My Sheep Know My Voice, Do You?
- The Wholy Christian
- Jan 3
- 5 min read
Do You Even Know Your Faith?
There is a question many believers never stop to ask, even after decades of calling themselves Christian.
Do I actually know my faith?
Not “do I attend church,” not “was I raised this way,” not “do I believe Jesus existed,” but do I know what I believe, why I believe it, and who I am claiming to follow.
Because there are people who have been Christians for 30, 40, even 50 years, and if you asked them to explain their faith beyond a sentence or two, they wouldn’t know where to begin. They know Jesus died for their sins. They know salvation is by grace. But when pressed further, everything becomes vague. There are no Scriptures ready. No verses to turn to. No clear understanding of God’s character, His will, or His promises.
And that should concern us.
Not because knowledge saves us, but because ignorance leaves us spiritually vulnerable.
📜 John 17:3
3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Jesus Himself defines eternal life not merely as belief, but as knowing God. Not knowing about Him. Knowing Him.
That distinction changes everything.
Christianity Can Become Familiar Without Becoming Deep
It is entirely possible to live around Christian language, Christian culture, Christian people, and Christian traditions, and still never grow in spiritual understanding.
Familiarity can masquerade as maturity.
Church attendance can replace discipleship. Agreement can replace obedience. Emotion can replace discernment. Belonging can replace transformation.
Scripture warns us about this kind of faith, one that hears but never truly absorbs.
📜 James 1:22
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
A faith that is never informed by God’s Word becomes a faith shaped by habit, opinion, and circumstance. And when that happens, Christianity slowly becomes something we claim rather than something that actively forms us.
That is why so many believers feel spiritually unprepared when hardship comes. They believe in God, but they don’t know His Word well enough to stand on it.
When God Feels Silent, But the Word Has Been Ignored
Many Christians say, “I can’t hear God anymore.”
Sometimes that silence is a season of testing. Scripture acknowledges that. But often, the problem is not God’s silence, it is our unfamiliarity with His voice.
📜 John 10:27
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
Jesus does not describe His followers as guessing His voice. He describes them as recognizing it.
God has chosen to reveal Himself primarily through Scripture. His nature, His ways, His will, His warnings, and His promises are not hidden. They are written.
📜 2 Timothy 3:16
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
If we want to discern God’s voice amid the noise of the world, we must first know what He has already said. Otherwise, every thought, emotion, trend, or persuasive voice can feel spiritual.
Without Scripture, discernment becomes impossible.
A Faith Without Scripture Becomes Easily Deceived
The Bible does not treat ignorance as neutral. It treats it as dangerous.
📜 Hosea 4:6
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
That verse is not aimed at unbelievers. It is spoken about God’s own people.
A believer who does not know Scripture cannot test teachings, recognize error, or stand firm against deception. And Scripture explicitly warns that deception will increase, NOT decrease, as time goes on.
📜 Matthew 24:24
24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
False teaching does not announce itself as false. It imitates truth closely enough to confuse those who are unfamiliar with the real thing.
This is why Scripture repeatedly calls believers to grow in knowledge, not arrogance.
📜 Colossians 1:9
9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
Knowledge rooted in Scripture leads to wisdom, discernment, humility, and stability. Knowledge absent from Scripture leads to pride, confusion, and spiritual drift.
You Cannot Recall What You Have Never Stored
When fear rises, when temptation strikes, when suffering presses in, you will reach for what already lives inside you.
Jesus Himself responded to temptation with Scripture, not emotion.
The Bible calls the Word of God a sword.
📜 Ephesians 6:17
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
A sword is useless if you never learn how to wield it.
Many believers want peace, strength, and clarity without the discipline of learning God’s Word. But Scripture does not promise strength to those who avoid training.
📜 Hebrews 5:12
12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food,
Spiritual maturity is not automatic. It is cultivated.
What It Actually Means to Know Your Faith
Knowing your faith does not mean memorizing trivia or winning debates. It means allowing God’s Word to shape how you think, how you respond, how you suffer, and how you live.
Here is what that looks like in practice:
Reading Scripture for Formation, Not Just Inspiration
📜 Romans 12:2
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
The Word of God is not meant to be skimmed for comfort alone. It is meant to renew the mind, reorient desires, and realign priorities.
Learning Scripture With the Intention to Obey
📜 John 14:23
23 Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
Knowledge without obedience hardens the heart. Knowledge with obedience deepens relationship.
Building a Foundation for Real Life
Scripture prepares believers for suffering, not just Sunday mornings.
📜 Psalm 119:105
105Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
A lamp does not remove the darkness. It helps you walk through it without falling.
📝 Note: A faith that collapses under pressure is often a faith that was never rooted deeply.
Why This Matters More Than Ever
The world is loud. Truth is contested. Lies are subtle. Distraction is constant.
A shallow faith will not survive deep waters.
📜 John 8:31
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,’
Jesus connects true discipleship to abiding in His Word. Not occasionally. Not selectively. Continually.
You cannot love a Christ you refuse to learn. You cannot follow a voice you do not recognize. And you cannot stand firm on a foundation you never built.
Final Thought
Christianity was never meant to be inherited by habit or sustained by memory. It was meant to be lived, learned, and walked out daily in relationship with Jesus Christ.
God is not silent. His Word is open.
The question is not whether He has spoken.
The question is whether we have listened closely enough to know Him when He speaks.
Ask Yourself: If my faith were tested today, what Scriptures would I stand on, and what does that reveal about how well I know God’s Word?
Join the Discussion: What part of Scripture has most shaped your understanding of who God is, and how did learning it change the way you live?
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