“Then Pilate said to him, ‘Then you are a king!’ Jesus replied, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world — to testify to the Truth. All who are of the Truth listen to my voice.’”

(John 18:37)

The final clause in this statement deserves deeper reflection. Jesus says that “all who are of the truth listen to my voice.” How convicting that statement is when you get down to it. On the surface it is an easy one to affirm, but how often when applied deeper down, we struggle to live it out? How often do people talk a good talk but when it comes to living in obedience to the voice of Jesus, fall far short.

Jesus never states that his words are suggestions for wise living. No, he says that his words are Gospel, his words are Truth, and anything else that we might listen to is in error and separates us from him. We want to do things “my way” but Jesus plainly says that is not an option for us if we wish to be identified as Christian. We must do things “His way.” All else is sin.

Loved ones, there are many people in our world that call themselves Christians but have no interest in listening to any voice other than their own…or the devil’s. Just like Marlowe’s Faustus, our culture has flirted with the devil in the hopes of prosperity and happiness but failed to see that true happiness and contentment come not from comfort nor from the lusts of the flesh, but they come from Christ himself. The world has proclaimed Jesus’ teachings on peace and loving one’s brothers but have ignored Jesus’ words of sacrifice, judgment, and hell. To whom are they listening? Many claim Jesus just another yoga or wise moral teacher. Again, to whom are they listening? Certainly it is not to Jesus himself. And thus their ideas are neither true nor worthy of attention.

My friends, do not fall into the deceptions of this world. There is Truth and he is absolute. Yet, he has revealed his mind to us in his Word, the Bible, so that it might be preserved for all ages, studied, and obeyed. We are called to listen to Jesus’ voice with the implication that we will obey his wisdom — it is True indeed! Will you do so? If you will be of the truth, listening to (and obeying) the voice of Jesus is not an option.