“And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.” John 10:4
From John 10 we see that the Lord’s voice in our experience is like an inner knowing. Verses 4-5 say, 4 “And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” Also, in verse 14 the Lord says, “I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.” This inner knowing of the Lord’s voice is similar to experiencing an inner drawing. We are moved and touched from within. There is a deep inner consciousness and conviction. This means that the Lord’s voice is written into our very consciousness. For example, when we received Christ into us, it was because we were convinced by this inner knowing that we should receive Him. Outwardly, we may have heard a preacher sharing the gospel, or we may have read a tract explaining to our mind the way of salvation. But inwardly we knew that receiving Christ was the right thing to do. This inner knowing to follow the Lord as our Shepherd is simply His voice speaking in our consciousness.
Another example of this inner knowing is given in Romans 8:16: “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” The Spirit witnessing with our spirit is an inner knowing and consciousness. This is His way of speaking to us in the most intimate and personal manner. Instead of hearing an outward voice, something apart from us, we have an inner consciousness of His abiding presence. This is how we know and understand the Lord’s voice.