9 Ways of Knowing When God Speaks, Plus How to Respond

Have you ever wondered how to know whether God is speaking to you or it’s your own thoughts? I mean it can get confusing sometimes. Is this from God or from myself? That’s an important question to ask.

I remember one time I felt God was telling me to do something, and it pushed me out of my comfort zone. So I questioned whether or not it was from God. That happens, especially when God is telling us to do something that may make us uncomfortable.

I ended up doing it and believe it was the right thing to do. But led me on a quest see how I can know when I hear God speak.

Thankfully, the Bible reveals how we can know when we hear God speak. It even gives us clues on how we should respond. So, let’s dive in and see how we can discern when God speaks to us.

1. It Aligns With The Bible

First, we can know that God is speaking to us if what we hear aligns with the Bible. The Bible is God’s revealed word to us. It’s what He has chosen to share with us about Himself and the nature of our relationship with Him.

As such, anything we hear God speak to us today, must align with Scripture. Hebrews 13:8 reads,

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

And Matthew 24:35 reads,

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

God’s word does not change and it is eternal. Therefore, what God speaks today will align with what He speaks through the Bible. So, the Bible can be a guardrail to determine whether or not something is from God.

2. It Aligns With God’s Character

Second, what God speaks aligns with His character. We’ve already seen how God reveals Himself through His word. He does that by sharing with us His character and attributes through the stories and descriptions of God found in the Bible. Some of these attributes include:

• Self-Existence (Isaiah 45:5-7)
• Omniscience (Psalm 147:5; 1 John 3:20)
• Omnipresence (Jeremiah 23:23-24)
• Omnipotence (Genesis 18:14)
• Eternity (Revelation 1:8)
• Infinite (1 Kings 8:27)
• Holiness (Isaiah 6:3)
• Righteousness (Psalm 11:7)
• Justice (Deuteronomy 34:2)
• Love (John 3:16-17)
• Goodness (Romans 5:28)
• Truth (John 14:6)
• Etc.

When God speaks, what He says will reflect some of these attributes. For example, God told Abraham to leave his hometown, his country and family and go to a place that God will show him. This reflects some attributes of God.

It reflects His omnipresence. Abraham is going to a new country a new place to worship God. This implies that God is in that new place as well as the place Abraham was first.

It also reflects God’s omniscience. Abraham didn’t know where He was going, but God did. So, what God spoke to Abraham reflected both God’s omnipresence and omniscience.

3. It Glorifies God

Third, when God speaks, it glorifies His Name. Everything God does is for His own glory and the good of His creation. God defends His own name. Isaiah 48:11 reads,

“For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this.
    How can I let myself be defamed?
    I will not yield my glory to another.”

God protects and defends His name. Right before this verse, God talks about how He is going to judge Israel for their stubbornness and disobedience. Right after this verse, God talks about how He is going to free and redeem Israel from the Babylonians.

So, God judges and saves to defend His glory. When God speaks, He speaks of His desire for a relationship with humanity and His plan to restore it. So, when God speaks it brings Him glory.

4. It Resembles the Fruit of The Spirit

Fourth, what God says will resemble the fruit of the Spirit. This is similar to the second point above. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. He is God. Therefore, when God speaks it will resemble the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the spirit can be found in Galatians 5:22-23,

• Love
• Joy
• Peace
• Patience
• Kindness
• Goodness
• Faithfulness
• Gentleness
• Self-Control

If God is telling us to do something, then it should resemble and/or produce the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. If it doesn’t then we need to question whether it is from somewhere other than God.

The Holy Spirit works in our lives to produce these fruit and lead us to live more like Jesus. So, what God speaks to us will likewise lead to producing these fruit and a life that looks more like Jesus.

5. It Brings Peace, Encouragement, or Conviction Without Fear

Fifth, when God speaks it brings peace, encouragement, or conviction without fear. Fear is one of the greatest tools used by Satan to prevent us from living Biblically. But when God speaks, He doesn’t use fear.

God can speak to us for many reasons. He can offer encouragement or convict us of our sins. Whether He brings “good news” or “bad news” He brings it without fear. 2 Timothy 1:7 reads,

“for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

The Bible describes God as a Creator, Prince of Peace, Encourager, Comforter, Judge, etc. But He does all of this without using fear as the motivating factor. Instead, He uses love. This often results in feelings of peace and encouragement when God speaks, even if it may be things we don’t want to hear.

But why do people experience fear when they encounter God? Check out this article to find out. It explains exactly what the “fear of the LORD” means, and why it is an appropriate response to God speaking into our lives.

6. It Deepens Faith and Love For God

Sixth, when God speaks it deepens our faith and love for Him. Hearing God speak, whether audibly, through the Bible, or another means, often is a very personal and intimate experience with God. It deepens our relationship with Him.

So, hearing God speak and obeying what He says will deepen our faith because it leads to a deeper relationship with Him.

Let’s go back to the story of Abraham mentioned earlier. Abraham obeyed God. He followed God into this new land where God gave him a bunch of promises. One of those promises was that he was going to have a really big family. But there was a problem.

