If you’ve been following along in our daily devotions, you know we recently read through the book of Matthew where Matthew reports on the miraculous healings of Jesus Christ and His numerous teachings concerning the kingdom of heaven.  One of His most notable teachings was the parable of the four soils where He tells about a farmer who sows seed, some of which falls along the path in shallow soil and is eaten up by birds, some of which falls on shallow soil and initially springs up but then is scorched and withered by the sun.  The third set falls among thorns and is choked out by weeds, but the fourth set falls on good soil and produces good crop a hundred times what was sown. At the telling of this parable, Jesus’ disciples ask Him why He speaks in parables:

 “And the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ Jesus answered them, ‘To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him’” (Matthew 13:10-12).

In this passage, Jesus talks about how the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven are available to those, such as these disciples, whose hearts are inclined to truly hear what He is saying – beyond the cover story. Today we are talking about hearing God’s voice and how to test our hearts’ receptivity to hearing what He is saying. Oftentimes we want the Lord to speak to us (and He does) but we don’t hear Him because we’re not willing to hear what He has to say.  Why are we not willing to hear what He has to say?  It is often because we’re not ready to change yet and return to Him.  Instead, we ignore or choose not to hear His voice.   But what does that have to do with Jesus speaking in parables?

Parables are word pictures which serve up the truth in a gentle manner. They suggest truth as an option and encourage certain behaviors without demanding obedience. The interesting thing is…the way we respond to parables reveals our hearts’ receptivity and determines how fruitful we will be. If we hear God’s tender nudging of truth and put it into action, we will receive more truth and will be transformed by the Lord. However, if we close our ears and eyes to the truth, we will have dull hearts, far away from God.

“In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘…the heart of this people has become dull, with their ears they scarcely hear, and they have closed their eyes, otherwise they would see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts and return, and I would heal them’” (Matthew 13:14-15).

God is saying that He wants us to see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and understand with our hearts so that we will return to Him and be healed. However, oftentimes when truth comes, people shut their eyes to it. They realize if they allow the truth into their hearts, it will convict them to make a change which they may not be willing or wanting to do.

It’s human nature to dislike change. In fact, sometimes people dislike it so much that rather than opening their ears to the truth and returning to God as He calls them to Him, instead they become more religious and memorize more scripture to endorse their bad behaviors. They close their eyes to truth and just appear more religious. This is what the Lord said about the Pharisees who honored the Lord with their speech but whose hearts were far from Him. When He spoke to people such as these, they would close their ears because they weren’t ready to give up their lifestyles, turn their hearts toward Him and be transformed.

Our God is such a loving God that He does not demand that we love and obey Him. Rather, He gives us the freedom to choose Him. Jesus spoke in parables because… 

1. PARABLES TEST THE RECEPTIVITY OF OUR HEARTS.

“This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me” (Matthew 15:8).

Parables have truth woven into the story. They suggest, reveal, and provide truth as an option but they allow you to make the final call. The question is whether you’re going to heed the advice and lesson of truth when it’s still just a suggestion or you’re going to wait until there is a threat before you change. Parables test our willingness to change and our receptivity to God’s will. Parables don’t demand that you comply. They point towards the truth and advise you, but they leave the final choice up to you. Parables don’t mandate obedience, and many times, they won’t even tell you the consequences for not abiding by it. Instead…

2. PARABLES START BY OFFERING TRUTH AS A SUGGESTION.

“All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable” (Matthew 13:34).

A parable tests your heart to see how open you are to hearing truth and allowing it to change your lifestyle and actions. If you are inclined to truth, you’ll catch it. Parables oftentimes will assess your tipping point:  how much will it require for you to change when you hear the truth? Do you need to wait for pain (e.g., a failed marriage, a threatened job) before you change? Parables start way over on one end of the spectrum where the truth is just advised, suggested, and encouraged. Some people however won’t be inclined to truth until it is mandated and consequences are applied. This is the other end of the spectrum. Sadly enough, by then those people may have lost everything or there may be threats of loss.  Parables provide a receptivity test to see how open and willing we are to hear truth and be moved to action even when the truth is just suggested. If we are receptive, as soon as we hear it, we will acknowledge that it is from God – “I got it Lord, I got it,” – and we go about making changes.

