Then his disciples approached Jesus and asked, “Why do you always speak to people in these hard-to-understand parables?” ... I teach the people using parables, because they think they’re looking for truth, yet because their hearts are unteachable, they never discover it. Although they will listen to me, they never fully perceive the message I speak. [Matthew 13:10,13-14 TPT]
Have you ever heard a joke and just didn't get it even when it was explained to you?
This was the state of the religious leaders who followed Jesus around trying to trip him up.
These stories were often about how leaders like the scribes and Pharisees rejected God.
These religious folks had a blinding lust for power and a predisposition to jealousy.
They simply did not get the messages contain in the parables.
Here is a part of the passage from Isaiah that Jesus quotes about them:
"this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear,Thankfully, Jesus speaks something very different about those who follow him.
and their eyes they have closed"
Unlike the religious folks, these have hearts that are not dull, ears to hear and eyes to see.
He says that people who follow him will have more and those who oppose him have less.
I can relate to having spiritual ears that did not hear and spiritual eyes that refused to see.
It took me a long time to repent of Pharisaical pride and arrogance.
It all began when I fully accepted the gospel that Jesus preached.
I began seeing the scriptures, and human beings, through the eyes of Christ.
I began to reject the theologies that captivated my mind in my youth.
I began to embrace the divine messages that seemed to be hidden in years past.
I believe in you Lord. Help me to reject the things that dull my heart, my eyes and ears.
... this devotion is part of the Red Letters series. Click here to read more.
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