In the previous two parts of our series, we saw how not everything that uses Christian language is the true gospel (good news) of Christ. We also saw what it means to remain in Christ and trust Him, even when everything around us says otherwise.
Today, we will combine what we’ve learned with more truths of Jesus, to see how hearing the proper message, in the correct way, leads to miracles.
Let’s get started.
Be Careful How Your Hear
In Mark chapter 4, Jesus gives a warning about how you hear… So not only are we supposed to pay attention to what we hear (the message itself), but also how we hear that message.
How we hear, is a crucial topic that doesn’t get nearly enough attention, in my opinion.
If you take 100 people and show them a particular passage of scripture, you may get 100 different interpretations and ideas. But when it comes to scripture, this isn’t a good thing; it breeds confusion, frustration, uncertainty, and doubt. This is why Jesus warns to be careful of not only what you hear, but also how you hear it.
In Luke 8:18, Jesus said the following:
“Take heed therefore how you hear: for whoever has, to him shall be given; and whoever has not, from him shall be taken even that which he seems to have.”
Just as we saw Jesus warn about what we hear in part one, in this verse Jesus is focusing on the other side of the matter. Here in Luke, Jesus is addressing how we hear the message. Now, what does that mean exactly…
If we notice the parable which Jesus had just shared in the previous verses of Luke chapter 8 (verse 11 to be precise), we notice that it is the parable of the Seed and the different types of ground. This is the context of our verse 18 here. Once we begin hearing the right message, it becomes a matter of what ground we present.
Just as it’s possible to receive bad seed from a false message and have it produce negative results, it’s also possible to fail to receive good seed from the true message, for all of the reasons which Jesus lists in His parable. I’ve watched this very thing play out in the lives of people over the years. People who couldn’t accept God’s forgiveness or love because they feel that they’ve “sinned too much”; people who refuse to believe in the gospel of grace because they’ve been taught that they must work for their salvation; and those who refuse to accept the goodness and blessings of God because they hold to a doctrine of self-debasement, rather than seeing themselves as part of God’s kingdom and family.
How You Hear is How You Receive
Take a look at what Jesus says in Mark 4:8, during the parable of the seed and ground:
“And other [seed] fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.”
There will be some ground that produces thirty-fold, sixty-fold, and some hundred-fold. now I can’t speak for you, but as for myself, I want to produce the maximum amount of fruit possible; and this has nothing to do with works, or striving, or performance, but this is connected with how we hear as Jesus said.
Some examples which I have personally witnessed and experienced are as follows:
People who seem to have no trouble at all believing that Jesus can save them spiritually from hell to heaven – but they deny that He also saves them physically from sickness, disease and infirmities. And by failing to hear, they do not produce that harvest.
Those who believe that the Spirit of God is not even in operation today and no longer gives gifts, and by failing to hear, they fail to produce that harvest.
Then there are those who still translate everything in the Bible as a checklist of do’s and don’ts. And this really goes right to the heart of the matter.
It is possible (as the disciples, and as the pharisees demonstrated) to read scripture as a rule-book, and miss Christ entirely— I‘ve done that in the past. It is possible to read the very words of Jesus Himself and miss Him if you have the wrong lenses on. For example, a friend was telling me about a study that his church did on Nehemiah, and instead of focusing on the pictures of Jesus in Nehemiah, the entire focus was on how people should behave based on the content of the book. As we were discussing it I simply said, there are two ways to read Nehemiah, the first way is to read it dead, as a set of rules and come-away with a works-based checklist of what we need to do. The second way, is to see Jesus in it and realize that you were the broken wall, and Jesus rebuilt you. And to realize that those two ways are radically different!
That is a simple example of the distinction of how to hear. One way is man-centered and works-focused, and the other is Jesus-centered and Spirit-focused, because He did the work, and you simply exist and live in that truth. And if you think that is an empty life, then respectfully, you have never experienced it!
One way is dead, and leads to destruction, and the other is very much alive and leads to the abundant life of Christ. This is precisely why Jesus said to pay attention to the message and what you hear, and also when you have found the good message, pay attention to how you hear it. He wants you to receive the full measure of what He has paid for you to have. He wants you to have the full hundred-fold produce of every good gift which He gives.
How To Hear Properly
With these facts in mind, we must understand how to hear properly. And as you might expect, it all ties into Jesus Christ. Put simply, your perspective of Jesus will determine how you hear. Let me ask you a simple, but profound question… who is Jesus to you?
Some will say that He was a good man, a wise teacher, and some will even say that Jesus is God and King, but all of that is simply religiosity, without the main gospel message — and it misses the union which His sacrifice has brought to us.
You see, what’s missing from Christianity at-large today, is the personal revelation of your relationship with Him. And while I know that it’s somewhat popular to say that “Christianity is not a religion, it’s a relationship,” we’re often left in the dark about what that actually means.
A relationship with Christ is not like an imaginary friend. It’s not that he’s an invisible playmate that you talk to and hang out with. Don’t get mad at me if that’s been your experience because we need to stick with scripture on this… we’re not here to swap experience stories, we’re here to see Jesus clearly through the scripture.
Jesus makes clear in John chapter 17, that the revelation of our relationship with Him and the Father that He came to bring through His sacrifice was nothing less than unity empowered by the permanent indwelling of His Holy Spirit in us.
See, we’ve turned Christianity into going to church, singing a few songs and hanging out with likeminded people, and all of that is fine and has it’s place— but we’re neglecting the unity with Christ that gives us power and victory in day-to-day life, and yes, true deliverance.
Jesus didn’t sacrifice Himself because He needed your works. He also didn’t sacrifice himself so that you could go to a church building. He didn’t come for any of the standard Christian reasons that you might think. He descended to earth and died on that cross so that the entirety of your sinful old identity would be killed, and that you would be reborn as a new creation in Him. That is where your new life is, and that is where you have power and victory. The old you is GONE! The old you trapped in hopelessness, despair, failure, and shame died on the cross with Christ, and the new you is alive in Him, apart from all that old stuff— it’s not who you are anymore!
It’s when you truly begin to own this fact about Jesus, and see your union with Him, and live this new identity, that the scriptures take on their intended life. The Bible stops being a rulebook, and becomes a treasure trove of details about Jesus and your new life in Him. And this opens your spiritual ears to hear properly.
Conclusion
I encourage you today to leave the shackles of religion, and embrace your new life in Christ, and that’s where you will experience miracles.
Be blessed.