Verse of the Day 10/10

Verse of the Day 10/10

 

Mark 4:9 And He said, He who has ears to hear, let him be hearing [and let him consider, and comprehend].  Amplified Bible (AMP)

 Today's verse comes at the end of the Parable of the Sower in Mark chapter 4.  The passage starts with "and He was teaching them many things in parables, and in His teaching He said to them: Listen...." 

 

We've been born with ears and they are for more than being an anchor for our glasses.  They are to hear with, and the important part in the context of this passage is to "listen" to what we hear, not ignore it.  When we read the Bible we are not hearing it audibly, but it does speak to us.  Do we just read it as if it were coming in one ear and going out the other, or do we listen, believe, and act upon what it has to say to us.

 

Pastor James MacDonald writes, "Immaturity is the inability to connect actions with consequences.  The immature person doesn't get it.  They can't make a connection between their choices and what comes because of decisions.  They need to discover the unbreakable law of cause and effect that God has established in the universe.  If you choose to sin; you choose to suffer.  That's what's coming."

 

God's Word gives us direction, gives us borders or boundaries in our lives.  There are plenty of electrical fences in our neighborhood where dogs are trained not to cross the line because doing so will bring pain.  There are some dogs that will "take the hit", they know that they will suffer but that squirrel or cat or something else to them is worth it, but there is a danger, many a dog has not returned home from their escapades.  God's Word is kind of like and electrical fence for us.  It is there for our benefit, our protection and well being.  The question is are we willing to listen and believe the voice of truth or do we want to take the hit and the consequences?

 

Are we listening, really listening?  (Amplified Bible below)  The good soil in the passage is the heart that listens, believes, comprehends and acts to the Word.

 

Blessings,
Mike
Follow the verse of the day at http://www.mikesvotd.blogspot.com/

 

Mark 4:4-9

The Message (MSG)

^3-8 "Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.

⁹ "Are you listening to this? Really listening?"