@woye77: You may also want to read this. I am in full agreement with what Pastor Tunde Bakare says here:

Q: What is the position of Christianity on tithing because some argue that it doesn’t have a place in Christianity?

A: I don’t have an opinion. I live by the book. I’ll tell you what is in the book. The first man to pay tithe was Abraham, when he met Melchizedek. And when he gave that tithe, the book of Hebrews says even Levi, who became a priest later, paid tithe while he was still in the loins of his father, Abraham. So, there was tithe before the law. There was tithe during the law. And Christ Jesus now came and said, this you ought to do, but you neglect the weightier matters of the law. This you ought to do and the other you do not neglect. If you are asking what is the agreed position in the New Testament, listen to Paul in I Corinthians Chapter 16, verse 1. At least I’m not reading from the Old Testament. I can tell you by the grace of God that at the Latter Rain Assembly, you can come and watch us, stay for about five or six weeks, you will not hear such a thing mentioned. You will know a church by the time you worship there for six or seven weeks.

We encourage our people because even the running of the place requires support of those who are worshipping there. Do you belong to any club or organisation? To join Ikoyi Club 1938, there are fees. It is the abuse that is the problem because it must come from your heart. Melchizedek did not demand tithe from Abraham. It was what Abraham did willingly. My opinion is that let every man be persuaded in his own heart. If it is not honour, then it is robbery. What the Bible says is honour the Lord with your susbstance and the first fruits of your increase so that your barns may be full. It has to be honour. It is the same word you use for your parents. The first time I gave my mother an allowance was when I was a Youth Corper. I gave her N50 out of my N200 monthly allowance because I was the only one she depended on. And from that year till today, my mother’s monthly allowance has increased, although I won’t tell you how much she gets now. She was 100 in October. I lost my father when I was two years old. So God allowed my mother to stay to see me through. Would I neglect my mother? So also will I not neglect the God who is the source of everything I have. But it has to be a matter of honour.

There are three priesthoods in the Bible. The priesthood of Midian, the Levitical priesthood and the Melchizedek priesthood.

This is what is causing the  problem. The priesthood of Midian is that of Jethro, the father in-law of Moses. It deals with strategies, administration and dedication of duties. It teaches you how to delegate so that you are not overworked. It does not raise sons, it raises workers. So in such ministries where Jethro principle is what they’re following, you’ll be hearing workers, workers, workers, instead of raising sons of God.

Leviticus priesthood is mainly about offering. And remember they were in the wilderness; no supermarket, no work and they didn’t go anywhere. There was nowhere to spend all the money they took from Egypt. So, it’s offering in the morning, offering at night and offering in the evening. When you find a ministry whose major emphasis is bring, bring, give, give, its the Levitical priesthood. They are still in the wilderness.

But we have moved out of the wilderness. The priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ Christ, according to Hebrew 6, 7 up to 8, is after the order of Melchizedek who was already a king before he met Abraham. He did not need the offering of Abraham to be king. So those who are practising Melchizedek  priesthood do not depend on their congregation. They don’t wait because they are lazy for them to go and work and bring resources to them. They also labour with their own hands to have resources and when the church contributes, they probably contribute more. You can find out these things. So it depends on which priesthood is being practised.

Tithes are to be used to take care of widows, the helpless, and services in the house of God. Why should they come to you to say we want to pay NEPA bills, we want to pay church staff? People that are working in the ministry have to be paid and the organisation has to be run. But it’s never compulsory. If anybody tells you if you don’t pay tithe you  will remain tight, greed in his heart is influencing that because Christ has become the cross for us. For it is written: ‘Cursed is anyone that hangs on the tree that the blessing of Abraham now come upon the Gentile’ If it is from your heart, like it was with Abraham, it will bring blessings. But if it is teleguided, it is no longer spirit-led and does not activate anything in heaven. I think what is causing it is that we embark on projects God did not give to us and put ourselves under financial pressure, which we transmit  to people.

Do I pay tithe? Definitely. But I don’t make it a law for everybody. I do from my earnings because I don’t depend on church offerings. My hands, like Paul’s, provided for my necessities. I pay my tax like any other citizen of this country. I pay from my legitimate earnings. If I have to wait for them to give on Sundays before I send my children to school and eat, then something is wrong. If this church folds up, I cannot live anymore. And in a depressed economy, so many churches have opened up that are not at the instance of the Holy Spirit.

