Then Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.And he said, Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
4 sermons cite this verse
… It came up, grew, and produced a crop, multiplying 30, 60, or even 100 times. Then Jesus said, he who has ears to hear, let him hear. Sounds careless, doesn't it? Sowing seed on the road and on an outcrop of rocks? My friend Louie is a farmer. He tells me that when a farmer is ready to plant, he programs into the computer exactly where he wants the seeds planted. For example, he programs in 24 rows with 30 inches between the rows. The computer and the GPS make sure that no seed is wasted. But Jesus was not telling this story about a careless farmer, but rather about the lavishness of God sowing his saving word. God doesn't look at whether someone will receive the word or not. St. Paul says God our Savior wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2 verse 4. So the sower scattering seed on all kinds of ground is not careless. It's the lavish love of God to get his saving word into every kind of heart. …
… You know, sometimes I wish that we all had hearing aids, spiritual hearing aids, so that when truth is heard, it makes an impact. Jesus said, he who has ears to hear, let him hear. Some hear, others listen. And as we said last time, there's a difference. I don't know if you are aware, but there's a theory, it's just a theory, that the shape of a person's ears will tell you a lot about their personality. So if you have big ears, you are calm, you are self-reliant, you are independent, you are courageous under pressure. If you happen to have small ears, you're an introvert. You're shy but disciplined. You're humble. If you have square ears, you're creative, peaceful, deeply empathetic. You know how to listen. If your shape is more rounded ears, you're loyal, sensitive, supportive. If you have pointed ears, you are Mr. Spock. No, I'm just kidding. If you have pointed ears, you're smart. You are detail-oriented, analytical. If your ears protrude, you're a non-conformist, quirky, and you hold unique views of life. That's just a theory. A part of that theory also is the size difference. They say if your right ear is larger than your left ear, you're the impulsive sort. If your left ear is larger. You're the cerebral type. You are intense in thought. Now, I see some of you looking at each other's ears. You're probably going to go home and do that in the mirror. But I have a question to leave with you. All that aside, what is the shape of the ears of your heart? I know that …
… there's a bit of a difference between just hearing something and really listening to something look at verse 9 and he said to them he who has ears to hear let him hear you're familiar with that many times that's when jesus told a parable he used that little phrase He who has ears to hear, let him hear. And you'll notice that corresponds with verse 3, where he begins by saying, listen. Listen. That's a commandment, by the way. It's in imperative, present imperative. So it's in the imperative mode, present tense. And better translated, be listening. Whenever Jesus says that, he is underscoring the importance of what he is about to say. That don't just hear it with your ears, a verbal articulation of a speaker, but really listen here. Listen in the heart. Take it to heart. Listen. In the Bible, listening is far more than just hearing sounds and apprehending those sounds. To the Hebrew mind, listening carries the idea of being ready to act on what you hear. …
… growing up and increasing and yielding 30-fold and 60-fold and 100-fold. And he said, he who has ears to hear, let him hear. So that's the story. And then a couple of verses later, he explains it. Listen to what he says. Jesus says, the sower sows the word. So that whole story is about God's word. And what happens? These are the ones along the path where the word is sown. when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. Did you catch that? When God's word is spoken, Satan is acting. He's working to take away God's word immediately. Don't miss this. The devil is doing this right now. Like in this very moment. Satan is working to distract so many of you right now He's tempting you to look at your phone Instead of listening to what God is saying right now He's tempting you to think about a million other things in your life Besides what God is saying right now He does not want you to hear the word of God He is trying to keep you from hearing And believing God's word That's straight from the mouth of Jesus. …