Mark 4:21-25 The phrase, "If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear." With slight variations in wording, appears about 16 times in the New Testament. It appears often at the end of Jesus' parables and at the end of each letter to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. Jesus said to His disciples on several occasions words to the effect, I've been with you a long time and you still don't understand. Obviously, there is a difference between hearing what is said and hearing what is said. It is the difference in the message intended and the message perceived. I'm sure Jesus' disciples hung on every word that came out of Jesus' mouth. I believe they truly wanted to understand. Whenever you hear or read something, you bring to the situation your past history of experiences, your memories and your present emotions, etc. and you process the information. Getting yourself on the same page as the speaker is not always an easy thing to do, because mingled with the words are the speaker's history, memory and emotions. All too often we hear what we want to hear rather than what is being said. I believe the parable of the lamp on the stand in our Scripture is all about hearing. He is certainly not talking about arranging furniture. And even though our secret faults will probably be exposed, I don't think that that fits the context of what He is saying. He has just explained a parable that they weren't able to understand. He is saying that the truth of these parables are intended to be brought to light. "If anyone has ears..."Consider carefully what you." The effort you put into understanding will govern the results. The more understanding you have hear acquired the more you will be given. If you've made no effort to hear, even what little has soaked in will soon be gone. "He who has an ear to hear, let him hear!"

Ears to Hear