Reference http://thenewsng.com/cover-story/why-i-quit-redeemed-church/2009/11

@woye77: I was/am not misleading people. I have carefully made 5 or 6 or so posts on this thread, and I believe none of them is misleading. Someone else is yet to show me otherwise. That verse you quoted was in reference to the old covenant.

hbabe:

You are mostly in religion and I am in sexuality!  Which thread is this?
I don't want one brother preaching to me, I have 5 pastors at my beck and call and God is just a prayer away.
Which advice do you need?  Give me a hint and I will add you.
Y

Really, I have no such preach-to-you intentions.  

You are right about our major NL pre-occupations: religion (for me) / sexuality (for you) threads. But it was on a common ground: a romance thread, you may not have known because I didn't comment, I just saw your username there.

Here is the post by hbabe that I saw: https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria?topic=392743.msg5445539#msg5445539

For the sake of privacy, I hope the above link is enough evidence. But if it isn't, it's okay and I respect your privacy as well

Thanks.

Abekeade08:

I am not offended, I just want you to pick somebody na. abi don't you want an NL girl for valentine, Maybe hbabe, though you will have to fight off Chidi and hardbody.

It's okay, abekeade. I tend to be okay with what (who) I already have! I just wanted hbabe's perspective on some stuff, I'm not asking her on a date or any such thing so Chidi and Hardbody have nothing to worry about.

@hbabe: Abeg na. I found out from your posts that you are an emotionally mature person so I want your perspective on a matter. If I yarn dust you can delete me from your messenger, right?

Abekeade08:

Wetin be your own Traugott, or are u one of the virgins hbabe was talking about? This thread is for picking valentines, pick one or GTFOH

Your vitriolic umbrage is unnecessary, abekeade. I followed her from a discussion on another thread, Since I don't have hbabe's email and this forum has no means of private messaging, I simply went to her last post to get her last conversation, and posted after it so that she will see it.

I am sorry if I offended you, it was not my intention.

Be blessed.

@hbabe: Hi! Please if you don't mind, I'd like to ask you for some advice. My yahoo ID is traugottmail@yahoo.com. Please add me up, do. Thanks in advance!

I once saw this story on the internet, please read it open-mindedly. The words in blue are my own annotation.

The Indian Guru's Cat

The Origin
When the guru sat down to worship each evening, the ashram cat would get in the way and distract the worshipers. So he ordered that the cat be tied during evening worship.

Unknown purpose begets an abuse
After the guru died the cat continued to be tied during evening worship. And when the cat died, another cat was brought to the ashram so that it could be duly tied during evening worship.

Corruption of purpose swallows up the purpose
Centuries later[b] learned treatises were written by the guru's disciples on the religious and liturgical significance of tying up a cat while worship is performed[/b].

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How many of us really know the reasons for tithing? Or we are stone-facedly following the practice like the successive tying of the ashram cat? Why is it not found in the New Testament if it is so important? Are we slaves to God, or sons in his kingdom? Who are we meant to give our tithe to, then?

God is more interested in your heart that gives, and not in any percentage. e.g. the widow's tiny mite was far greater than any billions dropped by a business mogul. THAT is God's heart, and that's how things work spiritually.

Deu 26:12  Every third year, the year of the tithe, give a tenth of your produce to the Levite, the foreigner, the orphan, and the widow so that they may eat their fill in your cities.

If tithing must indeed be done compulsorily, then this aspect always misses people's ears. The foreigner with no inheritance / the stranded one / the one who cannot afford to go to school, the orphan / widowed / from a broken home who has nothing to call their own, the Levite who also has no inheritance and has nothing to call their own IS the one that you pay this particular tenth to. But, no, people will lay up their 10% and bandy it to to the church, passing over half-dead and hungry neighbours, leaving the good Samaritan to attend to those ones.

There are people dying in Jos, Nigeria; and in Haiti. People have been rendered homeless and hungry. Send them help, let God use you! THAT is how to give to God!!

