What Voice Will You Listen To?

Devotional

Day 1: When Guidance Becomes a Festival of Distractions

People chase tarot cards and astrology like festival-goers at Darling Harbour, mistaking spiritual tourism for true direction. This restless searching reveals our fear of the unknown and our hunger for control. Yet God’s word warns that substituting divine wisdom with counterfeit guidance leads not to clarity, but deeper bondage. The tragedy isn’t the search itself, but refusing to turn to the One who already spoke. Every crystal ball and psychic reading whispers humanity’s ache for a voice that matters. [30:01]

Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19:31, NIV)

Reflection: Where have you recently sought “festival answers” – quick fixes or spiritual shortcuts – instead of sitting with God’s clear word? What fear drives that choice?

Day 2: The Weight of Heaven’s Silence

Saul’s terror grew louder as God’s silence grew heavier, a judgment earned through years of half-hearted obedience. This quiet wasn’t divine cruelty, but the echo of choices that preferred rituals over relationship. When we treat God as a crisis hotline rather than a daily companion, we risk mistaking the consequences of our neglect for abandonment. The real danger isn’t God’s refusal to speak, but our refusal to hear. [33:05]

When Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by prophets. (1 Samuel 28:6, ESV)

Reflection: Is there an area where you’ve grown comfortable with partial obedience? How might this create static in hearing God’s voice?

Day 3: A Feast of Damned Bread

Saul’s final meal – unleavened bread with a witch – parodied Passover’s sacred memory. Where David celebrated redemption, Saul dined with death. This twisted communion reveals how good things (bread, rituals, even religion) become cursed when divorced from covenant. Our substitutes for true worship – success, reno projects, social media validation – may nourish temporarily but starve us eternally. Every idolatrous “feast” leaves crumbs of emptiness. [51:33]

They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. (Exodus 12:8, ESV)

Reflection: What “unleavened bread” have you baked in secret – respectable habits that mask a heart far from God?

Day 4: Seeking Answers Instead of the Answer

Saul wanted battle plans; God wanted repentance. We chase lifehacks and AI solutions while neglecting the “bread of life” who satisfies deeper hungers. Jesus confronts our vendor mentality – treating him as a dispenser of blessings rather than the blessing itself. To seek first his kingdom isn’t spiritual multitasking; it’s letting every lesser quest crumble before the one thing necessary. [44:19]

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV)

Reflection: When have you treated Jesus like a vending machine? What would it look like to want him more than his solutions?

Day 5: Eyes Opened to the Son’s Radiance

The prayer isn’t for more signs, but clearer sight – “enlightened eyes” to see Christ’s supremacy over every counterfeit. Saul groped in darkness; we’re invited to behold the transfiguration’s light. Each morning offers a choice: will we squint at life’s shadows or let Scripture’s lens focus us on the Son? True vision comes not from fresh revelations, but fresh adoration. [54:43]

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people. (Ephesians 1:18, NIV)

Reflection: What practical step could help you “focus the lens” – a habit, prayer, or sacrifice – to see Jesus more clearly this week?

Sermon Summary

1 Samuel 28 opens with Samuel dead, the Philistines gathered, and Saul terrified. The text is not finally about a witch, a medium, or a spooky supernatural moment. The text is about a man who has got so practiced at saying no to God that no has become a habit. Saul asks the Lord for direction, but the Lord does not answer, not because God is cruel or enjoys silence, but because Saul has spent years refusing the word already given.

God had spoken to Saul through Samuel. God had given clear commands, sent warnings, and confronted Saul through rebukes. Saul had chosen his own way in the sacrifice at Gilgal, in sparing Amalek, in chasing David, and in slaughtering the priests at Nob. God’s silence is not absence here. God’s silence is judgment.

Hebrews gives New Testament Christians a better word than Saul had on that dark night. God has spoken fully and finally in his Son. The question is not whether God will speak, but whether a person will listen to the Son, the good shepherd. Saul heard silence, but the cross speaks a word of justice for sin and astonishing mercy for sinners who turn to Christ.

