Hear God’s Voice and Follow Him
The Bible is a wonderful book. It is marvelously designed by a Mastermind, far superior to any human intellect, and can come from no other source than the great “I AM,” (Exodus 3:14) the God of all created things, who is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent (Revelation 1:8).
Human beings at their best are indeed exceedingly weak creatures who are wholly dependent upon God for existence (Job 12:10; Psalm 39:5). This is a fact of life, whether or not people will acknowledge it—and all skeptics will be convinced at the great and final Judgment Day.
The more man sees and acknowledges the greatness of God, the less value he will place upon himself and things of this earth, which soon decay. He will become more meek and lowly, losing all pride and self-conceit, and his affections and praise will be turned to the One who has opened his eyes and given him understanding of the truth as it is in Christ Jesus.
Consider our Savior—He it is who sacrificed Himself on Calvary’s cross to appease the wrath of God which was upon us as sinners, thereby bringing us back to His loving embrace, freeing us from sin, making us innocent and beloved children of God. Hence we become His sanctuary, His temple, His building, His house, His body, His church, His family—a family whom He has purchased with His own blood, which is now in the world but not of the world, living free from sin among a multitude of sinners. What a wonderful thought to realize that God has cleansed our souls from all sin and lifted us up on a plain of holiness with Himself; for we are His spiritual offspring, and His children are like Him (1 John 4:17). The Bible says that Christ “was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin.” (1 John 3:5) There are no sinners in Christ—the members of His family are those whose sins have been washed away by His blood, and only those who retain a sinless experience can remain in His family. All those who commit sin, whether they profess Christ or not, cannot be in the family of God, the church “which He hath purchased with His own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
All men should tremble before God. Any man who preaches anything less than a life free from sin is not of God. Such teaching should not be received nor followed, for to speak plainly about the matter, as Paul did about false teachers in his day, “They are the enemies of the cross of Christ.” (Philippians 3:18)
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us keep in our hearts a love for the truth and the crucified way, lest we be led astray by any of the deceivers around us. The Bible makes many comparisons in parables, symbols, metaphors, and analogies which convey the doctrines of true holiness. These will keep us “stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding” (1 Corinthians 15:58) in the will and ways of God. Those who get grounded and settled in the truth will not be blown about by different winds of doctrine.
The Word of God refers to His ministers as oxen because, like the ox, they have heavy loads to pull. They are yoked up with the Lord and look to Him to make the going easy; when things get slow and hard to move, they look to Him to hold the load, and they move on as He moves on. They are also symbolized by the ass, or donkey. The donkey is a very humble and lowly animal. It is sure-footed and long-eared. The true ministers of God are humble and lowly in heart; they make sure their steps; and their ears are spiritually long, enabling them to hear from heaven.
Birds are another symbol used in the Word. Hawks, owls, buzzards, and other birds with similar traits are used to describe unclean spirits and those whose hearts are not right with God (Leviticus 11:13-19; Isaiah 34:11-15; Revelation 18:2). But the pure in heart are those whom Christ calls, “My dove, my undefiled.” (Song 6:9) The dove is a symbol of gentleness and innocence. It is defenseless, faithful to its mate, and home-loving. The dove was also used as a symbol of the Holy Spirit that rested upon Jesus when He came up out of the water after being baptized.
God’s children are also symbolized as sheep and lambs because of their gentle and innocent ways. Jesus was called the Lamb of God, and He is our example. On the other hand, a goat represents one without God in his heart, even though he may be extremely religious and stand high in the esteem of the world as a “Doctor of Divinity” and receive much flattery and praise of men. Yet, being without the true Spirit of God in his soul, he is only a goat. He may succeed in leading many souls in his goat way, and at times even fool some of the innocent ones.
I have learned from a brother who works in a large meat-packing plant how they get the sheep to the slaughter pen. It is difficult to drive the sheep into the pen, but an old goat has been trained to lead them there. They will follow him, and when he gets them to where they cannot turn back, the old goat slyly slips away from them, and they are taken on to be slaughtered.
When I heard this, I wondered how many are following goat leaders today in a spiritual sense. We find teachers today who are bringing in different doctrines contrary to God’s Word, and getting some to follow them. If they get you separated from God and His flock, your soul will be led to the slaughter. We are only safe when we follow Christ and Christ alone, staying in the fold of God as a sheep that knows the Shepherd’s voice. Here we may remain as a cleansed vessel in His hand, having fellowship with the Father and all of His blood-bought children. Hear His voice and follow Him. He will never lead you to slaughter, but upward to the glory world to live with God forever.
There are no doubt some of God’s children who are unwittingly following these false-prophet goat leaders, for we find the voice of God is calling His children out and away from them. Revelation 18:2 tells us of the messenger that “cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.” This includes all of the religious denominations that teach a “sin-you-must” doctrine and encourage worldly fellowship in various ways. But Babylon also encompasses those movements that claim holiness, yet “hold the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18)—“Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” (2 Timothy 3:5) Hear the voice of Heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues, for her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” (Revelation 18:4)
These Scriptures are a solemn warning to all that are estranged from the saints of God, the people of His holiness. Beloved, clear yourself from all man-made institutions, from all religions that cater to the world in any way, from those who have imbibed any strange doctrines that separate them from God’s holy remnant. You may find that you are following a goat, or even a wolf in sheep’s clothing. There is danger of being slaughtered before you are aroused and fully awake. Escape for your life, for many souls are held in Babylon for the burning. Remember, there are no discounts on salvation, for we all must pay the same price and keep it paid if we will make heaven our home. We read of the merchant man hunting for goodly pearls, “Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” (Matthew 13:45-46) Sell out and put to death anything that is contrary to Christ.
“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4)
“Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord…. And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the Lord, and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God.” (Zechariah 6:12,15)