Can You Hear God Speak Through His Word? | Dr Tony Evans | Sermon Notes — Hello Pastor

Sermon Notes

Can You Hear God Speak Through His Word?

Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship • Jun 22, 2025 • 28 min

Start a Devotional

Take this message with you through a journey of Scripture, reflection, and prayer.

Summary

True spiritual transformation happens when we unite a deep engagement with written Scripture with a personal pursuit of Jesus Christ. When the written Word and the living Word meet in our daily lives, heaven opens and the Holy Spirit illuminates God's truth inside our hearts. Through the Spirit's guidance, God's Word becomes an active, life-changing experience rather than mere intellectual knowledge.

Themes

Experiencing God's WordScripture and Person of ChristHoly Spirit and InspirationSpiritual IlluminationHearing God's Voice

Key Points

1.
True revelation occurs when the written Scripture intersects with a personal relationship with the living Word, Jesus Christ.
2.
Possessing the Bible without knowing Jesus, or seeking Jesus without Scripture, leaves heaven closed to personal revelation.
3.
On the Mount of Transfiguration, the Old Testament law and prophets met the New Testament apostles around Jesus, demonstrating that Christ is the central focus of all Scripture.
4.
Scripture acts as a shining lamp in a dark world, giving believers spiritual certainty beyond physical experiences.
5.
Simply memorizing or learning the Bible is not enough if it does not lead to an active, personal pursuit of Jesus Christ.
6.
The Holy Spirit preserved written Scripture from human error just as He preserved Jesus, the living Word, from sin.
7.
Anyone who doubts the truth and perfection of Scripture undermines the perfection of Jesus Christ, as both were birthed and preserved by the Holy Spirit.
8.
While biblical revelation ended with the completion of Scripture, the Holy Spirit continually provides spiritual illumination to believers today.
9.
Having a Bible is of no value unless a believer opens it, reads it, and seeks the living Christ within its pages.

Sermon Moments

“When you have a Bible but no Jesus, heaven is going to stay closed. When you have Jesus and no Bible, heaven is going to stay closed because it takes the written word and the living word to hear heaven open up.”

“You have to be a fool to be an atheist or you've had to go to college first. Just one of them. Cuz that ain't normal. Not when you have two eyes, two ears, a nose, and you can see the creation.”

“I don't want to live my life piggybacking on the testimony of everybody else... I want to be able to say, 'I have seen him for myself. I've experienced him for myself.'”

“Did you know you can learn the Bible and be in darkness? You can memorize scripture and it not work because the scripture didn't lead you to the relationship.”

“When you in trouble with the law, you don't just need a law book, you need a lawyer. When you're sick, you don't just need a medical manual. You need a doctor.”

“What the Holy Spirit did for the living word, he did for the written word. Even though there were sinful men writing, since the Holy Spirit was the one controlling what was written, he kept sin away from the written word like he kept it away from the living word.”

This Week

Pair your daily Bible reading with a prayerful pursuit of Jesus, asking Him to reveal Himself through the text rather than reading for information alone.

Allow God's Word to dwell in you richly by prioritizing Scripture over human opinions when seeking direction for your life.

Be quick to hear God's point of view in Scripture and slow to rely on human wisdom when facing dark or difficult circumstances.

Act in faith on what you read in the Bible, trusting that the Holy Spirit will activate God's Word within your heart and soul.

Turn to Scripture and the Holy Spirit for personal guidance, correction, and conviction instead of relying on outside worldly advice.

Meditate on how Jesus is revealed throughout both the Old and New Testaments as the centerpiece of God's truth.

Open and diligently read your Bible every day to receive the rich spiritual value and illumination God has placed within it for you.

Remember This

Real spiritual life and revelation happen when we connect our reading of written Scripture with a personal, active pursuit of the living Christ.

A Challenge for You

Do not leave the value of God's Word untapped; take the time to engage the written Bible and meet the living Christ operating within your soul.

These are personal sermon notes shared to help you remember the message — not a replacement for Scripture, your church, or your pastors.