Judith Dennis reviews If You Will Diligently Listen by Michael W. Sciarra.
Here is a passionate defence of the doctrine of the sufficiency of the Bible alone to give spiritual illumination and to enable you to hear the voice of God.
The book is written to an American audience but has applicability in the UK also. The first three chapters survey and critique the tendency for people to search for God’s voice in other places such as impressions, circumstances or human voices, as well as the quest to have audible messages.
Sciarra names several proponents of this trend and denounces their teaching and practice, arguing that the heretical teachings of the Gnostics are being promoted by such people. The remaining chapters, forming half of the volume, survey in detail the Bible’s claim to be the voice of God speaking to His creatures, showing them His redemptive purposes through justification and sanctification; but not instructing them whether they should go away for the weekend or stay at home and similar trivialities.
He strongly commends reading through the Bible annually as well as practising Biblical meditation as a way of making the Bible’s teaching real and allowing it to be helpfully applied.
In these ways, he argues will we become more intimately acquainted with the person of our Saviour and become more like Him. He is convinced that such goals promote the glory of Christ here and equip us for life with Him in eternity. His writing style bears witness to the authenticity and sincerity of his commitment to the subject. It is altogether heart-warming and aspirational. It is regrettable that, one suspects, many of his target audience (namely those who need to be convinced about the sufficiency of Scripture) will not read this, but those already persuaded will.
IF YOU WILL DILIGENTLY LISTEN: Hearing God’s Voice in Scripture
By Michael W. Sciarra
Christian Focus. 142 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 1 527 113 763
