Hearing God in the Whisper

1 Kings 19:11  The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

The first thing we want to look at is Elijah being called to the mountain of God. This was not any ordinary mountain, but Mt. Horeb, the same mountain that the Lord revealed himself to Moses.

Exodus 3:1-4  Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush.

This was also the same mountain in which the Lord gave Moses the 10 commandments and the rest of the law.

 Exodus 24:13, 16+17  Then Moses set out with Joshua his aide, and Moses went up on the mountain of God. When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai (Mt. Horeb and Mt. Sinai are the same place). For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud. To the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.


Now the Lord was going to reveal himself to Elijah, but in a much different way.  There are going to be different times in our lives where circumstances are going to result in us being called to the mountain of God.  In Exodus 3 we find Moses called to the mountain of God because he was going to be prepared for a great transition in His life and a great ministry.  In Exodus 24 we find Moses being called to the mountain to receive instructions from the Lord.  In 1 Kings 19 we have Elijah in a very fragile state and the Lord wants to teach him a lesson about hearing His voice.  The mountain of God represents a place where the presence of the Lord becomes tangible. In every instance we see God’s presence manifested in a visible or audible way. Clouds, fire, thunder and lightning etc. This is the kind of place that not everybody can go to.


Psalm 24:3-6  Who may ascend the Mountain of God? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.

Clean hands - This represents our actions our deeds. We see all the through the scriptures that the blessing of God was on those who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.

1 Kings 11:38  If you do whatever I command you and walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you.

A pure heart - This represents the  condition of our hearts. There are many people who are doing everything right, but their hearts do not belong to God. Do we love Him with all that is within us? Are we submitted to His Lordship no matter what? Do we have a heart that would seek after him? Do we truly love our brothers and sisters in Christ and put their needs before our own?


Matthew 5:8  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Whenever I think about the heart I think about the things that are hidden. The things about us and that are inside of us that no one knows about. We can say whatever we want. We can put on whatever facade that we want, but God knows what is truly in our hearts.


Psalm 51:5-7  Behold, I was shaped in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, you desire truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part you shall make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

To me a pure heart means someone who is willing to allow God to do as deep a works as He desire to do. Nothing is too deep, nothing is too sensitive, nothing is too painful, nothing is off limits to the Lord. These are the ones who can ascend the mountain of God. This is where the Lord was calling Elijah to. This is where Elijah would learn a valuable lesson about experiencing the presence of God and hearing His voice.


1 Kings 19:12+13  Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

So Elijah is on the mountain of God and here comes the tornados and then a great earthquake and then a fire, but unlike the other times, God’s presence was not there. Rather, God was in the whisper.  Human nature is drawn to the spectacular. Human nature is drawn to the fantastic. It is easier to identify God when he comes in an earthquake or a tornado or in the fire. It appeals to our unbelief. Maybe that is where the saying “Seeing is believing” comes from.


Matthew 16:4  A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign.

Remember, faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.


2 Corinthians 5:7  For we walk by faith, not by sight.

There is a time and a place for signs and the spectacular, but some of the deepest works that God will ever do in our hearts will be found in the subtlety of the whisper. When I think of God whispering I see someone straining to hear him. I know he is speaking, but I can’t quite make it out.  In that time it requires me to pay greater attention.  It causes me to quiet myself and quiet my spirit so that I can hear what He is saying.  So many of the deep things of God are just beyond our grasp, just out of earshot, just out of focus.


1 Corinthians 13:12  Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete.

Elijah had to be isolated from everyone. Brought to a place of complete quietness. It was here that God brought him to a new level intimacy. Elijah would never again run in fear because he had found that secret place where everything he could ever need could be found and the mysteries of God revealed.


Psalm 91:1+2  He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.


God has so many wonderful things that he wants to reveal to us, but we have to be able to hear Him in the whisper. To find that quiet place where we can hear His still small voice speaking the mysteries of God into our heart, minds and spirits.


Daniel 2:20-22  “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.