Abraham and his wife didn’t have any children and they were very old. Abraham grew worried and talked to God about the situation. God reassured Him of His promises and the fact that he will have a son. The BIble then says,

“And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”

Genesis 15:6

God speaking and reassuring Abraham of his promise led Abraham into a closer and deeper relationship with God. The same thing happens when God speaks to us. We grow in love toward Him. Be begin to lean not on our own understanding and grow in our faith in God.

7. It Encourages Perseverance

Seventh, when God speaks it encourages perseverance in our lives. Life is hard because we live in a broken and sinful world. But God knows that it is hard. Jesus lived here. He knows exactly how broken and sinful the world can be. So, when God speaks He often offers encouragement to persevere.

In the book of Matthew, is Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. Toward the end of this sermon he tells an illustration to encourage us to listen to and obey God’s word so that we can persevere and thrive in life. He tells the story of two men who built houses.

One man built his house on the rock. The other on a sandy beach. Then this massive hurricane came. The rain fell, the waters rose, the wind blew and the house that was build on the beach came crashing down. It was destroyed, but the house that was built on the rock survived.

Jesus said, ““Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matthew 7:24). When God speaks, His word will always provide the encouragement to persevere and overcome the challenges we face in life.

8. It’s Confirmable Through Community or Prayer

Eighth, we can know when God speaks to us because it is confirmable through community and prayer. God’s word does not exist in a void or a vacuum. If we have doubts about whether or not something is from God, then we should seek to get it confirmed. There are two ways we can do this,

• First, we can pray and ask God to confirm it to us or tell it to us again.
• Second, we can seek wisdom and advice from wise counsel at church.

Proverbs 11:14 reads, “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.” It is wise to seek the advice of others when discerning whether or not something is from God. That is why the church community is so important.

The church exists to share the good news of the gospel with others and to encourage and love believers. As such, it is a great place to find people who know us, love us, and care for us, enough to offer sound Biblical advice when we are trying to discern God’s will.

James 1:5-6 reads,

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”

God is okay with us asking Him questions, so long as we have the right motives. There are many people in the Bible who questioned God. Abraham, Habakkuk, Job, Paul, Peter, etc. Each time God responded. So, we can and should ask God if something is from Him or not, especially if we are not sure.

9. It Fosters and Promotes Righteousness and Holiness

Lastly, we know God speaks when what He says fosters and promotes righteousness and holiness. The Bible is clear that God is holy. Likewise, it says that Jesus will reign with justice and righteousness (Isaiah 9:6-7).

Therefore, what God says will foster righteousness. When God walks before Moses, He defines Himself by saying,

““The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”“

God’s righteousness is central to His character. As such, it is central to His actions and His words. God will not speak to us and tell us to do something wrong. Nor will He speak to us in an unrighteous manner. We see all throughout the Bible, people God spoke to were righteous people.

For example, God spoke to Noah and warned Him of the coming flood. The Bible describes Noah as a righteous man. Not only does God’s word foster righteousness, but it promotes holiness as well.

Leviticus, that book we often skip reading because it’s boring, calls us to “Be holy, as the LORD is holy (Leviticus 19:2, 20:7, 20:26, 21:8). So, when God speaks to us, He’s going to tell us to do something that makes us stand out to those around us, differentiates us and marks us as His own.

Responding When You Hear God Speak

Now that we have an idea of knowing when we hear God speak, we ought ask ourselves: How should we respond? If God speaks to us and it aligns with the Bible, His character, glorifies His names, and produces the fruit of the Spirit, holiness, and righteousness in our lives, how do we respond?

In Obedience

We’ve already seen a little bit about how we should respond in obedience. Remember the illustration of the two people who built houses, one on the beach and one on the rocks? Jesus started that illustration with, “Whoever hears these words of mind and does them…”

So, we see that when God speaks, He expects us to obey what He says. God doesn’t talk just to hear Himself talk. He talks to bring glory to His name. God spoke and creation came into existence. He speaks to us, He expects us to obey.

In Surrender

We should also respond in surrender. This is similar to the first point, but goes a step further. Responding in surrender to God’s word gets to the heart and motive of our obedience. We can obey begrudgingly, but responding in surrender results in obeying with a pure heart.

For example, Jonah obeys God begrudgingly. But Mary, the mother of Jesus, responds in surrender. We are to be like Mary and respond in surrender when God speaks to us. Doing so, opens us up to experiencing great blessings from God.

In Faith

Lastly, we can respond in faith. Responding in faith when God speaks means that we have complete trust in what God says to us. We know His promises will come true. We obey because we have trust and faith in God.

We can look back at the story of Abraham as an example. Abraham responded in faith and followed God to a new land. He responded in faith and believed God would give him a son. He responded in faith in his willingness to sacrifice that son, knowing God could raise him from the dead.

At critical moments in Abraham’s life, He responded to God speaking to him in faith. Likewise, we are to trust that what God says is true, to trust that He will do what He says, to trust in who He is.

When God speaks to us, we can and should respond in faith, surrender, and obedience.