Tithe Origins: Please take note of all the emphasized words
Deu 14:22  Make an offering of ten percent, a tithe, of all the produce which grows in your fields year after year.
Deu 14:23  Bring this into the Presence of GOD, your God, at the place he designates for worship and there eat the tithe from your grain, wine, and oil and the firstborn from your herds and flocks. In this way you will learn to live in deep reverence before GOD, your God, as long as you live.
Deu 14:24  But[b] if the place GOD, your God, designates for worship is too far away and you can't carry your tithe that far[/b], [size=13pt]GOD, your God, will still bless you[/size]:
Deu 14:25  exchange your tithe for money and take the money to the place GOD, your God, has chosen to be worshiped.
Deu 14:26  Use the money to buy anything you want: cattle, sheep, wine, or beer--anything that looks good to you. You and your family can then feast in the Presence of GOD, your God, and have a good time.
Deu 14:27  [size=13pt]Meanwhile[/size], don't forget to take good care of the Levites who live in your towns; they won't get any property or inheritance of their own as you will.

The last words in green is where tithes apply to the pastor, but people have overshadowed this to cover ALL the aspects of tithing, which was a Jewish RITUAL custom! Many people are doing what they have NO understanding of, and they do it out of fear.

I am not against sending a prophet's offering to your church / pastor, or to give bountifully and reap bountifully, but there is no compulsory tithing in the New Testament.

I have searched throughout the Bible and I cant find where Christians are asked to tithe, eat the tithe (or even give it to the church, like they do today) and all that. Whoever can show this to me from the Scriptures will educate my long-lasting ignorance.

The word of God is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Amen and amen.

Let it be known that i fell in love in d days

when women truly swam in the rivers of love without any fear, shame or insecurity,

when men were ever-ready to love without selfish restraint or greedy hearts or timidity.

When both parties ensured they kept learning what was needed to tar that road that starts from their hearts & merges, leading into the pretty sunset.

Joh 4:22  You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God's way of salvation is made available through the Jews.
Joh 4:23  But the time is coming--it has, in fact, come--when what you're called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter. "It's who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship.

The Jews, who were asked to tithe out of compulsion, understood why they were tithing. But many Christians today tithe out of compulsion. They tithe out of fear: fear that the "devourer" will consume their finances.

Tithes are an act of love in Christianity, and it is not "by force", to the extent that so many questions like this will arise. Giving is very necessary, but not so tithes.

But I want to enjoin any truth-seeking Christian to study the Bible diligently and find out whether tithes are necessary in the New Covenant in Christ, and under what conditions is one required to "eat" his/her tithes, and whether one is meant to tithe out of money that is a "windfall" (as opposed to regular harvest / income).

The Lord is your ever present help.

@cultey: As far as I have found out by reading through the thread, Davidylan did not start the thread.

Interesting thread! I agree with Krayola's views. The rod is only for some - yes, even then, not all - animals and determinate fools. The rod of correction in all the verses in Proverbs is for the one that has PROVEN that he/she is void of understanding. see Pro 10:13 for example. The motive really matters, and unfortunately many parents don't even beat to correct, they do so to instil fear and out of a sense of REVENGE!

Thanks Tudor. Very true, it is blessed also to have a roof over your head. When there is a place to rest, it will be easier (for those who desire to do so) to concentrate on one's walk with God.

How does it augur well for one's family when they have to roam the street homelessly because the person put them in jeopardy in a bid to "stay righteous"?

1Ti 5:8 Anyone who neglects to care for family members in need repudiates the faith. That's worse than refusing to believe in the first place.

Recall that Jesus healed on the Sabbath, his hungry disciples harvested grain to eat on the Sabbath, hungry David ate the holy fresh shewbread.

Mar 2:23 One Sabbath day he was walking through a field of ripe grain.
Mar 2:24 As his disciples made a path, they pulled off heads of grain. The Pharisees told on them to Jesus: "Look, your disciples are breaking Sabbath rules!"
Mar 2:25 Jesus said, "Really? Haven't you ever read what David did when he was hungry, along with those who were with him?
Mar 2:26 How he entered the sanctuary and ate fresh bread off the altar, with the Chief Priest Abiathar right there watching--holy bread that no one but priests were allowed to eat--and handed it out to his companions?"
Mar 2:27 Then Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made to serve us; we weren't made to serve the Sabbath.
Mar 2:28 The Son of Man is no lackey to the Sabbath. He's in charge!"

None of the spiritual principles in God are cast in stone. The motive and the process is ALWAYS what God looks at, and not always the results.

@Annunaki and Tudor: Thanks. Please note that I never made reference to any church in particular, and I never said one should not give, but remember the words of Christ as repeated by Paul when he said it is more blessed to give than to receive:

Act 20:35  In everything I've done, I have demonstrated to you how necessary it is to work on behalf of the weak and not exploit them. You'll not likely go wrong here if you keep remembering that our Master said, 'You're far happier giving than getting.'"