In 1 Chronicles 11, the Philistines and Ammonites were coming against David, and God told David to go after the Philistines. The Philistines had taken over Bethlehem. From where David was stationed, he could see Bethlehem and began musing about how wonderful it would be to drink water from its well. That night, David’s three mightiest men snuck into Bethlehem while the Philistines were sleeping and risked their lives to get David some water. The following day, when the three men presented the water to David, he took it from them. Realizing what these three men had done (i.e., risk their lives to get this water), what did David do?

“…David would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord; and he said, ‘Be it far from me before my God that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of these men who went at the risk of their lives? For at the risk of their lives they brought it.’ Therefore, he would not drink it….” (1 Chronicles 11:18-19).

David took the water and said that it was too precious of a sacrifice for a human to drink, so he poured it out to the Lord. As an act of worship, he offered it to God. The three men were not ordered, bribed, or even asked by David to get this water. The mere musings, not demands, of the king were enough to move these men to action. The suggestions and musings of our King may come through a parable: a truth wound-up in advice from a friend, an event at home, the way someone looks, a situation where someone gives counsel, or a certain circumstance. When confronted with these avenues of truth wrapped up in a parable – where we receive subtle advice, suggestion, and counsel – will we receive the truth or will we close our eyes to it?

If we’re not doing well with parables by learning and being changed by the truth they offer, how will we know the deeper mysteries of the kingdom of God? If we close our ears to truth because it is merely suggested – not demanded or presented with an immediate consequence – then we’ll never know the deeper things of God. Why should He speak to us when we are not even positioned or ready to hear Him? Instead, when we hear our Lord, no matter how subtle, let’s move to action. There may be no consequence yet, the truth may not be commanded, but we know it’s the heart of our Lord. This is the highest form of worship: when you catch the musings of the King and it moves you to action. When you hear the Lord speaking to you through parables – subtle hints of advice from someone or a situation – and you change, this is the highest form of worship…

3. THE HIGHEST FORM OF WORSHIP IS WHEN THE MERE SUGGESTIONS OF OUR KING MOVES US TO ACTION.

That’s what happened with David’s three men. It was just the musings of David that moved them to act. Likewise with us, the mere musings of our King should prompt us to action.  When we respond to the parables in our lives, we offer the Lord the highest form of worship.

Listen for His truth couched in a parable – it could be in the middle of luncheon, a discussion, or a devotional time. The Lord may use those times to pinpoint or suggest truth but will it be enough to move you to action? Parables test the receptivity of our hearts and start by offering truth as a suggestion.  If we are willing to act on these suggestions, there is no higher form of worship. He will say, “….blessed are your eyes because they see and your ears because they hear for those people like you, it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. God will reveal to you things that eye has not seen nor ear heard nor has entered into the heart of man.

He’s chosen you because your heart is inclined to truth. It starts by being receptive to the many parables in our lives. Listen to them...be open to them…and you’ll begin to hear God.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. As much as you crave hearing God’s voice, on a scale of 1-10 (1-not ready; 10-completely ready), how ready are you to hear His commands?  If He were to call you on the phone and give you a laundry list of changes to make in your life, how would you respond?
2. If you feel you are not as ready and receptive to hearing the Lord as you would like to be, how could you move towards more obedience?
3. Think about this past week when the Lord spoke to you through a parable and you obeyed or didn’t obey?  What happened?
4. Instead of heeding God’s gentle suggestions, have you ever closed your eyes to His truth and found yourself confronted by His truth through pain of some consequence? How are you different because of it?
5. Think about someone you love.  Have you ever tried to figure out what to buy them for a special occasion?  Do you tend to listen more carefully when they talk about what they like or dislike, their dreams, and their hopes?  By catching a sense of who they are, you are more able to give them an appropriate gift.  What about our Lord?  How can you catch His musings, His longings, His heart so that you can give Him the highest form of worship?

Much “Mahalo!” to Kristi Murai who has just returned to the ministry after a short break. Kristi’s willingness to answer the call to ministry is just one indicator of her heart’s receptivity to God’s truth.