Distractions
Pastor Jerry Wilhite,
author
Dictionary.com definition for the word distract:
To cause to turn away from the original focus of attention or interest; divert.
To pull in conflicting emotional directions; unsettle.
Do not think for a second that if you are trying to or starting to hear from God that Satan will not throw all he can to distract you or to get you off the path you are on.
Matthew 14
27. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
28. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
32. And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.
The distraction of the world almost cost Peter his life, and let me tell you, Satan will do all he can to distract or get us off the path to hearing from God with anything and every thing he can.
A friend wrote me about how his old church friends were getting into hearing from God and they had a book they were all going to read about the many ways of hearing from God. Here it comes Satan is trying to distract this church by getting them into a book written by a man instead of the book of God, the Bible. If my friend is not careful, this book will distract him because he has no idea whether or not it is true and he is not far enough along in hearing from God to get into any books other than the Bible.
For 8 years now I have been dedicated only to the Bible, why? Because I still do not have His word down pat. Why would I allow a word of man to interfere with His word? It is man teaching man, or blind leading the blind. That is why my studies are so thick with the Word, so you have His word to read and verify with God whether or not what I am saying is true based in His Word.
John 14
26. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
Jesus said it very clearly–ther is one way, not many ways, to hear from God. His word is seed, which needs to be watered in order to grow. When it grows that is God giving us fuller understanding of it. Jesus says that only the Spirit (God), not man, is to teach. I share what I know and constantly tell all who read to verify it with God. Do not take my word on it alone.
1 John 2
27. But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Christ is the anointing, so above it is Christ that John is talking about. In Luke 4:18 Jesus told us that He is anointed with the Spirit of God. So the anointing is the Spirit of God.
Some say there are many forms of the anointing, but there is only one spirit, one anointing. The anointing or spirit will give us what we need at the time to do what we need. That is not a different anointing, just a different manifestation of the ONE anointing.
What are some obstacles to attention that can distract us from God?
Of course I could go on and on, but the problem is we want to be a part of something, but we are already of God, His Spirit, and of all others who are like wise. But if we have chosen to be part of the world then we have forsaken that of God for the world. In the wilderness Israel wanted a man over God as their king. Those who want a shortcut will find themselves on the wrong path in a hurry.
The only true way to hear from God is by listening for and to Him. This requires:
To actually hear from God one must do the following:
If others are not hearing from Him yet that means they are still hearing from the world and (not meaning to) they can mislead you. I have seen this happen quite often because a person starts to hear and thinks that is all there is to it. The problem is we are more likely to lose it when we first start to hear. The person who has just come to the Lord tends to go forth out of excitement never realizing that they are just starting; there is still much, much more to learn before going forth.
Josephus, an historian of the first century, stated that Paul spent eight years from when He met Jesus on the road to Damascus until when he went out with Jesus’ ministry. Why so many fall away from the Lord and end up on the path to destruction is because they never are fully trained by God. In their arrogance, ignorance, or both they decide they are ready before they actually are.
This friend I mentioned earlier started hearing then wanted to share it with everyone, and did. But between his time for his family, work, and sharing he was spending more time every where else and less and less alone with God listening and growing.
Hearing is like prayer. It is private, to be done one on one and not in a rush, crowd, or public.
Matthew 6
5. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
7. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think th at they shall be heard for their much speaking.
Even Jesus did this. He started every day and ended it alone with God in prayer and listening.
Romans 8
One of the first things you will hear is His calling you His child. Then you know you are saved. Then He needs to reveal to you who Jesus is as His Son and the Christ. I do not mean just the words, but the full meaning of it all.
All this is still less than one, one thousandth of one percent of what you need before you go forth. You have to be hearing so well that as you talk with others you can allow the Spirit to bring to you whatever you need to have in scripture. You will need it to talk to others so you are not lost or cause another to be confused or doubt because of your lack of knowledge.
The apostles spent 3.5 years with Jesus and still he had to give them understanding, even after explaining what He said to them and the scriptures.
Luke 24
Actions that can cause us to get into big trouble:
Arrogance, pride, thinking we know more than we do, being guided of our own self and not God, listening to others before we can verify it with God at the moment we hear it.
The idea is this–if most on the path to destruction and only a few on the path to life how do we know who is on the right path? Since so many are on the wrong path, the odds are more likely that we will know them, not the few.
Matthew 7
13. Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14. Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
15. Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
The word many in verses 13 and 22 is:
Strong's Ref. # 4183
Romanized polus
Pronounced pol-oos'
including the forms from the alternate pollos; (singular) much (in any respect) or (plural) many; neuter (singular) as adverbial, largely; neuter (plural) as adverb or noun often, mostly, largely:
KJV--abundant, + altogether, common, + far (passed, spent), (+ be of a) great (age, deal, -ly, while), long, many, much, oft(-en [-times]), plenteous, sore, straitly. Compare GSN4118, GSN4119.
Matthew 7
21. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Since most that will do many wonderful works and appear even unto the elect as being of God turn out to be doers of iniquity, then we have a grave responsibility to be sure that we never fall into the most category, the larger crowd. How do you think others have? By a lack of knowledge they did not choose this path they ended up on it simply by being of man, listening to man, trusting in man, and spending more time with man than God.
Just remember those who are of the world are no concern of Satan’s. It does not matter if they attend church, have good intentions, or even walk on water. What concerns and worries Satan are those who seek God and come to know Him and the truth. We read that the truth will set us free, but that’s only if you know the truth, not just know of it. So do not let anything distract you from your time with God. If something comes along like chores, yard work, etc to distract you just say not until I have had my time with God. Allow nothing to distract you from God.