- When you draw near to God, He gives you eyes to see and ears to hear.
- You will see & hear the spirit.
- When Jesus returns, we’ll see Him and hear Him physically.
- But we can do it now if we focus our spiritual eyes and tune our spiritual ears.
- We won’t just see and hear God, we’ll see and hear the enemy.
- EX: Jesus calling Peter “Satan.”
- All through Christ’s ministry, He talked about those who don’t see or hear.
- Jeremiah shows us what it looks like.
- His culture was going to hell in a hatbasket, but everyone was having a great time.
- They were building their churches and having their conferences and enjoying themselves.
- All while the culture was going down the tube straight to hell!
- vs 19 - “Oh, my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. Oh, the agony of my heart! My heart pounds within me; I cannot keep silent. For I have heard the sound of the trumpet; I have heard the battle cry.”
- Jeremiah heard something nobody else did.
- He heard it because his ears were tuned into God.
- He saw it because his eyes were focused on the Lord.
- We must do the same.
- When we see God moving and hear Him whispering, we can prepare for what lies ahead.
- EX: David and I speaking at a men’s event and charging the men to be bold.
- Some of the staff might not say anything - maybe even distance from us.
- But other men flock to us and are ready to fight!
- They heard the battle cry!
- But Jeremiah didn’t simply hear the battle cry, he also heard something else:
- vs 31 - “I hear a cry as of a woman in labor, a groan as of one bearing her first child— the cry of Daughter Zion gasping for breath…”
- He was soft-hearted toward people and hard-headed toward principle!
- How do you tune your ears to hear God and focus your eyes to see God?
- See like a Soldier - recognize that we’re in a spiritual battle.
- Soldiers are always on the lookout.
- They are surrendered to authority.
- Process like a Parent - your role is to provide and protect.
- So you speak truth in love.
- Your provide boundaries for their blessing.
- Study like a Scribe - devour the Scripture.
- Don’t just read, but “study.”
- 2 Timothy 2:15 - “Study to show yourself approved.”