Saul’s substitute is tragic. The king who expelled mediums now goes looking for one. Saul disguises himself, sneaks out at night, and swears “as surely as the Lord lives” while breaking the Lord’s command. Saul does not come in repentance. Saul wants information, a battle plan, a favourable outcome. Saul wants the benefits of God’s favour without wanting God himself.

Saul’s search exposes the search that runs through ordinary life as well. People may not be looking for the witch at Endor, but people look for assurance, peace, hope, identity, and control in promotion, mortgages, lifestyle, sport, social media, beauty, wellness, self help, AI, and bits of spirituality. Those things may not be wrong in themselves, but they quietly become the place people look for meaning. Samuel’s old word still bites: disobedience is like divination.

Samuel’s appearance does not make mediumship acceptable. The narrator calls him Samuel, and God permits this extraordinary moment as final judgment, not fresh hope. Saul receives no new secret knowledge, only the old word he kept refusing: the kingdom has been torn away, David will be king, and Saul will die. Saul ends with a dark Passover, a feast of the damned, eating with a witch instead of rejoicing in the Lord’s salvation.

Jesus stands as God’s final word. Jesus does not merely point to life. Jesus is life. The right prayer is not, “Lord, give another sign,” but, “Lord, help the heart see Jesus.”

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Key Takeaways

1. Saying no becomes a habit. Saul’s tragedy begins long before Endor, because repeated refusal trains the heart to resist God without even feeling the weight of it. The danger is not only one large act of rebellion, but the slow hardening that comes from treating God’s word as optional. Today is the day to listen, because delayed obedience can quietly become settled disobedience. [30:57]
2. God’s silence can be judgment. The Lord’s silence toward Saul is not indifference, weakness, or cruelty. God had already spoken again and again, and Saul had made a life of pushing that word away. A person asking for fresh guidance may need first to ask what God has already said and what obedience has already been refused. [32:11]
3. Guidance can replace God himself. Saul does not want reconciliation, mercy, or repentance. Saul wants information that might help him survive the next day. The heart can do the same when Jesus becomes a means to a better marriage, a safer future, a clearer plan, or a calmer life, rather than the treasure himself. [39:04]
4. Lesser voices promise false peace. Success, lifestyle, wellness, social approval, self help, and modern spirituality can all become substitutes for listening to God. Their danger often lies in how ordinary and respectable they look while they take the place of trust. The question is not whether these things can be enjoyed, but whether they have become the voice that tells a person who they are. [41:54]
5. Jesus is God’s final word. God has not left sinners guessing in the dark. Jesus is not one more clue, sign, or spiritual technique, but God’s full and final self-revelation. The heart that keeps asking for another word may be avoiding the Word already given in the crucified and risen Son.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[29:32] - Spiritual Searching in Sydney
[30:38] - Saul’s Real Crisis
[31:31] - Samuel Dead, Saul Terrified
[32:11] - God’s Silence as Judgment
[34:41] - God Has Spoken by His Son
[37:22] - Saul Seeks a Forbidden Substitute
[39:04] - Wanting God’s Benefits Without God
[40:17] - Modern Substitutes for Peace
[42:23] - Disobedience Like Divination
[45:35] - Samuel Appears to Saul
[49:23] - Why Mediumship Is Condemned
[50:15] - Saul’s Dark Passover
[52:18] - Jesus, God’s Final Word
[54:26] - Open the Eyes of the Heart

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
1 Samuel 28:3-19 (ESV)
Hebrews 1:1-2 (ESV)
Psalm 95:7-8 (ESV)

Observation Questions

What three facts set the scene at the beginning of 1 Samuel 28? How do these details shape Saul’s desperation?
What does Samuel’s final message to Saul reveal about the consequences of Saul’s repeated disobedience?
According to the sermon, why is God’s silence toward Saul described as judgment rather than absence? [32:11]
How does Hebrews 1:1-2 contrast with Saul’s experience of seeking guidance?

