Hebrews 5:11 (AMP)
11 Concerning this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull and sluggish in [your spiritual] hearing and disinclined to listen.
The story is told of Franklin Roosevelt, who often endured long receiving lines at the White House. He complained that no one really paid any attention to what was said. One day, during a reception, he decided to try an experiment. To each person who passed down the line and shook his hand, he murmured, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” The guests responded with phrases like, “Marvelous! Keep up the good work. We are proud of you. God bless you, sir.” It was not until the end of the line, while greeting the ambassador from Bolivia, that his words were actually heard. Nonplussed, the ambassador leaned over and whispered, “I’m sure she had it coming.”
The bible says that faith comes by hearing, and hearing the word of God. The question then is; how well do you hear? Are you a good listener, or are you like the guests in our illustration? Every Sunday we gather to listen to the word of God, throughout the week we attend bible studies and evening services to listen some more, and in this digital era we have a wide menu of messages to choose from. If this word is as powerful as it claims to be, why is it that our lives have not changed drastically?
The reality is that some of us are dull of hearing, meaning we have become slow in our understanding, and thus it becomes hard for us to grasp the things of God. For this reason, some are not growing and as Paul continues to say:
Hebrews 5:12 (AMP)
12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers [because of the time you have had to learn these truths], you actually need someone to teach you again the elementary principles of God’s word [from the beginning], and you have come to be continually in need of milk, not solid food.
Dull hearing is a sign of immaturity because you have allowed mental sluggishness and spiritual apathy in your life. Though you are present, your attention is not really on the things of God, it is elsewhere. This is the reason we have a lack of teachers because those who ought to be teachers by now are still craving for milk and not meat.
Because of being dull of hearing, some can no longer distinguish right from wrong, and you can tell this sometimes from the questions that people ask on issues that are foundational Christian truths.
God is speaking, can you hear him, or are you dull of hearing? As Jesus says; let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying.
Reflections
What is your response and attitude when you hear the word of God?
How does being dull of hearing affect someone’s life?
How has this morning devotion practically and tangibly impacted your life? (Or is it just a morning ritual that has lost meaning?)