The Amplified version says it makes one happier and more to be envied to give to the WEAK than to receive from them.

The previous verses say:

Act 20:33  "I've never, as you so well know, had any taste for wealth or fashion.
Act 20:34  With these bare hand[/b]s I took care of [b]my own basic needs and those who worked with me.

That was a spiritual head taking care of the physical needs of himself and those with him.

I know many pastors give, but instead they give to other men of God in "higher" spiritual standings of leadership above them. Rather, they ought to give to the (financially or otherwise e.g. those from a broken home) weaker members of their congregation.

It is more blessed for the pastor to give to the weak in their congregation, than to receive from them. How will the pastor get what to give, can he cater for so many from his own pocket? Maybe not, that is why it is more blessed for the congregation also to give to the pastor (who is "weak" to attend to so many people at once, and "burdened" with the gospel) than to receive from him.

In summary, the weak bring their widow's mite, the stronger bring their lump sums, and the pastor ensures (through the work of the deacons) that the weak are also financially catered for appropriately and the financially strong are also not over-burdened. That is how everyone gets blessed, giving rather than receiving as such.

We are the blessed of God.

Dear Dodgur, you are absolutely correct! Thank you for the contribution!

woye77:

traugott nice thread - God bless u - pls how can i hear from God loudly?

God bless you too, woye77.

The way to hear from God is to
1. Have an obedient, focused heart that is free from all kinds of fear, anxiety, unbelief and idolatry (ungodly things you crave for). You must have a life-pattern of faith.
2. Then you must believe that he IS (that He exists).
3. You must believe that he cares about you, and wants to speak to you.

Heb 11:6  It's impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.

However, you cannot control HOW he will speak to you, whether through a witness in your spirit, or through the voice of your spirit, or DIRECTLY to you by the Holy Spirit in an audible voice. He will always choose the BEST way to speak to you, that will communicate what you need to hear at the moment, but it is not for you to control.

For example, imagine a man in the UK, whose pretty fiancee is in Nigeria, same time zone and he is always thinking about her. If he could stay on the phone talking to her for 24 hours a day, he would gladly do so. There are many ways that they communicate: by email, by voice calls on Skype, by mobile phone calls, through Nairaland, through yahoo messenger, by registered mail, and sometimes he flies over to Nigeria to visit his sweetheart. He can't fly over to see her everytime, but each day she gets like 100 SMS from her guy, and vice-versa.

In their case, SMS is the standard means of communication. But sometimes, SMS cannot carry the weight of what this guy wants to tell his sweetheart, so he makes a phone call. Other times, it's just because he wants to hear her voice. Now, Val's day arrives and this guy travels to Nigeria because he has to spend the day specially with his love. He flies into Nigeria and the girl is happy that he could come, because she knows that he won't fly into Nigeria every single day, so he has made it very special for her. That's how it is like when God speaks to us audibly, he will do that on his own terms, and that will make it special for us.

There's another case in which the man could have to travel to Nigeria to see his girl. Imagine that he sent his 102 SMS for the day, and the girl didnt even reply once. He calls her, she doesn't pick the call. He sends her offline messages on yahoo messenger, no response. He sends her emails, and she does not reply. Some emails even bounce back. She does not show up on Nairaland or Facebook. He calls her family and friends and they say they haven't heard from her. Who will prevent that guy in deep love from entering the next flight to Nigeria to find out what happened to his love?

The same way, sometimes God HAS to speak audibly to Christians because they have stubbornly ignored all the messages that he has been sending, and he loves them and does not want them to get into trouble or go to waste.

Lastly, I want to remind you again that if someone goes around trying to hear voices, he/she will use their physical ears to hear them, and the physical plane of sensory perception is under the command of the devil: an evil spirit will simply start speaking to such a person. It will be like an impersonator appearing dressed like the girl's fiance from the UK, pretending to be him, so as to win her heart. This can only happen if the girl is too eager beyond reason to see her lover from the UK by all means.

Please don't go around trying by all means to hear God AUDIBLY. It will be his choice whether to speak to you that way or not.

Remain blessed in Jesus' name.

Dear Verilee, I posted an article yesterday titled "How God talks to Christians" and I strongly believe you need to read it. if you have any questions, please ask them there.

Here it is https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-391189.0.html

It is well!

@JeSoul: Thank you for being an ambassador of the Truth! Remain the blessed of God.

