Good morning,
When they hear what I say, they will not understand. Mark 4:12
Jesus of Nazareth really knew how to collect a crowd. The New Testament gospels are full of stories of large crowds and the intense popularity of this carpenter who could heal almost anyone and could teach like no one else had ever taught. They came from far and near to see him, touch him and listen to him. It’s clear that Jesus never had the kind of training that most of our teachers and professors give his followers today. Jesus kept telling the people he healed to keep quiet about what he had done, and when he taught them he kept telling them stories without giving them the “real” meaning of what he was saying. Even his closest followers often came away from these teaching sessions totally confused about what he was saying. At one point he told his curious disciples what the Old Testament prophet Isaiah wrote, ‘When they see what I do, they will learn nothing. When they hear what I say, they will not understand. Otherwise, they will turn to me and be forgiven. (Isa. 6:9,10) Jesus point was that in this setting the problem wasn’t the teacher. The problem was those who were listening.
Jesus was this world’s only perfect teacher. Jesus was teaching from the only God approved holy book, the book we now call the Bible. Jesus was quoting a principal that had been in operation from the day Adam and Eve were driven from the garden. The core problem was that the hearers of God’s truth had hard hearts and closed minds to the eternal truth that he was giving them. People who are in rebellion to God don’t really want to hear or see eternal truth. What they really want is someone to give them what they want for themselves and then approve of what they are doing even if God has made it clear to them that they are wrong. Hard hearts produce spiritual blindness and deaf ears that can only be opened by the Spirit of Truth. None of us are perfect as teachers and spiritual care givers, but we do have the same Holy Spirit living in us that lived in Jesus. As we live and teach and love and care we can be channels through which the Holy Spirit can speak and act out God’s loving care. But its important that we remember that most of the folks around us will not know what we are doing when they watch us and will not understand what we are saying even if we are accurately teaching God’s Eternal Word. Some will hear and believe, some will grow and change as did Jesus’ disciples, but sadly most of those who come to watch and see us will be in the dark until they are swallowed by eternal night. Dear Lord, please help us keeping on keeping on until we see your smiling face.
John 14:17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.
Roy Wisner
