The Voice We Long to Hear Revisted
Nothing more can change the face of a worried young child who has lost sight of their parent, than just merely hearing the parent’s voice. That familiar voice instantaneously reminds them they’re not alone, their father or mother is near, they’re going to be OK, rescue is on the way, and they’re not lost after all. It’s something much more than sound waves making their way through the outer ear and into the brain, it’s more akin to hearing peace. That voice makes the heart sing in ways no other voice can. Like at the wedding altar, the heart of a bride leaps for joy when she hears the groom’s voice confidently and eagerly declare “I do!”
Yet, for many of us, as we meander through the pain and suffering of this life, we long to hear a similar voice. A voice that sails our hearts away from the craggy reef of unbelief and into the cove of truth. A voice that can turn revulsion into relief. A remarkable voice among voices. Consider the apostle John’s remembrance of the power of Jesus’s voice…
“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live” – John 5:25
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” – John 10:27
“The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete” (words of John the Baptist) – John 3:29b
There is only one voice with the ability to make hearts truly sing. It’s not our best friend’s voice, it’s not our earthly parents, it’s not our boss, it’s not our spouse, and it’s definitely not our own. The same voice that created this world and set the cosmos in motion, the same voice that shook Mt Sinai before the Israelites, the same voice that filled the Temple, the same voice that silenced Satan, the same voice that terrified and redeemed Paul, the same voice that cured lepers, the same voice that wind and waves obeyed, the same voice that raised Lazarus from the dead, is the same voice calling out to you today. Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden, those with deep aches and longings, with brokenness and sin, and you will find rest for your souls (Matt.11:28-30).
If you’re in Christ, this is the voice of your Lord, your King, your Savior, your friend, your Messiah, your Redeemer, your propitiation, your Bridegroom, your first love, your God. Oh, to know that familiar voice not as a Judge calling a criminal, but as a Father calling a son or daughter. Oh, the remarkable sweetness of His voice! Have you heard it lately? Whether you’re feeling like a sinner or saint, that voice is available to you. Open His Word and listen. If you’re in Christ that voice is the voice of your Lord’s love over you. The voice of Jesus will be heard by all, either as a parent calling a child, or as a judge indicting a criminal. Heed His voice while you can still hear. If you do, it will be the voice you hear for eternity.
“Oh!...that we would open our ears to hear the sweet voice of the Bridegroom as He whispers to our souls, “Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away, leave the fleeting phantoms of this fleeting day’. And oh, that His soul-ravishing voice would so reach our cold hearts that we would be made to thirst and cry out for a closer fellowship with the crucified Savior” – John Harper, pastor (died with the Titantic).