I apologize if the interruption above was / is considered rude. I just wanted us to keep things in neat form, in case someone has questions or contributions. Thank you! 

The Message Bible:
Pro 27:23  Know your sheep by name; carefully attend to your flocks;
Pro 27:24  (Don't take them for granted; possessions don't last forever, you know.)

Personally, I don't think it was right for that pastor to start stressing the topics of giving and tithing because he knew the sum was available.

We need more pastors that will augment the house-rent of some members of their congregation or even pay the full sum, rather than collect the little that they have.

A pastor is a shepherd, a "sub-shepherd" under the master Shepherd Jesus. Working with the flock of sheep, he should be diligent to know the state of the flock at every single instance.

Amplified Bible:
Pro 27:23  Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and look well to your herds;
Pro 27:24  For riches are not forever; does a crown endure to all generations?

What does this mean? When you know your flock by name, you know the ones that are hardly getting by with their small salaries, and you know the state of their affairs; just like you know that of the ones that have enough and to spare (even if they will not agree that they do).

Yes, the "poorer" ones may be faithful to give to the ministry, but if the Pastor / Shepherd is truly working in love, and he is diligent to know their affairs, he will work out a way in which the church funds (courtesy of the richer members of the flock) are able to well cater for the needs of the distressed but faithful giver.

When someone gives to the work of God, where will the "more abundant blessing" that will reward the person come from? The VERY same church! We may not have a physical "common purse" like the early apostles did, but we have a common purse, even if it is distributed in various bank accounts. We are all parts of one body, and if nutrients get to the head at the expense of other parts, the human body suffers marasmus.

I believe that is how the church should be, and not a place where all pockets are stressed out because the ministry will advance. May God bless us all.

Again, if you have determined to do a certain thing especially with regards to landed property (sale, rent, mortgage, lease, etc), you are absolutely within your own determined right to do as you please! Let the example of Acts 5 speak to your heart - it fits in here with the question of "part of the price" (see v. 2). Ananias could not make up his mind and had to suffer for it - a salutory lesson for many believers who think to impress God with coerced giving.

What did Peter say to Ananias in Acts 5? Here - "Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power?" (verse 4). I like the way EMTV puts it: "While it remained unsold, did it not remain yours? And after it was sold, was it not in your control?"

- - -

So, don't feel pressured to fall into the trap of "part of the price" (see v. 2) - no matter how the pastor brings new Sunday messages about tithes, or freewill giving, or sacrifice, or anything else. I am not saying you should not give by any means; but what I am saying is that you should not be pressured into a situation where giving becomes (and remains) a problem to you.

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, . . . not grudgingly, or of necessity - 2 Corinthians 9:7. Bless up.

Wow. Viaro said all that i was going to say. God bless you, sir / madam.

In addition, whenever one starts asking if he ought to give a sum of money to the church or not, it's just better for the person to keep it because God will send in resources from other quarters to meet the needs of His church.

Remain blessed.

Dear Gee, the preacher is partially correct and partially wrong.

God looks at the motive behind your wearing of the trousers and weave-on etc, and he looks at the outcome (fruit) that it will generate in you.

That means it is a sin for some people, and it is okay for others.

Our lives as Christians are individual, the Christian walk is between you and God.

For God, the end does not justify the means, in fact it is the beginning and the process that God is interested in. Once he establishes the beginning and the process is stable, God can "rest" on the matter because the end is sure. It is us humans that make noise about the end of a matter.

The end does not justify the means, so you can't summarize and stubbornly say "Bisi is wearing trousers, therefore I can wear trousers too", when you know that your body shape in that trouser will likely lead yourself and others to sin. Or when you wear a weave-on JUST BECAUSE you have heard from a "spiritual" sister in church that it is wrong to do so (that is defiance, the first stage of rebellion, and in that case, that is what God will look at, not the weave-on).

The Bible says that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Just a little harmless thing can ruin something much greater! And that is why the Bible doesn't ask us to flee evil but to flee every [i]appearanc[/i]e of evil! e.g. a single Christian brother who wants to remain sexu-ally pure and yet is living together with a girlfriend in the same room, even if they "do nothing", it is an appearance of evil because they are seen by others entering the room together every night (a bad testimony against them already. If in the future they say nothing happened, nobody will believe them), and very soon at that rate they will tempt themselves sorely.

So the final point is this: WHY are you wearing trousers and weave-on, and do you have peace from God in your heart about it? We cannot be stubborn and yet live for God.

