Hear the Word of God

“Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God” (John 8:43-47).

Jesus had been speaking to the crowd for some time now. They were growing familiar with His voice. They were becoming acquainted with His message. But not everyone was hearing Him. Jesus could see into the hearts of all men and He knew that some could not hear His message… “This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand” (Matthew 13:13). What made it so difficult for some to hear His words? What was the difference between followers who could hear and those who could not? Jesus said those who could hear His words were “of God” and those who could not hear His words were “of your father the devil”. It was all about ancestry. What followers believed about their origins and where they came from made all the difference in their ability to hear the word of God.

How about you? Do you remember a time when the word of God did not make sense to you? Many believers have told me they had great difficulty reading and understanding the Bible before they trusted Christ. Like me, many read and even memorized portions of the scriptures as children but had little understanding of the Bible’s truth. But then one day, it all came together. Without explanation, the truth leapt off the pages and into our hearts and minds and we could not get enough of it. What made the difference? I believe part of the reason for the sudden ability to hear the Bible’s message was a transformation in understanding about our origins. What we believe about where we come from and where we’re going is an important part of our worldview. God gave us grace to comprehend that we are not the haphazard result of evolution, but we are fearfully and wonderfully made by a purposeful, loving Creator, and He wants to speak to us through His word. In today’s scripture, Jesus challenged the crowd to consider who their father was. They could continue to believe the lie of the devil or step away from the crowd and be born again as children of God through believing the words of Christ. But their worldview was keeping some of His followers from hearing His words and becoming His disciples.

Jesus used the imagery of fathers to compel followers to consider what they believed about where they came from and where they were going. He was challenging their worldview. Our worldview can either encourage or discourage our ability to hear and understand Biblical truth. There are two basic beliefs about where we come from. To believe in evolution, we must deny important, Biblical truth about the beginnings of the universe and the world around us… “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). To believe in evolution, we must deny essential Biblical truth about the beginning of our lives… “You formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Psalm 139:13-14). In short, when we deny the truth of God we must substitute something else in its place in order to make sense of the world and our place in it. We’ve come up with some very imaginative explanations to satisfy our need to understand. We’ve created and teach ourselves and our children some pretty hard to believe ideas like the big bang theory, string theory, and evolution itself, in order explain the unknown. Jesus taught that if we reject God’s truth we are left with lies. He identified the devil as the source of all lies… “He is a liar and the father of lies”. He challenged His reluctant followers to renounce their deceptive worldview and believe that God gave them life and wants them to hear and know His truth… “This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3-4).

As we grow up into Christ we are thankful for God’s grace that reveals His truth and enables us to…

Hear the Word of God.