Listening isn’t always hearing
Matthew Henry, a British clergyman, wrote a six volume commentary on the bible in the early 1700’s. He was part of what was called a non-conformist movement. A group of people that didn’t conform to the ways of the established church. He was a thinker and a writer. He wrote,
“..take notice of the things that will hinder how you hear, lest you hear carelessly or lightly, or entertain prejudice against what you hear. Look at you spirits after you’ve listened to the Word lest you loose the wisdom from it that you have gained”.
He was echoing the words of Luke 8:18 Pay attention to HOW you hear.Why is this repeated in Luke 11:33-36? I think because Luke was emphatic about relationship with God and knowing that, given our humanity, its easy to loose wisdom that we’ve gained. Have you ever been in a situation where someone asked you to do something, were sure you knew what they were saying, went ahead and did it and what you did was not what was asked of you? Did it end up in something like this…
“I asked you to do this..” ‘no you asked me to do that..’ “no I didn’t” ‘yes, you did!!’ Neither of you can understand what’s happened and the tension escalates. When we listen we will often ‘hear’ what we think we are going to hear, what we expect the person talking will say, and their reasons for saying it. We predict or assume easily, and often unconsciously. Why does this happen and why is it important? It goes back to the light parable - light illuminates truth, shadows confuse it and make it murky.
Let’s take this a little deeper. For us, it’s about context, the place where we are living from. Context also formulates our perspective and reinforces and drives how we live and why we live. It also powers what and how big our concepts of people and the world are. From all of this, and the various impacts on our lives, come our beliefs, which influence our attitudes and determine our behaviours. As human beings we are nothing if not complex. That complexity has a tendency to bring murkiness to truth.
This is important to understand because we make life complicated and truth is simple. Sometimes it seems too simple. We’re used to having to work hard at things, especially relationships. When an answer to a situation sounds too simple we shy away, not believing it could be that simple.
The parable of the light is simple - light brings clarity, gets rid of shadows and dark corners. The light is more than truth, it’s The Truth. The truth of God, of His Kingdom, of His Word. The light is The Light - Jesus. He is The Word.
Choosing The Light over the murkiness, choosing relationship rather than yourself opens the door to a Potent Simplicity. What is that? It’s choosing to listen with a hearing mind, focusing, being present, cultivating an eagerness for Gods truth instead of assuming. Being courageous enough to walk away from complexity and chaos to replace them both with The Truth. Surrendering control back to God and living from your relationship with him. Lighting your lamp and letting it shine. Actively deciding to make how you listen a priority in all your relationships
Look up verses on truth, light, hearing the word, wisdom, hearing and seeking. You’ll be surprised and hopefully inspired by what you find. Let what you read sink into your soul and your mind. Moses linked his faith to his life, he made choices and acted on them. Can you do the same?