Remain blessed!

Everybody, please I appreciate the fact that you took time to read my posts, but please I want to plead with you not to derail the thread discussing someone's identity. God bless you all.

Dear Abu Zola, thank you for commenting but I dont support what you said.

Hahaha good joke!

You can expect to be led DAILY by these supernatural ways above (inward witness, inward voice, the Holy Spirit's voice), but there are also a number of spectacular ways that God may decide to use to talk to a believer:
1. Visions
2. Angelic appearances
3. Prophecies
4. Dreams

a.) Spectacular ways happen only when God wants! We can't force his hand!!
b.) Any spectacular way must be accurately backed up by the Word of Truth. e.g. you can't be told by an angel or a dream something that is not in line with God's Word.
c.) All spectacular ways must check out i.e. bear witness with your spirit by means of the inward witness.

If you, for instance, wake up with a dream and after praying about it, your spirit still does not understand it, discard it!

Dreams come from three media:
- God. Sometimes God shows and tells us things in our dreams. Either a more detailed description of what has happened, or a description of a future event. Peace will follow it, and your inward witness will assure you that it is from God.
- Your busy mind (Ecc 5:3) due to a multitude of business or maybe over-eating 
- Satan (nightmares). It's not God's will for a believer to have nightmares and live in fear.

Personally, my dreams are always in black and white. I have never seen the sun shining in a dream before, although I get the "sensation" of a sun and of colors, but I don't really see the colors. I have asked some friends and they say the same thing. Could that mean that dreams are in negative, and they have not been "developed"? So you can discard the film, or you can print it. The ball is in your courts!

Be careful WHAT you hear, and HOW you hear it.

Always remember, God's voice does not condemn or cause confusion! The place where His word is fulfilled is inside His Word, so bury your head in the Word.

The distance between "Thus saith the Lord" and "it came to pass" is the journey of someone who buried His head in the Word and said "I will go".

Continuity builds establishment.

Finally, if God must lead you, you must have a pure and tender heart. No doubt, unbelief, fear or idols (ungodly thing you crave for) must be there. A perfect heart.

2Ch 16:9  For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.

God bless you.

3. The VOICE of the HOLY SPIRIT
Unlike the persuasive voice of your own spirit, the voice of God does not persuade, it commands! Though authoritative, it will give you a gentle push.

This is very unlike the devil's voice, which is violently disturbing. He is the accuser of the brethren: accusing you to God, God to you, your brethren to you, you to your brethren, and you to yourself!

The Voice of the Holy Spirit is AUDIBLE, CLEAR and AUTHORITATIVE.

The Holy Spirit may not decide to speak audibly to everyone everytime. You must be faithful in little if you want to be led in greater.

Again, do not seek out voices to follow them!

2. THE INWARD VOICE (a still, small voice)
1Ki 19:12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

Elijah was fleeing Jezebel. He had been used to earthquakes, fires and winds but do not look at the results, God is not necessarily there. With God, the end does not justify the means. Similar to how Moses struck the rock and produced water (results) but God was not there.

The still, small voice is the voice of your own spirit. It will entreat you and make you see reason and come back to yourself.

Often, the still, small voice will tell you things after you have already ignored the inward witness.

The still, small voice (inward voice) is in YOUR voice, it will sound exactly like how you often hear yourself sound, although more knowing and confident!

1 Ki 19:12 was the voice of Elijah's spirit, making him come to himself.
1 Ki 19:13 was the voice of the Lord.

Your own spirit's voice can be found rebuking you when you have deliberately ignored God's counsel. Your spirit knows you more than you think you "know" yourself in your soul! (Rom 15:22 Paul was hindered in his spirit from going to Achaia, that he may minister to them in Macedonia).

As you walk in life, your spirit taps into the wealth of wisdom in God, and the wisdom speaks everywhere! If you're stubborn, God cannot force you in leading you.

It is pitiable that a number of us do not recognize the voice of our Lord.

Do you remember the parable of the 5 foolish virgins in Matthew 25:1-13? Their foolishness was two-fold because not only did they not have enough oil, but also because they heard a false alarm, obeyed it, ran helter skelter looking for oil, and by the time they returned the doors were closed. It was while they were buying oil that the bridegroom REALLY arrived. Maybe if they had waited, oil or no oil, and heard the Master's real voice he could have overlooked the insufficiency of the oil in their lamps.