Interpretation Questions

Why does Samuel compare disobedience to divination (1 Samuel 15:23), and how does this apply to modern substitutes for God mentioned in the sermon? [42:23]
Saul’s final meal with the medium includes unleavened bread and a fattened calf, resembling Passover. What does this ironic contrast suggest about his spiritual state? [50:30]
The sermon states, “God’s silence is not absence—it’s judgment.” How does this truth challenge common assumptions about unanswered prayers?
Why is Jesus called God’s “final word” in Hebrews 1:1-2, and how does this address the human tendency to seek “another sign”?

Application Questions

The sermon warns that “saying no to God becomes a habit.” What area of your life have you been delaying obedience in, and what practical step could you take today to listen and act? [30:57]
People often seek peace or identity in success, social media, or wellness. Which of these substitutes do you most easily turn to instead of God? What would it look like to intentionally redirect that search to Christ? [41:54]
Saul wanted God’s benefits without wanting God himself. How might you be tempted to treat Jesus as a means to an end (e.g., better relationships, security) rather than the ultimate treasure? [39:04]
The sermon urges, “Today is the day to listen.” Is there a clear command or conviction from Scripture you’ve been avoiding? How can you respond this week?
Samuel’s appearance to Saul only confirmed God’s prior warnings. What recurring message or conviction from Scripture or community might you need to stop ignoring?
The sermon compares modern substitutes (like AI or self-help) to Saul’s search for a medium. What “lesser voice” have you recently relied on for guidance, and how can you prioritize God’s Word instead? [41:54]
The prayer “Lord, help me see Jesus” was highlighted. What distractions or fears make it hard for you to focus on Christ’s sufficiency? How can you cultivate daily habits to see Him more clearly? [54:26]

Sermon Clips

58s

#JesusIsLife

“And yet as Saul spent all those years closing his ears to God's word and chasing other revelation, he eventually discovers there's nowhere else to go. And we can do the same. We we can search in success as we thought about in relationships, in sport, in experiences, in Botox, in spirituality, in self help. Some are looking in AI at the moment, thinking that one more answer will make sense of life. But beneath the search is that deep belonging. We're looking for our father. And the Christian message is that God has not left us guessing. He stepped into history in Jesus Christ, and Jesus didn't come just to tell us about God. Jesus was God. He doesn't merely point us towards life. He is life. He doesn't simply give us another opinion. He is God's perfect self revelation.”

49s

#RepentAndTrust

“Unlike Saul, who heard the silence of God, today, you are hearing God's voice about his son Jesus. Today, his invitation still stands. Today is a good day to repent, to turn, to trust Christ, the one who died for you, to who died for people under judgment, people who consult mediums, people who practice magic, sorcery, Deuteronomy 18, deserving of death, Jesus died in the place of sinners to turn to Christ, to trust and obey the one in whom God spoke once and for all.”

62s

#GodHasSpoken

“this morning, we need to be so clear. We do not need to seek out a medium. We do not need a secret message or another revelation. Unlike Saul, God has spoken to us fully and finally in his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And so the question isn't, will God speak? The question is, will I listen to the son, the good shepherd, as we heard read this morning? Saul's tragedy is he kept saying no until there was nothing left to hear. But the good news is that while Saul heard silence, we have something far better. God has spoken through his son, and the cross on the wall behind us is the clearest from God. A word of justice for sin. Sin has to be paid for. But the very same time, it's a word of astonishing mercy for sinners who turn to Christ.”

40s

#JesusFirst

“It's about being reconciled. Why we're here is being reconciled to the god we've been running from. And if all you want from Jesus is a better marriage or happier kids or success at work or certainty about the future to help you make your decisions, you'll always be treating him like a means to an end. But if you come wanting Jesus himself, you'll discover that he's better than all those things, all those things will be added to you as well. The greatest gift God gives is not a road map for tomorrow, it's his son, Jesus. It's the cross of Christ. It's the resurrection of Christ.”