Jesus said to each church He addressed in Revelation chapters 2 and 3: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” I find it interesting that each church was not only spoken to individually, but Jesus exhorted them to take heed to what the Spirit was saying to ALL of them.
Hearing what God is saying to us bypasses the physical organ of the ear. We know that is so because to think that anybody who is hearing impaired could never hear what God is saying is absurd! In Scripture, we hear and believe with our heart (Romans 10:10), and when our heart hears what God is saying (Psalm 119:111), we then must determine to apply that truth in our lives. To simply hear and not obey is, according to Jesus, foolish (Luke 6:46-49).
Furthermore, not only is it foolish, it is also dangerous when we get to a place where hearing God’s Word and even “Amen”ing it is mistaken for the actual doing of it (Ezekiel 12:2; Zephaniah 3:2). James exhorts us to respond differently, saints: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who… is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1:22-25)
May we as a congregation have that spiritual hearing which heeds and obeys the voice of Our Lord Jesus (Proverbs 25:12). May we heed His instruction (Proverbs 23:12), His correction (Proverbs 3:11), and His promises (2 Peter 1:4). When we do that, we will discover true fruit (Galatians 5:22-23) and peace.
Unfortunately in today’s world our ears, eyes, and brains get inundated with TV, radio, politics, sports, social media, gaming, +++. A Koinonia brother was recently sharing interesting information from a book he is reading about social media. It explains how early designers intentionally crafted their products to achieve addiction. I suspect that TV shows use the same approach to get ratings. They wage a war to get our eyes and ears- sadly they often succeed.
For these and other reasons, the words of Jesus in Revelation are more important today than ever. We could go Amish and trash all technology. However, I happen to benefit from my bible apps, from streaming Sunday and Wednesday services while away from Rochester, from hearing worship and the bible recited through Bluetooth speakers.
In my view, killing technology is shooting the messenger. The Amish do not have radios in their buggies but I am glad that I can hear worship or the bible recited in my car. The printing press gave billions access both to both God’s Word and pornography. Does that make it good or bad?
2000 years ago and today Jesus guides us about how we should use our ears. Ultimately, that choice is ours to make.
Blessings,
JoseM