That's how dangerous it can be not knowing the Master's voice. Many have walked that narrow mountain-path and fallen into the valley, many ships have capsized on those high seas (not knowing the voice of their Lord).

Psa 62:11  God has spoken once, twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God.
When God speaks once and you hear it, ensure you hear it twice. How? Hear it and repeat it to yourself. That way, you are dubbing it on your heart, and that's how you hear it a second time!

Yes, crossroads will appear but sometimes they only exist to exert weight on your dependence on God.

In the New Testament, you are led by the Spirit of God. Even if a prophet tells you something, it must be confirmed in your spirit. Do not seek prophecies and prophets! It doesn't matter how accurate the prophecy is (recall the evil spirits prophesying to the little girl in the market place, Acts 16:16, but Paul was not deceived).

e.g. Don't LOOK FOR SEEING Jesus. He's there! When you start trying to see him physically by force, and it is not God's will, an evil spirit may just appear to you. 

The inward witness is the light of God in Proverbs 20:27 that shows you direction. This inner knowing or perception is not because of what you hear / feel physically but what you hear on the inside.

1. THE INWARD WITNESS
Rom 8:16  The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God.

The inward witness is the primary way that God talks to Christians on a daily basis.

The inward witness is a deep knowing about something, this deep knowing cannot be resisted or ignored.

Psychologists who do not know better, call it premonition or presentiment, an early warning about a future event, whether good or bad.

The inward witness is a traffic light on God's highway. It will ALWAYS be one of these three lights:
RED: Stop!
GREEN: Go!
AMBER: Wait and get ready for the next change, it's round the corner!

e.g. Acts 27:9-44 where in Acts 27:10 Paul perceived that there would be sea trouble on that voyage, even though the pilot and ship owner believed they had fair weather and the ship was fine. So they put to sea, and a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon dealt with them.

Even David, sensitive to God while living in the Old Testament, had an inward witness
Psa 16:7  I will bless the Lord, Who has given me counsel; yes, my heart instructs me in the night seasons.

But the inward witness is not FEAR. Fear is a spirit, and the inward witness is a notification in your spirit. How can one tell which is which, then?
1. Righteousness. The inward witness points to the will of God, which is always righteous and points to God.
2. Peace. If you lose peace, don't go ahead.
3. Joy. God is your salvation, and that is enough security. Fear will kick against that, but with joy you draw from the wells of your salvation in God. e.g. Paul in Acts 27 said that nobody was going to die in the tempest, although it would be bad. Fear would not speak like such.

Isa 12:2  Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.
Isa 12:3  Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.

The same way you are certain about your salvation, is the way you're certain of being accurately led by the Holy Spirit of God.

Psa 32:8  I [the Lord] will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.

The eye upon you, with which God guides you, is the inward witness. That makes me recall how, growing up, whenever we had guests at home and I was being naughty, I only needed to see my mother's eye once and I would understand perfectly what she wants me to do, or to stop! 

Don't make a shipwreck of your spiritual life: keep your eye on His eye, and watch out for the "traffic lights" of the inward witness.

The inward witness, once again, is the primary way that God leads a Christian. But there are other ways. . .

The Spirit, Soul and Body's elements of interaction
1. Body: 5 senses. Eyes, Ears, Tongue, Skin, Nose.
2. Soul: Mind -> Memory, Imagination, Reasoning
           Emotion -> Feelings
           Will -> Decisions and Desires
3. Spirit: Intuition -> To know God
            Communion -> Fellowship with God
            Conscience -> To function on earth while respecting God's Will

N.B.
(a) If the conscience was part of the soul, the soul would have corrupted it. The worst case that has happened with people is a seared conscience (1 Tim 4:2); i.e. a burnt, damaged, wounded conscience but not corrupt or dead or totally silenced.
(b) The unregenerated (natural) man's spirit also has intuition, but his spirit is inactive so he can't receive spiritual things (1 Cor 2:14).
(c) The spirit of a man is more alert to God than his soul or body.
(d) The soul of a man is more alert to the devil and this world.
(e) The body of a man is more alert to natural and animalistic drives / appetites and the compulsion of self-preservation.
(f) The body of a man will more readily listen to the soul, rather than to the spirit.
(g) To control the body with the spirit, you need to control the soul first, and the body will respond.

The Voices of Man
The spirit of man has a voice: Conscience
The soul of man has a voice: Reasoning
The body of man has a voice: Feeling

As you walk with God and develop your conscience, two things will fight you at every chance: your soul's reasoning and your body's feeling.

