Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla C. Shirer

Author:Priscilla C. Shirer [Shirer, Priscilla]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-57567-951-8
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Published: 2012-12-21T05:00:00+00:00

Peaceful Relations

The indicator of peace is not only good for individuals who want to discern God’s will, but also for the collective body of Christ as well. In addition to filling your heart with an internal peace as He leads you toward choosing options and making decisions, also expect the voice of God to direct you into peaceful relationships with others. As you seek to discern what He’s saying to you, be cautious about following up on any inclination that’s likely to cause division or to impede the spiritual growth of a fellow believer.

Here’s a good example of this. In college I belonged to a wonderful Christian sorority, whose goal was to provide an alternative for young women who didn’t want to be involved in secular organizations of this type. And I very much enjoyed my time in this group. Good friends. Good experiences.

But I decided that I wanted to be part of another sorority on campus. And I didn’t see why this should be anybody’s call to make but mine. I knew that many of the girls in our Christian sorority genuinely believed that joining a more traditional one would be displeasing to God. But I believed that the Lord had given me the freedom to do it.

So I did.

Let me just say that the effect of my decision on the girls in my Christian social club was … significant. Feelings were hurt. Questions were raised. Concerns were expressed. I was totally taken aback by their reaction. The worst part was that many of the girls were fledgling believers, and these were the ones who struggled the most to make sense of what I’d done.

I didn’t really understand it at the time. But looking back from the distance of years and hopefully with a little bit of accumulated wisdom, I now see the problem. Although God had indeed given me personal freedom in that one particular area, my decision to exercise that freedom had caused other Christians to stumble. I should have recognized the discord that my actions would cause, and taken this as my cue not to move forward.

The apostle Paul took up this matter in the book of Romans when dealing with one of the more contentious issues in the early church—whether or not it was all right for Christians to eat food that had been offered to idols. Paul taught that Christians had the liberty to follow their own conscience in this matter, but he also pointed to a deeper issue:

Let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up. Don’t tear apart the work of God over what you eat.

Remember, all foods are acceptable, but it is wrong to eat something if it makes another person stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble.

Romans 14:19–21 NLT

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