Thursday Reflection July 30, 2020 Listen to what Jesus is saying
Thursday Reflection July 30, 2020
Listen to what Jesus is saying
*Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” St. Mark 4:9 NIV*
*Good day friends!*
*Warm greetings on this another day that the Lord has given us.*
Our reflection today takes us to the book of Mark, chapter 4 to be more precise and verse 9. The parable told by Jesus in this chapter is well known; it is the parable of the Sower. In this parable Jesus speaks of a farmer who went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path which was eaten by birds. Some fell on rocky places where the sun came and caused them to wither and die. Some fell among thorns which grew up, but were choked by the thorns and finally some fell on good soil where they multiplied and bore many fruits.
Our focus for today’s reflection is not so much the parable itself, but two statements made by Jesus, before and after the parable. If we look at verse 3, (yes you can turn your bible to verse 3 of the chapter) it says, “Hearken” if you are using the KJV, which is correctly translated by the NIV as listen. So before Jesus begins his parable of the Sower, he draws the attention of the multitude by saying, “Listen!” We all have an idea of what the word listen means. The Cambridge Dictionary puts it this way: “‘Listening’ is an action; it is something we do consciously.” So Jesus drew the attention of the multitude to consciously take an action to think carefully on what he was saying. Jesus was calling them to focus on this parable; to reflect deeply on this parable.
This is what Jesus calls us to do even today. Take an active decision to reflect on the words of God. Focus on what is being said about Jesus. I often encourage my bible study group to ask questions of the text. By asking the questions it should cause us to seek the answers which the Lord will reveal to us. If we read further in the chapter we will see that the disciples did this as well. So Jesus calls us to listen!
What is interesting is how Jesus ended the parable, “whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” Our understanding of hearing is something more physiological than active. Again using the Cambridge Dictionary as a source of help, hearing is defined as, “something which happens to us as a natural process.” In other words, you cannot help but hear my voice as I speak in this recording. You will always hear those beside you speaking, but it doesn’t mean that you are listening. Jesus called on all who had ears in the multitude to hear him. But what was Jesus really saying? I believe Jesus was giving a warning or a caution to those there. Just as how in Jamaica a mother would caution her child with the saying, ‘all who can’t hear will feel’, so too I believe Jesus cautioned those there with ears to hear to take note of all that he said.
The NRSV captures the thought more precisely, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” It was a call to those who hear the word of God to not only hear it, but listen to it as well. It is a call to actively give thought and credence to the message of Jesus. This is not only a call to the unsaved, but it is a call to the saved as well. It is high time that we stop being only hearers of the word, but also doers of the word. It is high time that we spend time to understand the message of Jesus instead of just reading to say we read or heard the word of God. It is high time that we become so infused with the word of God that it changes us. There is always a deeper message with Jesus, think on it.
*Until next week listen to what Jesus is saying*
*Shalom*
*Christopher Euphfa*