listening

Jesus is NOT a know-it-all!

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Lifting up His eyes then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?” John 6:5 ESV

Last Friday, God changed my notes, and substituted a short message about how Jesus sometimes spent more time asking questions than He did providing answers. In short, Jesus, unlike myself, was NOT a know-it-all. He rarely gave long lectures, and instead, Jesus often asked questions, and then took a breath to listen to the answers. In today’s verse, when the disciples were feeling stressed about how to feed the people, Jesus did not say, “Hey chill out guys. I have a miracle up my sleeve that will knock your socks off!”  

Instead, Jesus turned to the closest disciple and more or less asked, “Hey what do you think we should do?” Jesus was not in a hurry to show off His knowledge, and He asked questions, even when He knew the answers. Why would He do that? The next verse tells us that He asked in order to test Philip. Now, there were at least five thousand hungry men, including the disciples, and though Jesus was concerned for their welfare, He was more interested in their hearts than their hunger. Then Jesus asked a second question,

“And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” Mark 6:38

Strangely, when Jesus asks us questions, His next step is often to invite us to surrender whatever we have towards the answer. In this story, the disciples had only five loaves and two fish. Yet, despite of the absurdity of that tiny meal, they brought it to Jesus. Then Jesus gave thanks. He was grateful for the loaves and fish that looked insignificant to everyone else. Then, last, and most amazing of all is what happened next. Jesus gave them back everything they had surrendered, but with a blessing! And today, just like then, Jesus asks us questions, He patiently listens to our answers, welcomes what we give Him, and then, with a blessing He gives us back everything we surrender to Him!

Not My Own

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“If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you – and even more.” Mark 4:23-24 NIV

Today, God is moving in great and exciting ways, on college campuses, including Ohio State, Florida State, and most recently at Samford University in Alabama. But the devil is also at work in our society, stirring passions through social media, the speeches of politicians and television. Because we live in an age of such political and social polarization; we Christians need to be careful about what we are listening to and remember to whom we belong. In today’s passage Jesus tells His disciples to listen carefully and to focus on the spiritual meaning behind His words. Just as there was a spiritual meaning behind the teachings of Jesus, so there is also a spiritual meaning behind the words of popular figures, such as Bruce Springsteen, Tucker Carlson, Taylor Swift, and Candace Owens. I recall once when our church was going through a leadership crisis, a sectional elder of our denomination came to speak and what he said has stuck with me all these years, “What’s happening is NOT what’s going on!” So today, before flipping on the news, listening to a podcast, or scrolling through YouTube shorts, remember that our identity as a Christian is not with any nation, ethnic group, or political persuasion. Jesus explicitly told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest.” (John 18:36) God has given us a citizenship in Heaven, and if we are to carry out the assignment that Jesus has for us today, we must be careful who we are listening to. That means taking serious time every morning, not just to have a little talk with Jesus, but to spend a sweet hour in prayer. As Jesus admonished his disciples we need to watch and pray because events may turn in a moment that could change a life for eternity.

Learning to Listen

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Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. James 1:19 NLT

I wrote this article a few years ago about listening in nursing home ministry, but it is just as applicable in other kinds of outreach and even within our own families (a good thought to carry as we plan on Thanksgiving gatherings!)

When my wife and I were learning Portuguese, from our friends at the Brazilian church where we served on staff, we had to learn be quiet and pay attention as people spoke. One fun way we found was to join in during worship time. As others were singing around us, we tried our best, a tiny bit at a time to join them with our own voices. Then, little by little, as we increased our vocabulary and improved our dreadful accents, we were able to enter into conversations with our friends.

I have discovered that same kind of listening is important in nursing home ministry. It does little good and sometimes much harm, to simply come in with all of my own ideas of what I think people need to hear. Life in long-term care, whether it is assisted living, memory care or a traditional skilled nursing facility is entirely different from living in the outside world. Just as when we were learning Portuguese, it is hard for most of us to be quiet long enough to hear what people are saying. In spite of the fact that we have two ears and one mouth, most of us find that talking is far easier than listening! But only listening long enough to know the hearts of others, will teach us how to share the message of the love of Jesus Christ in a language that they can understand. So, lets close our mouths tighter and open our ears wider and ask God to help us to listen. And most of all, remember that our God, the Great Creator, the Almighty, the all-knowing Eternal God, stoops low to listen to our prayers!