The Lord God has given me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens me morning by morning, He awakens my ear to listen as a disciple. The Lord God has opened my ear; And I was not disobedient, nor did I turn back. (Isaiah 50:4-5, NASB95)

In the classroom of the world, those who know the most get the best grades. Even so, the most teachable student is one who is not afraid to look stupid by asking a question. In God’s classroom, we are tested to reveal not how much Scripture we know, how much we pray, or how often we go to church — important though these may be — but rather how willingly we turn from our own accomplishments to listen humbly to God’s Word. (Gordon Dalbey, “The Way of the World, The Way of the Cross,” Discipleship Journal: Issue 36. 1999 (electronic ed.). Colorado Springs: The Navigators/NavPress)

    On several occasions, Jesus taught people and when he came to the end of his lesson, he would say something like this: “You have ears to hear; listen up!” OK, I’ve modernized it a bit, but if you will read your Bible, I think you’ll find this is pretty close to what Jesus challenged people to do. It’s one of those things so obvious that it ought to be... well, obvious! We have ears so that we can hear. Use them for their intended purpose.

    Now, why would anyone have to tell a person to use his or her ears? Sometimes, people are born with non-functioning ears. Sometimes accidents or diseases can create deafness. Even age can make our ears hear less than when we were younger. But, all those possibilities notwithstanding, ears are for hearing. When my children were younger, my wife and I used to get a laugh at their “selective hearing.” Our house was a split level with three different floors. There were times when I would yell up to the girls to come do something, or get ready to leave, or take care of a chore. I’ve climbed my share of stairs to get them to hear me. On the other hand, I’ve stood in the basement floor talking softly about something I knew they really wanted to do, and they heard every word from their bedrooms on the top floor! It’s amazing how well ears work when you want them to work, and it’s amazing how poorly they work when you don’t care.

    How well do we listen to God?

    Do we have ears to listen as a disciple as Isaiah mentioned?

    What kind of ear does a disciple have anyway?

How well do we listen to God?

    I don’t get the idea that a disciple’s ear works any better than anyone else’s ear. But, there is one thing that disciples have going for them that others do not. The disciple can’t avoid hearing because God opens his or her ear. He “awakens” the disciple’s ear out of it’s “sleep” and makes it ready to hear. Does that mean that God somehow enables the physical organ of the ear to function better or does it mean that God has a way of getting our attention so that we listen up? Personally, I incline toward the latter. Besides, a real disciple is one of those “selective” hearers. When God speaks, the true disciple is ready, willing, able, and interested in hearing and doing what God says.

    Jesus understood this truth of selective hearing. Not that it’s something possible to only a few. The truth is that anyone could hear God’s word. But, the fact is, there are people who will simply turn off their ears and quit listening. They don’t really want to know, they don’t like what they hear, and they have no plans to do anything with what God says except to ignore it. Why would they want to listen? On the other hand, the one who wants to learn from God has his or her ears tuned in, ready to hear.

    How are your “ears?” More than likely, you’re just as good at this “selective hearing” thing as anyone. The big question is this: “To what and to whom are you listening?” If you have ears to hear, then use them — especially when God speaks.

© Copyright 2002, Dr. Bill Denton, CrossTies, All Rights Reserved. Articles may not be reprinted in any “for profit” publication without further permission by the author. Articles may be freely distributed via e-mail, reprinted in church bulletins or in other non-profit publications without further permission. Please keep this copyright and Web Site information intact with copied articles.

Title: "Selective Hearing"
Author: Bill Denton
Publication Date: April 25, 2002

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