IS THERE ANY WORD FROM THE LORD? Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, there is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. (Jeremiah 37:17) Zedekiah the King had not been one to listen to Jeremiah concerning the word of God previously; instead he had listened to false prophets who had literally said that all is well. They were telling Zedekiah that Babylon would not come against him. Now Zedekiah wants a sure word from God and comes to ask God’s prophet “Is there any word from the LORD? It appears that he wants confirmation of the prophecy of the false prophets. This he did not get because Jeremiah had the sure word of God, which was, “thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.” We know from history that this did occur. It seems that Zedekiah had waited too long to inquire of truth or that he had ignored God’s instruction of warnings previously spoken by Jeremiah. To ignore the Word of God leads to the sin of disobedience and thus ultimately God’s judgment. We should have our “ears” tuned to hear the Word when God speaks. “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mark 4:23) To hear and obey can save a lot of heartaches and heartbreaks. Some may ask, does God still speak and if so how does God speak? I believe that I can say with authority that God still speaks to His people. How? 1. Through His written Word the Bible. 2. The Holy Spirit speaks with that still small voice that nudges our hearts and minds to do what is right and to avoid that which is sin. 3. As we pray. Prayer involves adoration, confession, supplication and listening. 4. Even creation itself speaks to us of God’s power and majestic strength and being. Yes the Lord STILL speaks. ARE WE LISTENING? Consider: Deuteronomy 11:13 “And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. 15 And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full.” The word hearken means: to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience) Take time to listen and commune, “Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.” (Psalms 44) This is a good day to listen.