best to make Jesus a regular point of conversation in our home.

We are not perfect at it.  We miss a lot of opportunities, but we are really stepping up the pace of it these days.  My boys are about to turn 6 in a few months and they are beginning to understand more and more about the gospel as the days go by.

The picture above is from college Bible study at our house a few weeks ago when Obadiah wanted to share a book he was reading with the students.  It talks about marriage and the Bible, and he was really excited that he could read it and start to comprehend it.

We aren’t perfect, but we are at least trying.  We think we are making progress in their spiritual development.  We talk about listening to God’s voice when he begins to talk to their hearts.

I thought we were about to have a defining moment the other day.

The boys were begging to eat some more Valentine’s candy, and since they were hyper enough to run through walls, we decided to slow down the intake.  I told Obadiah that he couldn’t have any more until the next day.

As we drove home in the minivan, we were playing a Rizers’ song with John 3:16 as the text.  This song has been Obadiah’s favorite as of late.

As the song concluded and the three precious voices of my children singing quieted for a moment, Obadiah got my attention with a very tender voice.  “Dad?” he beckoned.

“Yes, son?”

“I think I hear him.  God is speaking to my heart.  I hear him right now.”

Glancing over at Amanda, I optimistically asked, “Really?  What’s he saying to you?”

“Well, actually, he’s saying that it’s OK if I have some more Valentine’s candy.”

“God is saying that?”

“Yes, he is.”

“Son, I don’t know everything about God, but I do know this: he did not say that to you.”

“You do?!  How?”

“Because God doesn’t contradict himself.”

God doesn’t contradict himself.

God’s Word and God’s Voice

While the situation was quite humorous, it was a reminder of how many people think the same thing.  I know that God didn’t tell him that because God has told him to honor his father (Ex. 20:12).  I explained to him that God was not going to tell him to obey his father in everything (Col. 3:20) only to later work against him.

I think he understood.  He still wanted candy, but at least he understood.

Make sure that you don’t make the same mistake as my 5-year-old did.

If God’s Word has said one thing, I promise you that God’s voice is not telling you to do the other.  In fact, if you hear a voice that is telling you to do something against God’s Word, that is not God speaking but the Devil himself.

If you hear a voice telling you to do something against God’s Word, that is not God speaking.

If you want to hear from God, get into his Word and obey what it says.

You don’t need a new revelation from God if you haven’t obeyed the old revelation.