Pro 20:27  The spirit of man [that factor in human personality which proceeds immediately from God] is the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts. [I Cor. 2:11.]

God leads us by the Holy Spirit through our spirits, because spirit communicates with spirit. He won't lead you by your mind, mentality / attitude, random circumstances or coordinated signs.

Having considered enough background, let us now look at the ways God talks to Christians.

Nature of Man
To understand how God leads us, one needs to understand the nature of man.

Gen 1:26 God said, Let Us [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit] make mankind in Our image, after Our likeness, and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the [tame] beasts, and over all of the earth, and over everything that creeps upon the earth. [Ps. 104:30; Heb. 1:2; 11:3.]
Gen 1:27 So God created man in His own image, in the image and likeness of God He created him; male and female He created them. [Col. 3:9, 10; James 3:8, 9.]

Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit (a spiritual Being) and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (reality).

Man is made in God's image & likeness, so man is also a spirit.

1Th 5:23 And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you through and through [separate you from profane things, make you pure and wholly consecrated to God]; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved sound and complete [and found] blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah).

Man is a spirit (inner man), who has a soul (inward man) and lives in a body (outward man).

If you must excel in this higher life called the Christian walk, you must build your REAL YOU (spirit).

Pro 18:14 The strong spirit of a man sustains him in bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up or bear?

If your spirit is strong, your body will be strong and it will make your soul strong as well.

Gal 5:16 But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh (of human nature without God).

In building your spirit, it is YOU that determines how close you get to God.

Jas 4:8 Come close to God and He will come close to you. [Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual adultery].

With your spirit, you contact the spiritual worlds.
With your soul, you contact the mental and emotional worlds.
With your body, you contact the physical worlds.

God does not live in a human body, it is too small. But your spirit is endless in size! The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, it is the physical representation of your spirit, but it is in your spirit that the Holy Spirit dwells.

Rom 8:16 The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God.

Pro 20:27 The spirit of man [that factor in human personality which proceeds immediately from God] is the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts. [I Cor. 2:11.]

God will not depend on any of these to lead a Christian:
1. Mentality / Attitude
2. Mind / Intellect
3. Circumstances / Signs
These three means are in full operation in the sense and perceptivity realm.

It does not mean that God can not lead a Christian by senses, but rather He won't depend on them, and he will not expect you to expect to be led in those respects because the devil knows how to manipulate the senses and warp the message.

If, in a corrupt African country, every package from the United States of America is torn open and inspected for valuable things to steal from it at the post office, then re-packaged; a son in the U.S. who wants to send an expensive diamond necklace to his mother back at home will definitely use another means rather than the corrupt postal system!

A Christian who expects to be led by his senses is actually dead already, and is only as lost as the diamond necklace above. We need to be in total control, and not subjected to the erroneous corrupt system that is all around us and is enough to weaken our reception.

1Co 9:27 But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships] and subdue it, for fear that after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit [not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit].

True, in the Old Testament, they were led in the sensory perception realms but that was for the sake of their stubbornness. Only the ones with sensitive spirits could hear God. e.g. God sent food and water when they complained in the desert, but they ate and drank and forgot that there should be more where that came from, so in a cycle they grumbled again. They murmured until the next windfall, they saw the hand of God but they chose their bellies.

There were three classes of people in the Old Testament that did not always rely on sensory perception:
1. King = Physical representation of the people
2. Prophet = God's messenger to the people
3. Priest = People's representative to God

For the king, priest and prophet who were sensitive enough to receive God's counsel, the Spirit of God came upon them, but temporarily. Also, the people could not absorb God's Word, so they wrote it on phylacteries and tied on their heads and wrists [Exod. 13:9; Num. 15:38; Deut. 6:8.]. For us, we have the Spirit in full measure (John 3:34), and God has written his Word on our hearts (Jer 31:33).

Don't ever come down to the limited sensory realms. Those who did it in the Old Testament didn't know better (putting out a fleece, asking for a sign, etc) and God mercifully helped them. Old Testament Kings, Priests and Prophets earnestly awaited the Holy Spirit in us. Wouldn't they be surprised that we seem to under-utilize or even ignore the unction?

2Co 5:7 For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervor; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance.

God will not be "forced" to "come down" to the sensory perceptive realm, as full of doubts and mirages as that realm is. Rather, we need to come up hither to him.